66.170.136.197: /* Career */

2025-10-25T09:45:07Z

Career

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{{Short description|American football executive (1918–2014)}}
{{About|the Buffalo Bills owner|the American gymnast|Ralph Wilson (gymnast)|the American astronomer|Ralph Elmer Wilson}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name = Ralph Wilson
| image = RalphWilson.webp
| caption = Wilson at his Hall of Fame induction in 2009
| position =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1918|10|17}}
| birth_place = [[Columbus, Ohio]], U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2014|03|25|1918|10|17}}
| death_place = [[Grosse Pointe Shores, Michigan]], U.S.
| college = [[University of Virginia]]<br />[[University of Michigan Law School]]
| pastexecutive = {{bulleted list
| [[Buffalo Bills]] ([[1960 American Football League season|1960]]–{{NFL Year|2014}}) {{ubl|Owner}}
}}
| highlights =
* 2× [[AFL Championship|AFL champion]] (1964, 1965)
* [[Kansas City Committee of 101 awards#Lamar Hunt Award|Lamar Hunt Award]] (2008)
* [[Buffalo Bills#Wall of Fame|Buffalo Bills Wall of Fame]]

{{Infobox military person|embed=yes
|allegiance = {{flagu|United States|1912}}
|branch = {{Naval|United States|navy-1864}}
|serviceyears = 1941–46
|battles = [[World War II]]
}}
| HOF = ralph-wilson-jr
}}
'''Ralph Cookerly Wilson Jr.''' (October 17, 1918 – March 25, 2014) was an American businessman and sports executive. He was best known as the founder and owner of the [[Buffalo Bills]], a team in the [[National Football League]] (NFL). He was one of the [[Foolish Club|founding owners]] of the [[American Football League]] (AFL), the league with which the NFL merged in 1970, and was the last of the original AFL owners to own his team. At the time of his death he was the oldest owner in the NFL, at age 95. His 54 years of ownership was the third longest tenure by one owner in league history behind [[George Halas]] and [[Art Rooney]].{{efn|name=Owner|Halas owned the Bears for 63 years while Rooney owned the Steelers mostly uninterrupted for 55 years.<ref>{{cite web |title=List of NFL Owners-Past and Present |url=http://www.footballgeography.com/list-of-nfl-owners-past-and-present/ |website=Footballgeography.com |access-date=September 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181023005419/http://www.footballgeography.com/list-of-nfl-owners-past-and-present/ |archive-date=October 23, 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Dvorchak |first1=Robert |title=1940s put Steelers to tests that nearly break them |url=http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/2007/09/16/1940s-put-Steelers-to-tests-that-nearly-break-them/stories/200709160181 |website=Post-Gazette.com |access-date=September 12, 2018}}</ref>}} Wilson was inducted into the [[Pro Football Hall of Fame]] in 2009.

==Career==
Born in [[Columbus, Ohio]], Wilson grew up in [[Detroit]], the son of salesman Ralph Wilson Sr. and his wife Edith Cole.<ref name=fathersexample>Gaughan, Mark. [http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/communities/fathers-example-inspired-wilson-in-football-and-business-20140326 Father's example inspired Wilson in football and business]. ''The Buffalo News''. Retrieved March 26, 2014.</ref>

Choosing to go out of state to attend the [[University of Virginia]] (where he joined the [[Phi Delta Theta]] fraternity), Wilson returned to Michigan for graduate school at the [[University of Michigan Law School]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Ralph Wilson, Virginia '40 |url=https://www.phideltatheta.org/famous-phis/ralph-wilson/ |website=PhiDeltaTheta.org |publisher=Phi Delta Theta Fraternity |access-date=September 12, 2018}}</ref> He was a 1936 graduate of Detroit University School, now [[University Liggett School]]. Before [[Pearl Harbor]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Lieut.Wilson at Tokyo Meet |url=http://digitize.gp.lib.mi.us/history/newspapers/gpnews/1945-49/45/1945-08-30.pdf |website=digitize.gp.lib.mi.us |publisher=Grosse Pointe Public Library |access-date=June 12, 2022 |archive-date=December 1, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221201065535/http://digitize.gp.lib.mi.us/history/newspapers/gpnews/1945-49/45/1945-08-30.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> he enlisted in the [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]] and served in the [[Battle of the Atlantic|Atlantic]] and [[Pacific War|Pacific Theaters]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Graham|first=Tim|title=WWII Museum honors Ralph Wilson|url=https://www.espn.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/38729/wwii-museum-honors-ralph-wilson|date=March 21, 2011|work=ESPN}}</ref> After the war ended, he took over his father's insurance business and invested in Michigan area mines and factories. He eventually purchased several manufacturing outlets, construction firms, television and radio stations, and founded Ralph Wilson Industries.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Shea |first1=Bill |title=Ralph Wilson, Grosse Pointe Shores resident and Buffalo Bills owner, dies at 95 |url=http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20140325/NEWS/140329907/ralph-wilson-grosse-pointe-shores-resident-and-buffalo-bills-owner |website=Crain’s Detroit Business |publisher=Crain Communications, Inc. |access-date=September 12, 2018}}</ref>

