Southwestern Collection

Readers familiar with Amon G. Carter probably tend to think of him as an older man, often donning Texas fashions like a cowboy hat and boots, such as in the photo that accompanies the article “‘For the Exclusive Benefit of Fort Worth’: Amon G. Carter, the Great Depression, and the New Deal” by Brian Cervantez in this issue of the Quarterly. But this photo from the Prints and Photographs Division of the Library of Congress shows a thinner, younger, and more serious side of the long-time Star-Telegram publisher, dressed more for the newsroom than the ranch.

Undated photo of Amon G. Carter, published by Bain News Service. LC-DIG-ggbain-38841, George Grantham Bain Collection, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

In Memoriam
By J. C. Martin

Kenneth B. Ragsdale, longtime staff member of TSHA and well known Texas historian, died on June 17, 2015, at the age of ninety-seven. From his early childhood in Troup, Texas, Ken had a passion for music. He earned a B.A. and an M.A. in music from the University of Texas at Austin in the late 1930s and discovered a talent for writing when working on the school’s student newspaper, The Daily Texan. Following graduation, he began a long and productive career in the Austin Independent School District’s music education department. During this period Ragsdale created a music program for elementary students to introduce them to music and musical instruments. He also formed his own big band, the Ken Ragsdale Orchestra, which enjoyed strong popularity for a number of years.

In the late 1960s, he decided to return to the University of Texas to pursue a Ph.D. in the other field for which he had a passion, Texas history. It was at this time that he went to work part-time at the Texas State Historical Association, serving as head of its Junior Historian program, thereby taking advantage of his public education experience.

While in graduate school, he discovered that very little research and writing had been done on the Big Bend area of Texas. This led to his dissertation, which was published in 1976 as Quicksilver: Terlingua and the Chisos Mining Company, and it soon became a basic source for the history of that part of Texas, remaining so today. The tremendous amount of unpublished material on the Big Bend led to a second book, Wings over the Mexican Border: Pioneer Military Aviation in the Big Bend, published in 1984. A third book on the subject came in 1998, Big Bend Country: Land of the Unexpected, which summarized his personal experiences in the area. All of his research and writing did not interfere with Ragsdale’s ambitious goals for the TSHA Education Department. The Junior Historians increased from 69 to 139 chapters with some 5,000 junior high and high school students and allowing them to hold their own annual meeting separate from the regular TSHA members.

In the 1930s Ragsdale made a trip to Dallas to witness the centennial celebrations for Texas independence. Decades later, the result was another book, The Year America Discovered Texas: Centennial ’36 (1987). With his lifelong fascination with aviation, it was natural for Ragsdale’s final book to be Austin, Cleared for Takeoff: Aviators, Businessmen and the Growth of the American City, which he published in 2004.

Having lived in the city of Austin during the period of its tremendous growth during the 1950s and 1960s, Ken and his wife Janet knew the development patterns and learned the real estate prospects of the entire city. Janet left state employment and started their own real estate company, which became highly successful and was the key to Ken’s freedom to research and write. Texas scholars have long recognized the value of his publications, but his work with students might well be his most lasting contribution.

Liz Carpenter Award Winner

We made a regretful omission from our list of award winners at the 2015 Annual Meeting. The Liz Carpenter Award for Research in the History of Women was won by...