Sunday, October 20, 2019

Kay HIvely: Remembering local artist Don Draper

I was thinking recently of my old friend, Don Draper.

For those who didn't know him or anything about him, Don was a local man who was a fine artist. He was also an outdoorsman and a somewhat controversial character. He certainly had a mind of his own and didn't hold back from what he was thinking.

Russell and I were in his home many times. His home was also his gallery and the walls were full of his work. He did his best work in landscapes, many of which were local scenes. He did fudge on occasion. 

For example, he would paint a landscape that he admired on Dan Longwell farm, west of Neosho, but stick the White house out there in the country. The White house is located on top of Big Spring Hill and was built around 1870 by saloon owner, Thomas White.








Don had a special place in his heart for his native Kansas. I have a painting he did that showed the old homestead at night. All the buildings can be seen along with the family graveyard. 

The farmstead was in the distance, and up close, Don painted a coyote howling at the moon on the Kansas prairie. He told me that when he died, he would be buried there beside his mother and father, and he was.

One of my favorite stories of Don was when he graduated from high school. He wanted to be a newspaper man so he applied at several schools. He got a scholarship from Notre Dame. Although his father was a doctor, Don was a country boy from the lonely plains of Kansas. He knew nothing about Notre Dame, but it offered a scholarship and he accepted.

When it came time to report to school, his parents drove all the way to Indiana to see their son off. When his parents left to go home, Don got a list of things he would need and was told where the college bookstore was. He made his way over there, along with a large crowd of students, teachers, etc. He was almost overwhelmed at all the people. But the most overwhelming thing he spotted was someone who wore a long flowing dress or robe. As he passed by, this person said to Don, "good morning."

Don was surprised and the only reply he could make was "Good morning, Ma'am."

Shortly after that, he learned that the "Ma'am" was none other than the President of Notre Dame, wearing his Catholic robes.

Don said he had never seen a man in a dress before, so assumed it was a woman.

He actually made it through Notre Dame and got a degree in journalism. After graduation, Don had the privilege of working for William Allen White, the famous editor of the Emporia Gazette. He came to Neosho to work at the Carnation Milk plant.

He admired Mr. White, and liked to tell the most important thing he learned from the great editor. He said Mr. White always believed in reporting local news. White said "…people would rather read about an old hound dog lying in the middle of Main Street than something that happened in Boston, Chicago or Washington D.C."

Just between you and me, that's a wise saying.

(Kay Hively is a historian, author, and former editor, reporter and columnist for the Neosho Daily News and Neosho Post.)

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