Book Review
by Carolyn Zniewski
Legendary Locals of Big Bend and Davis Mountains,
“P
Jim Glendinning, Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, South Carolina, 2013.
erhaps it is the frontier mentality or
the wide open spaces, or living on the
Mexican border, but the Big Bend
and Davis Mountains region sure breeds some
characters.” Jim Glendinning’s book is a collec-
tion of 158 short biographies, with photographs,
of the people here in
West Texas, “the
last
Frontier.”
Settlers started com-
ing about 150 years
ago and continue
arriving to this day.
If you want to
know about Big
Bend and the Davis
Mountains
this
book is a perfect
place to begin. The
folks who have
come are resilient,
hard-working and
creative. They have
carved a communi-
ty out of the
Chihuahuan Desert
and done a darn
good job. The depth
and breadth of the
society is surprising,
and Jim manages to
hunt down some
fine people and
some
inspiring
accomplishments.
Polo in Big
Bend? You bet. In
the late 1920s and into the 1930s the U. S.
Army in Marfa had a team that played against
Mexican polo teams. The citizens of Marfa
have continued to do the unexpected, from
Hollywood movie sets to becoming an art
haven, to public radio. Jim tells the story of the
people that made these things happen.
Ranchers came to the area early and when
the droughts hit the innovative ranching fami-
lies developed tourism, hunting trips, and camp-
ing to supplement their incomes. The first chili
cook-off in Terlingua started as a rivalry
between two men and was declared a draw. It
has become one of the biggest cook-offs in
Texas and continues to grow every year.
The mix of the ethnic and cultural is a little
bit of this and a little more of that. From descen-
dents of the buffalo soldiers to early Spanish
families, from titled Englishmen to outlaws con-
tinuing their lawlessness or coming here to start
over, one thing every man, woman and child
seems to have in
common is a mix of
grit, imagination
and optimism.
Legendary Locals of
Big Bend and Davis
Mountains is a fun
and
fascinating
read that you can
pick up anytime.
The book is divided
into
sections
according to voca-
tion. I loved flip-
ping through the
various chapters
and reading about
the folks, both
freshly arrived citi-
zens and long time
pioneer families.
You can check out
the artists and
musicians, the edu-
cators, business-
men or others
depending on your
interest and curiosi-
ty, or spend the
evening reading it
from cover to
cover. There is no better way to get to know or
get to know more about Big Bend than discov-
ering the stories of an excellent cross section of
the people who have made our community the
exciting hometowns and countryside that it is.
Available at Front Street Books, Alpine, TX or
Marfa Books, Marfa, Tx.
Friendly service
Local coffee
WiFi
Breakfast and lunch
Thurs. through Mon.
7 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
301 W. Hwy 90
Marathon
432-386-4352
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Second Quarter 2014