Characters of Methodist Encampment
Methodist Encampment has attracted some interesting characters over the past 100 years. Some have been famous, such as an iconic Texas writer, a Hollywood star, and a Nobel Prize winner. Others were founding fathers and mothers of the neighborhood. There have been and still are artists and heroes. Here you can read the stories of some of them. If you have documents, photos or stories of people who have been part of the history of Methodist Encampment, famous or not, please consider sharing your information here.
Founding Fathers and Early Contributors
Rev. Sloan L. Batchelor
A “Founding Father” and Superintendent of Methodist Encampment
1945-1956
Rev. L.U. Spellman
A “Founding Father” and early and long serving Board member of the Encampment.
Rev. Robert Floyd Curl
a central figure in South Texas Methodism & participant in early Encampment history
J. Frank Dobie
One of Texas’ most iconic and beloved writers, J. Frank Dobie likely did some of his of his famous folklorist writing in Methodist Encampment. His mother and his aunt owned houses next door to each other on Tanglewood, and he stayed in his mother’s place from time to time, as articles from the local newspaper attest.
“J. Frank Dobie was one of the first Texas writers to gain national attention; before Dobie, the words “Texas” and “writer” were seldom used together. Not only was Dobie a successful professional writer, he demonstrted one could make life in the Southwest a literary subject.
“Fred Gipson, who also has connections to Kerrville, and is the author of “Old Yeller,” “Hound Dog Man” and other books set in Texas, said he never realized it was possible to live in Texas and be a writer until Dobie set the example. Other Texas writers have been influenced by Dobie, whether they admit it or not, including some of his harshest critics.
“For the reader, Dobie presents a problem. To get a trie sense of Dobie as a writer, the reader would have to track down and winnow from the mountain of pieces Dobie published during his long career. He wrote for newspapers and magazines, he wrote books, he had a syndicated column, he gave lectures, he was a college professor and he was the longtime secretary-editor of the Texas Folklore Society.
“Just finding the best place to start is daunting. Fortunately, a new book, “The Essential J. Frank Dobie, edited by Steven L. Davis, provides a helpful trailhead. Davis, the literary curator of the Witliff Collections at Texas State University in San Marcos, is also the author of a biography of Dobie. Davis is a knowledgeable and reliable guide. “My hope,” Davis writes in his introduction, “is that these stories will interest and delight you as much as they have me. I also hope that the quality of writings collected here will help all of us arrive at a more balanced judgment of Dobie’s literary merit—which in the end is far greater than he’s previously given credit for.”
“Davis certainly achieves his ambition in this edited collection of Dobie stories. The stories here present Dobie at his best, and cast a kind of magic spell on the reader, carrying one to a time long gone, to gather around campfires with storytellers. The stories presented in this curated book are fun to read, a mixture of adventures, histories, essays and biographies—and are a great introduction to the spirit and talents of Dobie.
“J. Frank Dobie died in 1964, only a few days after receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom at the White House. Returning home, he simply went to his room to take a nap, slipping away in his sleep. He and his wife, Bertha, are buried in Austin ata the Texas State Cemetery.”
– excerpted from an article by Joe Herring Jr. in the Kerrville Daily Times,
Oct. 17, 2019
Books by or about J. Frank Dobie:
The Essential J. Frank Dobie, Steven L. Davis, ed., Texas A & M University Press, 2019.
Three friends: Roy Bedichek, J. Frank Dobie, Walter Prescott Webb, William A. Owens, 1969.
Some Contemporary Characters
Methodist Encampment Centennial Celebrants, from Kerr County People Magazine, May/June 2024. Accompanies an article on the Centennial by Anne Schneider. Read the full article here. The piece about the Methodist Encampment Centennial begins on Page 16. A copy is in the Little House of Peace Free Library.