E. J. Myers Obituary

E. J. Myers attended Bay City High School in Bay City, TX. View the obituary, post a memory, or share a photo about E. J. Myers.

Graduation Year	Faculty
Date of Passing	Dec 22, 1967
About	Elbert Jefferson Myers was born on a farm near Mansfield, Tarrant County, on January 12, 1902. He was the first of seven children born to William Baxter and Delelah Fay Myers. His father was a native Texan of Irish stock and his mother came to Texas from Tennessee in a covered wagon when she was 13. Elbert Myers was not able to attend school regularly because he had to help on the farm. He graduated as the top honor student from Mansfield High School in 1922. He entered North Texas Agricultural College at Arlington during 1922-24, where he earned an associate science (AS) degree. He began his long teaching career in 1924 at Gertie School, a small two-room country school near Mansfield. In 1925 E. J. Myers earned a football scholarship to Rice University where he earned his BA degree in 1927. While attending Rice, Myers tutored other students, picked up and delivered dorm laundry, and even sold his blood to blood banks to help pay his educational expenses. E. J. Myers married Viola Foster in Tarrant County on August 17, 1927. They soon moved to Gulf, Texas. E. J. Myers taught and coached at Gulf High School from 1927 to 1937. During their stay in Gulf, E J. and Viola Myers were blessed with two children, Robert Alvin, born July 7, 1928, and Doris Jean, born August 6, 1932. While teaching at Gulf, Myers continued his education during the summers of 1927-38. He attended the University of Texas earning a MA degree, master of science (MS) degree, and in 1936 a master of education and physical education degree. In 1938 Myers joined the Bay City school system where he served as math teacher, assistant coach, and head coach. In 1944 Myers left Bay City to become principal of Wharton High School, a position he held for five years. While living in Wharton, Myers' son, Alvin, married Ethel Thornton on July 3, 1948. They have three children and four grandchildren. They operate a design business in Huntsville, Texas. In 1949 Coach Myers returned to Bay City High School as principal, holding that position for ten years. In 1959 he resigned as principal and signed a contract to teach mathematics at Bay City High School. In appreciation for Myers' ten years service as principal, the faculty and student body presented him with a 16-foot boat and trailer. Myers' favorite sport was fishing. He believed in teaching five days a week, fishing every Saturday, and going to church every Sunday. In 1953 Myers' daughter, Doris Jean, received a BS in education from the University of Texas. She married Bob Barker on December 29, 1953. They have two children and one grandchild. Doris Jean earned her MEd in elementary education from the University of Houston in 1976. She substituted and taught third grade in Sweeny schools until 1985, when she retired due to poor health. Bob Barker retired from Phillips Petroleum Company in 1985. Coach Myers taught mathematics and history at Bay City High School from 1959 until 1967. The 1967 homecoming was dedicated to him. Myers taught math until Thanksgiving, 1967. He died of cancer a month later on December 22, 1967. He was buried in Roselawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Van Vleck. E. J. Myers was a member of the Lions Club. He was a Mason, a Shriner, a deacon of First Baptist Church, a Sunday School teacher, and the instructor of all the adult Sunday Schoolteachers. The Sunday School class he taught still bears his name.