The Origins of whites in Houston (Dallas, Beaumont: home, authority, rated)

[SouthernBoy205]

Originally Posted by detachable arm

Lots of Cajun restaurants in Dallas. Also alligator hunting is strong in Florida and south Arkansas. Just sayin’.

But Dallas is not on Houston’s level of restaurants. Austin does too. Houston has the history with and the proximity to Cajuns. I’m done with this.

[SouthernBoy205]

Originally Posted by cBach

I've heard people say this but it keeps expanding.

In the 1970's for instance, there was no Mardi Gras in Galveston, Saint Louis, or Seattle.

Now those cities have Mardi Gras celebrations. Even Austin has a large Mardi Gras celebration on 6th Street.

The fact is that people really like the Cajun culture. People visit Louisiana just to see it. They eat gumbo, they go to Mardi Gras, they walk the French Quarter. I don't see that going away anytime soon and if anything expanding.

I heard after Katrina that Atlanta started getting in on the Cajun culture as well as lots of Katrina folks settled there. They were primarily black but they are "Creoles" in the sense they like gumbo, crawfish, and the Saints even if their DNA wasn't necessarily Creole.

Lol. I really don’t see the Cajun culture minimizing here. I just said that.

[Smash XY]

Largest ancestry according to 2012-2016 American Community Survey in 2016:


- German: 5.2 %
- American: 4.1 %
- English: 3.9 %
- Irish: 3.7 %
- Italian: 1.6 %
- French: 1.6 %


Considering that people who cite American ancestry are usually folks who are mostly of British ancestry dating back to the colonial days, I'd say most whites in Houston comes from the British Isles and Germany

[cBach]

Originally Posted by Smash XY

Largest ancestry according to 2012-2016 American Community Survey in 2016:


- German: 5.2 %
- American: 4.1 %
- English: 3.9 %
- Irish: 3.7 %
- Italian: 1.6 %
- French: 1.6 %


Considering that people who cite American ancestry are usually folks who are mostly of British ancestry dating back to the colonial days, I'd say most whites in Houston comes from the British Isles and Germany

Again, these are self reported. The only way to really know is to do a DNA test.

The DNA test results (I posted earlier) show that Houston was settled by folks primarily from the mid South, which was primarily English/British stock.

The state origin which shows "culture" instead of ancestry shows that most people in SE Texas came from Louisiana (actually born there). They may not have had Cajun DNA but they had Cajun culture.

[tstone]

Originally Posted by cBach

The state origin which shows "culture" instead of ancestry shows that most people in SE Texas came from Louisiana (actually born there). They may not have had Cajun DNA but they had Cajun culture.

Yes, in the mid 1800's according to the map posted. But as we all know, things have changed dramatically since then.

[cheryjohns]

Originally Posted by Jack Lance

I have never tried crawfish, I used to catch them all the time when I was a kid (we called them crawdads). I would gather hundreds after a rain when they would come out of their holes. I gave them away to somebody I think or maybe my Aunt just poured them back into the rain water.

I remember in the 80's I had a friend who used to swear how great Boudin and Dirty rice was, I never ate that stuff either. I lost track of that friend and never heard anybody else talk about Boudin or dirty rice. I have tried the Zatarains but that's a national name brand. I do like a good shrimp gumbo but that's about it.

Cajun cooking has been big nationwide for a long time, remember the blackened redfish craze? Sure there are more folks from Louisiana in Houston than most other large cities but it's ridiculous to say that somehow makes Houston a Cajun city. We're name after the guy who invented Texas for goodness sakes.

BTW Google "New York Crawfish Festivals" and you will get a lot of hits. Crawfish is a fad nationwide and I'm confident that fad will fade with time because crawfish are just more hassle than their worth...


BTW This is all totally off topic...

Jack, you know I love you, but you just dissed Cajun food. Cajun cooking is the true American cooking: a melting pot (no pun intended) of African, Spanish, Caribbean, Italian, French, Canadian Arcadian, French and Native American.

