Joe Bertram Frantz
Joe Bertram Frantz was a historian from the U.S. state of Texas who specialized in the American West.Biography
Though born in Dallas, an adopted son of Ezra A. Frantz and the former Mary Buckley, Frantz was reared in Weatherford in Parker County west of Fort Worth. He attended the University of Texas at Austin and obtained a bachelor's degree in journalism and a Master of Arts in history there, with the thesis entitled "The newspapers of the Republic of Texas". During his undergraduate tenure at UT, he was a staff member of the Daily Texan newspaper, a member of the Rusk Literary Society, and the Sigma Delta Chi Journalism Honor Society. His first job was as acting advisor and archivist at the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site east of Houston, Texas.
In 1943, Frantz joined the United States Navy during World War II. A lieutenant, he was involved in eight engagements as a communications officer in the South Pacific.
In 1948, Frantz earned his Ph.D. from UT with the dissertation entitled "Infinite pursuit: the story of Gail Borden", a study of the inventor of condensed milk.
With his highest degree in hand, Frantz was then invited to join the UT faculty as an assistant professor. He was elevated in 1953 to associate professor and in 1959 to full professor. In 1959, with Julian E. Choate, he co-authored The American Cowboy: The Myth and the Reality.
After his retirement from UT, Frantz joined the faculty at Corpus Christi State University in Corpus Christi, Texas, now known as Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi.
Frantz died in a hospital in Houston and is interred at Texas State Cemetery in Austin.Publications
Frantz published academic books, journal articles, school textbooks, and popular histories,Books
- Gail Borden, Dairyman to a Nation. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1951.
- . The American Cowboy: The Myth and the Reality. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1955.
- Houston, a Students' Guide to Localized History. New York: Teachers College Press, 1971.
- The Driskill Hotel. Austin: Encino Press, 1973.
- Texas: A Bicentennial History. New York: Norton, 1976.
- *later version published as Texas, a History. New York: W.W. Norton, 1984.
- The Forty-Acre Follies. Austin: Texas Monthly Press, 1983.
- Texas History Movies: The Story of the Lone Star State. Dallas, Texas: Pepper Jones Martinez, Inc, 1985.
- Lure of the Land: Texas County Maps and the History of Settlement. College Station, for the Texas: Texas General Land Office by Texas A&M University Press, 1988.
Juvenile books
- Texas and Its History. Dallas: Pepper Jones Martinez, 1978.
- Texas: The Study of Our State. Glenview, Illinois: Scott, Foresman, 1988.
- * also published in Spanish as Texas, estudio de nuestro estado
