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
The Adventures of Ole and Andy
FOLK COLL 11 A-26
40
Clarence "Andy" Anderson
Ole Creates a Hailstorm
I once had a very weedy wheat field. Ole said it was because I was a poor farmer. I blamed it on the weather. This weedy field worried Ole.
hail, insurance, truth
The Spell of the Yukon and Other Verses
FC 11 S-43
115
Robert W. Service
Comfort
Say! You've struck a heap of trouble.
Cowboy Poetry: Contemporary Verse by Duke Davis
Janice and Mason Coggin
FC 11 D-10
173
Duke Davis
Hey Grandpa
Hey Grandpa, let's go down to the barn and do some ropin'.
A Little Bit of Texas: A Collection of Original Poetry
FC 11 N-10
99
Rod Nichols
Miss Russell
Miss Russell had paused just a moment.
store, dragged, stranger
Sawdust & Shavin's
FC 11 S-11
49
Shep Smith
Mr. Dear Big John Wayne: (You old son-of-a-witch)
Dry Crik Review (Elko Commemorative Double Issue): winter/spring 1994, 2 copies
John C. Dofflemyer
FC 11 D-20
37
Shadd Piehl
Buffalo Bull Spring Song
Alongside you (And no other) I have stood And followed For ten days Roaming the earth. For ten days!
Confessions of A Cowboy Poet
FC 11 C-52
77
Bob Christensen
The New Stain
It was getting close to roundup in the autumn of the year so the parson staged a social, he even barbecued a steer. Ever body was invited, even summer haying crews and he fed them 'till they foundered but he drew the line with booze.
Up Sims Creek, The Third Trip
FOLK COLL 11 N-18
139
Rod Nelson
It's advisable to be prepared for summer tornado season
It is hard to believe it is August in Sims, North Dakota. Every hill is green to the top. We are seeing more grass and hay than we have seen for years. Haying has been slow with the frequent rains, but who dares to complain?
tornado, preparation, damage
I Am Not A Cowboy
FC 11 Z-04
34
Paul Zarzyski
The Day The War Began
I fed the dog and he was glad, a bald eagle lit in the red willows ignited by a sinking winter sun, and prairie chickens swept low in squadrons
corn, warning, missile, love, Rod McQueary, Bill Jones, Joel Nelson
Former Denver Humorist and Poet is Dead: Biography of James Barton Adams
FC 11 A-15
3
The Mecca
James Barton Adams
From: The Mecca, 3 February 1900
Cowboy Poetry: A Gathering
Hal Cannon
FC 11 C-14
156
Drummond Hadley
Gathering Cattle in the Deer tracks Pasture
No wind, still the dry side-oat's stems are swaying.
Frost On The Fork Handle and Other Selected Verse
FC 11 G-25, 2 copies
21
Betty Lynne Grue
A Measure Of Virtue
From the frothy milk steam rises on chilly mornings steeped in frost. I've watched alot of sun rises while hunkered down beneath Ol' Boss.
cooperate, rhythm, discrete, rate, pasture, traits
FC 11 F-18
1
Curley W. Fletcher
Saddle Silly
Yuh have heard some feller claimin' that he'd never yet been piled in some several years spent tamin' buckin' brochos that was wild.
Former Denver Humorist and Poet is Dead: Biography of James Barton Adams
FC 11 A-15
1
The Denver Times
Former Denver Humorist and Poet is Dead: James Barton Adams, Well Known Trout Country, Had Been Giving War Services to NATO
From: The Denver Times, 23 April 1918.
West of East
FC 11 H-17
81
Harry Elmore Hurd
Transition
The last gay summer bird has journeyed southward.
juncos, seasons, winter, autumn, change, nature, birds
Heaven on Horseback
Austin and Alta Fife
FC 11 F-13
84
The Cowboy's Heaven
Onward, flow onward, time will never cease.
Saddle For A Throne
FC 11 O-13
188
Will Ogilvie
The Riddle Of Life
We ride from the East in the grey light; The curtains of night are withdrawn; The young leaves curl up to the daylight, the magpies are hailing the dawn;
noontide, hohllow, hillside, sin, forget, moon
Cowpie justice: Cowboy Poetry
FC 11 R-38
36
S.E. Raub
Choosin' a saddle
It was Saturday night, about a quarter to two and me and the boys had nothing to do
The Mystique Of Grouse Creek
FC 11 S-64
43
Elden K. Shaw
Mide's Pond
Mide's Pond was the only pond in town, But our Mom was sure that we'd drown, So we were strictly forbidden to go there, But every once in a while we'd still dare.
North and East of Down Under
FC 11 S-46
19
Marie W. Smith
Montana Cabin
I passed it just 'fore Christmas Eve.
New Cowboy Poetry: A Contemporary Gathering
Hal Cannon
FC 11 C-30
21
Kay Kelley
A What??!!
The honeymoon was in full swing.
wedding, honeymoon, cowgirl, "Man of the West", love, marriage, courting, ranch, wrench, plumber, cowboys, John Wayne, partner, best friend, con, sheep-herding, eternity
Cowboy Poultry Gatherin'
FOLK COLL 11 A-23
16
Darrell Arnold
The Boss of This Here Outfit
It's a curious fact of nature That some men are better made- A cut above the rest of us, A notch up on the grade.
boss, leader, skill, respect
Famous Cowboy and Mountain Ballads
FC 11 F-23
53, 55
When the leaves begin to turn
When the leaves begin to turn, and the summer days have passed
Sagebrush and Rimrock
FC 11 K-13
75
E.J. Kirchoff
A Man of His Word
"At the time," said Latigo Long, "I was workin' for the ZX Ranch with headquarters out of Paisley.
Fair Girls and Gray Horses
FC 11 O-12
241
Will H. Ogilvie
Villanelle
Last night in Memory's boughs aswing, When none but I had heart to hear, A wee brown mavis tried to sing. But ah! the wild notes would not ring As once they rang - so loud and clear!