| BIOGRAPHY
R. B. George
1887 - 1956 Richard Bohanon (R.B.) George moved to Farmers Branch
around 1933 before it was incorporated. There is no published biography and
little is written about this man who had such a profound impact on this area
through the depression years and the years preceding World War II. Newspaper
articles on the Children's Hospital of Texas give us glimpses of his
philanthropic, civic and humanitarian projects in our community. Obituaries
obtained at the Dallas Public Library and from Sparkman-Hillcrest Mausoleum
paint the picture of a private man who had a big heart for children. From the
Dallas Morning News articles on his death, "Not the business interests which he
built over the years but the Children's Hospital of Texas, which he served as
president, was the principal interest in George's life." In 1961, The
Children's Hospital of Texas was renamed the R. B. Georg and Miss Cleo George
Memorial Hospital for his invaluable rendering of service to generations of sick
children. It was noted that he provided a guiding light and a powerful guidance
in the creation and operation of the Children's Medical Center of Dallas and
made provisions in his will for the continuance of this health facility. An
anonymous motto that he kept on his desk for over 25 years was described by a
close business associate as more characteristics of his nature than anything
your can say about him. The motto reads: "I shall pass through this world but
once. Any good, therefore, that I can do, or any kindness that I can show to any
human being, let me do it now; let me not defer or neglect it for I shall not
pass this way again." Mr. George's social and economic influence
extended beyond Farmers Branch throughout Dallas and Dallas County and the
entire state. At his death it was noted that he took a little of the community
with him when he died. He had purchased Carrollton High School's first band
uniforms, invited all of the Farmers Branch and Carrollton resident to Glad
Acres for barbecue every Fourth of July, gave barbecue and swim parties for the
Carrollton High School varsity football teams twice a year, and provided
employment and food for many area families. During the depression, if a man
needed a job, he could always find work at Glad Acres. For 25 cents an hour plus
meals, that were brought out to the work area for them, a man during those times
could survive the depressed economy. R. B. was one of the richest men
in the nation when he came to this area, making his fortune in Caterpillar heavy
equipment dealerships in five states throughout the Southwest. A single deal
early in his business career contributed largely to his success. Caterpillar
tractors were a hot item on the market, so they story goes, and young George,
Foreseeing their future, obtained a long term dealer contract on a large
territory. When these tractors came into their own, so did George. The
George's originally came from the lush green hill country of Kentucky. R. B.
George was the oldest of four children born to Henry T. and Sadie Hancock George
on January 5, 1887, in Versailles, Kentucky. His father was a banker and sheriff
of Woolfort County, Kentucky. Henry George died soon after the family moved from
Woolfort Country to Jennings, Louisiana in 1898, and Sudie with her children
remained there operating a sugar and rice plantation for ten years. They
then moved to Houston in 1908 where her two sons, R. B. and W. Holton, went into
the machinery business and in 1916 they moved to Dallas. Sudie, the
mother to whom R. B. was deeply devoted, recreated much of the atmosphere of the
Blue Glass State at Glad Acres. Her maiden name was Hancock and she counted John
Hancock, signer of the Declaration of Independence in her family tree. In 1947,
R. B. George, his two sisters, Miss Cleo George and the late Mrs. Sara Weiss of
Mineral Wells, and brother, W. H. George of New Orleans gave $100,000 for the
construction of a chapel in memory of their mother at the First Presbyterian
Church, 407 S. Harwood Dallas. The chapel was dedicated May 8, 1948, as the
Sudie George Memorial Chapel. Mrs. Sudie George died on May 28, 1942 and was
entombed at Hillcrest Mausoleum. R. B. saw to it that every day a lily was
placed on her sarcophagus which was a direct copy of the Westminister Abbey. In
his will he set up two $50,000 trusts. Three fourths of the income from the
first trust to be used to provide flowers weekly for the family tomb at
Hillcrest Mausoleum. The remaining one fourth was to be used for beautifying and
upkeep of Hillcrest. The other $50,000 trust fund was set up for the Sudie
George Memorial Chapel's upkeep and operation. R. B. George was
described as a good man, one who lent his kind and capable hand to many civic
and humanitarian projects. He was a busy and successful businessman founding the
R. B. George Equipment Company (successor to the R. B. George Machinery Company)
in 1924. In 1953, the equipment company was sold and became the Darr Equipment
Company. Through the liquidation of several corporations, he organized the R. B.
George Investment Company. During his years in business he was also associated
with Central Texas Machinery Company of Abilene, West Texas Equipment of
Amarillo and Lubbock, and George-Gillespie Bond Corp. At the time of his death
Mr. George was a director of the Republic National Bank, the
Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad and trustee of the Texas Research Foundation.
For a number of years he operated a profitable ranch in Central West Texas,
in addition to his numerous other business interests. In 1933, he and a group of
friends started the charity horse shows to raise funds for the benefit of Texas
Children's' Hospital. Mr. George owned a major portion of Fari Park in Dallas at
one time, as well as the Baker Hotel. He owned several thousand acres of land
around meridian, Texas, and another several thousand acres near Gainesville.
It was noted that the principal interest in George's life was helping sick
and crippled children, even though he never married and had no children. He
contributed much of his time and effort to the Children's Hospital of Texas,
where he was president of the board of directors. Beginning in 1924, he was
president of the executive board of the Children's Medical Center which he
helped found and served on the boards of its four units: Bradford Memorial
Hospital for Babies, Freeman Memorial Clinic, Children's Hospital of Texas and
Ivor O'Connor Morgan Memorial Hospital for tuberculosis children. He devoted his
activities for a quarter of a century to helping sick and crippled children. He
helped raise 240,000 for the building and first year's operation of the
Children's Hospital of Texas, and institution he headed from the time it was
built. In addition to other activities, Mr. George was on the board of
directors of the State Fair of Texas. He held memberships in the Dallas Country
Club and the Brook Hollow Golf Club, Dallas Athletic Club, Dallas Petroleum Club
and the Mustang Club. Mr. George was an active member of the Dallas Citizens
Council. He was also a 32nd degree Mason and was affiliated with the Hella
Temple Shrine in Dallas, the Masonic Lodge in Galveston, and a director of the
Red Cross. On March 2, 1956, Richard Bohanon George died at age 69 in a
Dallas hospital. The Board of Directors of Children's Hospital of Texas
on September 21, 1961, in recognition of his leadership and generosity over a
period of 25 years, voted to change the name of the building to the "R. B.
George and Miss Cleo George Memorial Hospital."
Elm Fork Echoes - The Peters Colony Historical Society
of Dallas County, Texas.
Vol.
30 May 2002
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Benefactor
of Children Dies at 69
Carrollton-Farmers
Branch TXGenWeb