View source for George P. Mitchell

{{short description|American billionaire businessman and shale gas pioneer}}
{{Tone|date=April 2025}}
{{use mdy dates|date=April 2015}}
{{redirect|Cynthia Woods Mitchell|the venues named after her|Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion|and|Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts|other similarly named people|George Mitchell (disambiguation){{!}}George Mitchell}}
{{Infobox person
|name          = George P. Mitchell
|image         = MitchellGeorgeP 2011.jpg
|alt           = Portrait of George P. Mitchell in 2011
|caption       =  Mitchell in 2011
|birth_date    = {{birth date|1919|05|21}}
|birth_place   = [[Galveston, Texas]], U.S.
|death_date    = {{death date and age|2013|7|26|1919|05|21}}
|death_place   = Tremont House, Galveston, Texas, U.S.
|body_discovered = 
|death_cause   = 
|resting_place = 
|resting_place_coordinates = 
|known_for     = [[Hydraulic fracturing]] pioneer, developer of [[The Woodlands, Texas|The Woodlands]], [[Galveston, Texas|Galveston]] restoration, philanthropic support of sustainability
|alma_mater    = [[Texas A&M University]]
|occupation    = Founder of Mitchell Energy & Development Corp.; philanthropist
|years_active  = 1950s&ndash;1990s
|boards        = 
|spouse        = Cynthia Woods Mitchell
|children      = 10
|partner       = 
|awards        = 
|signature     = 
|website       = [http://www.cgmf.org Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation]
|footnotes     = 
}}

'''George Phydias Mitchell''' (May 21, 1919 – July 26, 2013) was an American businessman, real estate developer and philanthropist from Texas credited with pioneering the economic extraction of [[shale gas]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Airhart|first=Marc|url=http://geology.com/research/barnett-shale-father.shtml|title=The Father of the Barnett Natural Gas Field: George Mitchell|date=January 26, 2007|website=Geology.com|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081120170935/http://geology.com/research/barnett-shale-father.shtml|archive-date=November 20, 2008|access-date=April 30, 2015}}</ref>

==Early life==
Mitchell was born to Greek immigrant parents in the port city of [[Galveston, Texas]] in 1919.<ref>{{cite news|title=George Mitchell still pushes energy conservation: Oilman has worked for conservation since the Arab embargo more than 30 years ago|last=Hays|first=Kristen|date=August 2, 2008 | newspaper=[[Houston Chronicle]]|url=http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/5920511.html|publisher=[[Hearst Newspapers]]|access-date=April 30, 2015}}</ref> His father, Savvas Paraskevopoulos, was from the village of [[Nestani]] in [[Arcadia (regional unit)|Arcadia]], tended goats before immigrating to the United States in 1901, arriving at Ellis Island at the age of 20. He worked for railroads, and gradually moved west. When a paymaster got tired of writing his long name and threatened to fire him, Mr. Paraskevopoulos took the paymaster's name, Mike Mitchell. Mike Mitchell settled in Galveston, where he ran a succession of shoe-shining and pressing shops. When he saw the picture of a beautiful woman in a local Greek newspaper, he headed for Florida, where she had settled, according to family lore. He persuaded her to abandon her fiancé and marry him. They lived above the shoeshine shop.<ref>{{cite news|last=Martin|first=Douglas|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/27/business/george-mitchell-a-pioneer-in-hydraulic-fracturing-dies-at-94.html?_r=0|date=July 27, 2013|title=George Mitchell, a Pioneer in Hydraulic Fracturing, Dies at 94|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=April 30, 2015}}</ref>

==Oil and gas business==
In 1940, George Mitchell earned a degree in petroleum engineering with an emphasis in geology from [[Texas A&M University]]. He graduated as the [[valedictorian]] in his class and was also the captain of the men's tennis team.<ref name="TAMUToday">{{cite news|author=<!--Staff writer(s); No by-line-->|url=http://today.tamu.edu/2013/07/26/texas-am-mourns-legendary-houston-philanthropist-and-distinguished-former-student-george-p-mitchell/|title=Texas A&M Mourns Legendary Houston Philanthropist And Distinguished Former Student George P. Mitchell|date=July 26, 2013|newspaper=Texas A&M Today|access-date=April 30, 2015}}</ref>

