FOLK COLLECTION 11: The Skaggs Foundation Cowboy Poetry Collection
Folk Coll 11 is Utah State University's cowboy poetry collection. The collection, originally created
by a generation donation by the L. J. and Mary Skaggs Foundation, includes books gathered
during a fieldwork project in the early 1980s to document cowboy poetry in the U.S. west (see Folk
Coll 11f). From this important fieldwork project came the impetus for the first Cowboy Poetry Gathering held in
January 1985 in Elko, Nevada. Since that time, each January, the Fife Folklore Archives staff take the collection
and Access database (that details each book, poem, author, first line and key words), to the National Cowboy Poetry
Gathering for offsite use. Through University purchases and generation donations from poets and collectors, this collection continues to grow.
Book Title
Composer
Call #
Pages
Author
Poem Title
First Lines
Keywords
Missouri Cowboy Poetry
Leroy Watts
FC 11 M-46
175
John D. "Jay" Jones
The Cowboy and the Camel
The young cub reporter
Between Earth and Sky - Poets of the Cowboy West
Anne Heath Widmark
FC 11 B-40
164
Henry Real Bird
Among Shootin' Stars
Sold bronc saddle foreclosed cows.
Hidden Trails
FC 11 C-21
4
Austin Corcoran
My Notebook
Tonight, as I leaf through my notebook.
friendship
Piled Higher and Deeper on the Cariboo Trail
FC 11 P-36
16
Mike Puhallo
A Full Moon in April
Green grass and budding trees, the damp-earth smell of springtime on a gentle southern breeze.
The Lonesome Cowboy Songs of the Plains and Hills
FC 11 W-20
22
John White and George Shackley
Sam Bass
Sam Bass was born in Indiana, it was his native home
Blood Writing
Sean Sexton
FOLK COLL 11 S-75
3
Sean Sexton
Time
In my life, there have always been cattle. Year in, year out, there hides a calendar written with fire.
cattle, generations, time
Prairie Wife
Elizabeth Ebert
FC 11 E-20
80
The Day After Christmas
'Twas the day after Christmas But it looked a lot more Like an occupied village Right after a war. Wrecked toys on the carpet And there by the wall The remains of a priceless imported doll.
Bell-Bottoms to Boots
FC 11 W-07
134
Joe "Blackie" Wilson
Poppies or Rats"
He was glary eyed and pale, and on his way to jail--
Bugles are sweet to listen to and flags are pretty to see But I am giving a picture of war to you that a madman gave to me. (Rod Tailin' Blackie)
Cow Camp Poetry: How it was writ, a lot of truth, and a little B.S.
FC 11 W-35
31
Jack Williams
Little runnen bear
To Zeb and Windy, a little brave was born in Cheyene camp on the Little Big Horn
Western Poems
FC 11 R-02
14
Col. Charles D. Randolph "Buckskin Bill"
Buckskin Bill to Pawnee Bill
The hostile tribe of Indians.
Rhymes of a Rolling Stone
FC 11 S-63
26
Robert Service
Sunshine X
For weeks, for months I have not seen the sun; The minatory dawns are leprous pale; The felon days malinger one by one; How like a dream Life is! how vain! how stale!
Muddled Meanderings in an Outhouse
FC 11 R-11
58
Bob Ross
It Ain't Worth It
Just look at the frost that's on that log--
Alaska-Yukon Favorites
FOLK COLL 11 S-78
20
Larry Beck
Alaska's Gold Dust Twins
Born to Earth in a double birth were John and Simon Mason as miners bold they searched for gold in the giant Yukon basin.
death, brothers, love, searching
Rodeo Fever: A Collection of Poems Capturing the Spirit of Rodeo
FC 11 R-01
54
Tom Raley
Question 'n Answer
So you want to know why we do it...
Regarding the Others
FOLK COLL 11 E-24
17
Maria Lisa Eastman
High Country Herd
Late at night a boy works below in the basement. A single bulb lights what he shapes.
ranch, broncs, songs
Sun and Saddle Leather
FC 11 C-12
176
Charles Badger Clark
The Buffalo Trail
Deeply the buffalo trod it.
buffalo, bison
Reflections of the West: Cowboy painters and poets
C.J. Hadley
FC 11 H-59
120
Red Steagall
The Memories in Grandmother's Trunk
They came in a wagon from St. Jo, Missouri. Grandmother was seven years old.
camp, dream, moon, car, wagon
Breezy Western Verse
FC 11 A-11
33
James Barton Adams
Say It Now
If you've anything good to say of a man don't wait till he passes away.
Wind Songs
FC 11 R-43
12
Norman Edward Rourke
The Cotton Sack
The cotton sack grew heavy as She pulled along the row, Her back was bent to the sun With all its blazing glow.
Buckaroo: Visions and Voices of the American Cowboy
Hal Cannon and Thomas West
FC 11 C-38
17
Buck Ramsey
The Bass Singer
A kid from a poor family never feels more highly regarded than when there is a death in the family.
One Man of a Kind
FC 11 B-17
18
Everett Brisendine
The Sleepered Bull of Beaver Canyon
In Arizona's rugged mountains.
Beaver Creek, Arizona, Beaver Canyon, wild cows, Sleepered Bull, calf, bull, branding
"Pull Your Hat Down and Come-a-Ridin'!": Photos and Ridin' Rhymes
FC 11 K-14
28
Gayle S. Klein
"Camp Jack"
Most cowboys need a little grub now and again, To help 'em hay and face the North wind.
Remuda Dust
FC 11 E-11
54
Fred Engel
The Camping Trip
She said, "Let's go camping in the middle of the week.
Old Stories
FC 11 K-26
10
Jo Lynne Kirkwood
Eulogy
She married her a cowboy and so she followed where he'd go from Wyoming to Nevada, wherever the wind would blow.
The Outhouse Reader: More Cowboy Poetry by Chip O'Brien
FC 11 O-05
34
Chip O'Brien
Ol' Second Cousin Joe