About Cogdell
BILL
P. COGDELL
 Midland
College Benefactor
In
1992, retired Midland businessman Bill P. Cogdell helped
fulfill the college’s dream of establishing a presence in South
Midland by donating buildings on Florida Street to house
the new facility. The remodeled buildings are now home to
the college’s Business and Economic Development Center,
English as a Second Language classes, GED classes, Welfare
to Work programs, and several Continuing Education computer
classes.
Born 12/25/1915
( Abilene, TX), he moved to Los Angeles in 1929.
Mr.
Cogdell started his business career selling papers on the
L. A. streets during the great depression. He joined the
CCC when he turned 19, where he worked in the Angeles & Santa
Barbara national forests. Later he worked at Midway Island
just prior to WWII.
He was
transferred to Christmas Island on December 8, 1941, to build
an air base and during the assignment took up arms against
the Japanese. He eventually returned to the United States
and joined the U.S. Navy. He sailed with the 5th Fleet as
an Electricians Mate 1st Class and participated in the battle
of Iwo Jima. During WWII he served on the USS Iowa, the USS
Canberra, (which was later torpedoed off Formosa), and the
USS Vicksburg. Mr. Cogdell was Honorably discharged from
the U. S. Navy in September 1945.
Mr.
Cogdell’s
experiences in the Navy convinced him that he would prefer
to be self-employed. So he entered the construction business
in California. In 1969, he returned to Texas and purchased
a house in Midland where he resided until his death in 1997.
In 1976 he bought an office complex where he operated a finance
company for several years. The office complex is now known
as the Midland
College Cogdell Learning Center.
Mr. Cogdell
continued to be an important contributor to Midland College
and the Midland community. Since the initial donation, which
established a Midland College presence in south Midland,
Mr. Cogdell continued to donate properties and funds to Midland
College, the Midland Police Department and the archives of
the City of Midland.
Mr. Cogdell
remained active in retirement and successfully managed a
stock portfolio from his home office. He generously provided
the college with a listing of the rules by which he managed
this portfolio.
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