Allan Truax Returns
Introducing A New Series of Heck Of A Guy Entries About Allan Truax
The Allan Truax Back Story
Returning readers may recall Allan Truax from previous Heck Of A Guy posts.1 The short version of the back story follows:
An inscription on the flyleaf of a used book of A.E. Housman’s poetry given me as a gift triggered my curiosity.
My casual inquisitiveness about what kind of guy, living in an isolated North Dakota town in the early 1900s, read Housman led me to track down information about “A.L. Truax,” the volume’s first owner.
At least in this case, that guy turned out to be extraordinarily accomplished individual.
Allan Truax’s job was in the railway mail service but his heart and mind were given over to his involvement with his community and church, his extensive travels, and his devoted pursuit of his intellectual interests, especially horticulture, literature, and family, local, and American history.
Today’s Portrait
Allan Truax’s grandson, Roger Truax, and Roger’s wife, Rosalie Truax, have, as they promised, sent me additional historical data and family photos that I will be posting in the near future.
Today’s offering is the single photo2 of Allan Truax, who appears to be 10-12 years old, and his father, John G. Truax, that appears at the first of this post. If my estimate of Allan’s age is accurate, the photograph was taken in the early 1880s.
While it may be no more than artifact of the the photographic style of the times or the need for longer exposures, Allan’s bearing as a child, I’ve convinced myself, presages a life of purpose, self-reliance, and competence.
There is much more to come …
Footnotes
- Previous Heck Of A Guy Postings include
Allan Truax , A.E. Housman, The Ex, and Me - The graphic at the top of this post is a thumbnail. Clicking on it provides a view of a larger image ~back~
