Texas History Notebook

“A Cowboy’s Thanksgiving”

remington.cowboy.thanksgiving

The poem below appeared in the El Paso Herald on December 4, 1911. It is unattributed.

Beautiful the sunshine pours over western plains,
And into little homes along the rugged mountain chains;
Thanks for this refulgent light in humble cottage cast,
That alleviates the burdens of a melancholy past.

My having to sorrow without one word,
And working in the stampede of the herd,
Makes me thankful for the peace and the rest
That come on Thanksgiving day in the west.

Thankful for the cattle’s large, appealing eyes,
And for my little home on the mountain’s gorgeous rise;
Thankful for the union of pleasure and sorrow,
And for the sunshine that will come on the morrow.

Thankful for the smile of little baby Ann,
Whose happy mother died with the year begin;
Thankful for the echoes of her voice in the breeze,
Where baby Ann listens and plays among the trees.

Thankful for the incentive to learn and advance,
And for those who have journeyed in this western expanse,
And for the privilege to be free and simple-
For my baby’s coiling curls and her glowing dimple.

— by A West Texas Cowpuncher

Amon Giles Carter (1879-1955)

Amon G. Carter is likely a familiar name to many people who are from North Texas. He was born in a log cabin to William Henry and Josephine Ream Carter in Crafton, Texas on December 11, 1879. Amon’s mother died when he was still an infant. His father was a blacksmith and a farmer. Due to the family’s financial situation, Amon left school and began working by doing odd jobs, whatever work he could find in Bowie, Texas. In his teenage years, he continued to move around a bit until he finally settled in North Texas.

Continue reading Amon Giles Carter (1879-1955)

Poem for Veterans Day

A Young Girl-To the Unknown Soldier

I was only a baby
When you went to war.
I knew nothing of the torturing fears
That war can bring.
And yet my heart aches for you-
And for your mother.
Tonight, remembering you,
I pray to God.
I beg a puzzled world
To have done without bitterness and misunderstanding.
I say again and again,
“Do not let my husband and son
Be torn from the tenderness
Of my arms.”
It is not a brave way of speaking.
No—
But I do not see the tragic splendor
Of your grave.
I see a woman’s heart weeping-
For you.”

–by Elise Betty Kauders

From time to time we will post items that do not directly have a Texas connection. The above poem by 18 year old Elise Betty Kauders was printed in the Lubbock Morning Avalanche in Lubbock, Texas on Armistice Day November 11, 1936 after being published in the November edition of Good Housekeeping in 1934. Several of her poems and book reviews had been published by the time she graduated from high school. Elise eloped and married Frederick Loeb in 1941. Frederick was later drafted during WWII and served in the U.S. Army in Italy. Elise tried to complete her college education several times but was interrupted by the Great Depression and for other reasons, but she finally got her college degree at the age of 50.

Doris Miller (1919-1943)

(Doris Miller poster in the World War II Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana)

Doris “Dorie” Miller was a true Texas hero. He was classified as a Navy Messman on December 7, 1941, serving on the USS West Virginia, a battleship. At the time, Messman was one of the few positions open to African American sailors. Miller was solidly built, carrying over 200 lb. on his 6’3” frame. He’d taken up boxing and was heavyweight champion of the West Virginia out of a crew of about 2,000. The West Virginia was on station in in Hawaii at Pearl Harbor. That morning, he woke at 0600, as was his custom. He served breakfast mess and was still below deck collecting soiled laundry when the first torpedo hit the West Virginia just before 0800. He heard and felt the explosion and immediately went to his battle station, an anti-aircraft gun near the heart of the ship.

Continue reading Doris Miller (1919-1943)

Charles Wiley Stanley, the Crime Doctor

Charles Stanley, not to be confused with the minister from Atlanta, lived in Abilene, Kansas and was in the entertainment business all his life. The opportunity presented itself for him to first rent and then purchase the so-called “Death Car” of Bonnie and Clyde.

Continue reading Charles Wiley Stanley, the Crime Doctor