Friends and family gathered last Saturday to celebrate the life of well-known Bastrop journalist, artist and historian Davis McAuley. McAuley died Tuesday, Jan. 31 after a battle with cancer.

McAuley’s family submitted the following – a tribute to the man many people will remember for his dry wit, sharp tongue and sophisticated journalistic sense.

Davis McAuley led a remarkable life. Bastrop residents know him best as the longtime editor of the Bastrop Advertiser, but also as a painter, historian and cofounder of Upstart, the non-profit that runs Bastrop Cable Access Television station, BCAT, for the City of Bastrop.

Davis was born in 1942 to Rose and Aubrey McAuley. He spent most of his life in Texas, with a few brief, but significant, stints in Georgia.  His father – “Daddy Mac” as the grandkids called him – was a Baptist minister and Lt. Chaplain in WWII who spent part of his time during the war assigned to Camp Swift near Bastrop. Many people believe that Davis acquired his strong sense of giving back to his community from his father.

Davis graduated from Abilene High School in 1961. During that time, he began learning to paint landscapes, a passion he would continue to pursue for the rest of his life. He went to college at Mercer University in Macon, Ga., where he met his first wife, Carla Sue Daugherty. Carla’s father, the sculptor Marshall Daugherty, was a strong early influence on Davis, encouraging both his critical thinking and his love of painting. While at Mercer, he also honed his skill as a reporter on the student newspaper, The Cluster.

Davis returned to Texas in 1965 and began graduate school at the University of Texas in Austin. As a young teaching assistant in the English Department at UT, he fell in with a motley crew of educators, social activists and misfits who joined forces to create an “alternative school” known as Greenbriar Community School near Bastrop in 1969. After finishing his studies at UT, Davis taught English classes at Greenbriar for several years during the mid-1970s.

Davis began writing freelance articles for the Bastrop Advertiser in 1978 and continued doing so until 1981. He also wrote freelance stories for the Austin American-Statesman and for a national magazine, Icon.

Around this time, Davis became a founding member (it started in his living room) of what was the Bastrop Lignite Watch, later the BCEN (Bastrop County Environmental Network). The Lignite Watch was very instrumental in stopping the destruction of tens of thousands of acres in Bastrop County. BCEN continues still in protecting the county’s valuable natural resources.

He also developed a strong love of Bastrop-area history, helping to found the Sayersville Historical Association and publishing the first “SHA Bulletin” in 1982. In doing so, he helped to create a model for any small community wishing to preserve its local history. He wrote several noted scholarly articles for the Bulletin over the years and helped to collect and edit numerous articles by other local and state historians.

Davis moved back to Georgia in the mid-1980s, where he became editor of the Hawkinsville Dispatch & News for several years. In 1986, he returned to Bastrop as editor of the Bastrop Advertiser, a position he held for the next 22 years until his retirement in 2008.

In 1996, Davis married writer Carolyn Banks, whom he had hired as a reporter two years earlier. In 2000, he and Banks formed the non-profit Upstart, to “promote visual literacy and give voice to the people of Bastrop through media arts outreach and education.”

He served as president of the Upstart board until his death. He continued working his old news beat even after retirement, hosting “Bastrop News Update,” along with interviews with Bastrop City Manager Mike Talbot on “City Talk” following each city council meeting. As First National Bank president Reid Sharp pointed out, “Davis was the conscience of Bastrop, always asking those questions that others wondered about but feared to ask directly.” Sharp went on to say, “He left an indelible mark on this community by documenting and commenting on both the good and the bad as our little town grew and matured.”

Davis was preceded in death by his parents and his sister Ann Howell. He is survived by his wife, Carolyn Banks of Bastrop, his three sons, a stepson and five grandchildren, with another one on the way. His eldest son, Aubrey K. McAuley lives in Austin with his wife, Sachi Nelson McAuley and their two daughters, Kaylixan and Akyra. Davis’s middle son, Reuben H. McAuley, lives in Boston with his wife Sara Conrad McAuley; they are expecting a son in June. Reuben’s eldest, Connor McAuley, lives in Austin. Davis’ youngest son, Marshall J. McAuley, lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Mary Testa McAuley, and their two children, Jared and Casey. Davis’ stepson, Donald Banks, lives in Elgin with his wife, Beth Whitley Banks.

At the time of his death, in addition to his presence on BCAT, Davis McAuley was writing a memoir about his life in Bastrop entitled “Characters.” He’d written some 8,000 words when he died, in the same wry style as his much-acclaimed newspaper column, “The Uneasy Chair.” Although he was battling lung cancer, he continued his nightly practice of drinking a beer and smoking a cigarette while watching the sun set over the Colorado River from his back porch at River Road Studio, surrounded by the books and paintings that he loved, his wife, his dog, Granger and cat, Ushi.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorial contributions be made to Upstart, to help carry on the legacy of the non-profit Davis founded and loved. The mailing address is 1800 Linda St, Bastrop TX 78602.