Frank Kell Cahoon
Encyclopedia
Frank Kell Cahoon is an oil
man and natural gas
entrepreneur from Midland, Texas
, who was the only Republican
member of the Texas House of Representatives
in the regular 1965 legislative session. Cahoon served two terms in the legislature from 1965 to 1969. He was not the first Republican member of the chamber since Reconstruction but was outnumbered in his first term, 149-1. By 2011, Republicans in the Texas House had reached 101 members to 49 for the Democrats
.
to Charles Wilbur Cahoon, Jr. (1897–1979), and the former Sibyl Kell (1899–1991). His maternal grandfather, Frank Kell (December 2, 1859 – September 17, 1941), a native of Clifton
in Bosque County
in Central Texas
, who was a diversified businessman and the owner or partner of six regional railroads totaling 1,300 miles of track. He also owned the Wichita Mill and Elevagtor Company, which he sold in 1928 to General Mills
for cash and stock in the latter company. Kell was a director of the Federal Reserve Bank
of Dallas
and a leading philanthropist in Wichita Counthy
. Kell married the former Lula Kemp. He and his brother-in-law, Joseph Kemp, are considered the two principal builders of modern Wichita Falls. Cahooon's parents and maternal grandparents are interred at Riverview Cemetery in Wichita Falls.
Cahoon was a nephew by marriage of the Wichita Falls attorney Orville Bullington
, the Republican gubernatorial nominee in 1932, having lost to the Democrat Miriam Wallace Ferguson in her second nonconsecutive bid for the office. Bullington was married to Cahoon's aunt, the former Sadie Kell.
Frank Kell Cahoon lost his namesake grandfather when the boy was only seven years of age. Cahoon graduated in 1952 from Wichita Falls High School
, along with another future legislator, Democratic
State Senator Ray Farabee
of Wichita Falls. Coincidentally, Cahoon, Farabee, and their wives had a chance meeting in 2006 on a cruise ship in New Zealand
. Cahoon and his wife, the former Paula Powers (born November 11, 1935), both graduated in 1957 from the University of Texas at Austin
. His degree is in geology
. The couple has a son, Kell Cahoon, and a daughter.
and his running-mate, U.S. Senator Hubert H. Humphrey of Minnesota
, swept the electoral votes of Texas. Not only was Cahoon left as the only member of his party in the Texas House, but the two Republican U.S. representatives, Bruce Alger
of Dallas and Ed Foreman
of Odessa
, were unseated by Democratic opponents. Earle Cabell
and Richard C. White, respectively. The only Republican remaining in statewide office at the time was Senator John G. Tower, of Wichita Falls and later Dallas, whose seat was not contested that year. Tower's first wife, Lou Bullington Tower (1920–2001), coincidentally, was a cousin of Orville Bullington, Cahoon's uncle by marriage. When the incumbent Republican Representative William S. Davis decided not to run again in 1964, Cahoon was asked by party leaders to recruit a candidate. Ultimately, the Midland County GOP leadership urged Cahoon himself to run for the seat that Davis was vacating. Cahoon won the seat by a margin of 1,500 votes over his Democratic opponent. His legislative desk was placed in the middle of the House floor. Cahoon served from District 77 in his first term and District 70 in the 1967-1969 session. The district is now No. 82. Cahoon was a member of the House Labor, Public Health, and Revenue and Taxation committees in both terms.
In 1972, Cahoon and his legislative successor, Tom Craddick
, another Midland energy entrepreneur, encouraged their fellow oilman, Ernest Angelo, Jr.
, to seek the office of mayor of Midland. Incumbent Edwin H. Magruder, Jr., who had an impressive World War II
record, did not seek a third two-year term that year. Craddick believed that the leading candidate for mayor, Mayor Pro Tem Pat M. Baskin (1926–2005), a former chairman of the Midland County Democratic Executive Committee, would use the office to try to derail Craddick’s bid for a third term in the House in the 1972 general election
. Angelo agreed to run for mayor if Cahoon would seek one of the at-large city council seats. The deal was struck, and both Angelo and Cahoon ran and won. Angelo defeated Baskin (who later switched from Democratic to Republican affiliation) by 150 votes out of some 10,000 cast. In 1976, Angelo co-chaired with Ray Barnhart
and Barbara Staff
the Ronald W. Reagan presidential primary
campaign in Texas.
