Henry E. Wolff Jr. died Monday, April 13, 2020 due to complications relating to Parkinson’s Disease. He was born June 10, 1936 to Henry E. Wolff Sr. and Bertha Frey Wolff at Waco. He grew up on a West Texas cotton farm at Dry Ridge and later at Ballinger, Texas.
Days after graduating from high school he was employed by the San Angelo Standard Times to write farm and ranch news for the summer under veteran newspaperman and western novelist Elmer Kelton. He enlisted in the U.S. Air Force and served in the Strategic Air Command. He and his late wife, Wanita Rightmire, were married at Abilene in October 1958. After his discharge he worked at the Abilene Reporter News where he became chief photographer until 1963 when he accepted a position at The Victoria Advocate.
At The Advocate he was a photographer, wrote farm and ranch news, and served as a general assignment reporter until 1977 when he left to devote full time to The General Store, a novelty shop that he and his wife opened in 1971. He returned to The Advocate in 1979 to write the “Henry’s Journal” column for the next 30 years. It ended in March 2009. He wrote 6,751 columns that have been digitized and are online at https://digitalcollections.uhv.edu/digital/collection/HW/search.
After his return to The Victoria Advocate, he wrote five books that were published by The Advocate: “Henry’s Journal – Vol. I,” “Henry’s Journal – Vol. 2,” “The Way It Used To Be,” “Historically Speaking,” and “Ghosts of Goliad and other stories of Presidio La Bahia.”
He participated widely in the community, serving 14 years as vice-chairman of the Victoria County Historical Commission under Charles Spurlin, on the Texas Zoo board of directors, and as “Burromeister” of the long-running Beautiful Burro Pageant. He also planned many of the zany activities for the International Armadillo Confab and Exposition events.
In the finest sense of the word, Henry E. Wolff Jr. was a storyteller. The “Henry’s Journal” column recorded the stories of residents who lived throughout the Advocate circulation area. Topics ranged from cannons to donkeys to local legends and history. On occasion he inserted bits of his life, from growing up on a West Texas cotton farm to family life.
One of his proudest accomplishments was being named president of the Texas Folklore Society. Several of his folklore papers were presented at annual meetings are included in books published by the Texas Folklore Society.
In 1998, Henry and Linda (Smith) Hetsel were married on the summer solstice at the ruins of Espiritu Santo de Zuniga mission on the banks of the Guadalupe River. Together they enjoyed book signings, Texas Folklore Society meetings and travel to Europe where they met distant kin. During a 2013 trip to Paris they visited sites frequented by artists and writers of the 1920’s, prompting them to become enthusiasts for that place and time.
Henry is survived by his wife, Linda; two children, Sandra Kay Wolff and Henry Wolff IV; a granddaughter, Constance Marie Mouton (Kevin); and eight great-grandchildren, Dakota, Kristen, Hunter, Jade, Skielar, Leah, Xander and Ryder.
A Celebration of Life will be scheduled after the Covid-19 Virus Pandemic is over.
Memorial donations may be made in Henry’s memory to the Texas Folklore Society, P.O. Box 13007-SFASU, Nacogdoches, TX 75962-3007, www.texasfolkloresociety.org