I agree that crawfish are a little hassle - but look on the bright side - maybe it's like celery, burns up more calories than it adds. A box of Zatarains is no substitute for the real thing.

After a dozen or so of trips to New Orleans, I started looking for other things to do there other than Bourbon Street - and attended LOTS of cooking classes over time.

[Jack Lance]

Originally Posted by cheryjohns

Jack, you know I love you, but you just dissed Cajun food. Cajun cooking is the true American cooking: a melting pot (no pun intended) of African, Spanish, Caribbean, Italian, French, Canadian Arcadian, French and Native American.

I agree that crawfish are a little hassle - but look on the bright side - maybe it's like celery, burns up more calories than it adds. A box of Zatarains is no substitute for the real thing.

After a dozen or so of trips to New Orleans, I started looking for other things to do there other than Bourbon Street - and attended LOTS of cooking classes over time.

Chery I'm afraid I'm going to pi$$ you off some more now. When I think of American cuisine I think of meatloaf and the good ole full plate of a meat, vegetable, and of course a starch served with a roll and iced tea perhaps, and I like that. I'm not a fan of spicy food in general, it irritates me for instance that people are constantly trying to put jalapeno peppers into every damn thing. I always buy mild picante.

I know Cajun food is big, but it's big everywhere not just Houston. I don't know of one native Cajun who believes Houston's Cajun food scene is anything more than adequate, a reminder of the real thing back home. So for this reason I dispute that Houston has any real cultural ties to Cajun culture other than a proximity to Louisiana .

Do you still love me now, I love you...

[tstone]

Originally Posted by Jack Lance

I know Cajun food is big, but it's big everywhere not just Houston. I don't know of one native Cajun who believes Houston's Cajun food scene is anything more than adequate...)

Agree 100%. I'm a Houston native but don't have a drop of Cajun in me, and can tell you Houston's Cajun (restaurant) food is 2nd rate. Sometimes I wonder why they even call certain items or even restaurants "Cajun", but realize they stay open because most people don't know any better.

The real deal starts in Port Arthur / Bridge City / Orange and stops short before you hit New Orleans. That goes for restaurants, homemade items, etc. I spent 5 years in that part of the world, where the recipes are still genuine and not so obviously Mexicanized or missing 3 layers of flavor. I miss that stuff terribly and have driven many miles from different burbs to the hoods, using suggestions from this board to try to find an equivalent but haven't found it yet..... (And now I'm stuck in the Pittsburgh area for awhile where it isn't even a thing here.)

Someone earlier mentioned Cajun restaurants in Dallas and I agree there is no shortage of them up there too. However those are unbelievably bland.

[cBach]

Originally Posted by tstone

Agree 100%. I'm a Houston native but don't have a drop of Cajun in me, and can tell you Houston's Cajun (restaurant) food is 2nd rate. Sometimes I wonder why they even call certain items or even restaurants "Cajun", but realize they stay open because most people don't know any better.

The real deal starts in Port Arthur / Bridge City / Orange and stops short before you hit New Orleans. That goes for restaurants, homemade items, etc. I spent 5 years in that part of the world, where the recipes are still genuine and not so obviously Mexicanized or missing 3 layers of flavor. I miss that stuff terribly and have driven many miles from different burbs to the hoods, using suggestions from this board to try to find an equivalent but haven't found it yet..... (And now I'm stuck in the Pittsburgh area for awhile where it isn't even a thing here.)

Someone earlier mentioned Cajun restaurants in Dallas and I agree there is no shortage of them up there too. However those are unbelievably bland.

Houston has Dallas beat in Cajun restaurants. Cajun in Dallas: Pappadeux, Cajun in Houston: local mom and pop relocated from Beaumont or Lake Charles...

[cheryjohns]

I understand that we have seriously gone off topic, but:
I agree about the restaurants being so-so. I have cooked my own for a couple of decades, so I don't go to the restaurants here anymore. The best ones are in small towns in Louisiana and the non-tourist areas in New Orleans. In the Quarter, they become surprisingly bland - I guess to cater to tourists from Minnesota and Idaho, they watered them down. I may have to research the mom and pop places here more.