Online Genealogy Class, May 5th 2012

   The Emily Fowler Library Special Collections Dept. will be presenting a class on Online Genealogy research and resources this coming Saturday, May 5th at 10am. Join us for this informative program about how to get the most out of your genealogy research using online resources. This class is free as always but, please call (940) 349-8752 to register.

Epperson Family

In The Weeds 4/22/12: Postcards From The Hedge

   We have some ancient postcards here in the Special Collections Department that you might enjoy seeing. Two of the buildings depicted are gone, the others are still in existence, albeit altered physically or their names have been changed perhaps. You’ll notice that some of the postcards have names on them, but no addresses. I’ll let you figure out which one’s are gone and where and what the others are. Some are easy, a couple-not so much. Click on the picture for full view and write your guesses/answers in the “reply” box at the end of this blog post. Ready, Set….Go!

 

Miss Emily’s JukeJoint 3.29.12: Earl

    Few musicians are able to revolutionize how their instrument is played and Earl Scruggs was one. He belongs in that category of rare species that mark a point in the evolution of an instrument where you can say there’s a ”Before” and an “After” along with Charlie Christian on electric guitar, Jaco Pastorius on electric bass, Coleman Hawkins on tenor sax, Clarence White on flatpicking acoustic guitar, etc.

 

Lester and Earl

Earl passed away on March 28, 2012 at the age of 88. We have his music here at the Denton Public Library and of course there are great videos on YouTube- specifically look for parts of the great documentary from about ’71-’72 when he formed a band with his sons and featuring a few folks named Dylan, Monroe, McGuinn, Doc, etc. Highly recommended!

Miss Emily’s JukeJoint, 3.15.12: Satan Is Real

    The Louvin Brothers, Ira and Charlie, have been called one of the most influential duos in Country Music. And, as so often happens with brothers who collaborate, they fought like dogs but made moving sounds. Yin-yang. I just finished Charlie’s autobiography “Satan is Real”, completed shortly before his death at age 83 in 2011. Here is the cover in full pulp fiction glory:

Pulp Louvin

Pretty cool idea for a book cover: make it look like a dime store pulp fiction novel and base it on one of the cheesiest, classic album covers of all time. The thing is, its all true and reiterates my belief that reality is oftentimes stranger than fiction and more powerful because of it.

   Charlie may have followed a straighter path than Ira’s womanizing, alcoholic one, but his storytelling pulls no punches both in language and subject matter. The reader gets a good sense of their hardscrabble upbringing, life on the road, and the volatile nature of their relationship. In full Nudie suit glory: Ira on the left, Charlie on the right-

Nudie Louvins

We naturally have some examples of their work and Charlie’s at the Denton Public Library and more Louvin goodness can be found on Youtube, such as this: That Great Atomic Power

Posted by Chuck

War of 1812 Ancestors; March 17th at 3pm. Emily Fowler Library

  Join us on Saturday March 17th at 3pm for a special program about researching your veteran ancestors from the War of 1812. This year marks the 200th anniversary of what many call the “Second American Revolution” and our program will be presented by Kathy Strauss, Librarian in the Special Collections Dept. at the Emily Fowler Library, 502 Oakland St Denton, Tx 76201. Call 940-349-6813 for more information. This program is free and will last approximately two hours.

War of 1812 American Line

In The Weeds 2/20/12: Sam’s Own Jockey

     Welcome to “In The Weeds”, a new feature for the DPL blog where we’ll look at local history through our awesome archival assemblage here in the Special Collections Department at the Emily Fowler Library. What does “in the weeds” mean? For our purposes, my definition would be: “deeply distracted by details” or “overwhelmed with oddities”. To be in the weeds when you love History with a capitol “H” as I do, is not something to be feared. So, without further adooo…

 

 

A while back I mentioned that Denton County’s outlaw history will be mined for years to come. Well, time has come and I’m about to do some mining…   

 Last week we received an inquiry in the Special Collections Department here at the Emily Fowler Library for an image of the famous “Denton Mare”, Jenny, from a man who said his grandfather rode the horse for notorious Denton County outlaw Sam Bass. Unfortunately, no picture exists as far as we know, having consulted also with local historian Alec Williams whose family goes back to Denton’s earliest days.

 

What was the Denton Mare, you ask? Apparently, Sam Bass raced horses before he went into the outlaw business and the Mare was eventually sold. The man’s grandfather was one “John A. Hudson” and, although we could not find that picture of the Mare, we did find the following documents:

 

Death Certificate

 

 

 

Hudson Obit, 1936 DRC

You can read much more about The Denton Mare and Bass here , here and here. There is also a fictionalized account of Bass’ life entitled The Denton Mare. You will see in your research how involved he was in the lives of Sheriff Egan’s family (yes, the same at the Denton street) and other law enforcement officials in Denton and surrounding counties before he “went bad”.

 

     In my Bass research, I also discovered that he was immortalized in song:

A local performance can be seen here by a member of Denton band TrebucheT and a more traditional performance by the great Alan Lomax.

Information on Tap: Home Brewing at the Emily Fowler Library

 This coming Saturday November 19th the Emily Fowler library, 502 Oakland St, Denton, Tx will host a home brewing program featuring the Ass- Helaf Brew Club starting at 3pm. This event is free and open to the public. Our guests are award-winning recipients at the Bluebonnet Brew-Off and will discuss how to make a good brew. For more information call Chuck at 940-349-8746.

Amber Goodness

New Non-Fiction Audiobooks

Here is the new Non-Fiction audiobooks that have come in recently. Click the title and it will take you to our catalog.


American Rose: a nation laid bare : the life and times of Gypsy Rose Lee



Zombie spaceship wasteland: a book



Battle hymn of the tiger mother



Fresh air with Terry Gross. Just for laughs; interviews with 18 stars of comedy.



My father at 100