Mr. Gueymard has a long
relationship with LSU. He graduated in 1935 from LSU with a
B.S. in petroleum engineering, which set the stage for a fascinating and
productive career. He was in the 101st airborne in World War II
and fought in the Battle of the Bulge. He landed on D-day in a glider
and, for many years, returned to France for reunions.
For his service, he received two bronze stars and two presidential unit citations
and finished with the rank of Major.
He worked for Tidewater Oil Company before moving to Houston, where
he joined the First City
National Bank. He retired from the First City National Bank
as Senior Vice President for Petroleum
and Minerals. After "retirement", he served as Director of several
Boards and/or Foundations including:
Zapata Corp, Camco, Inco, Harrisburg Bank, Midhurst Corp., First City
National Bank of Houston, Texas.
He is also a Past President of the LSU Foundation and the Campanile
Charities.
Although he is "retired" he
still works as a self-employed petroleum and financial consultant in Houston.
He keeps busy with oil and gas investments and continues to serve on the
board of many organizations.
He is a member of the Petroleum Club of Houston; American Bankers
Association; American Petroleum
Institute; Society of Petroleum Engineers of AMIE; AAPG; Houston Geological
Society; Houston Chamber of Commerce and is a registered professional
engineer for the state of Texas.
Mr. Gueymard has been instrumental
in two professorships in the Geology & Geophysics Department.
The Campanile Charities Professorship was established in 1986 by a
group of LSU supporters, including
Mr. Adolphe Gueymard and eleven Geology alumni. Mr. Gueymard
was one of the leaders in initiating this professorship and seeing it through
to its completion. In 1997, he endowed a fund to establish
the Adolphe G. Gueymard Distinguished Professorship in the College
of Basic Sciences. This professorship is awarded in the Department
of Geology & Geophysics and is affiliated with the Center for
Excellence in Science Teaching. This award is given to a faculty member
who maintains a strong research program in addition to demonstrated excellence
in their teaching duties, primarily at the undergraduate level. Mr. Gueymard
has also established other Professorships across campus. We are grateful
for his help in sustaining our program.
(Thanks to Ms. Angela Broussard and Dr. Radford Byerly for information. Photo courtsey of the late Erny Hill.)
Adolphe G. Gueymard inducted into the LSU Basic Sciences Hall of DistinctionMr. Gueymard’s service in the WW II is the stuff of legends, and I can only give you a taste of it here. Dolphe served in the famous 101st Airborne, and he was in the 3rd glider plane to land on Normandy on D-Day. He also fought in the Battle of the Bulge. In an AP story, a young war correspondent by the name of Walter Cronkite, filed the following report on Sept. 26, 1944: “A make-shift crew…handling a US glider-borne anti-tank gun, which made a hasty emergency shot that knocked out a German tank, was credited today with saving possibly hundreds of British and American soldiers. The crewmen were Lt. Col. X.B. Cox, San Angelo, Tx; Capt. Adolphe Gueymard, Baton Rouge,LA, and Pfc. Rogie Roberts, Port Arthur, Tx." For his extraordinary service to his country, Mr. Gueymard received two bronze stars and two presidential unit citations. He finished his military career at the rank of major.
After the war, Dolph Worked for Tidewater Oil Company before moving to where he joined the First City National Bank. When he retired from First City Natl Bank he held the title of Senior VP for Petroleum and Minerals. Dolph has served as director of several organizations including: Zapata Corp, Camco, Inco, Harrisburg Bank, and Midhurst Corp, and has worked as a consultant in the oil investments business for many decades.
Mr. Gueymard was active in professional organizations, and was a member of the American Petroleum Institute, Society of Petroleum Engineers of AIME, American Association of Petroleum Geologists, and the Independent Petroleum Association of America.
Dolph has been a member of the LSU Foundation since 1965 and served as it president in 1969. He was one of the founding members of Campanile Charities, an organization whose goal is to benefit LSU. Dr. Darrell Henry currently holds the title of Campanile Charities Professor in Geology & Geophysics. Dolphe also established the Gueymard Professorship in Geology & Geophysics, which is held by Dr. Barbara Dutrow.
Dolphe attributes much of his success to the unique experiences that he had the LSU Geology Field Camp, which is located in the mountains of southern Colorado. Dolphe has been a tireless supporter and advocate of the Field Camp for many years, and has served on the Field Camp Campaign Committee since its inception. The Camp continues to provide a vital, and I might add, required, field experience for aspiring geologists and petroleum engineers, largely thanks to the efforts of Mr. Gueymard.
Clearly, Dolphe has had a remarkably successful career, he has served heroically for his country, and has demonstrated in many tangible ways that he bleeds purple and gold.