T.R. Fehrenbach Dead at 88

Noted Texas historian and journalist T.R. Fehrenbach died yesterday morning from a congenital heart condition, reports the San Antonio Express-News.

Fehrenbach was best known for his 1968 doorstopper, Lone Star: A History of Texas and the Texans, still widely taught. He boasted a stint heading the Texas Historical Commission and more than a dozen and half published nonfiction books on topics as diverse as the Korean War and the history of the Comanche people; he was also one of the Express-News’ senior-most columnists. Fehrenbach retired from the paper in August, ending his farewell column without too much fanfare: “The column that received the greatest response was about my cat, George, and the finest-crafted columns usually go out in the trash on Monday morning.”

As Maria Luisa Cesar put it in the Express-News’ obituary, his death has left “a Texas-size hole in the hearts of those touched by his storytelling and knack for breathing life into history.” Fehrenbach will be buried in the Texas State Cemetery – a fitting home for the historian, surrounded by his subjects.