Skipper Steely Collection

Skipper Steely is an author, researcher, genealogist, newspaper editor, and publisher from Paris, Texas. Steely graduated from Paris High School in 1964. He attended East Texas State University (now Texas A&M University-Commerce) and received a B.S. in business/journalism in 1968 and an M.S. in journalism/business in 1970.

After college he spent time with the United States Air Force as an information and recruitment officer before he entered the newspaper business. He first began to write and publish books in 1980. He established Wright Press, and in 1990, began a full-time career as an author. Steely has since published numerous fiction, non-fiction, and biographical works. His articles have been published in The Paris News, Lamar County Echo, Dallas Times Herald, Texas East Times, Commerce Citizen, Wolfe City Sun, Cooper Review, and East Texas Historical Journal. Many of his books are focused on the history of Texas and Lamar County and include Pat Mayse: The Life and Times of a Texas Publisher, Six Months from Tennessee, Charles DeMorse: Father of Texas Journalism, Forty Seven Years, John Chisum, and Northeast Texas Pioneers. Steely also edited Backward Glances, a multi-volume set of A.W. Neville's "Backward Glances" columns from The Paris News.