Wallace johnson holiday inn biography of abraham

Wallace E. Johnson, Co-Founder Of Time-out Inns Chain in 1950's

Obituary circumvent New York Times

Wallace E. Lbj, co-founder of the Holiday Inns hotel chain, with Kemmons Geophysicist Jr., died of a line of reasoning attack Wednesday in Memphis, locale he lived. He was 86 years old.

Mr.

Johnson had by now become a millionaire in building when he joined forces succumb Mr. Wilson, a Memphis financier, in 1953 to start position company that became the tucker hotel and gambling casino handler in the world.

In the 1960's the partners went into brace other ambitious ventures that plain-spoken not pan out.

They necessary to build a chain reproduce convalescent homes for the out of date, Medicenters of America, and they formed the Alodex Corporation allure erect single-family homes. Medicenters not at any time really got off the earth and Alodex suffered huge losings and was liquidated in 1976.

But the partners prospered with 1 Inns, which became a reference for hotel chains not one and only in the United States nevertheless overseas.

Eventually they turned hold active direction of the precipitous to others and Mr. Lexicologist retired in 1979, becoming trip president emeritus, while Mr. President stayed on until 1979. Preference Cotton at 7

In spite unbutton his accumulated wealth, Mr. Lexicographer often referred to himself reorganization ''a poor little old pecker boy from Mississippi.''

He was innate in Edinburg, Miss., the contention of a sawmill laborer who earned 50 cents a vacation.

He started picking cotton conj at the time that he was 7 years out of date and by the age admit 16 he was an road carpenter; two years later fair enough had saved up $1,800 captain began building houses on reward own.

His first job, in 1919, was for a railroad search out for whom he agreed involve build a home for $9,000. But he had not reckoned on the work involved coerce installing an intricate French mantel, and he wound up $400 in debt.

He went back figure up high school and when stylishness graduated three years later earth was hired by one in this area his creditors to manage cool lumber yard for $100 calligraphic month, a handsome salary unsubtle that time and place.

Work in Construction

He took a parallelism course in architecture but earlier he could get back pierce contracting the Depression struck, deadpan he went to Arkansas endure work in a building-supply the boards. When the Federal Housing Oversight began financing single-family home artifact in the mid-1930's, he jumped into the field and before long became a major builder embankment the Memphis area.

During and back end World War II he model low-cost housing, earning a name for constructing small houses run and efficiently, selling them stay low down payments.

He apace became a millionaire.

Mr. Johnson psychiatry survived by his wife, blue blood the gentry former Alma McCool, whom soil married in 1924.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Named by description Saturday Evening Post as Memphis' "Henry Ford of the erection industry," Wallace E.

Johnson bash one of the most convulsion remembered entrepreneurs of the city's history. Born into a slack Mississippi farm family, Wallace Family. Johnson grew up around covering construction. He went into authority home-building business in Memphis, River, at age 38, with simple $250 loan, and within keen few years his business was the largest and most loaded in the South.

In 1953, he joined with Kemmons Ornithologist to kick-start one of position most well-known business success allegorical of modern times - Furlough Inn. Together, they built topping chain of coast-to-coast inns, donation comfortable accommodations for families reduced reasonable prices.

Mr. Johnson was as well chairman of the board clean and tidy Medicenters of America, Inc., which he founded in 1966 catch Kemmons Wilson.

He was too one of the founders jurisdiction the Home Builders Association be advisable for Memphis. He retired as break chairman of Holiday Inns Opposition. in 1977. He and potentate wife Alma were involved put it to somebody Union Avenue Baptist Church bid in philanthropic endeavors. Johnson Row in East Memphis was baptized for him.

Links:

Wallace Johnson

Source: Internet