Wilson got wind of [[Lamar Hunt]]'s plans for a new league, the American Football League, to challenge the NFL. He tried to put together a team in [[Miami]], but was turned down. His next choice was Buffalo, where the AFL's first choice of owner, [[Pat McGroder]], had declined to start a team. In September 1959, Wilson sent Hunt a telegram with the words, "Count me in with Buffalo.”<ref>{{cite web |last1=Warren |first1=Matt |title=Best Moments in Bills History, No. 23: Miami Turns Down Ralph Wilson |url=https://www.buffalorumblings.com/2011/6/17/2225530/ralph-wilson-buffalo-bills-miami-afl |website=SB Nation: Buffalo Rumblings |date=June 17, 2011 |publisher=Vox Media |access-date=September 10, 2018}}</ref> He named his new team the Bills, after [[Buffalo Bills (AAFC)|a previous team]] that had played in the [[All-America Football Conference]] from 1946 to 1949. On October 28, 1959, the Buffalo Bills officially became the seventh AFL team. Wilson made professional football a resounding success in a "small market", signing such stars as [[Cookie Gilchrist]], [[Jack Kemp]], and [[Tom Sestak]] and Hall of Famers [[Billy Shaw]] and [[O. J. Simpson]].

He was a guiding force in AFL policies that ensured success, such as gate and television revenue sharing. As one of only three AFL owners to be on relatively solid financial ground (along with Hunt and [[Houston Oilers]] owner [[Bud Adams]]), Wilson lent the financially troubled [[Oakland Raiders]] $400,000<ref>{{cite web |last1=Damien |first1=Levi |title=Raiders wouldn't exist without Ralph Wilson: Legendary Bills owner passes at 95 |url=https://www.silverandblackpride.com/2014/3/25/5547182/oakland-raiders-wouldnt-exist-without-ralph-wilson |website=Silverandblackpride.com |date=March 25, 2014 |publisher=Vox Media |access-date=September 12, 2018}}</ref> and was also willing to lend money to [[Billy Sullivan (American football)|Billy Sullivan]] of the [[New England Patriots]]. Wilson helped keep those franchises afloat, likely saving the entire league from folding (the AFL was unique among professional football leagues in that not a single AFL franchise folded in its history). In November 1963, Wilson along with then Raiders general manager [[Al Davis]] lobbied successfully to have AFL games postponed the Sunday after President [[John F. Kennedy]]'s assassination; NFL games were played as scheduled.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Roth |first1=Leo |title=Leo Roth: Ralph Wilson made right call in wake of JFK's death |url=https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/sports/columnist/roth/2013/11/24/leo-roth-ralph-wilson-made-right-call-in-wake-of-jfks-death/3688237/ |website=Democrat & Chronicle |access-date=September 11, 2018}}</ref>

Wilson was most concerned about his team's financial solvency and was largely indifferent to the Bills' on-field success; [[O. J. Simpson]] later noted of his contract negotiations with the Bills that when Simpson's agent told Wilson of Simpson's potential to make the team a championship contender, Wilson shot back "What good would a championship do me? All that means is everybody wants a raise."<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://buffalonews.com/2018/03/16/the-o-j-simpson-interview-on-prison-retirement-and-football/ |title = The O.J. Simpson interview: On prison, 'retirement' and football|date = March 16, 2018}}</ref>

In 1989, after league commissioner [[Pete Rozelle]] announced his retirement, Wilson was on the six-member committee who was tasked with nominating potential candidates for the open position. Wilson's nominee, his former quarterback Jack Kemp, declined to pursue the post, as he had already taken a position in the U.S. Cabinet. (The job ultimately went to league attorney [[Paul Tagliabue]].)

