Nelson, Travis 2008-09-20
Nara Visa community center for events and Gatherings
General Interview Information
Interviewee Name: Travis Nelson
Additional Parties Recorded:
Date: September 20, 2008
Location: Nara Visa, New Mexico
Interviewer: Andy Wilkinson
Length: 00:52:55
Abstract
Tape 1, Side 1:
The start, Travis Nelson, Good place to have a gathering, Nothing but ranch country, Poetry gathering, called up Travis, She grew up there, 16 people, graduating class, 1937, Her dad was from Ohio, he had TB, Met her mom, teacher, They had three boys, all born in Texas, Dad wanted a child born in Ohio, That was her, 1951- Married, Dean O’Donnell wanted her to go to Portales, He got a job at New Mexico State, 1941, Home Economics, Home Demonstration Agent, Had to teach for 1 year, Taught in a rural school near Portales, She remembers going into Clovis, bought a radio, First thing she heard on the radio was that America, Had just been attacked, Silver City- her job as an agent, She was there for 3 years, Interested in 4 H, Only a few men agents, if any at all, Contest, State winners went to Chicago, Herself and another agent got to go, Mr. Rice was from El Paso, Stayed at the Hilton hotel, Mr. Hilton grew up in the same town as this kid, Who went on the trip, Hilton wanted to meet him, North of Sequoia, Husband, Tractor Maintenance man was supposed to come visit, She had about 30 men who came in and took the test, To be the leader of the 4 H team in tractor maintenance, Someone wanted her to meet a man, so she did, Widower who had three young children, They wrote back and forth, She wanted to go to Wisconsin to a folk dance camp, The second time she went out there, Jack, the man, took her out there, He proposed to her, Folk Dance, Jane, she was so good at folk dancing, Her 4 H guys enjoyed learning the dancing, Jack, 1951, Him and his friend and his children came down to, Live with her, He loved cars, Ford man, She had a Chevrolet, They lived in Illinois for about 15 years, She did not go back to work until the boys were out of high, School, When she went back to work, she started teaching, Took a 6 weeks course to teach Special Education, Eventually got her Master’s in Special Education, New Mexico, Jack fell off the garage roof, The hospital determined that he only had about 10 years, To live, Diabetic, He wanted to go to Iowa, she said no were going to New Mexico, Taught special education back in New Mexico, After 2 years, she became a home administration agent, She did that for 5 years, Then stayed home to take care of her mom and husband, Land, 5 acres, At the time, the smallest amount of land that you could, Break off was 5 acres, Gatherings, The school district combined with Clayton school, District, Events, Rotary club meetings, Anyone can use the community center for meetings, Garden clubs, Politicians have meetings, Funerals, Weddings, Just about anything you can think of, they have it
Tape 1, Side 2:
Ivan and Judy Cates, Cowboy poetry and music, Buck and Rooster, Influenced on Ivan’s music, Joel Davis- Alpine invitation, Nara Visa is their favorite place, Why do they love Nara Visa, The people, XIT history, The location, Changes in the gatherings, Ivan-, Over the past 16 years, Harder to get younger people to get interested in it, Attendances on Fridays are slow, Wants to expose people to the poetry music, Judy-, Families do not promote “cowboy” anymore, Everything is “city-fyd”, Shows/Material, Ivan- sticking to Cowboy songs, Writers are coming up with great songs, Plow handled G, A funny way you hold your hand when making notes, History, Ivan- grandparents, parents, Grew up with music, Career, He would play country dances all the time, 1963, Community centers, Almost quit playing, Buck and Glen Spiller, Instrumental, so he decided to keep playing
Tape 2, Side 1:
Continuation of CD two, River Camp, Judy, Grew up on a farm out of Ford City, Dad played the harmonica, But the rest of the family wasn’t musical, Ivan, Radio days, Country station, Wayne Rainy, Lonnie Dawson, Harmonica- horn extension, It makes it louder, The Green Hornet, Grand Ole Opery, A lot of good experiences listening to the radio, Bobby Benson, Lone Ranger, Jimmy Rogers- picking style, Bob Wills- he ran the country music style, A lot of mournful songs, Death was something to sing about, obsession of the time era, Tommy Hancock would say it was the era of dead baby songs, Players, J.M – Brother, Picked up playing the guitar with ease, Learned the mandolin and fiddle, Jerry – rhythm guitar- brother, Al- rhythm guitar also – brother, Sonny and Bud Hostel, Bud- tremendous guitar player, Eddie Collie- 1960: friend, Guitar player, Guys would just sit in when they came around the pan handle, They played a lot of Bob Wills, Rooster Morris, His dad Bob Rooster, Worked on a ranch, Worked at the Matadors, The Texas Legacy, Modern XIT land, His book, People, Everywhere you go, you meet friends who are into music
Access Information
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Recording Format Notes:
Transcript: No transcript available
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