. He is also a member of the boards of Midland Memorial Hospital and the Museum of the Southwest and the Petroleum Museum, both in Midland. Cahoon is active in the United Way of Midland. The Cahoons are also active donors to their alma mater
as well as the local community college
, Midland College
. The Cahoons are donors to the Midland Young Men's Christian Association.
In 2008, Cahoon contributed $2,000 to the candidacy of U.S. Senator John S. McCain, III, of Arizona
, the unsuccessful Republican presidential nominee. Earlier, Cahoon had donated to McCain's failed intraparty rival, Rudolph W. Giuliani, the former mayor of New York City
.
The Cahoons' son, Kell Cahoon, is a filmmaker in Hollywood, known particularly for his work in the television series Psych
and The John Larroquette Show
and the film Battle: Los Angeles
.
Oil
An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....
man and natural gas
Natural gas
Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...
entrepreneur from Midland, Texas
Midland, Texas
Midland is a city in and the county seat of Midland County, Texas, United States, on the Southern Plains of the state's western area. A small portion of the city extends into Martin County. As of 2010, the population of Midland was 111,147. It is the principal city of the Midland, Texas...
, who was the only Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
member of the Texas House of Representatives
Texas House of Representatives
The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the Texas Legislature. The House is composed of 150 members elected from single-member districts across the state. The average district has about 150,000 people. Representatives are elected to two-year terms with no term limits...
in the regular 1965 legislative session. Cahoon served two terms in the legislature from 1965 to 1969. He was not the first Republican member of the chamber since Reconstruction but was outnumbered in his first term, 149-1. By 2011, Republicans in the Texas House had reached 101 members to 49 for the Democrats
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
.
Background
Cahoon was born in Wichita FallsWichita Falls, Texas
Wichita Falls is a city in and the county seat of Wichita County, Texas, United States, United States. Wichita Falls is the principal city of the Wichita Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Archer, Clay and Wichita counties. According to the U.S. Census estimate of 2010,...
to Charles Wilbur Cahoon, Jr. (1897–1979), and the former Sibyl Kell (1899–1991). His maternal grandfather, Frank Kell (December 2, 1859 – September 17, 1941), a native of Clifton
Clifton, Texas
Clifton is the largest city in Bosque County in Central Texas. The city's population was 3,542 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Clifton is located at ....
in Bosque County
Bosque County, Texas
Bosque County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of 2000, the population is 17,204. Its county seat is Meridian. Clifton, however, is the largest city and the cultural/financial center of the county. Bosque is named for the Bosque River, which runs through...
in Central Texas
Central Texas
Central Texas , is a region in the U.S. state of Texas. It is roughly bordered by San Marcos to Fredericksburg to Waco, and to Brenham, and includes the Austin–Round Rock, Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood, Bryan-College Station, and Waco metropolitan areas...
, who was a diversified businessman and the owner or partner of six regional railroads totaling 1,300 miles of track. He also owned the Wichita Mill and Elevagtor Company, which he sold in 1928 to General Mills
General Mills
General Mills, Inc. is an American Fortune 500 corporation, primarily concerned with food products, which is headquartered in Golden Valley, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis. The company markets many well-known brands, such as Betty Crocker, Yoplait, Colombo, Totinos, Jeno's, Pillsbury, Green...
for cash and stock in the latter company. Kell was a director of the Federal Reserve Bank
Federal Reserve Bank
The twelve Federal Reserve Banks form a major part of the Federal Reserve System, the central banking system of the United States. The twelve federal reserve banks together divide the nation into twelve Federal Reserve Districts, the twelve banking districts created by the Federal Reserve Act of...
of Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
and a leading philanthropist in Wichita Counthy
Wichita County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 131,664 people, 48,441 households, and 32,891 families residing in the county. The population density was 210 people per square mile . There were 53,304 housing units at an average density of 85 per square mile...
