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
High Country Ballads
FC 11 N-06
34
Howard L. Norskog
Under the Beaver Rim
Somewhere in the West: Texas Women Who Left a Legacy
FC 11 K-22
106
Linda Kirkpatrick
The Christmas Story
The kerosene lamp burned brightly all night in the window that faced to the south.
Arizona Herstory: Tales from Her Storied Past
FC 11 J-13
239
Dee Strickland Johnson
Journey to Turquoise Waters
I stood by the turquoise waters.
Breezy Western Verse
FC 11 A-11
19
James Barton Adams
The Ruin of Bobtail Bend
In the early day in our own wild way we hurried the time along.
freight, Western style, sinful, moral, booze, dance, railroad
More Cow Country
FC 11 E-05
124
Tom Ellinwood
The Non-Lookers
The mountain men all roamed around.
signs, map, directions
Spur Tracks & Buffalo Chips: Cowboy Verse and Country Chartling
FC 11 S-19
77
Bob Schild
Waterhole Will
"Howdy old podnuh, have one of these beers.
Hoofprints Through the Sage
FC 11 K- 27
12
E.J. Kirchoff
No Law Again It
When the sun goes down And the stars come out And the moon begins to shine, Gonna hit the trail and take a ride To see that gal of mine. And as we're strollin Hand in hand With her there by my side
The Humbler Poets: A Collection of Newspaper and Periodical Verse, 1870-1885
Slason Thompson
FC 11 T-04
264
author unknown
False and True
We grasp a hand, we think it true an strong,
Buck Ramsey, Texas Spirit
David Kelley
FOLK COLL 11 R-47
32
Mary Dalton Crump
Elegy To Buck Ramsey
Though hidden pain could blur his eyes, they still were bright as western skies.
memory, life, elegy
Whiff of the West
FC 11 W-06
67
Milo Wiltbank
Forever and Forever
He is gone but he will not be forgotten,
Poetic Works of Henry Lawson
David McKee Wright
FC 11 L-24
261
Henry Lawson
When There's Trouble on Your Mind
Now I do not want to bore you, or to take up too much time.
Cowboy Poetry
FC 11 S-20
38
Colen H. Sweeten Jr.
The Smell of Leather
About three score years ago,
Bitter Creek Junction
FC 11 H-32
60
Linda M. Hasselstrom
Calf Sleep
I close my eyes, opening them on the other side.
All This Way for the Short Ride
FC 11 Z-02
21
Paul Zarzyski
Buck
This December my horse died, I did not.
Cactus Center Poems
FC 11 C-06
86
Arthur Chapman
The Rattlesnake
No craven, thou, all silently to strike.
rattlesnake, snakebite cure, snake
Original Cowboy Poetry
FC 11 S-25
149
Colen H. Sweeten Jr.
This Old Barn
Could this old barn but find a way
Tumbleweeds and Corral Dust
FC 11 M-25
7
Vern C. Mortensen
Fall
Raucous caw of a crow on high, hung on ebony wings in an azure sky
autumn, seasons
Sawdust & Shavin's
FC 11 S-11
55
Shep Smith
Pooped, Pronged and Procrastinated
Got an iron injection the other day
Bronc to Breakfast and Other Poems
FC 11 L-23
69
Mike Logan
Christmas at the Line Camp
It's Christmas at the line camp.
Poems of American Cowboys & Nature
FC 11 C-04
12
Bob A. Carson
Teach With Kindness
You'll never know, just where a word of kindness will go.
kindness, teaching
For Cowboys, Campers an' Common Folk
FC 11 H-19
71
Charlie Hunt
Pinto Beans an' Bread
Fillin' out an application to get a job in town.
work, employment, food, poverty, money, ranch, Old Oleo, spread
What I Learned On the Way to Life: Insights and Concepts learned along the way..
FC 11 J-15
50
Hans "Jake" Jeppson
Mother Idaho--The Healing
In the dawn I rise, tired, stiff and sore -- my mind is rested and in pleasant thought, I wonder how best to use this gift of another day.
Between The Fences
FC 11 D-25
127
Danny W. Dutton
Whirlwind
Yellow pine, oak, and hickory reach for the sky, limbs outstretched and intertwined. Creating an image of a crowd of people whose elbows are tangled in a panic.
Scattered, Lasting Remnants: "Fine Lines" of Poetry and Song
Echo Klaproth
FC 11 K-25
58
Willard Hollopeter
About achin' and about breakin', about good horses and bad rides, about yearnin' and about learnin', and they talk about cowboy pride. (from "Cowboy Poetry Gathering"). When you're sortin' cattle, use some restraint when your sweetie is helpin', or you'll find she ain't. (untitled).
Poetry of Skinny Rowland, Complete Works to 1993
Skinny Rowland
FOLK COLL 11 R-49
43
Skinny Rowland
Winter in the Mountains
Up here in the mountains, the silent snow drifts down, and settles softly to the earth, making natures winter gown.
mountains, seasons, nature