Clinton Williams Murchison, Sr.

The Handbook of Texas follows Murchison's fortune through several moves. He sold his oil holdings in 1925 for $5 million, based himself in San Antonio, and returned to Dallas in 1928. In 1930 he became an early developer in the East Texas oilfield and built the Tyler Pipe Line to a Tyler refinery. He named his firm American Liberty Oil to oppose proration, then changed his mind when oil fell to ten cents a barrel. His Trans-Canada Pipe Lines, finished in 1958, ran 2,100 miles. He died in Athens on June 20, 1969.

What the plaque says

Clinton Williams Murchison, Sr. Clint W. Murchison, Sr. was born April 11, 1895, in Tyler to John W. and Clara (Williams) Murchison. His grandfather, T.F. Murchison, was one of the earliest settlers to arrive in Athens and established the first bank in Henderson County in 1890. Following the death of T.F. Murchison, control of the bank passed to his sons. After a short stint at Trinity University in Waxahachie, Clint returned to Athens to assist with the family bank. Clint enlisted in the army and served stateside as a lieutenant during World War I. Discharged in 1919, Clint accepted an invitation from his friend and fellow Athenian Sid Richardson to join him as a lease trader in the booming Burkburnett oilfield near Wichita Falls. In 1920, Clint married Anne Morris from Tyler and they started a family, having three sons. After the tragic death of Anne in 1926, Clint decided to move to Dallas to continue wheeling and dealing. Nationally recognized companies that he founded included American Liberty Oil, Southern Union Gas, Delhi-Taylor, Florida gas and Trans-Canada pipelines. In 1943, Murchison married Virginia Long. They often returned to Athens and their beloved Glad Oaks Estate. He diversified his holdings into life insurance, banking, publishing, real estate, ranching and railroads. When his health began to deteriorate in the early 1960s, he retired to Glad Oaks, frequenting local cattle sales and inspecting his ranches in the area. He passed away in 1969. Clint Murchison, Sr. was one of the most significant oil magnates of the Texas oil boom. His influence reached not only the oil industry, but many other areas of business and commerce. (2013)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center — 5.6 mi
  A Texas Parks and Wildlife hatchery and visitor center in Athens where visitors can borrow tackle and fish a stocked pond, watch native species in gallery tanks and ride a tram around the hatchery.
• Purtis Creek State Park — 13 mi
  A 1,582-acre park straddling the Henderson and Van Zandt county line, built around a 355-acre lake with no-wake fishing, borrowed tackle, a 4.1-mile hike-and-bike trail and a nature path.

More markers nearby

• Sid Williams Richardson — steps away
• Dulcinea Ann Holland Thompson Avriett — 0.2 mi
• Joseph Thomas La Rue and Stella E. Parsons La Rue — 0.2 mi
• Henderson County Pottery Industry — 0.4 mi