After the original naming rights deal on the Bills' current stadium expired in 1998, the facility's name was changed from [[Rich Products|Rich]] Stadium to Ralph Wilson Stadium; it would not receive a new naming rights deal until 2016, after his death and the subsequent sale of the team. According to an article on msn.com, Wilson, described as "stubborn", turned down numerous naming rights deals for the stadium.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Investing/Extra/the-most-at-risk-sports-teams.aspx?GT1=33002&slide-number=10 |title=The most at-risk sports teams - MSN Money |access-date=July 18, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714123605/http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Investing/Extra/the-most-at-risk-sports-teams.aspx?GT1=33002&slide-number=10 |archive-date=July 14, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Wilson was one of the league's most outspoken owners, even near the end of his life. Wilson voted against the [[Cleveland Browns]]' [[Cleveland Browns relocation controversy|relocation to Baltimore]] in 1995.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Shapiro |first1=Leonard |title=OWNERS APPROVE MOVE OF NFL TEAM TO BALTIMORE |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1996/02/10/owners-approve-move-of-nfl-team-to-baltimore/62005513-0215-46f0-9236-2eefbaae9583/ |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=September 11, 2018}}</ref> He publicly rebuked NFL Commissioner [[Paul Tagliabue]] in an open letter in 1998 over league policy, which disallowed criticism of referees, after poor officiating had a direct impact on a Bills loss that season.<ref>[http://www.wben.com/Ralph-Wilson---Remember-This-One-/18696665 Ralph Wilson - Remember This One?] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151018105319/http://www.wben.com/Ralph-Wilson---Remember-This-One-/18696665 |date=October 18, 2015 }} ''WBEN''. Retrieved March 30, 2014.</ref> He was one of two owners (the [[Cincinnati Bengals]]' [[Mike Brown (American football executive)|Mike Brown]] being the other) to oppose the league's former (pre-2011) collective bargaining agreement. (Wilson and Brown were commended for their foresight when the agreement later led to the [[2011 NFL Lockout]].)<ref>{{cite web |last1=Myers |first1=Gary |title=Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson never wanted that deal NFL owners now can't seem to stomach |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/buffalo-bills-owner-ralph-wilson-wanted-deal-nfl-owners-stomach-article-1.140907 |website=NYDailyNews.com |date=May 14, 2011 |publisher=New York Daily News |access-date=September 11, 2018}}</ref> He also negotiated a deal to have his team play [[National Football League in Toronto|home games in Toronto]] from 2008 until 2014.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Riordan |first1=Tim |title=Worst Buffalo Sports Moments #15 - The Bills play in Toronto |url=https://www.ubbullrun.com/2014/7/16/5808364/worst-buffalo-sports-moments-the-bills-toronto-series |website=SB Nation |date=July 16, 2014 |publisher=Vox Media |access-date=September 10, 2018}}</ref>

Wilson retired from the position of president in 2001, giving operational control to general manager [[Tom Donahoe]];<ref>{{cite web |last1=Pollock |first1=Chuck |title=Donahoe gets another chance with the Eagles |url=https://www.oleantimesherald.com/sports/columnists/donahoe-gets-another-chance-with-the-eagles/article_a643284c-b0fa-11e5-90f9-3b843ff88ddf.html |website=OleanTimesHerald.com |date=January 2, 2016 |publisher=Olean Times Herald |access-date=September 11, 2018}}</ref> Wilson retook control of the team's operations in 2006.<ref>{{cite web |title=Bills owner fires Donahoe, will be team president |url=https://www.espn.com/nfl/news/story?id=2279669 |website=ESPN |date = January 4, 2006|access-date=September 11, 2018}}</ref> Wilson again retired as team president, this time surrendering all control of the team's operations to [[Russ Brandon]], on January 1, 2013.<ref name=wgr1113>{{cite web|url=http://wgr550.com/Bills-Owner-Ralph-Wilson-Gives-Up-Control-of-Franc/15162691 |title=Bills Owner Ralph Wilson Gives Up Control Of Franchise |last=Simon |first=Howard |date=January 1, 2013 |publisher=[[WGR]] |access-date=January 1, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140325221740/http://www.wgr550.com/Bills-Owner-Ralph-Wilson-Gives-Up-Control-of-Franc/15162691 |archive-date=March 25, 2014 }}</ref> He continued to consult with Brandon on team and league operations up until his death.

