Lucile Upton wrote THE BALDKNOBBERS, publishing it near the beginning of her long newspaper career, in the mid-1930s. It remains a solid, well-researched chronicle of those self-appointed law officers, or vigilantes, who met on Ozarks mountaintops after the Civil War. Some readers may know  Upton only through that book, but she became a celebrated reporter for Springfield, Missouri newspapers, working through her eighties. 

Upton was born in Dadeville, a hamlet about thirty-five miles northwest of Springfield. She dabbled with college and teaching but journalism called to her, and she was hired by the DENVER EXPRESS in 1923. She moved from there to the more vibrant EL PASO TIMES, did some free-lancing, and then began her career with Springfield newspapers. For the most part, she had managed to dodge “the sob sister” assignments many female reporters were given in those years. 

Upton was a fine beat reporter but was probably best known for her features and her several nostalgic columns, such as “Good Old Days,” which she continued even into retirement. Her favorite subject was Ozarks history, and though she was not an academic, she was often consulted on matters Ozark—as was her more flamboyant colleague, May Kennedy McCord. 

Upton admired Vance Randolph but Kelly reports some friction between the two. Upton thought he played too much to the cheap seats and was not entirely ethical in how he went after material. 

Upton’s love of Ozarks history led her to champion the establishment of two great parks: the Nathan Boone homestead–only fifteen miles from Dadeville—and the Wilson’s Creek Battlefield. Both causes took many columns, speeches, and pamphlets, but Upton was indefatigable. This may be her greatest legacy: she was a wonderful public citizen. Even after she had retired, Upton served on the Springfield City Council and taught writing at Drury College. 

Kelly’s biography is impressively researched, full of details about Upton’s romances, marriage, siblings, friendships, and colleagues. She’s excellent at context: providing good thumbnail histories of Marvel Cave and Silver Dollar City, the School of the Ozarks, and the impact of SHEPHERD OF THE HILLS. In the end, while Upton was certainly a regional figure, she seems representative of many a 20^th Century professional woman, forging a splendid career while also becoming an exemplary citizen.