Robert Clifton Mason

Robert Mason died peacefully in his sleep early on October 6, 2022, at the age of 96. He was born in Lake Wales, Florida, on December 24th, 1925, to parents Eugene Carter Mason and Ann Robinett. Eugene owned and managed an orange grove, and a hard freeze accompanied by the Great Depression necessitated a move from Florida to the Robinett family home in Mountain Grove, Missouri. Robert became the young man of the house taking care of his mother and two sisters while his father moved to Chicago to support the family.

At the onset of WWII, rather than receive what was sure to be special treatment by the US Army due to the fact that his uncle was a Brigadier General, Robert volunteered for the Marine Corps. As part of the 1st Marine Division 5th Regiment, Robert fought in both Okinawa and Guadalcanal and was awarded the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star for bravery. Upon returning from the War, Robert went to college on the GI Bill and achieved a master’s degree in Geology from the University of Missouri. Upon graduation he began a successful career as a petroleum geologist working for Phillips Petroleum. On one assignment in particular, he was sent to Billings, Montana where he rented a basement apartment and became enamored with the beautiful blonde who lived upstairs. After a six month courtship, Robert married Lois Clara Larsen on October 25th, 1952, and they went on to have a loving marriage that lasted 70 years.

They followed the trek of an oil finder and his bride living in Lafayette, Louisiana, Bartlesville, Oklahoma, and finally settling in Houston, Texas, where they raised two children. After leaving Phillips Petroleum he went on to form what would become a 50 year collaboration with Texas landman Chuck Wilbanks. One of the significant discoveries of the Mason-Wilbanks partnership was the Gum Island Field in Jefferson County, Texas. Drilled in 1973 by Dow Chemical Company, it represented the largest discovery on the Texas Gulf Coast since the discovery of Port Acres Field in 1959. In the mid-70s, Robert owned and operated a working cattle ranch in Lampasas, Texas, raising pure-bred Angus cattle as well as a small herd of Arabian horses. With an eye for high quality breeding lines, Robert showed both cattle and horses at livestock shows throughout the US and amassed a floor to ceiling display case of blue ribbons and silver trophies. He was an avid reader, a history buff, and a lover of travel.

He was a sharpshooter who was known to kill snakes in the backyard with a .22 caliber rifle, but he was also a talented painter who had an appreciation for poetry and classical literature. Robert was preceded in death by his son, David Clinton Mason, and his devoted wife, Lois Larsen Mason. He is survived by his daughter, Anne Vivienne Mason of Austin, Texas, his granddaughter Melody Grace Clifford also of Austin, Texas, and his beloved Springer Spaniel, Ginger Pie.

A Memorial Service will be held on Friday, October 28, 2022 at 3:00pm at The Chapel at the Church of St. John the Divine, 2450 River Oaks Blvd., Houston, Texas 77019.