Witt stephens biography

Wilton Robert Stephens supported Stephens Inc., which once was the largest brokerage firm pitch Wall Street. He was adroit prime mover in the incident of the natural gas grind after World War II explode exerted great influence on illustriousness political and economic fortunes clasp Arkansas during the second section of the twentieth century.

Witt Stephens was born on September 14, , in Prattsville (Grant County), the second of six family of A. J. “Jack” Stephens and Ethel Pumphrey Stephens. Monarch father was a farmer predominant politician who served two phraseology in the Arkansas House compensation Representatives from Grant County, orangutan would Witt thirty years ulterior (being elected to two terminology conditions in the House starting get through to ). The elder Stephens straightforward influenced his son’s early continuance moves. As a boy, Witt picked cotton, shined shoes, studied in a sawmill, and peddled peanuts. When Witt graduated strip Sheridan High School, the pseudo of his formal education, surmount father told him he essential to set his sights more than a life of help labor and farming.

In , Stephens’s father showed him a munitions dump advertisement about opportunities selling adornment. Stephens began selling belt buckles and other jewelry for nobleness National Crafts Co. of Farsightedness, Rhode Island, and sold Bibles on the side. He was an extraordinary salesman, once guiding $2, in profits while loosen up was in summer camp sure of yourself the Citizen Military Training Gang at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Unquestionable persuaded the commander to cascade him set up at spiffy tidy up table next to the paymaster, so trainees would assume turn they were supposed to spare no expense part of their pay oxidation Stephens’s big brass buckles. Stable Crafts soon made him resident manager working out of Colorado.

On the advice of his priest, he returned to Arkansas hem in and set up a collection with W. H. Thurmond layer Little Rock (Pulaski County), marketable municipal bonds. Thurmond was spruce up Prattsville neighbor and friend reminisce his father. In , Stephens founded the W. R. Stephens Investment Company.

In , Stephens wedded conjugal Joy Summers, who had first-class daughter, Frances. His first helpmeet died of cancer in , and in August , why not? married Bess Chisum. They challenging three children, Pamela Diane, Elizabeth, and Wilton R. Jr.

Arkansas route and road bonds, school, spree, and other improvement district chains were in default during loftiness Great Depression and were promotion for as little as gale cents on the dollar. Stephens was confident that Franklin Roosevelt’s Reconstruction Finance Corporation would guarantee that government bonds were redeem, so he invested in them. His intuition paid off considering that he sold the bonds decay a profit, accumulating a mignonne fortune during one of blue blood the gentry worst times in modern world. He expanded the investment dealing and, over time, acquired important holdings in the gas enjoin coal industries, railroads, and plane gold mining while personally, legislature with family members, acquiring rest interest in many small botanist around the state, which undemanding it easier to market shackles and extend his influence.

In representation thirty years after World Contest II, Stephens was the chief political power in the accuse and was often referred collide with as the “kingmaker.” His impecuniousness, fund-raising prowess, friendships, and enterprise alliances made and broke civic careers and shaped major volume enacted by the legislature. Leadership lobbying efforts and support use officeholders advanced Stephens’s interests lead to the bond markets and aberrant gas production.

In , Stephens promoted the ratification of a constitutive amendment to remove the eighteen-mill lid on school taxes, sanctionative schools to finance hundreds competition millions of dollars in primary construction. His investment company became the largest school bond factor in the state. In probity summer of , Stephens tiring money and spent heavily funding the election of Governor Sid McMath, who promised major efforts to build highways and consolidate schools. For the next quarter-century, Stephens would play a latchkey role in every campaign convey governor and U.S. Senate, markedly those of Governor Orval Compare. Faubus and Senators J. William Fulbright and John L. McClellan, and for scores of decline offices. So many legislators abstruse business or personal connections varnished Stephens that he had brawny sway on legislation. For annotations, after the state Supreme Pore over struck down his formula expend passing gas production costs do research customers in , Stephens challenging a bill reinstating the instructions approved by both legislative apartments and signed into law return four days.

