William Grove Skelly (June 10, 1878 – April 11, 1957) was an entrepreneur who made a fortune in the oil business. Born in Erie, Pennsylvania, he moved to Kansas in 1916, then to Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1919, where he founded Skelly Oil Company. By 1923, his company was one of the strongest independent producers of oil and gasoline in the United States. He helped organize the first International Petroleum Exposition in Tulsa in 1923 and became president of that organization, a position he held for the rest of his life. He was a founder of the Kansas-Oklahoma branch of the United States Oil and Gas Association, then known as Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association.
Skelly became an active promoter, as well, of the aviation industry, though he was not a pilot himself. In 1926, he purchased the financially struggling Mid-Continent Aircraft Company and turned it into the successful Spartan Aircraft Company. In 1928, he led the fundraising to build the Tulsa Municipal Airport. In October 1928, he opened the Spartan School of Aeronautics.
Skelly was active in other civic projects. He donated funds to the University of Tulsa for a football stadium in 1930 and for KWGS, the first FM radio station in Oklahoma in 1947.
Early life
Bill Skelly was one of six children born to William and Mary Jane Sweatman Skelly. He began earning money by selling newspapers while he was still in grammar school. Finishing public school at age 14, he attended a business school for a year. After completing the business course, he worked with his father hauling oil-well supplies to oil fields in Venango County, Pennsylvania. Soon, he became a tool dresser in the Venango fields.
In 1898, the Spanish–American War broke out. Skelly enlisted in the Sixteenth Pennsylvania Volunteers and participated in the Battle of Coamo in Puerto Rico. After the war, he became manager of the Citizens Gas Company in Gas City, Indiana, where he learned the technology of transporting and controlling natural gas through pipelines.
Career in oil and gas production
Observing the fortunes made by others during the oil booms of Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, Skelly decided to become an independent producer. After a brief stay in Texas, he moved to El Dorado, Kansas, in 1916, where he began operating his Midland Refining Company in 1917. In 1919, he incorporated Skelly Oil Company and moved his headquarters to Tulsa.
In 1923, while serving as president of the Tulsa Chamber of Commerce, Skelly helped organize the first International Petroleum Exposition (IPE). This was a trade fair that attracted oil producers and equipment manufacturers from all over the country. He became president of the IPE in 1925 and held that position for the rest of his life.
Aviation
In 1928, Skelly purchased the struggling Mid-Continent Aircraft Company, which had a manufacturing plant in Tulsa. He reorganized it under the name Spartan Aircraft Company. In October 1928, he opened the Spartan School of Aeronautics to train pilots and mechanics. The school also facilitated sales of Spartan aircraft. In 1935, Skelly sold the manufacturing business to J. Paul Getty. Skelly retained ownership of the school.
In 1927, Skelly obtained signatures from several prominent Tulsa businessmen put up $172,000 to buy 390 acres (178 ha) of land for use as a municipal airport. It was dedicated and officially opened July 3, 1928. The city of Tulsa purchased the airport, then named Tulsa Municipal Airport, in 1929, and put its supervision under the Tulsa Park Board.
Radio and television
In 1928, Skelly bought radio station KVOO (now KTSB), which became a powerful clear-channel station known as the "Voice of Oklahoma". He provided the funding for the University of Tulsa's radio station, founded in 1947 and named KWGS in his honor. In 1954, Skelly, a steadfast Republican, and Senator Robert S. Kerr, an equally steadfast Democrat, founded television station, KVOO-TV (now KJRH-TV).
Death
William G. Skelly died in Tulsa on April 11, 1957. He was interred at Rose Hill Cemetery in Tulsa. Gertrude was interred beside him after her death October 8, 1959.