George H. Hermann

He invested in real estate and was an early investor in oilfields around Humble, Texas, which led to a financial windfall from a rich oil strike.

He donated most of his estate to the public upon his death, including land for the Houston Museum of Fine Arts and Hermann Park.

[2] While still a teenager, Hermann enlisted with a Confederate Cavalry company and served in that unit through most of the Civil War.

After the war, he engaged in the cattle and real estate businesses, while selling firewood and lumber.

[citation needed] Hermann bequeathed an estate valued at $2.6 million to establish a hospital.