Elmer Lois Tarbox (March 7, 1916 – November 2, 1987) was an American military aviator, businessman, and politician. Tarbox served as a member of the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. As of the 2010 United States census, each member represents abou ...

from 1967–1977.

Early years

Elmer Tarbox was born in Bishop, Oklahoma on March 7, 1916 to Jake Tarbox and May Tarbox (née Riley). Tarbox was raised in the

Texas Panhandle The Texas Panhandle is a region of the U.S. state of Texas consisting of the northernmost 26 counties in the state. The panhandle is a square-shaped area bordered by New Mexico to the west and Oklahoma to the north and east. It is adjacent to ...

city of Higgins, Texas.

Education

Tarbox attended Texas Technological College (now

Texas Tech University Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sy ...

) and lettered in Red Raiders basketball,

Red Raiders football The Texas Tech Red Raiders football program is a college football team that represents Texas Tech University (variously "Texas Tech" or "TTU"). The team competes as a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Football Bowl Subdivis ...

, and Red Raiders track teams. Along with Jerry Dowd from the Saint Mary's Gaels, Tarbox was named Co-Outstanding Player in the 1939 Cotton Bowl Classic. He graduated with a

Bachelor of Business Administration Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) is a bachelor's degree in business administration awarded by colleges and universities after completion of undergraduate study in the fundamentals of business administration and usually including advanc ...

degree from Texas Tech in 1939. The same year, Tarbox was selected 18th overall in the

1939 NFL Draft The 1939 National Football League Draft was held on December 9, 1938, at the New Yorker Hotel in New York City, New York. With the first overall pick of the draft, the Chicago Cardinals selected center Ki Aldrich. Player selections Round on ...

by the Cleveland Rams but chose not play professional football.

World War II

At the beginning of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Tarbox enlisted in the

United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...

. Under the command of

Claire Lee Chennault Claire Lee Chennault (September 6, 1893 – July 27, 1958) was an American military aviator best known for his leadership of the " Flying Tigers" and the Chinese Air Force in World War II. Chennault was a fierce advocate of "pursuit" or fig ...

, he piloted B-25 bombers in the

China Burma India Theater China Burma India Theater (CBI) was the United States military designation during World War II for the China and Southeast Asian or India–Burma (IBT) theaters. Operational command of Allied forces (including U.S. forces) in the CBI was off ...

as a member of the 1st American Volunteer Group, nicknamed the "Flying Tigers." Tarbox was awarded an

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...

, a

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an ...

, and a

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

. Upon discharge, Tarbox returned to

Lubbock, Texas Lubbock ( ) is the 10th-most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of government of Lubbock County. With a population of 260,993 in 2021, the city is also the 85th-most populous in the United States. The city is in the nort ...

.Jeanne F. Lively, "TARBOX, ELMER LOIS," Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fta49), accessed January 02, 2012. Published by the Texas State Historical Association.

Political career

In 1966, Tarbox ran successfully for the 76th District in the

. Tarbox was reelected twice to the same district and twice more in the 75th District. While a member of the legislature, he served on the appropriations committee that established the Texas Tech University School of Law and what is now the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC).

Personal life

From 1946–1947, Tarbox served as president of the Texas Technological College Alumni and Ex-Students Association (now known as the Texas Tech Alumni Association). He married Maxine Barnett on March 29, 1944, and they had four children before she died in 1978. Tarbox founded the Tarbox Parkinson's Disease Institute in 1972 at the TTUHSC, to help develop a treatment and cure for

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms becom ...

, from which he suffered. On November 2, 1987, Tarbox died of complications of Parkinsonism and was buried at Resthaven Cemetery in Lubbock.

References

External links

Legislative Reference Library of Texas profileThe Tarbox Parkinson's Disease Institute
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tarbox, Elmer 1916 births 1987 deaths Democratic Party members of the Texas House of Representatives People from Lubbock, Texas Deaths from Parkinson's disease Recipients of the Air Medal Texas Tech Red Raiders football players Texas Tech Red Raiders basketball players Recipients of the Silver Star 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American politicians American men's basketball players United States Army Air Forces bomber pilots of World War II Neurological disease deaths in Texas Military personnel from Texas