O'Donohoe, John F.
Wichita Falls, Wichita County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Mississippi native John F. O' Donohoe (1885-1967) first came to Wichita Falls in 1909 as a scout for the J.M. Guffey Petroleum Company, which later became the Gulf Oil Corporation While staying in the Jolene Hotel, the wildcatter O' Donohoe staked out the company's first lease in Clay County in what became knkown as the Petrolia Oilfield near Henrietta. Without the assistance of a surveyor, he located the company's first major discovery well in the area. After leaving the Guffey Company, O' Donohoe opened an office in the Anderson-Bean building at this site, where other significant businesses, such as Wichita Truck, Wichita Falls Traction Co. and Floral Heights Realty had also operated. In 1916, he was appointed manager of the Wichita Falls Fuel and Development Company, a firm established by the city's Chamber of Commerce. He continued his success in the oil business, organizing the United Petroleum Producers Company in 1919. The next year, he joined the Cline Oil Company, and in 1927 he organized the Petroleum Producers Company, serving for many years as the group's president. In 1941, Shell Oil bought all of the stock in the company. O' Donohoe married Carrie Kell, daughter of oilman and miller Frank Kell, with whom O' Donohoe was associated. Active in the local community, O' Donohoe served as chair on the board of Midwestern University (now Midwestern State University). He also served as director of many industry institutions: Independent Petroleum Associates of America, North Texas Oil and Gas Association, and Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association of Texas, as well as Wichita Falls' First National Bank. In 1941, the Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association honored O' Donohoe with a distinguished service award. He died in 1967 and was buried in the city's Crestview Memorial Park, Today, he is remembered for helping establish Wichita Falls in the petroleum industry. (2004)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
John F. O'Donohoe arrived in Wichita Falls in 1909 as a scout for the Guffey Petroleum Company — later Gulf Oil — and, working without a surveyor, staked the firm's first Clay County lease in what became the Petrolia Oilfield. Over the following decades the wildcatter organized a string of petroleum companies, managed a Chamber of Commerce development firm, and married into the family of oilman Frank Kell. Active in banking and civic life, he chaired the board of what is now Midwestern State University.
Why it matters
His career traces how North Texas rode the early-20th-century oil boom from open range to industrial prosperity.
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Related people
- · John F. O'Donohoe
- · Frank Kell
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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