Volume 1
Taming Texas: How Law and Order Came to the Lone Star State
Written specifically for 7th-grade Texas history classes, this book shows students how the state’s court system fits into the larger picture of Texas history: its roots, heroes, growing pains, and milestones, from the days of early Spanish colonization to the present.
The book’s opening stories help students place themselves in an early Texas in which there was no law or order, and challenge them to think about how a society begins to organize itself. Subsequent stories show how laws were made and tested in the courts over the next 150 years, with an emphasis on the aspects of the Texas experience that are uniquely our own.
The book is written by noted Texas historian James L. Haley and Austin writer-editor Marilyn P. Duncan. About the authors.
The Taming Texas books are generously funded by the Fellows of the Texas Supreme Court Historical Society. Click here for a list of the TSCHS Fellows.
Book downloads: Taming Texas: How Law and Order Came to the Lone Star State
Volume 2
Taming Texas: Law and the Texas Frontier
The second book in the Taming Texas Series takes a closer look at how life on the frontier of Texas both shaped and was shaped by changing laws. Beginning with the claiming of El Paso by Spanish conquistador Don Juan Oñate in 1598 and ending with the closing of the Texas frontier in 1900, the book shows how the characters and events of Texas history were connected in important ways to the legal systems in place at each juncture. It also reveals what happened when the laws were not up to the task of protecting people, especially during the Civil War and Reconstruction.
Like the first book, Law and the Texas Frontier was coauthored by James L. Haley and Marilyn P. Duncan. About the authors.
The Taming Texas books are generously funded by the Fellows of the Texas Supreme Court Historical Society. Click here for a list of the TSCHS Fellows.
Book downloads: Taming Texas: Law and the Texas Frontier
Volume 3
Taming Texas: The Chief Justices of Texas
This third book in the Taming Texas Series tells the stories of the twenty-seven men and one woman who have served as Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court so far. The other two books in the series showed how Texas changed from an uncivilized frontier to the thriving state it is today with the help of a strong legal system. This book takes a closer look at those individuals who rose to the top of the system. Some held the Chief Justice position for many years, while others were short-timers. Their names are not as well known as other leaders throughout Texas history, but this book is a first step toward changing that.
Law and the Texas Frontier is coauthored by James L. Haley and Marilyn P. Duncan. About the authors.
The Taming Texas books are generously funded by the Fellows of the Texas Supreme Court Historical Society. Click here for a list of the TSCHS Fellows.
Book downloads: Taming Texas: The Chief Justices of Texas
Volume 4
Taming Texas: Women in Texas Law
The fourth Taming Texas book, published in 2023, focuses on the role that women have played in shaping Texas law from the frontier days to modern times. Empowered by the liberal property rights of Spanish civil law but hampered by the restrictions imposed by English common law, early Texas women faced unique challenges. It took many decades and many determined women to change the laws and attitudes that kept them from becoming lawyers, voting, running for and winning public office, serving as judges, serving on juries, owning their own businesses, and in other ways having equal legal rights with men. Their stories vary from the boldly courageous to the quietly inspirational.
Women in Texas Law is coauthored by James L. Haley and Marilyn P. Duncan, with a Foreword by Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Nathan L. Hecht. The Taming Texas books are generously funded by the Fellows of the Texas Supreme Court Historical Society. Click here for a list of the TSCHS Fellows.
Book downloads: Taming Texas: Women in Texas Law
Hardbound copies of Taming Texas books
Hardbound copies of Taming Texas books are available for purchase for $20 plus $5 postage, handling, and tax.
Did you know…
* that the first “lawyer” in Texas was an unnamed member of the Karankawa tribe who made a case for sparing the lives of Cabeza de Vaca and his men and won?
* that Texas women owe some important legal rights to Queen Isabella of Spain?
* that in the final years of frontier Texas, some notorious outlaws changed sides and became judges and lawmen?
* that Texas is one of only two states with two “supreme” courts?
These are just a few of the little-known facts about Texas history that fill this exciting book. The illustrations are awesome, too!