DUANE
Duane's take
The official marker in Henderson County tells this story, and I'm gonna give it to you the way Sid would've probably wanted — straight, but with a little room to breathe. Now, Athens, Texas gave the world a lot of things, but on April 25, 1891, it gave the world Sid Williams Richardson — a man who would one day be known as the Billionaire Bachelor. That title sounds like it belongs to a different kind of story.
But Sid's story starts the way a lot of great Texas stories start: with a kid and some cattle. He was sixteen years old when he traveled all the way to Louisiana to buy cattle — with money he had saved himself. Came back to Athens, sold those calves, and tripled what he put in.
Three thousand five hundred dollars. At sixteen. Now, you could chalk that up to beginner's luck, but the marker calls him a natural trader and negotiator, and the rest of his life is gonna bear that out in a pretty dramatic fashion.
After high school, Sid took a couple of runs at higher education — briefly attended Baylor University in Waco, then Simmons University, which you know today as Hardin-Simmons, up in Abilene. Briefly. Sid Richardson was built for the field, not the classroom.
In 1909, his brother-in-law helped him land a job with an oil well supply company in Wichita Falls. He started as a salesman. Then an oil scout.
Then a lease purchaser. And by 1917, Sid was an independent oil producer. That's a climb worth noticin'.
Then comes 1919, and Sid partners with his long-time friend Clint Murchison. The two of them set out buying land, then leasing or selling those lands to oil companies hungry for new ground to drill. It wasn't a straight line up from there.
Sid's finances fluctuated — he lost wealth, he gained it back, lost it again. But he persisted. That word is in the marker, and it's doing a lot of heavy lifting.
And then comes 1929. The year most of the country was fallin' apart, Sid Richardson discovered the Keystone Field in Winkler County. He drilled eighty straight wells — eighty — without a single dry hole.
What would become one of the largest oil fields in all of Texas, and it made Richardson one of the most successful independent oil men in the country. Eighty straight. Not one dry hole.
By 1936, this man who had bounced around bunkhouses and boardrooms finally bought himself a piece of land to call home. San Jose Island — five miles off the Gulf Coast from Rockport, Texas. And out there on that island, he built the only home he ever owned.
He didn't keep it to himself. In May of 1937, Sid hosted President Franklin Roosevelt at San Jose Island during Roosevelt's visit to Texas. And later, President Roosevelt sought Richardson's counsel on the nation's petroleum reserves during World War II.
After the war, Sid became a close friend of General Dwight Eisenhower, entertaining him — along with Lyndon Johnson — right there on that same island. And here's a detail that tends to stop people: San Jose Island was also used as a location to raise Texas Longhorn cattle to help ensure their preservation. The Billionaire Bachelor, out on his island, helping make sure a piece of Texas itself didn't disappear from the earth.
Sid Richardson was named to the National Petroleum Council. He owned a chain of drug stores, a hotel, and a television station. He assisted local charities.
The man had range, in every sense of the word. On September 30, 1959, Sid Williams Richardson died. And he's buried in Athens — the same town that watched a sixteen-year-old boy head to Louisiana with his savings and a plan.
Turned out to be some plan.
What the marker says
Born in Athens on April 25, 1891, Sid Williams Richardson became known as the "Billionaire Bachelor." When he was 16, Sid traveled to Louisiana, to purchase cattle with money he saved. A natural trader and negotiator, Richardson sold the calves once he returned to Athens and tripled his money, making $3,500. Following high school, Sid briefly attended Baylor University in Waco and Simmons (now Hardin-Simmons) University in Abilene. In 1909, Sid's brother-in-law helped him get a job with an oil well supply company in Wichita Falls where he worked as a salesman, oil scout, lease purchaser and, by 1917, an independent oil producer. In 1919, Richardson partnered with his long-time friend Clint Murchison to buy land and lease or sell the lands to oil companies seeking new areas to drill. Sid's finances fluctuated as he lost and gained wealth but he persisted. In 1929, he discovered the keystone field in Winkler County, drilling 80 straight wells without a dry hole in what would become one of the largest oil fields in Texas and making Richardson one of the most successful independent oil men in the country. In 1936, Sid purchased San Jose Island, five miles off the Gulf Coast from Rockport, Texas, where he built the only home he ever owned. He hosted Pres. Franklin Roosevelt there in May 1937 during his visit to Texas. Pres. Roosevelt later sought Richardson's council on the nation's petroleum reserves during WWII. Sid was a close friend of Gen. Dwight Eisenhower following the war, entertaining him and Lyndon Johnson at San Jose Island. The island was used as a location to raise Texas Longhorn cattle to ensure their preservation. Sid was named to the National Petroleum Council, owned a chain of drug stores, a hotel and a television station, and assisted local charities. Sid died on September 30, 1959, and is buried in Athens.