John Schiller Wold (August 31, 1916 – February 19, 2017) was an American business executive,

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

veteran, and

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

politician from

Wyoming Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...

. He served a single term in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

from 1969 to 1971.Shaffer, William R. ''Party and Ideology in the United States Congress.'' University Press of America, 1980. 258. He was the first professional

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althou ...

to have served in Congress.

Early life

John Wold was born on August 31, 1916, in

East Orange East Orange is a City (New Jersey), city in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 69,612. The city was List of municipalities in ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. His father Peter Irving Wold was the chairman of the department of physics at

Union College Union College is a private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, and second in the state of New York, after Columbia Co ...

Schenectady, New York Schenectady () is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-largest city by population. The city is in eastern New Y ...

. His father and five aunts had grown up in

Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast. As of the 2020 United States Census, Eu ...

and earned their degrees at the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...

. Wold graduated from Union College in

in 1938 and

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...

in 1939 with degrees in geology.''The Historical Encyclopedia of Wyoming, Volume 1.'' Wyoming Historical Institute, 1970. 253. During

, he served as a consulting physicist and gunnery officer for the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

Career

In 1949, he moved to Wyoming to work for an oil company and founded his own company, Wold Oil Properties, a year later. Wold founded Wold Oil Properties, Inc. in 1950 in

Casper, Wyoming Casper is a city in, and the county seat of, Natrona County, Wyoming, United States. Casper is the second-largest city in the state, with the population at 59,038 as of the 2020 census. Only Cheyenne, the state capital, is larger. Casper is nic ...

. He entered politics in 1956, winning a seat to the Wyoming House of Representatives. He served one term from 1957 to 1959 and was the state's Republican chairman from 1960 to 1964. In 1964, he ran for the U.S. Senate against freshman incumbent Democrat

Gale McGee Gale William McGee (March 17, 1915April 9, 1992) was a United States Senate, United States Senator of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, and United States Ambassador to the Organization of American States (OAS). He represente ...

, who won by a 54% to 46% margin. In 1968, he narrowly defeated on-again, off-again Congressman

William Henry Harrison William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was an American military officer and politician who served as the ninth president of the United States. Harrison died just 31 days after his inauguration in 1841, and had the shortest pres ...

in the Republican primary before winning a decisive general election victory. Two years later, he gave up his House seat to run against incumbent Sen.

again.He lost the race by 56% to 44% and returned to the private sector, but remained active as a Republican political donor.

Philanthropy

In 2002, Wold made a $20 million donation to his alma mater, Union College. The donation was at the time the biggest single contribution in the university's history. The American Heritage Center at the

University of Wyoming The University of Wyoming (UW) is a public land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, and opened in September 1887. The University of Wyoming ...

named Wold as the "Wyoming Citizen of the Century" in the minerals, gas, and oil category in 1999. He also contributed $2 million to Cornell University. Wold and his eponymous foundation contributed $7.5 million to the

Oregon Health & Science University Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) is a public research university focusing primarily on health sciences with a main campus, including two hospitals, in Portland, Oregon. The institution was founded in 1887 as the University of Oregon Medi ...

's Casey Eye Institute in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

. The donation was dedicated to a new center with the mission of fighting the onset of adult blindness brought on by

macular degeneration Macular degeneration, also known as age-related macular degeneration (AMD or ARMD), is a medical condition which may result in blurred or no vision in the center of the visual field. Early on there are often no symptoms. Over time, however, som ...

, a disease from which Wold had suffered for the last 20 years of his life.

Personal life

John Wold died on February 19, 2017, in Casper at the age of 100. Wold Oil Company is now operated by his son, Peter. Another son, Jack, is chief executive officer of an energy company in

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

References

External links

John Wold ’38 celebrates 100th birthday, donates $5M in memory of wife, Jane

Casper Businessman and Philanthropist John Wold Passes Away

"Union receives $20 million gift from John and Jane Wold." 21 November 2002.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Wold, John S. 1916 births 2017 deaths Republican Party members of the Wyoming House of Representatives Politicians from Casper, Wyoming Politicians from East Orange, New Jersey State political party chairs of Wyoming Taft School alumni Union College (New York) alumni American centenarians Men centenarians United States Navy personnel of World War II Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Wyoming United States Navy officers Military personnel from New Jersey