Temple Big Thicket Series

Vol. 6: The Big Thicket Guidebook: Exploring the Backroads and History of Southeast Texas

Published: October, 2011  Pages: 848  Features: 100 illus. 16 maps. Bib. Index.

Start your engines and follow the backroads, the historical paths, and the scenic landscape that were fashioned by geologic Ice Ages and traveled by Big Thicket explorers as well as contemporary park advocates–all as diverse as the Big Thicket itself. From Spanish missionaries to Jayhawkers, and from timber barons to public officials, you will meet some unusual characters who inhabited an exceptional region. The Big Thicket and its National Preserve contain plants and animals from deserts and swamps and ecosystems in between, all together in one amazing Biological Crossroad. The fifteen tours included with maps will take you through them all. more... about The Big Thicket Guidebook: Exploring the Backroads and History of Southeast Texas

Vol. 5: Big Thicket Plant Ecology: An Introduction, Third Edition

Published: October, 2006  Pages: 152  Features: 8 fig. 15 maps. 20 illus. Bib. Index.

Originally published in 1979, Geraldine Ellis Watson’s Big Thicket Plant Ecology is now back in print. This updated edition explores the plant biology, ecology, geology, and environmental regions of the Big Thicket National Preserve. more... about Big Thicket Plant Ecology: An Introduction, Third Edition

Vol. 4: Saving the Big Thicket: From Exploration to Preservation, 1685-2003

Published: July, 2004  Pages: 272  Features: 5 maps. 25 illus. Notes. Bib. Index. Open Access

Saving the Big Thicket: From Exploration to Preservation, 1685-2003 is now available as a free e-book at the UNT Digital Library. more... about Saving the Big Thicket: From Exploration to Preservation, 1685-2003

Vol. 3: Reflections on the Neches: A Naturalist's Odyssey along the Big Thicket's Snow River

Published: October, 2013  Pages: 376  Features: 16 b&w photos. 29 line drawings. 20 maps. Index.

New in Paperback: Reflections on the Neches is the story of a sixty-three-year-old woman who builds a backwater boat and journeys down the Neches River in East Texas, telling both the story of her river float trip and the natural history and folklore of the region. The Neches, one of the last “wild” rivers in Texas, is now being subjected to dams. Watson’s story captures the wildness of the river and imparts a detailed history of its people and wildlife. Profusely illustrated with maps, drawings, and photographs, it will appeal to all interested in the Big Thicket region and those indulging a feeling of wanderlust—and float trips—down the river. more... about Reflections on the Neches: A Naturalist's Odyssey along the Big Thicket's Snow River

  • Texas Institute of Letters Carr P. Collins Award, runner-up, 2004

Vol. 2: Big Thicket Legacy

Published: October, 2002  Pages: 256  Features: 42 b&w photos. 1 map.

Back in print. more... about Big Thicket Legacy

Vol. 1: Tales from the Big Thicket

Published: February, 2002  Pages: 256  Features: 89 b&w photos. 3 maps. Index.

“According to stories about the place, there is no telling what a man might come across, in the shape of man or beast, if he wanders deep enough into the woods.” —from the Introduction more... about Tales from the Big Thicket