McCullough Collection of Hondo Crouch

Dennis Lee McCullough, a San Antonio native, was a writer, song-writer, and musician. After graduating from Jefferson High School, McCullough sought writing opportunities in California in the late 1960s. After several years, McCullough came back to Texas to pursue a career as a song-writer, started a band, and became a part of the Texas music scene. After a few years, D. Lee McCullough went back to writing and became a columnist for the Fredericksburg Radio-Post Newspaper and wrote weekly columns focused on humor. McCullough would later become a freelance writer for several publications, including Southwest Airlines Magazine writing about various topics. One of the many writing projects that McCullough has undertaken is Thank You, Sir, a biography of John Russell “Hondo” Crouch, mayor of Luckenbach and a well-known figure in the Texas country music scene. McCullough conducted research on Crouch between 1976 and 1977, but Thank You, Sir was never published.

John Russell “Hondo” Crouch (1916-1976), Texas rancher and folklorist, was born in Hondo, Texas in 1916. Crouch became an All-American swimmer at the University of Texas, coached several swimming camps throughout the course of his life. Crouch became president of the Hall of Fame for UT Athletes in 1964 and was influential in the creation of the Texas Swim Center in the 1970s. Hondo Crouch was also a writer and humorist, writing hundreds of “Cedar Creek Clippings” for the Comfort News Newspaper from 1963 through 1975. Under the pen name Peter Cedarstacker, Crouch satirized various topics including government, society, and politics. In 1971, Hondo Crouch would purchase the small community of Luckenbach, Texas and became both owner and mayor. The dance hall in Luckenbach became connected to country music in 1973 when country artist Jerry Jeff Walker recorded the album Viva Terlingua at the dance hall. Luckenbach would garner further fame through country music with a song titled “Luckenbach, Texas,” performed by country artists Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson. John Russell “Hondo” Crouch passed away in 1976 at the age of 60.