==Personal life==
Wilson maintained a permanent residence in [[Grosse Pointe Shores, Michigan]] with his wife, Mary McLean, whom he met in 1989.<ref name=fathersexample/> He had three daughters from his first marriage to Janet McGregor Wilson, two of whom became involved in team business: Linda Wilson Bogdan (1948–2009), Pro Football's first female scout, was the franchise's Corporate Vice President until her death. Another daughter, Christy Wilson Hofmann, served as a consultant in the area of merchandising. The third daughter, Edith Wilson (1951–2020) was never involved with the franchise. The highest ranking relative in the organization was Mary Owen, Wilson's niece, who served as Vice President of Strategic Planning until the team was sold.<ref name="wgrz91">[http://www.wgrz.com/news/article/180019/37/Update-Wilson-Still-Hospitalized Update: Wilson still hospitalized] {{webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20130209054414/http://www.wgrz.com/news/article/180019/37/Update-Wilson-Still-Hospitalized|date=February 9, 2013}}. ''WGRZ''. Retrieved September 1, 2012.</ref> Wilson and his first wife divorced in 1970 after 26 years of marriage and shortly after their youngest daughter, Edith, turned 19.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/lawrence-daily-journal-world-feb-03-1971-p-28/|title=Lawrence Daily Journal World Archives, Feb 3, 1971, p. 28|date=February 3, 1971|work=NewspaperArchive.com|access-date=November 14, 2018|language=en}}</ref>

Beginning in the 1990s, Wilson maintained a small, but very valuable, art collection, including works by [[Claude Monet]], [[Édouard Manet]] and [[Alfred Sisley]]; this collection was valued in the tens of millions of dollars.<ref>Wawrow, John (June 5, 2014). [http://pro32.ap.org/article/bills-owners-estate-auctioning-art-collection Bills owner's estate auctioning off art collection]. ''Associated Press''. Retrieved June 5, 2014.</ref>

Wilson was a 1992 inductee of the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame. He was a 33rd degree [[Scottish Rite]] [[Freemason]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://scottishrite.org/journal/november-december-2010/nlnotes-nov-dec-2010/|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130415200212/http://scottishrite.org/journal/november-december-2010/nlnotes-nov-dec-2010/|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 15, 2013|title=Ralph Wilson Receives Distinguished Service Medal|date=November 2010|work=The Northern Light|access-date=January 1, 2013}}</ref>

===Declining health and death===
Wilson broke his hip in a fall at his home in July 2011, causing him to miss the Bills' home opener for the first time in franchise history.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Brown |first1=Clifton |title=Broken hip ends Wilson's home opener streak |url=http://www.sportingnews.com/us/nfl/news/199167-ralph-wilson-to-miss-bills-home-opener-for-first-time |website=SportingNews.com |publisher=Sporting News Media |access-date=September 11, 2018 |archive-date=September 11, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180911225517/http://www.sportingnews.com/us/nfl/news/199167-ralph-wilson-to-miss-bills-home-opener-for-first-time |url-status=dead }}</ref> The injury resulted in him needing to use a wheelchair. He issued a statement saying that he was undergoing physical therapy and hoped to attend at least one game during the season. Wilson also stated that he was "very surprised" by the team's 41–7 victory over Kansas City in week 1. He was hospitalized in August and early September 2012 with an unspecified infection and missed attending games in the entire 2012 season.<ref name=wgrz91/> In April 2013, Wilson was reported as "doing really well," with a statement that he hoped to make the 2013 home opener.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://blogs.buffalonews.com/sully_on_sports/2013/04/ralph-shooting-for-home-opener.html|title=Ralph shooting for home opener|last=Sullivan|first=Jerry|date=April 12, 2013|work=[[The Buffalo News]]|access-date=April 12, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130416022007/http://blogs.buffalonews.com/sully_on_sports/2013/04/ralph-shooting-for-home-opener.html|archive-date=April 16, 2013}}</ref>

