Panola College professor appointed Texas State Historian

Longtime history professor and renowned non-fiction writer Bill O’Neal has been named Texas State Historian, a job that will carry him across the state as ambassador of what he described the “richest and most colorful history” among all the 50 U.S. states.

O’Neal, 70, of Carthage, was appointed to the position by Texas Governor Rick Perry, who administered an oath of office at the state capitol in Austin on Wednesday.

“I am thrilled to be named to this position,” O’Neal said. ”It’s not a paying job, it is an honorary position, but as it turns out, a very busy one.”...