He started an independent oil and gas company, Mitchell Energy & Development Corp., which grew into a Fortune 500 company.  He participated in the development of about 10,000 wells, including more than 1000 [[Wildcatter|wildcat wells]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Kutchin|first=Joseph W.|title=How Mitchell Energy & Development Corp. Got Its Start and How It Grew: An Oral History and Narrative Overview|publisher=[[Universal Publishers (United States)|Universal Publishers]]|year=2001|isbn=978-1581126631}}</ref><ref name="TAMEST">{{cite AV media|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Si4rlyiL5To |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/Si4rlyiL5To| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|title=The Shale Oil Miracle: A Tribute to George P. Mitchell|last=Steward|first=Dan B.|publisher=The Texas Academy of Medicine, Engineering and Science|date=August 2, 2012|medium=video|via=Youtube|accessdate=April 30, 2015}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In the 1980s and 1990s, the company experimented with application of different techniques of [[hydraulic fracturing]] of the [[Barnett Shale]] of Texas, eventually finding the right technique to economically extract the natural gas in the formation. The approach was widely adopted by the gas industry and spawned a new gas boom in North America. The Potential Gas Committee estimates that U.S. recoverable reserves will last 118 years at current production levels.<ref>{{cite report|url=http://www.mines.edu/Potential-Gas-Committee-reports-unprecedented-increase-in-magnitude-of-U.S.-natural-gas-resource-base|author=Potential Gas Committee|title=Potential Supply of Natural Gas in the United States|date=December 31, 2008|publisher=Colorado School of Mines|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150326185924/http://www.mines.edu/Potential-Gas-Committee-reports-unprecedented-increase-in-magnitude-of-U.S.-natural-gas-resource-base|archive-date=March 26, 2015|df=mdy-all}}</ref> but production is expected to more than triple by 2020.<ref>{{cite web |title=Facts About Shale Gas |url=http://www.api.org/policy-and-issues/policy-items/exploration/facts_about_shale_gas |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141004094320/http://www.api.org/policy-and-issues/policy-items/exploration/facts_about_shale_gas |archive-date=4 October 2014 |access-date=April 30, 2015 |publisher=[[American Petroleum Institute]]}}</ref> Because of the technological progress in industry fracking, George Mitchell is now known as the "pioneer of shale".<ref>Who says this?</ref> Mitchell Energy & Development Corp. was later acquired by [[Devon Energy]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.devonenergy.com/news/2005/Devon-Energy-Hits-1-Tcf-Milestone-in-Barnett-Shale|title=Devon Energy Hits 1 Tcf Milestone in Barnett Shale|publisher=[[Devon Energy]]|date=July 26, 2005|access-date=April 30, 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304070721/http://www.devonenergy.com/news/2005/Devon-Energy-Hits-1-Tcf-Milestone-in-Barnett-Shale|archive-date=March 4, 2016|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

==Real estate development==
Mitchell was the developer of [[The Woodlands, Texas|The Woodlands]], an unincorporated yet governmentally structured township in [[Montgomery County, Texas]], which he developed from timberland located 32 miles north of downtown [[Houston]]. He brought on landscape architect [[Ian McHarg]] to consult on the project. The master plan for the community called for preserving trees, protecting the environment, minimizing flooding and creating a "pleasant"{{vague|date=July 2012}} urban environment.{{citation needed|date=July 2012}} In 2010, The Woodlands was home to 97,000 people. When fully developed the population will have reached 130,000.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Morgan, Jr.|first1=George T.|last2=King|first2=John O.|url=https://archive.org/details/woodlandsnewcomm00morg|title=The Woodlands: New Community Development, 1964-1983|publisher=Texas A&M University Press|isbn=978-0-89096-306-7|year=1987|url-access=registration}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Galatas|first1=Roger|last2=Barlow|first2=Jim|title=The Woodlands: The Inside Story of Creating a Better Hometown|publisher=The Urban Land Institute|year=2004|isbn=978-0874209310}}</ref>
==Philanthropy==
[[File:Mitchell Physics Building.jpg|thumb|The Mitchell Physics Building on [[:en:Texas A&M University|Texas A&M University]]'s campus.]]
Mitchell and his wife Cynthia, along with the Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation, have distributed or pledged more than $900 million in grants to causes, programs, and institutions.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cgmf.org/p/about-the-foundation.html|title=About the Foundation|publisher=Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation|access-date=April 28, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Graczyk|first1=Michael|last2=Fahey|first2=Jonathan|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/27/george-p-mitchell-dies_n_3662253.html|date=July 26, 2013|title=George P. Mitchell, billionaire philanthropist, dies at 94|newspaper=[[The Huffington Post]]|agency=[[The Associated Press]]|access-date=August 7, 2013}}</ref>

