With only a high school education, Ralph Wilson moved to California from Indiana in 1920 and began working in an ornamental plaster and concrete business, making and selling decorative architectural pieces for public buildings. In 1928, he bought the company he worked for and managed to remain solvent throughout the 1930s. During World War II, his company switched to manufacturing molds for rubber bullet-proof gasoline tanks, and later, began experimenting with molding plastic. After the war, he became interested in high-pressure decorative laminate. His entry into this market was sold under the brand name Laminart. This product could be used to surface countertops and furniture such as tables and school desks. Laminart became widely accepted amid California’s expanding construction enterprises. Following a heart attack in 1954, he sold the company and planned to retire, but the break was short-lived. Partnering with American Desk Company and the Wynnewood Group, he founded Ralph Wilson Plastics (now Wilsonart International) in Temple. In the next few years, he transformed this new enterprise into what over time became the nation’s and later the world’s largest producer of high-pressure decorative laminate. Wilson shared his wealth with the community. His will established the Ralph Wilson Public Trust that poured thousands of dollars annually into the community through non-profit organizations serving the arts, people with special needs, children and the poor. Wilson’s lasting legacy of generosity and public service continues through the Ralph Wilson Youth Club that he founded.
Ralph Wilson, Sr.
The roadside stories worth pulling over for.
Ralph Wilson, Sr. is a historical marker in Temple, Bell County, dedicated in 2015. It is one of 226 historical markers documented in Bell County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 411 historic sites cataloged across the county.
The site sits at 31.0851, -97.3589 near Temple. The nearest cataloged historic site is Log Cabin Study of Dr. Arthur Carroll Scott (historical marker), about 0.2 miles away. Others within a short drive include Barclay-Bryan House, Jones, W. Goodrich, and Claudia Potter, M.D..
This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5507018174. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.
Get Texas Roam — all 28,000 sites in your pocket
See this site and every marker, cemetery, courthouse, museum and landmark across Texas on one live map — find what's near you, get directions, and check in as you roam.
