About
ABOUT US
Davis Holdings has come a long way from its humble origins in 1908, when Herman Davis traded a pocket watch for passage to the United States.
Despite speaking little English (his first language was Yiddish) and operating out of a horse and buggy, Herman Davis managed to successfully sell bolts, clothes and other wares. This traveling business would become successful as Herman traded to the Osage American Indians, whose “underground reservation” produced tremendous wealth.
HERMAN’S DAVIS MERCANTILE CO. SAVES 80 RELATIVES IN WWII & SETS THE COURSE FOR GENERATIONS
This store, later called Davis Mercantile Co., became a critical component of Davis Holdings’ and the Davis family’s history. It was this humble enterprise that provided a safe haven for Jewish relatives during WWII, and gave Herman the ability to save over 80 relatives from the holocaust. Secondly, it was Davis Mercantile Co. that drew Herman into the Oil and Gas business, which provided more good fortune than was possible selling wares.
While operating the store, Herman witnessed the wealth of his Native American customers and quickly realized a path to greater success. Using what money he had, Herman began buying and selling pieces of farmland, always retaining half of the mineral rights.
HERMAN AND OTHER MEMBERS OF THE DAVIS FAMILY WHO FOLLOWED IN HIS FOOTSTEPS HAVE ASSEMBLED OVER 500,000 GROSS ACRES AND 87,000 NET ACRES OF MINERAL INTERESTS IN 22 STATES.
HERMAN’S DAVIS MERCANTILE CO. SAVES 80 RELATIVES IN WWII & SETS THE COURSE FOR GENERATIONS
This store, later called Davis Mercantile Co., became a critical component of Davis Holdings’ and the Davis family’s history. It was this humble enterprise that provided a safe haven for Jewish relatives during WWII, and gave Herman the ability to save over 80 relatives from the holocaust. Secondly, it was Davis Mercantile Co. that drew Herman into the Oil and Gas business, which provided more good fortune than was possible selling wares.
While operating the store, Herman witnessed the wealth of his Native American customers and quickly realized a path to greater success. Using what money he had, Herman began buying and selling pieces of farmland, always retaining half of the mineral rights.
HERMAN AND OTHER MEMBERS OF THE DAVIS FAMILY WHO FOLLOWED IN HIS FOOTSTEPS HAVE ASSEMBLED OVER 500,000 GROSS ACRES AND 87,000 NET ACRES OF MINERAL INTERESTS IN 22 STATES.
ENTER DAVIS BROS., DIVERSIFICATION & VISION
Herman was succeeded by Leon and Elliot Davis, who would later form Davis Bros. with the income derived from Herman’s mineral holdings. From an ad in the newspaper, they purchased a hardware store. Later they formed Davis Sporting Goods in Tulsa, owning four stores in total. Leon (father of sons Ross Davis and Lance Davis) ran the stores and the real estate while Elliot, the first ever geologist hired by Shamrock Oil Company, ran the oil effort. Leon would eventually relocate, and is responsible for bringing the company to Houston. Leon, like Herman before him, was incredibly entrepreneurial. He led the Davis family into areas such as tech, real estate development, oil & gas exploration and production, and venture capital. Leon was instrumental in bringing the Davis family into the tech industry. He purchased a mainframe computer to store information for his sporting goods store. Seeing that he had extra storage capacity, he decided to sell the surplus and form a computer storage company. This computer storage business would be bought and sold many times, with Davis Holdings always retaining partial ownership. Eventually, this once small side-business would merge into GE giving Davis shares in the company.
Other Achievements
Among his other achievements, Leon Davis…
Was a celebrated Purple Heart and Two Bronze Star Colonel in WWII
- The first president of the Urban League in Tulsa
- Cochairman of the Southwide Advisory Board of the Urban League with Winthrop Rockefeller
- Successfully raised over $17 million, along with Dr. Jordan Gutterman, for the cancer drug Interferon, which would become the fifth selling drug at MD Anderson.
Pictured above: Leon Davis addressing a news conference announcing Shell Oil Company’s $2 million gift to Interferon Research — June 9, 1980
From the beginning, Herman established a family culture that is still present today, which is based on trust and loyalty.
The Davis family wishes to grow Davis Holdings and its affiliated companies. The Davis’ continuously recruit, always looking to add the right employees to their team, and is currently active drilling and operating oil and gas wells, increasing their real estate portfolio, building new investor relationships, and engaging in other entrepreneurial ventures.
Successful in Real Estate, Oil & Gas
and Venture Capital since 1945.