. Kell married the former Lula Kemp. He and his brother-in-law, Joseph Kemp, are considered the two principal builders of modern Wichita Falls. Cahooon's parents and maternal grandparents are interred at Riverview Cemetery in Wichita Falls.
Cahoon was a nephew by marriage of the Wichita Falls attorney Orville Bullington
Orville Bullington
Orville Bullington was an attorney and businessman in Wichita Falls, Texas, who was the unsuccessful Republican gubernatorial nominee in 1932 against former Governor Miriam Wallace "Ma" Ferguson....
, the Republican gubernatorial nominee in 1932, having lost to the Democrat Miriam Wallace Ferguson in her second nonconsecutive bid for the office. Bullington was married to Cahoon's aunt, the former Sadie Kell.
Frank Kell Cahoon lost his namesake grandfather when the boy was only seven years of age. Cahoon graduated in 1952 from Wichita Falls High School
Wichita Falls High School
Wichita Falls High School or WFHS is a public school in Wichita Falls, Texas . It is part of the Wichita Falls Independent School District and is one of the district's three high schools....
, along with another future legislator, Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
State Senator Ray Farabee
Ray Farabee
Kenneth Ray Farabee, known as Ray Farabee , is a retired attorney in Austin, Texas, who served as a Democratic member of the Texas State Senate from Wichita Falls from 1975 to 1988. He is credited with the authorship of 245 Senate bills that became law during his 13-year tenure. In 1985, he was the...
of Wichita Falls. Coincidentally, Cahoon, Farabee, and their wives had a chance meeting in 2006 on a cruise ship in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. Cahoon and his wife, the former Paula Powers (born November 11, 1935), both graduated in 1957 from the University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
. His degree is in geology
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
. The couple has a son, Kell Cahoon, and a daughter.
Legislative politics
Cahoon was the only Republican of the Texas state legislative candidates elected on the Barry M. Goldwater ticket on November 3, 1964, when U.S. President Lyndon B. JohnsonLyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
and his running-mate, U.S. Senator Hubert H. Humphrey of Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
, swept the electoral votes of Texas. Not only was Cahoon left as the only member of his party in the Texas House, but the two Republican U.S. representatives, Bruce Alger
Bruce Alger
Bruce Reynolds Alger is an American politician and a former Republican U.S. representative from Texas, the first to have represented a Dallas district since Reconstruction. He served from 1955 until 1965. He was born in Dallas but was reared in Webster Groves, Missouri, a small suburb of St...
of Dallas and Ed Foreman
Ed Foreman
Edgar Franklin "Ed" Foreman is a motivational speaker in Dallas. He served one term representing a district in west Texas in the United States House of Representatives in 1963-65 and he served one term representing the southern district of New Mexico in Congress from 1969-71.-Early years in New...
of Odessa
Odessa, Texas
Odessa is a city in and the county seat of Ector County, Texas, United States. It is located primarily in Ector County, although a small portion of the city extends into Midland County. Odessa's population was 99,940 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Odessa, Texas Metropolitan...
, were unseated by Democratic opponents. Earle Cabell
Earle Cabell
Earle Cabell , was a Texas politician who served as mayor of Dallas, Texas. Cabell was mayor at the time of the assassination of John F. Kennedy and was later a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. He was son of Dallas mayor Ben E. Cabell and grandson of Dallas mayor William L. Cabell...
and Richard C. White, respectively. The only Republican remaining in statewide office at the time was Senator John G. Tower, of Wichita Falls and later Dallas, whose seat was not contested that year. Tower's first wife, Lou Bullington Tower (1920–2001), coincidentally, was a cousin of Orville Bullington, Cahoon's uncle by marriage. When the incumbent Republican Representative William S. Davis decided not to run again in 1964, Cahoon was asked by party leaders to recruit a candidate. Ultimately, the Midland County GOP leadership urged Cahoon himself to run for the seat that Davis was vacating. Cahoon won the seat by a margin of 1,500 votes over his Democratic opponent. His legislative desk was placed in the middle of the House floor. Cahoon served from District 77 in his first term and District 70 in the 1967-1969 session. The district is now No. 82. Cahoon was a member of the House Labor, Public Health, and Revenue and Taxation committees in both terms.