The vast majority of this amount is related to science, [[environmental sustainability]], and sustainability science-related fields, including the foundation's current grant-making programs which focus on sustainability science, clean energy, water, and natural gas sustainability.

On December 7, 2010, he joined the [[Giving Pledge]] sponsored by Warren Buffett and Bill and Melinda Gates, making public his and Cynthia's long-held private intent that the majority of their wealth would be donated to charitable causes.<ref>{{cite web |last=Mitchell |first=George P. |url=http://cms.givingpledge.org/Content/uploads/634275843271865246_Mitchell_120710%20(web%20copy).pdf |date=December 7, 2010 |title=Letter stating Mitchell took the 'Giving Pledge' |access-date=April 28, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130226090040/http://cms.givingpledge.org/Content/uploads/634275843271865246_Mitchell_120710%20%28web%20copy%29.pdf |archive-date=February 26, 2013 |df=mdy }}</ref>

According to the [[National Academies of Science]], "In the 1970s [Mitchell] helped sponsor the work of [[Dennis Meadows]], whose [[Club of Rome]] study ''[[The Limits to Growth]]'' was a global wake-up call on the pressing need for sustainable energy technologies and food sources worldwide."<ref name="InFocus">{{cite web|title=Mitchell Gift to Endow Academies' Efforts in Sustainability Science|publisher= [[United States National Academy of Sciences|The National Academy of Science]]|work=InFocus Magazine|date=Summer–Fall 2002|url=http://www.infocusmagazine.org/2.2/spotlight.html|access-date=April 30, 2015}}</ref>

Enabled by Mitchell's donation of $35 million, the Texas A&M University Physics department relocated to two new buildings in late 2009: The George P. and Cynthia W. Mitchell Fundamental Physics and Astronomy Building and the George P. Mitchell Physics Building. In 2012, he committed an additional $20 million to the Mitchell Institute for Fundamental Physics and Astronomy. This donation was the latest in a series supporting science and the physics department in particular. With previous gifts supporting academic chairs, professorships and the Giant Magellan Telescope project, the Mitchells are Texas A&M's most generous modern benefactors, with donations totaling nearly $100 million; by 2011, his total contributions to universities and research organizations had reached $159 million.<ref name="TAMEST"/>

Mitchell and his wife were also major supporters of Texas A&M's marine studies-oriented branch campus [[Texas A&M University at Galveston]] (TAMUG), donating the land for the main campus and the main campus is named in honor of Mitchell's father.<ref name="TAMUToday" /> Mitchell made numerous other gifts to the university over the years, including the donation of a yacht named [[S.V. Cynthia Woods]] named after his wife Cynthia.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Suayan|first=John|url=http://www.setexasrecord.com/news/225101-mitchell-company-settles-wrongful-death-suit-from-capsizal-of-cynthia-woods|title=Mitchell company settles wrongful death suit from capsizal of 'Cynthia Woods'|date=March 2, 2010|journal=The Southeast Texas Record|access-date=April 30, 2015}}</ref>

Mitchell had a lifelong passion for tennis, and the tennis center at Texas A&M University, where he was captain of the tennis team, was named in his honor. Built for an estimated $4.2 million, the official ribbon cutting ceremony was held on October 23, 1998. 

