DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Frank Kell, right there in Wichita County. Now settle in, because this is a man who arrived in a city and left behind something that looked a whole lot like a different one entirely. Frank Kell was born in Clifton, and he got his start the way a lot of ambitious young men did — working in milling and mercantile.
He put in time in Clifton, put in time in Galveston, learning the trade from the grain up. Then in 1885 he married Lula Kemp, and five of their seven children came into the world right there in Clifton. So far, so ordinary.
But 1896 is where the story shifts. The family packed up and moved to Wichita Falls, and here's the detail worth noticing — Lula's brother, a man named Joseph A. Kemp, was already an established businessman in that city.
Now, some men move to a new place and spend years trying to get a foothold. Frank Kell and Joseph Kemp apparently did not have that problem. The brothers-in-law got to work, and they did not stop.
Their first joint venture was the operation of the Wichita Mill and Elevator Company. Wheat was the language of that region, and Kell and Kemp were learning to speak it fluently. As the business expanded, they joined with others to charter the Wichita Falls and Northwestern Railroad in 1905, opening up greater access to the area wheat fields.
That was one railroad. Then came the Wichita Falls and Southern Railroad, which linked the city to north Texas coal and oil reserves. That was two railroads.
They sold both of them to the MKT system in 1911, and kept right on going. They built a hotel and recreational facilities at Lake Wichita. They built streetcar lines that crossed the city and ran out to the lake.
They built downtown warehouses and commercial buildings — the City National Bank, the Wichita Falls Route Building, the Kemp Hotel. All of it stacking up, block by block, line by line. Frank Kell also served for thirteen years as a director of the Federal Reserve Bank in Dallas, which tells you something about the kind of weight his name carried far beyond Wichita Falls.
Through all of it, milling remained his primary interest. He had started in flour and grain, and he stayed loyal to it, right up until 1928 when he sold his mills and elevators in the region to General Mills. When Frank Kell died, he was still active — still involved in agricultural, commercial, and municipal ventures in the growing city of Wichita Falls.
He didn't slow down and look back at what he'd built. He was already looking forward at what came next. That was the man.
What the marker says
Entrepreneur and philanthropist Frank Kell helped build Wichita Falls into a major commercial and manufacturing center. Born in Clifton, he worked there and in Galveston in the milling and mercantile businesses in his early career. In 1885 he married Lula Kemp and five of their seven children were born in Clifton. In 1896, the family moved to Wichita Falls, where Lula Kell's brother Joseph A. Kemp was an established businessman. Over the succeeding decades, Frank Kell and Joseph Kemp shepherded the region through a period of exponential growth. Their first joint venture was operation of the Wichita Mill and Elevator Company. As the business expanded, they joined others to charter the Wichita Falls and Northwestern Railroad in 1905, establishing greater access to area wheat fields. The brothers-in-law also chartered the Wichita Falls and Southern Railroad, which linked the city to north Texas coal and oil reserves. They sold the two railroads to the MKT system in 1911. Kell and Kemp were involved in a variety of business interests and civic improvements in the early 20th century. They built a hotel and recreational facilities at Lake Wichita; streetcar lines that traversed the city and led to the lake; and several downtown warehouses and commercial buildings, including the City National Bank, Wichita Falls Route Building and Kemp Hotel. Kell served for 13 years as a director of the Federal Reserve Bank in Dallas. Milling remained his primary interest until he sold his mills and elevators in the region to General Mills in 1928. When Kell died, he was active in numerous agricultural, commercial and municipal ventures in the growing city of Wichita Falls.