Pansy Carpenter

Does anyone remember Pansy Carpenter, the old woman who lived in McCamey for 30 years or so till her death in 1973. Some said she was a circus performer who broke her leg during a performance & the circus moved on, leaving her there. My aunt, Velma McCarty, used to leave bacon drippings & food on the back porch for Pansy, who called my aunt "Lovey". Pansy was quite the town character. I've found 2 photos of her dated Oc '71.

I remember Pansy well. My family lived out of town at the Marshal Nevill farms. When we were little i remeber our parents would scare us when Pansy went out to the farms. She would walk from town to the farms and back. We would be told things like,(Ay viene Pansy), which means Pansy is coming. As i got older I have come to realize that Pansy was one great person. She was a bag lady in town and one day out of the week or month she would walk to the farms to deliever food for us. She would take can food and sweets for us. Our parents used to check the canned food to see if it was still good. This little bag lady was actually wanting to provide for us farm people. I never really realized how poor we were until years later when i realized that if Pansy felt there was a need for us out there, she was going to help. I meet a man at Dairy Queen a few years back and as we started talking, he was acturally in town writing a book on Pansy. I wish I would of saved his card and name so I could read that book. Now for some reason I have been thinking about that and I am looking for his book. If you have any idea where I might find one, please respond here.

Landell J Pugh wrote:

Does anyone remember Pansy Carpenter, the old woman who lived in McCamey for 30 years or so till her death in 1973. Some said she was a circus performer who broke her leg during a performance & the circus moved on, leaving her there. My aunt, Velma McCarty, used to leave bacon drippings & food on the back porch for Pansy, who called my aunt "Lovey". Pansy was quite the town character. I've found 2 photos of her dated Oc '71.

Maria, Take a look at the todays Graham Tx. paper (Graham Leader) there is an article in the paper today titled Pansy Carpenter. In the '50's I lived in Mccamey and I remember Pansy,I never knew her last name until today. The writter is Mike Cox which has written 13 books,I think the one you are interested in may be Texas Tales. You might like to check out texasescapes.com .
Hope you find what you are looking for.

I thought Pansy was beaten to death in McCamey. Every one was always saying she had a lot of Money and some men came and beat her to death trying to get her money

She actually died in between McCamey and Rankin of heart attack she was in the circus her and her husband were transpize actor and he fell to his death she kinda just went looney after that
I remember here always going thru the trash she scared me.

The Social Security Death Index and Texas Death Index both show Pansy's death in Kerr County,Tx. The burial is in the Oak Rest Cemetery,Medina,Bandera County,Tx.
Social Security Death Index
Birth, Marriage & Death
Name: Pansy Carpenter
Birth: 6 Jan 1894
Death: Oct 1972 - Kerrville, Kerr, Texas, United States of America
Civil: Texas


Texas Death Index, 1903-2000
Birth, Marriage & Death
Name: Pansy Carpenter
Death: 28 Oct 1972 - Kerr

Gail wrote:

The Social Security Death Index and Texas Death Index both show Pansy's death in Kerr County,Tx. The burial is in the Oak Rest Cemetery,Medina,Bandera County,Tx.
Social Security Death Index
Birth, Marriage & Death
Name: Pansy Carpenter
Birth: 6 Jan 1894
Death: Oct 1972 - Kerrville, Kerr, Texas, United States of America
Civil: Texas
Texas Death Index, 1903-2000
Birth, Marriage & Death
Name: Pansy Carpenter
Death: 28 Oct 1972 - Kerr

Gail you are right. Pansy died in the Kerrville State Hospital. She had cancer of the sinus and hardening of the arteries. She received head injuries from her fall from the trapeze (which is not proven) Her maiden name is Carr. She had a stepfather named Walker.

For those that remember Pansy or just enjoy an intersting story you will like this site. The site has the story,the photos that are in the museum and the census info matches what I have found with Ancestry. The photo of her as a young woman shows what a beautiful young lady she was.

Type in: Pansy Carr Carpenter/genealogytrails.com

Pansy Carr Carpenter
GENEALOGY TRAILS. Pansy Carpenter ...© Copyright 2009 by Genealogy Trails with full rights reserved for original submitters....genealogytrails. com/tex/upton/Pansy_Carr.html - Cached

i lived and actually started school in McCamey in 1956 and think about her often and wonder what ever happened to her. We saw her all the time pulling that little wagon and digging in the trash. Her home was across the street from ours and i did peek in to see the car that she had chained to the floor. She was quite harmless and nobody really even bothered her. I did hear the rumor that she was a trapeze artist that had fallen and suffered brain damage, so i think that is why we just ignored her. Frankly, we were all living in her town is the way we felt. I think about her quite often and would love to see some pictures of her and know more about her life.