Radcliffe Killam

Radcliffe Killam​>br? (Texas oilman, rancher, businessman)
Born	July 1, 1910​ Grove, Delaware County Oklahoma, USA​
Died	September 8, 2007 (aged 97)​ Laredo, Texas, USA ​
Spouse	Sue Spivey Killam​ Children: David Winfield Killam Adrian Kathleen Killam ​ Tracy Killam DiLeo ​ Terry Killam Wilber (died 1989)​ Parents: Oliver Winfield Killam ​ Harriet "Hattie" Smith Killam​

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Radcliffe Killam (July 1, 1910 – September 8, 2007) was a wealthy oilman, rancher, businessman, and philanthropist in Laredo, Texas. He was a particular benefactor of various educational and medical institutions. In 1997, Worth magazine cited the Killam family as one of the largest landowners in the United States, with 200,000 acres. Part of that includes the 125,000 Duval County Ranch west of Freer, which Killam purchased in 1994.​

Background

Killam was born in Grove in Delaware County in northeastern Oklahoma to Oliver Winfield Killam and the former Harriet "Hattie" Smith (1876–1949). Oliver Killam was a member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1911 to 1914 and the state Senate from 1915 to 1918. He worked for statehood of the former Oklahoma and Indian territories.​

Oliver Killam moved with his wife and three children, to Laredo in 1920, when Radcliffe was ten years of age. His father had come to south Texas to prospect for petroleum and natural gas on mineral leases that he had acquired while in business in Oklahoma. The third Killam well brought about an oil boom in Mirando City in eastern Webb County in 1921, nearly a decade before the better known East Texas Oil Boom centered about Kilgore. Killam grew up in the oil fields and spent his summers on the rigs. He graduated in 1932 from Laredo High School, since named Martin High School. He played on the former Laredo polo team and was a consummate horseman, who never complained, even when being thrown from a horse. Killam graduated from the University of Texas at Austin and a Harvard Law School.​

Career

After Harvard, Killam returned to Laredo to work with his father. In 1942, he enlisted in the United States Navy. He served first in the Atlantic and then was the commanding officer of a PT boat in the Pacific. He left the Navy in 1945 with the rank of lieutenant commander.​

​After the war, Killam returned once again to Laredo with his wife, the former Sue Spivey (1919-2019) of Sam Rayburn's Bonham in Fannin County in east Texas. Killam resumed working in the oil business but found much time as well for his family and his community.​

In 1947, Oliver Killam purchased the 80,000-acre Ortiz Ranch, which Radcliffe continued to develop. He founded the Mil Ojos ("Thousand Eyes") Hunting Club on his ranch. He was one of the first landowners in Texas to implement a game management program. He was instrumental in the creation of Lake Casa Blanca as a reservoir for the City of Laredo and gave an easement for much of the land that it covers. The lake is now a part of Lake Casa Blanca International State Park, operated by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.​ ​ Killam was the director of the Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association, renamed the Texas Oil & Gas Association, the Independent Petroleum Association of America, the All-American Wildcatters Association, and the Southwest Research Institute. He was also a director of Alamo National Bank.​ ​ He received many awards over the years that recognized his civic and business contributions. In 1952, Killam headed the birthday celebration of George Washington, a ten day event in mid-February. He was "Mr. South Texas" in 1978; his father had held the same title in 1956.

Philanthropy

Much of Killam's philanthropy was given privately. According to his banking colleague Gary Jacobs, "His charitable contributions were always anonymous. He never wanted publicity or recognition. He was a very loyal person to his friends and the institutions he supported." He was cremated. No individual marker was placed at the family plot. ​ ​ Radcliffe and Sue Killam had a son, David Winfield Killam of Laredo, and two daughters, Adrian Kathleen Killam and Tracy Killam DiLeo, both of Austin. At the time of his death, Killam had four grandsons. There was also a deceased daughter, Terry Killam Wilber,​ who later called herself "Treya." While on her honeymoor with Ken Wilber, she found a cancerous growth. She live five years longer with stage 4 breast cancer but died in 1989.?

References

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