Wilson died at his home on March 25, 2014, of natural causes at the age of 95.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/bills-nfl/ralph-wilson-owner-of-buffalo-bills-dies-at-95-20140325|title=Ralph Wilson, owner of Buffalo Bills, dies at 95|website=Buffalonews.com|access-date=November 26, 2021|archive-date=March 26, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140326024822/http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/bills-nfl/ralph-wilson-founder-and-owner-of-the-buffalo-bills-dies-at-95-20140325|url-status=dead}}</ref> His estate held the franchise in trust until its sale to [[Buffalo Sabres]] owners [[Terrence Pegula|Terry]] and [[Kim Pegula]] in September 2014.<ref name="Buscaglia">{{cite web|url=http://www.wgr550.com/pages/18735192.php|title=Mary Wilson Named Controlling Owner of the Bills|last=Buscaglia|first=Joe|date=April 3, 2014|publisher=[[WGR]]|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140407064035/http://www.wgr550.com/pages/18735192.php|archive-date=April 7, 2014}}</ref> The proceeds from the sale were used to form an endowment for the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation, which funds charitable causes in the Buffalo and Detroit areas, in accordance with Wilson's instructions for the money set forth prior to his death.<ref>Graham, Tim (October 3, 2014). [http://bills.buffalonews.com/2014/10/03/mary-owen-leave-bills-remain-powerful-overseeing-wilson-foundation/ Mary Owen to leave Bills, remain powerful overseeing Wilson Foundation] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141005172325/http://bills.buffalonews.com/2014/10/03/mary-owen-leave-bills-remain-powerful-overseeing-wilson-foundation/ |date=October 5, 2014 }}. ''The Buffalo News''. Retrieved October 3, 2014.</ref> The donation amounted to $1.2 billion and would be given away over the next two decades.<ref>{{Cite web|date=July 22, 2015|title=Ralph Wilson's Foundation to Donate $1.2 Billion Over the Next Two Decades|url=https://sportsnaut.com/ralph-wilsons-foundation-to-donate-1-2-billion-over-the-next-two-decades/|access-date=October 22, 2020|website=Sportsnaut.com|language=en-US}}</ref> The organization was overseen for a few months by his niece Mary Owen until its sale to the Pegulas was completed on October 8, 2014.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sale of Bills unanimously approved |url=https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/11663100/buffalo-bills-sale-unanimously-approved-owners |website=ESPN |access-date=March 7, 2021 |date=October 8, 2014}}</ref>

==Pro Football Hall of Fame==
On January 31, 2009, Wilson was elected to the [[Pro Football Hall of Fame]] along with former [[Buffalo Bills]] defensive end [[Bruce Smith (defensive end)|Bruce Smith]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Ralph Wilson |url=https://www.phideltatheta.org/famous-phis/ralph-wilson/ |website=phideltatheta.org |access-date=September 10, 2018}}</ref> The [[Pro Football Hall of Fame Game|Hall of Fame game]], played the day after the 2009 inductions, strayed from the usual AFC–NFC format and instead was contested by two original [[American Football League]] teams: the [[Buffalo Bills]] and the [[Tennessee Titans]] (formerly the [[Houston Oilers]]).<ref>{{cite web |title=Bills vs. Titans in 2009 Hall of Fame Game |url=https://www.profootballhof.com/news/bills-vs-titans-in-2009-hall-of-fame-game/ |website=ProFootballHOF.com |access-date=September 12, 2018}}</ref> This matchup was announced after Wilson was elected. Like Wilson, Titans owner [[Bud Adams]] was the only owner his team has ever had, and the two were the only living members of the "[[Foolish Club]]", the founders of the original eight AFL teams. Wilson and Adams are two of only four men who have owned a professional football franchise continuously for fifty years ([[George Halas]], who owned the [[Chicago Bears]] from 1920 until his death in 1983, is the third, and [[William Clay Ford Sr.]], Wilson's neighbor, who owned the [[Detroit Lions]] from 1961 to 2014, is the fourth).

