Voices From the West: Lula Briscoe Episode 9

Lula Brannon Briscoe, ca. 1903. Courtesy of the Brannon/Briscoe family

It’s time for Episode 9 of “Voices from the West,” our blog series featuring audio recordings of historical documents from the Museum’s Dickinson Research Center.

Our goal is to show that history is more than a timeline. At its core, it’s about people. And not just the famous and infamous, but the everyday and ordinary. If you missed previous episodes, you can start here.

About Lula

The oldest of six children, Lula had moved with her family from Texas to the Chickasaw Nation in 1898. They settled in Sugden, a small community near today’s Texas border that consisted primarily of farmers. She married Robert Willis Briscoe and together they had five children.

Listen Now

Advertisement from The Guthrie Daily Leader (September 19, 1903).  

Boy’s Pants from Sears, Roebuck, and Company Catalog, ca. 1902. Glenn D. Shirley Western Americana Collection. Dickinson Research Center. National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.

Fun Facts

Lula wrote directly to her little brother, Elmer, and encouraged him to be a “good boy” so that he would receive the dime she sent each week to the best-behaved sibling. She also sent him a pair of pants and suspenders. 

Set of wooden alphabet blocks. National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. 1995.13.14 A-CC. 

Home Primer including alphabet, reading, and clock exercises, ca. 1898. Joe De Yong Papers. Dickinson Research Center. National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. 1980.18.082. 

Elmer had just turned 7 and was likely still mastering reading, writing, and telling time. He would have used exercises like these, either at school or at home. These illustrations are from a primer that belonged to artist Joe De Yong when he was a boy.