Some festivals just can't be found anywhere else than in some specific corners of the Lone Star State. Whether you're a tourist in Texas or a born-and-raised local, there are a number of events in the upcoming weeks that can offer a particularly funky fall experience. Here are a few of them, as well as how they got to be a thing in the first place.
Cornyn: National Day of the Cowboy: Remembering the cowboys behind Lonesome Dove saga
Sen. John Cornyn
Special to the E-T
Keep your saddle oiled and your gun greased because the “National Day of the Cowboy” – the fourth Saturday in July – is finally here. This day celebrates the lasting legacies of the cowboys that pioneered the American West as they worked cattle, beginning after the Civil War in the heart of Texas.
If you’ve read or watched Lonesome Dove then you know the intrepid tale of the two retired Texas Rangers, Augustus Gus McCrae and W.F. Woodrow Call, who traveled from the Rio Grande in Texas to Montana in the 1870s driving a herd of stolen Texas Longhorns. These two men are the epitome of this holiday and helped define the American cowboy experience. Their story is widely regarded as one of the most realistic portrayals of the Wild West.