Correspondence , 1951-1961

Nadine Eckhardt (nee Nadine Ellen Cannon) was the first wife of Billy Lee Brammer and the mother of his three children. The two met as students at North Texas State College and married on April 22, 1950. Nadine Brammer worked for a time on the Lyndon Baines Johnson staff along with her husband, but later returned with her children to live in Austin while Brammer remained in Washington. In 1961, the Brammers were divorced and in 1962, Nadine married Texas Congressman Bob Eckhardt. Her papers contain Brammer's school records, his Air Force application, correspondence, and a file on The Gay Place. The bulk of the correspondence comes from those times during the Brammers' marriage when they lived separately - while Nadine lived in her parents' home in McAllen during her first pregnancy, and while she lived with the children in Austin when Brammer worked as a Johnson staff member in Washington. Their letters discuss their marriage, their children, work, and Brammer's writing. Brammer writes about his Washington staff job, Johnson, and other staff aides. There are also letters to and from Brammer's McAllen in-laws, the Cannons. Photographs and clippings are interspersed throughout the correspondence. The final folders contain The Gay Place file, which contains a wide range of information related to the book and the author. In the divorce settlement, Nadine received one-half interest in The Gay Place; and the collection of these materials is related to that interest. It consists of reviews, sales records, examples of Brammer's newspaper writing, clippings about Brammer, Brammer memos to Johnson, etc. In 1976, Nadine Eckhardt considered writing an autobiography and she asked Brammer to collaborate with her, hoping to spark Brammer back into writing. This project produced a chronology and a few notes from Brammer. There is also a chronology of Johnson's activities from 1955 to 1956, which Nadine Eckhardt was given by government oral historian Michael L. Gillette to help her remember events for an interview. The material is in chronological order except for The Gay Place file, which is in the original filing order.