Peter Youree (April 23, 1843
- July 13, 1914) was a businessman and
banker from Shreveport
, Louisiana
, who in 1910 built his city's first skyscraper, the ten-story Commercial National
Bank Building. He also financed the construction of his
massive Youree Hotel — later called the Washington Youree Hotel —
in downtown Shreveport. He was president of the Louisiana Bankers
Association from 1908-1909.
Biography
Youree was
born in Lafayette County
in north central Missouri
, to
P. E. Youree and the former M. M. Zimmerman. He was locally
educated and received mercantile training in his father's store.
He served
with Missouri Confederate forces during the
American Civil War and was
wounded at Shiloh
, a bloody
battle fought near the Tennessee
River in southern Tennessee
. He rose to the rank of captain of
Slayback's Missouri Rifles and surrendered his company at
Shreveport.
He decided to settle in Shreveport, the seat of
Caddo Parish, and became a mercantile clerk. He
opened a mercantile and real estate business. For a time he owned
the Shreveport Street Railway and was president of the Shreveport
Waterworks Company. In 1888, he was elected president of the
Merchants and Farmers Bank, and in 1891, he became president of the
Commercial National Bank, a position which he held until his death.
Youree's
former bank is now a part of AmSouth Bancorporation of Birmingham,
Alabama
. At the time of his passing, Youree's wealth
was estimated at $2 million.
On June
24, 1870, he married the former Mary Elizabeth Scott of Scottsville
in Harrison County, Texas
, east of Marshall
and west of Shreveport. She was the daughter
of Colonel W. T. Scott, a member of the
Texas State Senate, whose family founded
Scottsville. They had a son, William Scott Youree (1872-1904), and
a daughter, Susie Rose Youree Lloyd (1881-1974).
Youree was also active in local politics. A
Democrat, he was a member
of the Caddo Parish Police Jury (county commission in most other
states) for twenty-four years. He was a member of the First
Methodist Church of Shreveport.
Youree Drive in Shreveport is named after him. His home on
Fairfield Avenue called "Youreeka" was a Shreveport showplace for
many years.
Youree is interred in the Scottsville/Youree Cemetery in
Scottsville.
The cemetery is known for its acclaimed
"Weeping Angel" or "Angel of Grief"
statue, originally built to watch over the grave of son William
Scott Youree, who was killed in Monterrey, Mexico
.
See also
References
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