In 1972, Cahoon and his legislative successor, Tom Craddick
Tom Craddick
Thomas Russell Craddick, known as Tom Craddick , was the first Republican to have served as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives since Reconstruction. Craddick wielded the Speaker's gavel from 2003-2009...
, another Midland energy entrepreneur, encouraged their fellow oilman, Ernest Angelo, Jr.
Ernest Angelo
Ernest Angelo, Jr., known as Ernie Angelo , is a Texas oilman and Republican politician who served from 1972–1980 as mayor of the West Texas city of Midland and was in 1976 the co-manager of the Ronald W...
, to seek the office of mayor of Midland. Incumbent Edwin H. Magruder, Jr., who had an impressive World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
record, did not seek a third two-year term that year. Craddick believed that the leading candidate for mayor, Mayor Pro Tem Pat M. Baskin (1926–2005), a former chairman of the Midland County Democratic Executive Committee, would use the office to try to derail Craddick’s bid for a third term in the House in the 1972 general election
General election
In a parliamentary political system, a general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. The term is usually used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections.The term...
. Angelo agreed to run for mayor if Cahoon would seek one of the at-large city council seats. The deal was struck, and both Angelo and Cahoon ran and won. Angelo defeated Baskin (who later switched from Democratic to Republican affiliation) by 150 votes out of some 10,000 cast. In 1976, Angelo co-chaired with Ray Barnhart
Ray Barnhart
Ray Anderson Barnhart is a retired businessman and Republican politician, formerly from Pasadena in Harris County, Texas.From 1981–1987, Barnhart was director of the Federal Highway Administration under U.S. President Ronald W. Reagan...
and Barbara Staff
Barbara Staff
Barbara Ruth Wright Staff is a retired Republican political activist from Plano, Texas. She was co-chairman of her state's 1976 Ronald Reagan presidential primary campaign.-Background:...
the Ronald W. Reagan presidential primary
Primary election
A primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....
campaign in Texas.
Civic affairs
Active in civic affairs, Cahoon is a board member of the Texas Historical Foundation, based in AustinAustin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
. He is also a member of the boards of Midland Memorial Hospital and the Museum of the Southwest and the Petroleum Museum, both in Midland. Cahoon is active in the United Way of Midland. The Cahoons are also active donors to their alma mater
Alma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
as well as the local community college
Community college
A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries.-Australia:Community colleges carry on the tradition of adult education, which was established in Australia around mid 19th century when evening classes were held to help adults...
, Midland College
Midland College
Midland College was established as an independent junior college in 1972 and held its first classes on campus in 1975. Since that time, the campus has expanded to a main campus on in Midland, Texas, United States - a county seat of over 100,000 people in the Permian Basin region of west Texas...
. The Cahoons are donors to the Midland Young Men's Christian Association.
In 2008, Cahoon contributed $2,000 to the candidacy of U.S. Senator John S. McCain, III, of Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, the unsuccessful Republican presidential nominee. Earlier, Cahoon had donated to McCain's failed intraparty rival, Rudolph W. Giuliani, the former mayor of New York City
Mayor of New York City
The Mayor of the City of New York is head of the executive branch of New York City's government. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property, police and fire protection, most public agencies, and enforces all city and state laws within New York City.The budget overseen by the...
.
The Cahoons' son, Kell Cahoon, is a filmmaker in Hollywood, known particularly for his work in the television series Psych
Psych
Psych is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks and broadcast on USA Network. It stars James Roday as Shawn Spencer, a young crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department whose "heightened observational skills" and impressive detective instincts...
and The John Larroquette Show
The John Larroquette Show
The John Larroquette Show is a situation comedy that ran on the NBC network from 1993 to 1996. The show, created by Don Reo, was a vehicle for John Larroquette following his run as Dan Fielding on Night Court. The series took place in a seedy bus terminal in St. Louis, Missouri and focused on the...
and the film Battle: Los Angeles
Battle: Los Angeles
Battle: Los Angeles is a 2011 American military science fiction war film directed by Jonathan Liebesman, and starring Aaron Eckhart, Michelle Rodriguez, Ramon Rodriguez, Bridget Moynahan, Ne-Yo and Michael Peña...
.