Kent's BlogSpot

In 1990s Dallas, country dancing wasn't just a pastime - it was a packed, fiercely competitive scene filling giant honky-tonks like Borrowed Money, Top Rail, and Billy Bob's Texas night after night, hungry for a teacher. That teacher was J.J. Jackson, a young mechanical engineer who stumbled onto a Push dance competition on a double date to the Fort Worth Stock Show and invented Swing on the Move / Progressive Country, the fast, traveling slot dance that became Progressive Double Two-Step. A must-read for two-step, swing and Texas country dance fans. Free download: Click the cover image above or scan the QR code below to download The Man Who Made Dallas Move and read it with Apple Books, Kindle or Google Play Books. Scan with your phone camera, or click here to download the EPUB .

Uncover the history of Copper Canyon, Texas, a Denton County town born from rolling Cross Timbers ranchland and neighborly determination. This free Copper Canyon history EPUB begins with the Chinn homestead and the 1858 Antioch chapel, then moves through the 1960 Denton County Land War to the town's 1973 incorporation. Meet the founders, the first mayor and marshal, and the volunteers who built the town hall, plus the Sam Bass hideout legend along Hickory Creek. Ideal for local-history readers, genealogists and anyone curious about how small Texas towns are made. Free download: Click the cover image above or scan the QR code below to download Copper Canyon History and read it with Apple Books, Kindle or Google Play Books. Scan with your phone camera, or click here to download the EPUB .

Read the classic first-hand account of early Denton County, Texas, in this free EPUB of Ed F. Bates' 1918 History and Reminiscences of Denton County. Bates, secretary of the Old Settlers' and Veterans' Association, gathers pioneer stories, Peters Colony settlements such as Bridges Settlement and Holford Prairie, the 1846 creation of the county and the courthouse fire of 1875. Chapters on schools, towns, county officers and old-settler rolls make it a goldmine for genealogists and Texas historians. Carry this foundational Denton County history on your phone, tablet or e-reader. Free download: Click the cover image above or scan the QR code below to download History and Reminiscences of Denton County by Edward Bates and read it with Apple Books, Kindle or Google Play Books. Scan with your phone camera, or click here to download the EPUB .

Follow Elisha and Mary Stowe Chinn from North Carolina to the Texas frontier in this free Chinn family history EPUB. It traces their 1854 purchase of 320 acres in Denton County, the 1858 log cabin first called Antioch, and the church and cemetery later known as Chinn's Chapel. Genealogists will find family connections, pioneer-era settings and the story of the family Bible now held at SMU's Bridwell Library. A must-have for Chinn descendants, Peters Colony researchers and anyone tracing Denton County roots. Free download: Click the cover image above or scan the QR code below to download Chinn Family History and read it with Apple Books, Kindle or Google Play Books. Scan with your phone camera, or click here to download the EPUB .

From an unplowed hill on Long Prairie to one of the fastest-growing towns in Texas, this free Flower Mound Texas history EPUB tells the full story. Read about the Peters Colony pioneers, the creation of Lake Dallas and Lake Grapevine, and Edward Marcus's Black Mark Farm, where a 1957 barbecue drew fashion royalty. Follow the 1961 incorporation vote, the ambitious Flower Mound New Town project and the campaign to save the Mound itself. A must-read for Denton County history fans, longtime residents and newcomers alike. Free download: Click the cover image above or scan the QR code below to download Flower Mound Texas History and read it with Apple Books, Kindle or Google Play Books. Scan with your phone camera, or click here to download the EPUB .

Explore the history of Bartonville, Texas, from the Chinn family's 1854 land purchase and the 1858 log church to the crossroads once known as Barton's Mills. This free Bartonville Texas history EPUB covers the old general store, the 1960 incorporation vote that answered Irving's annexation plans, and the court fights of the Denton County Land War. You will also meet the people who dissolved and reincorporated the town, and the community that brought its landmark store back to life. A great read for Denton County researchers, Cross Timbers neighbors and Texas history fans. Free download: Click the cover image above or scan the QR code below to download Bartonville Texas History and read it with Apple Books, Kindle or Google Play Books. Scan with your phone camera, or click here to download the EPUB .

Learn how Double Oak, Texas, got its name and its start in this free Double Oak Texas history EPUB. The story runs from the Chinn and Sublett pioneer families and Peters Colony land patents to the Double Oak School on McMakin Road, then to the 1974 incorporation led by Bill and Nettie Brittain, with early council meetings held in a barn and a restaurant. Discover the one-acre-lot vision, the Double Oak Gazette and the volunteer spirit that shaped this Denton County town. A fast, fascinating read for Cross Timbers residents and Texas history lovers. Free download: Click the cover image above or scan the QR code below to download Double Oak Texas History and read it with Apple Books, Kindle or Google Play Books. Scan with your phone camera, or click here to download the EPUB .

