Billy Sol Estes early in life showed a talent for making money. When he was 13 he received a sheep and sold wool, and he got another, and another. By the time he was 15 he sold 100 sheep for $3000. As the country was coming out of the great depression, he found he could buy surplus grain, so with his father's credit he borrowed another $3500. When the grain arrived, he sold it to the struggling Texans at a better price than they could get anywhere else. By the time he was 18, he had $38,000.

Estes talent for making money expanded as he grew older and did some good with what he had. He was a smart business man seeing opportunities others missed. He was selected as one of 10 Outstanding Young Men by the Jaycees in 1953. However his need for more and more led him to take shortcuts through the wrong side of the law.

It was a situation of being too smart for his own good. He came up a scheme to get government subsidies for cotton growers with out being a cotton grower. Books and magazine articles have been written about his arcane plan to cheat the taxpayers and, because of space I would refer those interested in checking them out. Despite the fact that it was illegal, it does show an element of financial genius... dark financial genius.

Because of the wealth generated by his businesses – legal and illegal – he was working on par with may of the oil men who were supporting Lyndon Johnson, and benefiting from the relationship.

When word of his fraudulent activities hit the news and began reflecting on his relationship with Johnson, he thought he was being taken care of when Johnson's lawyer, John Cofer, took over his case. Things did not go as Estes planned and he went to prison and out of the news.

This destroyed his loyalty to the big Texan. Once he was safely out of prison, he spilled his guts on Johnson and his cronies being responsible for multiple deaths... including Henry Marshall, George Krutilek, Harold Orr, Ike Rogers, Howard Pratt, Josefa Johnson, John Kinser and John Kennedy. Orr and Pratt were partners in his fraudulent adventures and both were found dead in 1964 of carbon monoxide poisoning, and Krutilek was his accountant.

In spite of his knowledge he survived to the age of 88 and passed peacefully.

Books that may be of interest - out of print

Billy Sol:King of Texas Wheeler Dealers  by Pam Estes

Billy Sol Estes, a Texas Legend, "The Man Who Knows Who Shot JFK"
by Billie Sol Estes