Annual Papers

Check out the current call for papers here.

Maybe you've been to conferences in the past and you think, "Listening to someone read a paper sounds boring." It's hard to argue that point at other conferences, but we're here to tell you, this conference is different; our papers and our folks are different.

Given that we've been around since 1909, it's understandable that folks would have a hard time deciding which was their favorite paper; which one left an imprint on their lives.

Some were on simple topics, "I Love a Pie," by James Ward Lee, and "A High Toned Woman," by Joyce Gibson Roach, brought the house down with laughter. Kenneth Davis was beloved for his waxing on the ways of the world in "Old Bell County." Some have given papers about food, cures, religion, music, remembrances of childhood, and ways of the family or the community. If you're looking for humor, be sure to check out the "Spotlight" section under our "Members" tab to hear the introduction by Fran Vick of a session with Robert Flynn, James Ward Lee, and Joyce Gibson Roach. Our members can hear the entire recording by logging into their account and clicking "Laughing All the Way."

For so many, Sid Cox's "The Home Place" ranks among the most memorable and the most touching. Given at the Annual Meeting in 1970 held in Wimberley, Cox shared his family story and the connection to the land...and to those who had come before him. So touched by the paper, folks were pleased to see that Cox offered an encore presentation of the paper the following day. For longtime members, R.G. Dean and Jack and Elizabeth Duncan, the paper was a turning point in their connection to the Society. Dean still gets misty-eyed when telling about the feelings he had after hearing it. The Duncans loved the paper so much, they wrote an article for the 2009 Publication 100 Years of the Texas Folklore Society, saying that Cox's paper was one that set the hook for them as members. The paper was printed in T for Texas for all to read and treasure. In the fall of 2020, fifty years after it was initially given, we will join Dow Cox at The Home Place in Blanco to record him reading his father's treasured paper. Stay tuned for that special installment.

Each year, we have great papers that will be remembered for years. If you'd like to present a paper, just let us know. We typically start putting the program together the fall before the Annual Meeting, but it's never too early to start thinking about it, researching and writing it, or submitting it to the Program Committee. Once you've submitted your paper, you'll receive communications as to next steps. You may give the next paper that folks will talk about for years.