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Meet the Regional Director — Louis "Pinky" Robertson

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Louis "Pinky" Robertson     E-mail at region02@txarch.org

As a Regional Director, Mr. Louis Robertson does his best at maintaining a resemblance of order in the archeological community up there, somewhere, in West Texas.  That is, only when he takes a day off from his commitments to the many projects he just cannot say "No!" to.  We all know this fellow by his childhood nickname of "Pinky."  The story of how he acquired this name goes something like this: the Educational Director of the Dallas church where Louis' father taught Sunday school had to deal with many spirit-filled little boys.  One stood out, not because he was the teacher's son, but because he had red hair.  In those dealings, Pinky acquired his name and it has followed him to this day.  Upon graduation from North Texas State Teachers College, with three degrees, a B.A. and M.A. in Art, and a B.S. in Education.  He thought he would be free of that school when he moved to Andrews to take a teaching position, but that did not happen.  Eighty-five percent of his colleagues graduated from the same college.  If you look into Pinky's eyes, you can see what that educational director saw many years ago, a beautiful but mischievous spirit.

Pinky settled in at Andrews Junior High School, where he taught ninth-grade history as well as art for 8 years.  Pinky once asked his class, "What do ya'll do in a small West Texas town for fun?"  Drink beer, drag Main Street, and go arrowhead hunting were their answers...  On one of those adventures, a hike through Sand Hills, Pinky found a six-inch spear point and an interest in archaeology was born. Wanting to be involved in the community, he and his friend, Barry B. Thompson (who went on to become the Chancellor of Texas A&M University) established Boy Scout Explorer Post 144 in 1959.  It just happens to be the oldest, continuously active Explorer Post in Texas.  Since its inception, Pinky has taken scouts on numerous camping adventures to the Davis and Chianti Mountains.  During the week of Spring Break for the last twenty years, give or take a few, he has taken his scout post to his ranch in New Mexico to learn about Southwest archaeology.  There, they are given hands-on archaeological experience at Techado Springs Pueblo, while fulfilling the requirements of the Archeology Merit Badge.

On one of those hiking trips, in the fall of 1959, Pinky and 18 of his scouts found a rock shelter in the Chianti Mountains.  There they found projectile points, manos and metates, and woven mats and sandals.  It occurred to Pinky that if he continued to take scouts on hiking treks, he had to get some archaeological training.  And that is how Pinky became involved in the Texas Archeological Society.  He is proud to say that he is a Life Member.

Pinky was one of a dozen members who attended the Second TAS Field School in 1963, held in Comal County at the Oblate Site (41CM1), under the direction of Curtis Tunnell and E. Mott Davis.  He has attended most of the TAS Field Schools ever since.  At the 1974 Field School at McKinney Falls (41TV289), he and Teddy Lou Stickney were inspired by the dirty t-shirts of the membership.  Why not design a t-shirt and sell them, the profits going to the society?  The logo on their first t-shirt was "We dig dirt" and that became quite fitting after a day of excavating.  Since then, every year, Pinky has designed the TAS Field School t-shirt.  He is quite proud of three portrait t-shirts, honoring three of Texas Archaeology's finest: Jim Wood, Mott Davis, and Bransford Eubanks.

For those of you who did not know Bransford, his property was the site of the Brown County Field Schools in 1979–1980 where Gerald Humphries was the PI. Bransford was a missionary to China in earlier days (and worked in other interesting places, too).  He came to many Field Schools, well into his 90s. He was 100 years old when he died in January, 1998.  Anne Joliff is his daughter.  Bransford's sister, Lydia, was Pinky's 1st grade art teacher.  Just a bit of TAS history that Carolyn Spock knows and Pinky would like all of you to know.

Pinky has served as Regional Director since 1999.  During this time, he has initiated numerous archaeological events throughout the region.  These have included coordinating Archeology Awareness Month fairs in the region and putting on programs for local civic groups.  One event that was a big hit was an Archeology Fair held at the Museum of the Southwest in Midland.  He got word out to the school districts and 2,000 children from the area spent a school day at the museum watching flintknapping and Native-American weaving demonstrations.  They also listened to Native-American legends, stories and music.  The regional boundaries do not keep Pinky confined; this spring, he ventured into Region 10 to serve as Site Photographer at the Archeological Academy 101 held at Fort Chadburne.

Pinky is also on the board of the Federation of West Texas and Eastern New Mexico Archeological Societies.  Presently, he serves as Editor of its journal and helps with the planning of its annual meeting held during the first weekend of April.  If you join the Federation and forget to send in your annual dues, you will receive a personal call from Pinky.  There is one thing certain about Pinky: he doesn't keep paper notes, he seems to remember everything!  Maybe that's because he has the artist's trained ability to see and remember.

Pinky has a Master's Degree in Art, but he doesn't talk about that much.  What he loves to share is his experience at a month-long field school conducted by the renowned ceramicist, Clint Zwink.  He was chosen from a long list of applicants because he was a teacher and he had a passion for archaeology.  The field school began at the Dolores River Museum, where he and fellow students were invited into the archives to read notes on Anasazi pottery and examine the collection, only to find out that it would be their task to replicate what they found in the museum.  Zwink took them on BLM land to mine clay.  Pinky will never forget seeing dozens of artifacts scattered on the surface of the site.  When they collected all that they needed, they returned to camp and began the long and difficult process of making clay.  Using a mano and metate, they ground up pot sherds for temper.  After a day, all had fashioned a vessel "the Anasazi way."  But it had to be slipped and decorated.  The next day, they ventured into the desert to collect three varieties of yucca to make paint brushes. Zwink then had them construct a prehistoric kiln.  This experience he shares with his scouts.

All the while, Pinky is creating art, not only for himself and the TAS, but also for the Boy Scouts of America.  He has designed logos for the Boy Scouts of America Archaeology Badge, the Tatanka Council patch for the Order of the Arrow, numerous logos for Scouting events and the 2005 National Jamboree patch.  Oh yes, we cannot forget the United States Postal Service.  A few years ago, Pinky designed the Belle Cancellation Stamp.  How did he get this honor?  Maybe it was because he has been a member of the Permian Basin Stamp Club since 1959 and knows something about the archaeological treasures of Texas.

If you cannot find him, if he doesn't answer the telephone or answer your E-mails, it is because he is 1) off somewhere doing archaeology, either here or in New Mexico, 2) recording rock art with the TAS Rock Art Task Force, 3) teaching the Boy Scout Archaeology Badge (Pinky just so happened to be the first person certified by the State Archaeologist to teach the course), 4) illustrating the forth-coming publication on Techado Springs by our own Jimmy Smith, or 5) spreading his infectious passion for Texas archaeology.

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