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Ross Sterling, Texan : A Memoir by the Founder of Humble Oil and Refining Company / Ross S. Sterling, Editor Kilman; ed. by Don Carleton.

By: Contributor(s): Material type: TextTextPublisher: Austin : University of Texas Press, [2010]Copyright date: 2007Description: 1 online resource (280 p.)Content type:
Media type:
Carrier type:
ISBN:
  • 9780292795525
Subject(s): DDC classification:
  • 976.4/061092 22
Other classification:
  • online - DeGruyter
Online resources:
Contents:
Frontmatter -- Contents -- Foreword -- Introduction: Don Carleton -- One. Double Bayou -- Two. The Flip of a Coin -- Three. The First Two Oil Wells -- Four. Taking Over Standard -- Five. A Personality Company -- Six. Pulling Stakes at Fifty -- Seven. Deerslayers Deluxe -- Eight. Highways of Destiny -- Nine. The Unbonding Plan -- Ten. An Unpolitical Politician -- Eleven. Pour It On -- Twelve. The World Loves a Winner -- Thirteen. The Supreme Honor of My Life -- Fourteen. Crisis in East Texas -- Fifteen. Drowning in Ten-Cent Oil -- Sixteen. Holding the Bull -- Seventeen. Whistling in the Dark -- Eighteen. Flying Words and Eggs -- Nineteen. The Battle of the People -- Twenty. It Was a Great Show -- Twenty-one. Martial Law’s Finale -- Twenty-two. Back in the Chips -- Twenty-three. The View from the Western Slope -- Epilogue -- Notes -- Index
Summary: Born on a farm near Anahuac, Texas, in 1875 and possessed of only a fourth-grade education, Ross Sterling was one of the most successful Texans of his generation. Driven by a relentless work ethic, he become a wealthy oilman, banker, newspaper publisher, and, from 1931 to 1933, one-term governor of Texas. Sterling was the principal founder of the Humble Oil and Refining Company, which eventually became the largest division of the ExxonMobil Corporation, as well as the owner of the Houston Post. Eager to "preserve a narrative record of his life and deeds," Ross Sterling hired Ed Kilman, an old friend and editorial page editor of the Houston Post, to write his biography. Though the book was nearly finished before Sterling's death in 1949, it never found a publisher due to Kilman's florid writing style and overly hagiographic portrayal of Sterling. In this volume, by contrast, editor Don Carleton uses the original oral history dictated by Ross Sterling to Ed Kilman to present the former governor's life story in his own words. Sterling vividly describes his formative years, early business ventures, and active role in developing the Texas oil industry. He also recalls his political career, from his appointment to the Texas Highway Commission to his term as governor, ending with his controversial defeat for reelection by "Ma" Ferguson. Sterling's reminiscences constitute an important primary source not only on the life of a Texan who deserves to be more widely remembered, but also on the history of Houston and the growth of the American oil industry.
Holdings
Item type Current library Call number URL Status Notes Barcode
eBook eBook Biblioteca "Angelicum" Pont. Univ. S.Tommaso d'Aquino Nuvola online online - DeGruyter (Browse shelf(Opens below)) Online access Not for loan (Accesso limitato) Accesso per gli utenti autorizzati / Access for authorized users (dgr)9780292795525

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Foreword -- Introduction: Don Carleton -- One. Double Bayou -- Two. The Flip of a Coin -- Three. The First Two Oil Wells -- Four. Taking Over Standard -- Five. A Personality Company -- Six. Pulling Stakes at Fifty -- Seven. Deerslayers Deluxe -- Eight. Highways of Destiny -- Nine. The Unbonding Plan -- Ten. An Unpolitical Politician -- Eleven. Pour It On -- Twelve. The World Loves a Winner -- Thirteen. The Supreme Honor of My Life -- Fourteen. Crisis in East Texas -- Fifteen. Drowning in Ten-Cent Oil -- Sixteen. Holding the Bull -- Seventeen. Whistling in the Dark -- Eighteen. Flying Words and Eggs -- Nineteen. The Battle of the People -- Twenty. It Was a Great Show -- Twenty-one. Martial Law’s Finale -- Twenty-two. Back in the Chips -- Twenty-three. The View from the Western Slope -- Epilogue -- Notes -- Index

restricted access online access with authorization star

http://purl.org/coar/access_right/c_16ec

Born on a farm near Anahuac, Texas, in 1875 and possessed of only a fourth-grade education, Ross Sterling was one of the most successful Texans of his generation. Driven by a relentless work ethic, he become a wealthy oilman, banker, newspaper publisher, and, from 1931 to 1933, one-term governor of Texas. Sterling was the principal founder of the Humble Oil and Refining Company, which eventually became the largest division of the ExxonMobil Corporation, as well as the owner of the Houston Post. Eager to "preserve a narrative record of his life and deeds," Ross Sterling hired Ed Kilman, an old friend and editorial page editor of the Houston Post, to write his biography. Though the book was nearly finished before Sterling's death in 1949, it never found a publisher due to Kilman's florid writing style and overly hagiographic portrayal of Sterling. In this volume, by contrast, editor Don Carleton uses the original oral history dictated by Ross Sterling to Ed Kilman to present the former governor's life story in his own words. Sterling vividly describes his formative years, early business ventures, and active role in developing the Texas oil industry. He also recalls his political career, from his appointment to the Texas Highway Commission to his term as governor, ending with his controversial defeat for reelection by "Ma" Ferguson. Sterling's reminiscences constitute an important primary source not only on the life of a Texan who deserves to be more widely remembered, but also on the history of Houston and the growth of the American oil industry.

Mode of access: Internet via World Wide Web.

In English.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 26. Aug 2024)