Discover the story of Argyle, Texas, from the Pilot Knob settlement of the 1870s to the railroad town that took shape in 1881. This free Argyle Texas history EPUB follows the 1895 fire, a cotton-gin fire that pushed farmers toward peanuts, and Harry Lee Harrell, the farmer-poet known as the Bard of Argyle. It also tells how Argyle fought to incorporate in 1960 during the Denton County Land War. Packed with names, dates and local lore, it is a must-read for Denton County history buffs, genealogists and anyone who loves the Cross Timbers. Free download: Click the cover image above or scan the QR code below to download Argyle Texas History and read it with Apple Books, Kindle or Google Play Books. Scan with your phone camera, or click here to download the EPUB .

Discover how a quiet stretch of Cross Timbers prairie became Highland Village, Texas, in this free Highland Village Texas history EPUB. Follow the Old Wagon Trail along today's FM 407, the Chinn pioneers and the ranch land that became Doubletree Ranch Park, plus the Clearwater Estates weekend cabins on Lewisville Lake. Learn why residents voted to incorporate in 1963 amid the Denton County Land War and how the city grew from a few hundred people to about 16,000. A smart read for history buffs, neighbors and anyone who calls Highland Village home. Free download: Click the cover image above or scan the QR code below to download Highland Village Texas History and read it with Apple Books, Kindle or Google Play Books. Scan with your phone camera, or click here to download the EPUB .

Travel from Holford Prairie in 1844 to a modern city of well over 100,000 in this free Lewisville Texas history EPUB. It covers the first cotton gin in Denton County, the 1881 railroad that moved the town to Old Town, the 1925 incorporation vote and a 1934 bank robbery tied to the Barrow Gang era. You will also read about the building of Lewisville Dam, the creation of Lewisville Lake and the 1969 Texas International Pop Festival. A lively guide for Denton County researchers, Lewisville residents and Texas history fans. Free download: Click the cover image above or scan the QR code below to download Lewisville Texas History and read it with Apple Books, Kindle or Google Play Books. Scan with your phone camera, or click here to download the EPUB .

Step back into the classroom of Omar Zuhdi, the Ancient Civilizations and Latin teacher whose lectures transported students straight into the past. This free EPUB preserves Kent Andrew Spencer's class notebook from Shawnee High School, 1982-83, covering Sumer, Ebla, Sargon of Akkad, Hammurapi, the Giza pyramids, the Amarna Revolution and Ramesses II, plus exams, essays and hand-colored maps. Omar was also a neighbor, and a visit to his home might find him reading Coptic, hieroglyphs, Greek, Latin, Hebrew, Akkadian or Sumerian cuneiform. A treasure for ancient history students, Latin learners and anyone who wishes they had sat in his class. Free download: Click the cover image above or scan the QR code below to download Omar Zuhdi Ancient Civilizations 1982-83 and read it with Apple Books, Kindle or Google Play Books. Scan with your phone camera, or click here to download the EPUB .

Meet Tim Anderson, a data analyst who keeps noticing that the numbers are wrong and keeps documenting it in his folder. It Was a Train: Six Tragic Farces from the Diary of a Data Analyst is dark, deadpan workplace satire, taking in a seven-student enrollment gap, a churn model that exists on a single PC and servers everyone swears are not a train. Every story is fiction inspired by real events, and every warning is ignored right up to the whistle. Download this free EPUB if you love corporate satire, office humor, whistleblower tales or data-analyst fiction. Free download: Click the cover image above or scan the QR code below to download It Was a Train: Six Tragic Farces and read it with Apple Books, Kindle or Google Play Books. Scan with your phone camera, or click here to download the EPUB .

Are we facing an AI crisis, or a workforce crisis? Why AI Is Necessary argues that reading, math and reasoning skills have declined or stalled on nearly every national measure while organizations quietly automate around the gap. Across five parts and 21 chapters, each pairing a workplace scene with the evidence, it draws on NAEP, PIAAC 2023, ACT results and the NEA's Reading at Risk reports. Download this free EPUB for a provocative look at AI, literacy, the future of work and the skills gap. Free download: Click the cover image above or scan the QR code below to download Why AI Is Necessary and read it with Apple Books, Kindle or Google Play Books. Scan with your phone camera, or click here to download the EPUB .