Local woodcarver created his own museum

Published in the Kerrville Daily Times on March 29, 2025

Captain L.P. Betty in the museum room he built in his home

Many of the stories I enjoy learning about are the stories of everyday people who lived in Kerr County. While men like Capt. Charles Schreiner or Joshua Brown were profoundly shaping our beautiful patch of Texas, there were many men and women going about their daily lives in the area. The lives of some of those people are interesting in their own right and help paint a vivid image of what a community was like during a particular moment in time.

Next week’s Texas Woodcarvers Guild Spring Round Up at the Youth Event Center reminded me of a man who was a patriot, accomplished artist and Kerrville resident. His name was Capt. Lemuel Parker Betty.

Betty was born in Smith County, Tennessee, in 1875. When he was in his early 20s, Betty’s family moved to North Texas, where they grew cotton. In 1899, while he and his father were harvesting crops, Betty felt the call to enlist in the Army to fight in the Spanish American War. While he missed out on fighting in the West Indies during the short war, he was sent to Mindano in the Philippines, the United States’ newest island possession, where he briefly served under the command of Gen. John J. Pershing.

In 1902, he was stationed in Manila, where he recalled the “naked hulls and weathered skeletons of the Spanish fleet” sunk by Admiral George Dewey still littered the bay. His tour of the Philippines ended in 1906, when he returned to the States and was stationed in Wyoming when a big earthquake decimated San Francisco. Betty’s unit was ordered to the city to assist in restoring order and lend a hand in reconstruction.

Of his time in California, he said, “Soldiers played a big role there. They helped bury the dead, stopped looting and dynamited entire blocks of buildings to keep fires from spreading.”

After two months in California, he served at bases in New Jersey, Illinois and Georgia, gradually rising in rank.

In 1924, Betty retired with the rank of captain. His 25 years of service was shorter than the stipulated 30 years given to most men who enlisted. The Army gave two years credit of service for every year a soldier spent serving in malaria-infested tropics — it was considered dangerous duty. 

Shortly after retirement, Betty came to Kerrville to work at the Legion Hospital, now the Kerrville Veterans Administration Hospital. He fell in love with both the Hill Country and a pretty dietitian named Anna Unruh (1899-1980). 

The Betty Home at 2211 Memorial Blvd. The home still stands today.

Betty made Kerrville his home, married Anna shortly after meeting her and built a home that still stands at 2211 Memorial Blvd. The house features custom cabinetry and woodwork that Betty crafted with his own hands. 

Anna and L.P. Betty had two children, Winfield and Helen. As the Betty family grew, L.P. Betty, who took up woodcarving as a hobby in the 1930s, began to create intricate toys for his two children. The toys became more and more detailed with time.

Most of the carvings were working replicas of “things used in the early days.” Betty used the carvings to show his children how things used to work and how much had changed from the days when he was a child. Among his creations were a miniature molasses mill, a spinning wheel, thresher, covered wagon, shingle maker and a river boat.

From a story written by Madeline Ward in The Kerrville Daily Times on June 19, 1960: “Hand operated machines and out-moded vehicles are a

“With just such a mental picture, he begins work fashioning each separate part for these items from a piece of wood. More remarkable still is that he has never had to remake or start a piece over because it didn’t fit or was the wrong size.”

He also fashioned tables and cabinets to display his carvings. As time passed, he had such a collection of carvings and hand-made furniture that a room had to be added to his home to house and to display his art.

He also displayed his military war medals, collections of rocks, shells and arrowheads in the room and opened it to the public as a museum.

Betty became well known around town for the exquisite furniture he made and was a sought-after craftsman to make custom furniture for many homes in Kerrville. The Betty family tells a story about Betty that involved Jimmie Rodgers, the “Father of Country Music” and a former Kerrville resident. Rodgers approached Betty about having some furniture made for his home in Kerrville. Betty, a fierce teetotaler, physically threw the musician out of his house when he was asked to make a custom liquor cabinet.

Betty died in 1965, leaving behind carvings and furniture that his family still treasures to this day. The home where his children grew up and where he operated a museum to display his carvings and collections still stands near the Schreiner University campus but is no longer in the Betty family.

I would like to thank Winfield Betty, a 1955 graduate of Tivy High School and a U.S. Air Force Veteran who now lives in San Antonio, for sharing the story of his father’s service and talent with me.

Furniture and wood carvings by L.P. Betty from his family's private collection.