Dee Woods |
Dee Woods Papers
Dee Woods (1896-1984) was active in the literary
affairs of Corpus Christi from the 1940s to
the 1970s. Born Laura Lou “Dee”
Roberts in Springtown, Texas, she was raised
in Amarillo. After attending the University
of Texas, she taught school. In 1923, she married
Dever E. Woods. The couple lived in San Antonio,
but moved to Corpus Christi in 1933. Dee Woods
was a feature writer, columnist, historian,
artist, and schoolteacher. She was the author
of Blaze of Gold: Treasure Tales of the Texas
Coast (1942), and she was editor of the Texas
Literary Quarterly.
She likewise wrote many short stories such as “The
Day Texas Hanged a Woman” about the legendary
Chipita Rodriguez. During her career, she sold articles
to over sixty-five publications. Her byline was seen
in the Corpus Christi Caller-Times and other newspapers.
She often used the pen
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name Polly Rogers.
Woods was a member of the Texas Institute of Letters,
the State Poetry Society, was president of Texas Press
Women, and was a member of the board of Directors
of the National Federation of Press Women and City
Federation of Women’s Clubs. She helped found
the South Texas Speech and Art Association and Valley
Byliners, a local writers’ club. She served
as Commissioner of the Texas Centennial of Statehood
in 1945.
Woods was one of seven Corpus Christi women to be
named in the first edition of Who’s Who in American
Women. In 1983, Corpus Christi proclaimed Dee Woods
Day for her work founding the Corpus Christi Byliners,
for founding and directing the Southwest Writers’
Conference from 1944 to 1962, and for her civic activities.
The Dee Woods Papers consist of twelve linear feet
and contain manuscripts, correspondence, scrapbooks,
clippings, and files of the Southwest Writers’
Conference. The collection also contains the Byliners
scrapbooks from 1953 to 1962. Other topics in the
Dee Woods Papers include the Texas Women’s Press
Association, the Tuesday Music and Literature Club,
as well as local folklore and history.
We invite questions and/or comments and look
forward to hearing from you. Contact Jan Weaver
at Jan.Weaver@tamucc.edu.
Webpage revised on
09/11/2007
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