John Mason Brewer

Duane's take

Here's my telling of the official marker for John Mason Brewer, standing in Goliad County. Now, some stories get buried. Overlooked.

Tucked into the margins of history while lesser tales hog the spotlight. This is not one of those stories, not anymore. Because one man from Goliad made it his life's work to make sure certain stories would never be lost again.

John Mason Brewer was born right here in Goliad on March 24, 1896. His parents, J.H. and Minnie T. Brewer, gave him something you can't buy and can't fake.

An appreciation for scholarship and for African American history. That seed took root early and it never stopped growin. By 1917, Brewer had earned a bachelor's degree in English from Wiley College, and he went to work teaching at high schools and colleges.

He was also writing, publishing pieces in The Negro American, an African American periodical of the era. Words were his tools, and he was sharpening them every chance he got. Then came his master's degree in 1933, and with it a new wave of output.

He published history and poetry books, among them Negrito and The Negro in Texas History. And then there was Heralding Dawn, an anthology of verse focused on Texans with African heritage. A poet, a historian, and something more still waiting to emerge.

That something more came from a conversation. A colleague by the name of J. Frank Dobie made a suggestion, and Brewer listened.

He turned his considerable energy toward collecting and publishing Black folklore. Now, the name Zora Neale Hurston will mean something to anyone who knows the Harlem Renaissance, a prominent writer and folklorist whose work shaped how America understood its own stories. People compared Brewer to her.

That is not a small comparison. In the nineteen-fifties and nineteen-sixties, Brewer published five collections of folklore. Five.

But his most significant work came in 1968: American Negro Folklore, a book that won the Chicago Book Fair Award that very year and then the 21st Annual Writers Roundup Award in 1969. Back-to-back recognition for work that had been building across a lifetime. Along the way, Brewer was racking up firsts that the history books had never had to leave room for before.

First African American member of the Texas Folklore Society. First African American member of the Texas Institute of Letters. First African American to hold office in the American Folklore Society.

He wasn't just contributing to these institutions. He was opening doors that had never been opened. After the success of American Negro Folklore, Brewer returned to the classroom, teaching at Texas A&M University-Commerce until his death on January 24, 1975.

Poet. Historian. Folklorist.

Born in Goliad, Texas, on a March morning in 1896. John Mason Brewer spent his life making sure the stories of Black Americans would be recorded, preserved, and remembered. And here in Goliad, the marker makes sure his story gets the same treatment.

What the marker says

(March 24, 1896 - January 24, 1975) Distinguished African American scholar and writer, John Mason Brewer, preserved African American culture with his literary and historical work in the 20th century. Born on March 24, 1896, in Goliad, Brewer’s parents, J.H. and Minnie T. Brewer, inspired his appreciation for scholarship and African American history. After receiving a bachelor’s degree in English from Wiley College in 1917, he taught at various high schools and colleges. Later, Brewer published his writings in The Negro American, an African American periodical. After receiving his master’s degree in 1933, Brewer published several history and poetry books, including Negrito and The Negro in Texas History. Brewer also published an anthology of poetry, Heralding Dawn: An Anthology of Verse, focusing on Texans with African heritage. Brewer’s dedication to sharing Black stories continued throughout his life. After a suggestion from his colleague, J. Frank Dobie, Brewer began working on collecting and publishing Black folklore. Sometimes compared to Zora Neale Hurston, a prominent Harlem Renaissance writer and folklorist, Brewer published five collections of folklore in the 1950s and 1960s. His most significant work, American Negro Folklore, won the Chicago Book Fair Award in 1968 and the 21st Annual Writers Roundup Award in 1969. Brewer became the first African American member of the Texas Folklore Society and the Texas Institute of Letters. He was also the first African American to hold office in the American Folklore Society. After the success of American Negro Folklore, Brewer returned to teach at Texas A&M University-Commerce until his death in 1975. As a poet, historian and folklorist, John Mason Brewer played an essential role in recording and preserving Black culture in the United States. (2017)