TheBanyanTree: Mari Sandoz author, "Old Jules"

[LaRose Karr]

Fr o m 1990-1994 I worked for the County Express, a local bus service in
Northeastern Colorado. As their newsletter assistant, I had the
privilege of traveling to the six northeastern counties in Colorado to
sell advertising to support the newsletter but also to research and
write stories. 
 
So for four and a half years I was paid to visit all the libraries and
museums. What a chocolate job! Since bus news is quite boring, we spiced
up the newsletter with historical pieces. One day I was visiting a local
beauty shop in Brush, Colorado and discovered an album in the waiting
room full of our stories that had been clipped and saved. The owner
enjoyed them so much she wanted her clients to read them also. 
 
This glamorous job of historical writing led me literally to pastures
where my boss and I stepped over cactus and cow poop to write about the
early stone houses. A lot of pioneers used sod to construct homes, but
some used stones when available. I gained my desire to have a family
museum from driving down to Joe's, Colorado to meet a woman who used the
stone house on her property to create a family museum with information
and items dating back to the civil war. 
 
What else did I write about? Well, bank robbers, whorehouses, bankers, a
quirky but wealthy German named Raymond Von Schramm, indians, bull
riders, bus riders, the riders who had been married the longest amount
of time and on and on... 
 
My boss was reading a book at the time and she raved about it.  The
title was "Old Jules." She insisted I should read it, but I never did.
By listening to my employer, I learned a lot about "Old Jules" and what
a nasty old man he was.  The story was written by his daughter. 
 
Imagine my surprise when I take my younger daughter to Chadron State
College and on the campus tour we go into a museum dedicated to Mari
Sandoz, a local writer.  The large mural at the entrance caught my eye
as it explained her writing in detail and how she wrote the book "Old
Jules."  Of course I knew immediately who this writer was. 
 
I didn't have time to go into the museum since I was with a tour of
parents and students but I did take some alone time later while my
daughters were occupied and I went back. Alone! And in a museum
dedicated to a writer. It was wonderful. I savored each moment.  
 
Having heard all about Mari's life, I felt like I was seeing the
writings and memorabilia of an old friend. On a desk in a display was a
typed copy of what appeared to be a note to herself. She had marked
through the typing and edited it in her own handwriting. Many photos
graced the walls, along with information about the area. The area my
daughter now calls home for the next four years.  
 
Well, I couldn't wait a second longer. I purchased "Old Jules" from the
gift shop and spoke to the students in charge telling them I am a writer
and how fascinating I found the museum. They asked me to stop in the
next time I am in Chadron and they will let me go down in the basement
into the archives! 
 
Mari Sandoz only lived in the Fort Robinson/Chadron area till she was
22. She was married to a local farmer for five years before setting out
for New York. Her father hated writers and called them "maggots of
society." In fact, she wrote using a pen name for many years because of
his attitude. She also wrote many short stories and received many
rejections until she wrote "Old Jules" which was a fictional yet
biographical novel of her father's life.  
 
It brought her the break she needed in the publishing world and she went
on to write many books, among them best sellers. Mari had two homeplaces
which are tourist attractions near Alliance, Nebraska. I guess we knew
where I will be going in the future.   
 
I've only started reading "Old Jules" but it is certainly an interesting
story. He wasn't at all who I expected, but in the first few pages, she
captures the real man. Educated, well bred, from a good family in
Switzerland, he could have followed his veterinary father's wishes and
become a doctor and he did attend medical school for four years. He was
hard as nails - interesting how his life turned out as a homesteader on
the plains of western Nebraska. 
 
So that's the C.O.O.L story of how I found a writers museum on the
campus where my daughter now attends college!

Blessings,
LaRose