The Hall of Fame game on Sunday, August 9, was a kickoff to the 2009 season, which would have been the 50th season of play for the AFL, if the NFL had not merged with it. Wilson was officially inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, August 8, 2009, with [[ESPN]] icon [[Chris Berman]] acting as his "presenter".<ref>{{cite web |title=CHRIS BERMAN'S REACTION TO SERVING AS RALPH WILSON JR.'S PRESENTER |url=https://www.profootballhof.com/news/chris-berman-s-reaction-to-serving-as-ralph-wilson-jr-s-presenter/ |website=ProFootballHOF.com |access-date=September 10, 2018}}</ref> Wilson was scheduled to receive his Hall of Fame ring in a halftime ceremony during the Bills game against the Cleveland Browns on October 11, 2009. However, Wilson cancelled the event at the last moment, without notifying the press or fans, and no explanation was given. It was widely speculated that Wilson cancelled the event out of fear of being booed by Bills fans for the team's chronic poor performance on the field and a series of highly unpopular managerial decisions. He was eventually presented with the ring on November 1.<ref>{{cite web |title=Ralph Wilson Receives Ring |url=https://www.profootballhof.com/news/ralph-wilson-receives-ring/ |website=ProFootballHOF.com |access-date=September 10, 2018}}</ref>

Wilson donated US$2.5 million to the construction of a "Pro Football Research and Preservation Center" at the Hall of Fame; the facility was named in Wilson's honor on August 13, 2012.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/buffalo/news/2012/07/27/pro-football-hall-to-unveil-wilson.html|title=Pro Football Hall to unveil Wilson center|website=Bizjournals.com|access-date=November 26, 2021}}</ref>

==Thoroughbred racing==
Wilson was also involved for a number of years in the sport of [[Thoroughbred horse race|Thoroughbred horse racing]] both as a [[horse breeding|breeder]] and as an owner in [[France]] and the United States. He bred [[Santa Anita Derby]] winner [[Jim French (horse)|Jim French]], as well as two-year-old European superstar [[Arazi (horse)|Arazi]], winner of the 1991 [[Breeders' Cup Juvenile]] and [[European Horse of the Year]].<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D0CE7DA113BF935A15752C0A967958260 | title=SPORTS OF THE TIMES; 25 Years Ago, Mara, Wilson Fueled Merger| newspaper=The New York Times| date=January 26, 1991| last1=Anderson| first1=Dave}}</ref> Another horse, Outta Here, raced in the [[2003 Kentucky Derby]] and finished in seventh place.

==Philanthropy==
*The Ralph C. Wilson Jr. School of Education, [[St. John Fisher University]], [[Rochester, New York]].
*The Mary & Ralph Wilson Jr. Hospice Inpatient Unit of Hospice Buffalo is named after him.
*The Wilson Building, Cheektowaga, New York.
*Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Athletic Field at the NFL/Youth Education Town-Boys & Girls Club at the Dick & Sandy Dauch Campus in Detroit, Michigan.
*Ralph C Wilson Jr. Foundation:
**Two $100 million posthumous donations, in honor of Wilson's 100th birthday, to the park systems in Buffalo and Detroit respectively; the former is the largest philanthropic donation in Western New York history<ref name="s346">{{cite web | last=Sommer | first=Mark | title=Ralph Wilson's biggest gift yet: $100M to transform LaSalle Park, trails | website=Buffalo News | date=2024-10-18 | url=https://buffalonews.com/news/local/ralph-wilsons-biggest-gift-yet-100m-to-transform-lasalle-park-trails/article_0fcba26d-9e44-5699-8dc3-edf281895cfc.html | access-date=2024-10-21}}</ref>
**$6 million grant to the [[Explore & More Children's Museum]] in [[Canalside]], Buffalo, which was renamed after Wilson.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.wgrz.com/article/news/local/ralph-c-wilson-jr-foundation-announces-6-million-for-explore-and-more/71-518699263|title=Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation announces $6 million for Explore and More|website=WGRZ|date=February 14, 2018 |access-date=May 10, 2019}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
{{notelist}}

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[[Category:1918 births]]
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[[Category:American company founders]]
[[Category:American Football League owners]]
[[Category:United States Navy personnel of World War II]]
[[Category:American racehorse owners and breeders]]
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Ralph Wilson - Revision history

66.170.136.197: /* Career */