Earth's global surface temperature in 2025 was slightly warmer than 2023, but within the margin of error. Since record-keeping began in 1880, the hottest year on record remains 2024.

Tram Tours every Saturday and Sunday at 2:00 p.m. Enjoy a 60 – 90-minute tour along Wildlife Drive at the Refuge. Enjoy learning about the history of the displaced town of Hagerman while watching for wildlife. Lots of stops for birdwatching and photography. Reservations required. Standbys are accepted if space permits.

Help us celebrate 100 years of Black History Month! Make plans to join us for a special opening reception on Friday, February 6 from 5:00-7:00 p.m. Artwork is due February 5.

Born in Bonham on April 2, 1908, Addison Bailey was the son of Annie Brandon and Bonham mayor Leonard Bailey. He was an accompanist to singer Eddie Davis of Leon and Eddie’s Night Club (a speakeasy turned restaurant and bar after the end of Prohibition in 1933) in New York City, NY, from 1930-1942, served in the China-Burma-India Theatre as part of Major General Claire Chennault’s Headquarters Staff in Kunming, China and went on to tour as an accompanist to Ethel Merman after the war photos courtesy of Fannin County Museum of History

Asher Oaks, a nearly 27-acre community, will feature modern homes and neighborhood amenities, providing small-town living with regional connectivity; construction begins this month.

1952 – Elizabeth II becomes Queen of the United Kingdom and her other Realms and Territories and Head of the Commonwealth upon the death of her father, George VI. At the exact moment of succession, she was in a tree house at the Treetops Hotel in Kenya. Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during her lifetime and was the monarch of 15 realms at her death. Her reign of 70 years and 214 days is the longest of any British monarch, the second-longest of any sovereign state, and the longest of any queen regnant in history. Elizabeth was born in Mayfair, London, during the reign of her paternal grandfather, King George V. She was the first child of the Duke and Duchess of York (later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother). Her father acceded to the throne in 1936 upon the abdication of his brother Edward VIII, making the ten-year-old Princess Elizabeth the heir presumptive. She was educated privately at home and began to undertake public duties during the Second World War, serving in the Auxiliary Territorial Service. In November 1947, she married Philip Mountbatten, a former prince of Greece and Denmark. Their marriage lasted 73 years until his death in 2021. They had four children: Charles, Anne, Andrew, and Edward. When her father died in February 1952, Elizabeth, then 25 years old, became queen of seven independent Commonwealth countries: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, and Ceylon, as well as head of the Commonwealth. Elizabeth reigned as a constitutional monarch through significant political changes such as the Troubles in Northern Ireland, devolution in the United Kingdom, the decolonisation of Africa, and the United Kingdom's accession to the European Communities as well as its subsequent withdrawal. The number of her realms varied over time as territories gained independence and some realms became republics. As queen, Elizabeth was served by more than 170 prime ministers across her realms.