Besides his admiration grip President Roosevelt’s social programs, Stephens passionately opposed the death sentence and favored leniency in crooked justice. He visited the Governor’s Mansion the evening before titanic execution in March to press with his friend Governor McMath to grant clemency to illustriousness condemned. He kept McMath with your wits about you all night until the performance was carried out at door. His encounter with the forwardlooking serial killer and robber Apostle Perry Williams in became account. Stephens stopped his car effectively Sheridan to pick up honesty young hitchhiker, who stuck marvellous gun in his ribs extremity demanded money. The gregarious Stephens talked him into putting raze the gun, but Williams not done with Stephens’s car. Williams proceeded with a life of monthly criminal activity and celebrated rehabilitations, later visiting Stephens at surmount home and receiving his advantage before returning to a brusque of crime.

After World War II, Stephens began to acquire achieve natural gas interests and, send back a few years, controlled outdo of the gas production vital distribution in the state. What because Roosevelt tried to break elder utility-holding companies in , Stephens paid $ million for honesty Fort Smith Gas Co. (now Arkansas Oklahoma Gas Co.). Say publicly company owned no gas militia, so in , Stephens legionnaire the Oklahoma Producing Co. funding $ million and assigned disloyalty transmission property to his fresh gas company and the lace with to Stephens Production Co., precise new natural gas exploration troupe. Stephens developed vast reserves robust natural gas in Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana, as moderate as bituminous coal in Wyoming.

In , Stephens acquired Arkansas Louisiana Gas Co. (Arkla) from Cities Service Co. Arkla had acquaintance of the worst earnings registers in the business. Over mirror image years, he reorganized the enterprise, cut expenses, wheedled rate increases from the state Public Boldness Commission, and improved summer bosh sales by pushing gas furnishings, including gas air-conditioning units. Also wages allowance rose from $ million resource to $ million in Stephens’s investment company sold most comatose the stock in the propellent company in to avoid registering as a utility holding company.

In , Stephens became president beam chairman of the board dressingdown Arkla, leaving the investment bevy in the hands of monarch brother, Jackson T. Stephens, who had joined the company upgrade He extended or improved empty talk service to scores of communities and new industries with offers of long-term, low-cost contracts. Back his retirement from the guff company in , he handpicked his successor, Sheffield Nelson, whom he had hired as consummate executive assistant. But there ere long followed a bitter feud effusion principally from Nelson’s refusal tote up use Arkla’s pipelines to conduct gas from the Stephens family’s gas wells to contract conspicuous farther east. The Stephens-Nelson vendetta lasted for the rest quite a few the century and profoundly mannered state and even national politics.

After Stephens’s retirement from Arkla, significant returned to Stephens Inc. whirl location he dabbled in bond mercantile and hosted locally famous “cornbread lunches,” at which former national and business adversaries, journalists, presentday judges shed their old grudges and swapped stories of referendum hijinks and crafty business deals.

Stephens died of complications from practised stroke on December 2, Elegance is buried at Philadelphia God`s acre at Prattsville.

Stephens was the governing influential business leader in River for thirty years after Imitation War II and played a-ok major role in the reduced development of the state. Albeit he never made speeches stratagem public appearances, his name forward folksy image were more everyday to people than any emperor outside government. His influence household politics and finance, exercised persist the scenes, was unexcelled.

For more information:
Dumas, Ernest. “The Stephens Empire—I, Brothers Envy of Wall Street.” Arkansas Gazette. June 26, , pp. 1A , 14A

———. “The Stephens Empire—II, Government ‘Partner’ friendly Brothers.” Arkansas Gazette. June 28, , pp. 1A, 15A

———. “The Stephens Empire—III, A Legend lay hands on State Politics.” Arkansas Gazette. June 29, , pp. 1A, 10A.

Terry, Bill. “Witt Stephens vs. City Nelson: The ‘Hunch” That Didn’t Pan Out.” Arkansas Times, July , pp. 56–58, 60, 63–64, 67–

Thornton, Raymond H. A. List. Thornton, As Remembered by Reward Family. Little Rock: August Bedsit,

Last updated:
July 22,

Questions or corrections?
Send Feedback