Texas Folklore Society Extra Book – serie

Louisiana’s Neutral Strip, an area of pine forests, squats between the Calcasieu and Sabine Rivers on the border of East Texas. Early in its history, the region developed a reputation as a harsh frontier where grit and tenacity became indispensable tools of survival. During the Louisiana Purchase, bureaucrats from both Spain and the United States squabbled over the exact boundary line between the two rival powers. Both governments removed militia from the contested land to avoid war. Intensifying its reputation, the region served as an official buffer zone. Without the security of a military presence, residents quickly realized they would need to protect and govern themselves. Soon, tight-knit communities formed, and residents developed a reliance on self, kin, and neighbour. In the early 1900s, the timber boom sliced through the forests of East Texas and the former Neutral Strip, disrupting these dense communities. Mill towns sprang up, and the promise of money lured land speculators, timber workers, unionists, and a host of other characters, such as the outlaw Leather Britches Smith. The entrenched local residents soon confronted not only these new community members but also a dynamic cultural moment that struck a defining blow in the making of the region. That moment continues to shape the place’s cultural consciousness, and people fashion a lore connected to this time. In a fascinating exploration of the region, Keagan LeJeune unveils the legend of Leather Britches, paralleling the stages of the outlaw’s life to the Neutral Strip’s formation. LeJeune retells each stage of Smith’s life: his notorious past, his audacious deeds of robbery and even generosity, his rumored connection to a local union strike—the Grabow War—significant in the annals of labor history, and his eventual death. As the outlaw’s life vividly unfolds, the book also reveals the area’s history and cultural landscape. Often using the particulars of one small town as a representative example, the book explores how the region remembers and reinterprets the past in order to navigate a world changing rapidly. Drawing from newspapers, court records, and a decade of interviews and observation, LeJeune offers a penetrating examination of the interplay between legend and place, exploring Smith’s own life, this unique historical moment, and the place’s mysterious landscape. The book also considers how contemporary festivals and other forms of cultural heritage employ the legend as a cultural recourse. To stay vibrant and meaningful, culture constantly re-makes itself; here, the outlaw occupies a vital role in the re-creation. “LeJeune uses a very unusual approach blending historical records and accounts, oral histories, historiography, and folkloric methods to tell the story of the Sabine Strip between Louisiana and Texas, and the legend of an outlaw named ‘Leather Britches Smith.’ He displays a wealth of information about western central Louisiana and the historiography of the region.”—Gary D. Joiner, author of Through the Howling Wilderness: The 1864 Red River Campaign and Union Failure in the West. “This book reminds us that Louisiana west of the Mississippi was part of the western frontier. Few know that Pat Garrett grew up in Louisiana and that Jim Bowie was from there. Leather Britches Smith is destined to take a place in the pantheon of western characters. Always for the Underdog will be of interest to all those who are fascinated with the American outlaw-hero.”—Barry Ancelet, author of Cajun and Creole Folktales. “Based on my experience teaching introductory folklore college courses, I know that students have trouble understanding what a legend is. LeJeune’s book would make an excellent text because he takes the reader step by step through the evolution of the Leather Britches legend, in a clear and simple way that beginning students would easily grasp.”—Lee Winniford, author of Following Old Fencelines

El Charro , or man on horseback, has represented the spirit of independent Mexico since he played an important role in the 1821 revolution. He is the Mexican version of the American cowboy, only much older, arising from the ranch culture first brought to Mexico by the Spanish. The Charreada is his rodeo, his opportunity to show off both his skills with rope and horse and his decorative, elegant costume. It is at the center of Mexican heritage and self-image, a source of mythology and genuine heroes that has been brought to Texas by immigrants. And since 1989, it has included women, charras, who participate in elaborate and difficult riding formations. San Antonio photographer Al Rendon has taken this ideal subject for the camera and created a collection of splendid sepia photographs reproduced in duotone. The photos juxtapose the grit of the arena with the poise and polish of the charros, charras, and their horses. The essays, by Julia Hambric, Bryan Woolley, and F. E. Abernethy, describe the history of the charreada and its roots in Mexican culture. Hambric’s essay also details the costumes and events prescribed by tradition and the Federacion Nacional de Charro. Together, this is a unique examination of an important part of Mexico’s heritage.

Folktales from the Helotes Settlement is a collection of personal memories from the Folklore Society’s longest active member, who first joined more than fifty years ago. Here we find legends, customs, and beliefs of the people of the Helotes Settlement near San Antonio. These stories capture the lore of a place similar to lots of other places—our places. They’re familiar to us all because, when we get right down to it, the Helotes Settlement is not very different from wherever we’re from.

This collection of columns from the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal is Texas Folklore Society Extra Book #27.  The editorial columns included herein tell stories, and tell about telling stories. They also reflect boyhood dreams...and foolishness, fears, beliefs, customs, traditions, and sometimes things that are no longer part of our culture but we wish were. All reflect what was - and for many, still is - important. If 'the traditional knowledge of a culture' is how we define what folklore is, this volume provides an intimate look at the folklore of Lubbock, Texas, and the greater area of the South Plains.You don't have to be an avid reader of the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, or even be from Lubbock or know where Moran is to relate to the issues covered in these pieces.