John Henry Faulk

Austin | Folklorist

Well known as a folklorist, as a radio and TV personality of great wit, and as a courageous fighter against the blackmailing and blackballing of the Red Scare, John Henry Faulk also had a strong interest in environmental protection. In his hometown of Austin, he spoke out against the construction and channelizing in and along Barton Creek, and other sensitive areas. He also was a noted opponent of the efforts in the 1960s and 1970s to overpump the Ogallala Aquifer of the Panhandle, to move water from east Texas to west Texas in a system of canals and pipelines, and particularly, to dredge the Trinity River as a barge canal to Dallas. He cited similarities to the Red Scare, in the hyperbole and name-calling that was thrown against environmentalists who questioned these projects.