Ross Shaw Sterling (February 11, 1875March 25, 1949) was an American politician who was the 31st Governor of

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, serving a single two-year term from January 20, 1931, to January 17, 1933. Houston Publishing Co

Early years

Sterling was born in Anahuac in

Chambers County Chambers County is the name of two counties in the United States: * Chambers County, Alabama * Chambers County, Texas Chambers County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 46,571. The county seat is ...

near

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

. He grew up on a farm and, after little formal education, began working as a clerk at the age of 12.

Career

At the age of 21, Sterling launched his own merchandising business. In 1911, his brother

Frank Sterling Frank Prior Sterling (October 26, 1869 – July 16, 1938) was an American oilman and oil industry businessperson, based in Houston, Texas. Sterling and his brothers grew up on Double Bayou in Chambers County, southern Texas. They were ambitious a ...

, other oilmen, and he formed the Humble Oil Company, a predecessor of present-day

Exxon-Mobil ExxonMobil Corporation (commonly shortened to Exxon) is an American multinational oil and gas corporation headquartered in Irving, Texas. It is the largest direct descendant of John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil, and was formed on November 3 ...

. They were joined in the venture by their sister,

Florence M. Sterling Florence M. Sterling (October 13, 1871 – March 24, 1940) was an American businesswoman, journalist and early feminist. Sterling served as treasurer and secretary of her family's business venture, Humble Oil, and also for various community servi ...

. Sterling and his brother Frank and his sister, Florence, were referred to as the "Trio". In addition to the

oil industry The petroleum industry, also known as the oil industry or the oil patch, includes the global processes of exploration, extraction, refining, transportation (often by oil tankers and pipelines), and marketing of petroleum products. The larges ...

, Sterling was involved in a railroad company, the former ''

Houston Post The ''Houston Post'' was a newspaper that had its headquarters in Houston, Texas, United States. In 1995, the newspaper shut down, and its assets were purchased by the ''Houston Chronicle''. History Gail Borden Johnson founded the ''Houston Po ...

'' newspaper, banking, and

real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...

in the Houston area. He was a member of the Houston Port Commission. He served as chairman of the Texas Highway Commission under his predecessor, Governor

Dan Moody Daniel James Moody Jr. (June 1, 1893May 22, 1966), was an American lawyer and Democratic politician. Originally from Taylor, Texas, he served as the 30th governor of Texas between 1927 and 1931. At the age of 33, he was elected and took offic ...

."Jessie Ziegler and Governor Ross Sterling,"

East Texas Historical Association East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the f ...

and

West Texas Historical Association The West Texas Historical Association is an organization of both academics and laypersons dedicated to the preservation and dissemination of the total history of West Texas, loosely defined geographically as all Texas counties and portions of coun ...

, annual meeting in

Fort worth, Texas Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. According ...

, February 26, 2010

Public service

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, Sterling defeated former Governor Miriam "Ma" Ferguson and several other candidates in the 1930 primary race for governor. During Sterling's term in office, the East Texas oil fields experienced rapid and uncontrolled development. The

Railroad Commission of Texas The Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC; also sometimes called the Texas Railroad Commission, TRC) is the state agency that regulates the oil industry, oil and gas industry, gas utilities, pipeline safety, safety in the liquefied petroleum gas indus ...

attempted proration, but the courts struck down the plan. Because of the chaotic situation, Sterling declared

martial law Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory. Use Marti ...

in four counties for six months.

National Guard National Guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. Nat ...

troops were sent to the oil fields to limit waste and control production. This action was later declared unwarranted by the federal district court and the

U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

, and the Railroad Commission's plan for proration was accepted. Cotton prices continued to decline during Sterling's term in office. Sterling's gubernatorial secretary, Jessie Ziegler of Houston, apparently exerted wide latitude in his administration of the office. She was known to have altered mail correspondence in which Sterling became intemperate with demanding constituents so as not to close the door on gaining future support from such irate voters. She was known to advise him on decision making, including the issuance of pardons in the aftermath of scandals in the previous Ferguson administrations. After Sterling's loss in the 1932 Democratic primary to Miriam Ferguson, whom he had defeated in 1930, Ziegler took a similar but lower-paying staff job with a state senator. Sterling's loss in the 1932 primary was the closest primary defeat for an incumbent governor in United States history.

Personal life and death

Birthplace of Governor Ross Shaw Sterling

He wed Maud Abbie Gage on October 10, 1898. Sterling died in Fort Worth on March 25, 1949, and is buried at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston. Three Texas schools are named after him, Sterling High School in

Baytown Baytown may refer to: * Baytown, Texas, a city in the United States near Houston, Texas *Baytown culture, an archaeological culture in the United States *Operation Baytown Operation Baytown was an Allied amphibious landing on the mainland o ...

, Sterling High School in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, and Ross Sterling Middle School in

Humble, Texas Humble ( ) is a city located in the Houston metropolitan area. Humble became an oil boomtown in the early 20th century when oil was first discovered there in 1904. By 1905, the Humble oilfield was the largest producing oilfield in Texas. Humble ...

. In addition, his grand-nephew, Ross N. Sterling, a

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 ...

, became a

United States federal judge In the United States, federal judges are judges who serve on courts established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. They include the chief justice and the associate justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, the circuit judges of the U.S. Cou ...

in Texas under appointment of

U.S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

Gerald R. Ford Jr. Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. ( ; born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. He was the only president never to have been elected ...

Steven Harmon Wilson, ''The Rise of Judicial Management in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas'' (2002), p. 241-242. In 1925, Sterling's daughter Mildred married the prominent architect

Wyatt C. Hedrick Wyatt Cephus Hedrick (December 17, 1888 in Chatham, Virginia, Chatham, Virginia – May 5, 1964 in Houston, Texas) was an American architect, engineer, and Real estate development, developer most active in Texas and the American South. He began ...

of Fort Worth. Sterling's former house, built about 1910, was moved in 1999 from 106

Westheimer Road Westheimer Road () is an arterial east–west road in Houston, Texas, United States. It runs from Bagby Street in Downtown and terminates at the Westpark Tollway on the southern edge of George Bush Park, stretching about long. The street was n ...

to the intersection of Bagby and Rosalie to undergo restoration. In 2015 it opened as a bar & restaurant called Sterling House Historic Sterling house, built in 1905, converted into midtown bar and restaurant
"

References

External links