 West Hill Cemetery Sherman, Texas  Friday, February 6, 1931 PIONEER MANUFACTURER PASSES AWAY Funeral Services Held Friday for Well Known Sherman Business Man R. F. Pool Sr., 68, president of the Pool Manufacturing company of Sherman, died at his residence at 610 South Crockett street at 3:55 o'clock Thursday afternoon following an illness of several weeks. Mr. Pool has been a resident of Sherman for more than nineteen years and was the organizer of the Pool Manufacturing company which he headed. He is survived by his wife, Mrs. Minta Pool, three sons, R. F. Pool Jr., a garment manufacturer at McKinney; John Pool of Glendale, Calif., and Carl L. Pool, secretary-treasurer of th Pool Manufacturing company and who has had active management of the business since 1920 on account of ill health of his father; and one daughter, Mrs. Berry B. Cobb of Dallas. The body was carried from the residence to the First Baptist church at 1:00 o'clock Friday afternoon where it lay in state until time for funeral services, which were conducted at 3 o'clock under the direction of Dr. J. A. Ellis. Interment was made in West Hill cemetery. The Dannel-Scott funeral home directed the arrangements. Pallbearers were: L. O. Gardner, George Murphy, Dick Chapman, Carl Nall, Ed Mulkey, R. G. Piner, Ed Young and P. F. Boggs. Mr, Pool was born in Perry county, Ala., May 14, 1862. His father, Gabriel Pool, moved the family to Texas when Mr. Pool was a boy eight years of age. The family settled on a ranch near Cameron, and Mr. Pool remained in that section of the state until he came to Sherman the first of September, 1911. He had been married to Minta Fraim, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John R. Fraim on May 5, 1886. When he left his father's ranch near Cameron at the age of 19 years, Mr. Pool borrowed $105 from a friend and established a confectionery and cold drink stand in a small building, opening for his first day's business, Aug. 22, 1881. In about forty years of experience in organizing and operating businesses of various kinds, from this first cold drink stand to the Pool Manufacturing company, one of the South's largest manufacturing plants, Mr. Pool never had a "job". He was always operating some business. Until profits from his cold drink stand showed that he could afford to eat at a boarding house, the youth slept, ate and sold goods in his first little store. After building up a surplus in this little business, he expanded his operations by taking over a small grocery store in Cameron and with profits added in quick succession a dry goods department, drugs, furniture, hardware, lumber and finally undertaking, until he was operating one of the largest general department stores in that section. It is said that confidence in his ability to put anything across marked every phase of R. F. Pool's business career. The first prescription he saw filled was filled by himself and yet his record as a pharmacist showed he never made a mistake. He had never seen a casket trimmed but did not hesitate to trim one when an order 'came'. This same confidence was exhibited when he decided to put up a saw mill, although he knew nothing about building one. He built it and made it a success, although the plant almost cost him his life. The building was practically destroyed, his ankle was broken and two Negro employees were killed when a boiler in the mill exploded. Undaunted, Mr. Pool rebuilt the mill and soon sold it at a profit in 1906. Bu this time, he had extended his operations into other towns in the vicinity of Cameron. Real estate and small business establishments had been added to his list of properties. Then on Sept. 1, 1911, Mr. Pool came to Sherman to take over operation of a small overall factory. He did not know anything about the manufacturing business but his supreme confidence enabled him to take over the business and build it up to one of the largest manufacturing plants in the South. When he organized the Pool Manufacturing company, thirty workers were employed and the annual volume of business was about $25,000. Now the concern of which he was president employs about 600 people and does an annual volume o business amounting close to $2,000,000. Recently a modern building was erected as evidence of the firm's great growth. In addition to the manufacturing business here, Mr. Pool retained some of his business interests in Central Texas and it was not until 1918 that he finally dispose of his business interests there, selling that year his lumber and hardware business at Cameron. On account of ill health, Mr. Pool transferred active management of the business here to his son Carl Pool in 1920. Mr. Pool was a past president of the Traveler's Protective association and was very active in that organization. He was a deacon in the First Baptist church and was very active in church and civic movements. He was affiliated with the Knights of Pythias and a member of the Rotary club.  West Hill Cemetery Elaine Nall Bay ©2016 If you find any of Grayson County TXGenWeb links inoperable, please send me a message. |