In 1984, he was the recipient of an honorary doctoral degree from the [[University of Houston]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.uh.edu/news-events/archive/newsroom/centerforarts/gmitchellbio.html|title=Biography: George P. Mitchell|publisher=[[University of Houston]]|date=July 7, 2003 |access-date=April 30, 2015}}</ref>

==Personal life==
In 2004, ''[[Forbes]]'' magazine estimated his net worth as $1.6 billion, placing him among the [[Forbes list of billionaires (2004)|500 richest people worldwide]].<ref name="forbes2004">{{cite journal|url=https://www.forbes.com/finance/lists/10/2004/LIR.jhtml?passListId=10&passYear=2004&passListType=Person&uniqueId=5XCM&datatype=Person|title=Forbes 500 in 2004|journal=Forbes|date=February 6, 2004 |url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050527101845/http://www.forbes.com/finance/lists/10/2004/LIR.jhtml?passListId=10&passYear=2004&passListType=Person&uniqueId=5XCM&datatype=Person|archive-date=May 27, 2005|access-date=April 30, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Miskedaki|first=Anastasia|date=March 14, 2011|url=http://usa.greekreporter.com/2011/03/14/2011-forbes-rich-list-includes-8-greeks/ |title=2011 Forbes Rich List Includes 8 Greeks|newspaper=[[Greek Reporter]]|access-date=April 30, 2015}}</ref> Mitchell died at the age of 94 on July 26, 2013, at his home in Galveston of natural causes, while surrounded by relatives.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.chron.com/news/article/Oil-giant-developer-George-Mitchell-dies-at-94-4688832.php?|last=Sarnoff|first=Nancy |title=Oil giant, developer George Mitchell dies at 94|date=July 26, 2013|access-date=April 30, 2015|newspaper=Houston Chronicle}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://rus.ruvr.ru/news/2013_07_27/Amerikanskij-milliarder-Dzhordzh-Mitchell-skonchalsja-v-vozraste-94-let-8605/|script-title=ru:Американский миллиардер Джордж Митчелл скончался в возрасте 94 лет|date=July 27, 2013|language=Russian|trans-title=The American billionaire George Mitchell had died at the age 94 years|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131213001022/http://rus.ruvr.ru/news/2013_07_27/Amerikanskij-milliarder-Dzhordzh-Mitchell-skonchalsja-v-vozraste-94-let-8605/|archive-date=December 13, 2013|publisher=[[Voice of Russia]]|access-date=April 30, 2015}}</ref> He was predeceased by his wife, Cynthia, who died on December 27, 2009,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/houstonchronicle/obituary.aspx?n=cynthia-woods-mitchell&pid=137965860|title = CYNTHIA WOODS MITCHELL Obituary (2009) Houston Chronicle| website=[[Legacy.com]] }}</ref> and his two brothers, Christie and Johnny. He was survived by his sister, Maria Mitchell Ballantyne; his ten children, daughters Pamela Maguire, Meredith Dreiss and Sheridan Lorenz, and sons Scott, Mark, Kent, [[B. Greg Mitchell|Greg]], Kirk, Todd and Grant; 23 grandchildren, 5 great grandchildren and 19 nieces and nephews.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/houstonchronicle/obituary.aspx?n=george-phydias-mitchell&pid=166161642|title = George Phydias Mitchell Obituary (2013) Houston Chronicle| website=[[Legacy.com]] }}</ref><ref name="economist.com">{{cite news|author=<!--Staff writer(s); No by-line-->|url=https://www.economist.com/news/business/21582482-few-businesspeople-have-done-much-change-world-george-mitchell-father|title=The father of fracking: Few businesspeople have done as much to change the world as George Mitchell|date=August 3, 2013|newspaper=[[The Economist]]|access-date=April 30, 2015}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/Mitchell-Energy-and-Development-Corporation-Company-History.html Funding Universe: Mitchell Energy and Development Corporation]
* Mitchell, George and Jim Barlow. [https://web.archive.org/web/20190226234200/http://digital.houstonlibrary.org/cdm/ref/collection/oralhistory/id/24 George Mitchell Oral History], Houston Oral History Project, November 20, 2007.
{{The Woodlands, Texas}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, George P.}}
[[Category:1919 births]]
[[Category:2013 deaths]]
[[Category:American billionaires]]
[[Category:American people of Greek descent]]
[[Category:21st-century American philanthropists]]
[[Category:Businesspeople from Texas]]
[[Category:Texas A&M University alumni]]
[[Category:20th-century American businesspeople]]
[[Category:20th-century American philanthropists]]