Joseph Daniel Mitchell

Joseph Daniel Mitchell was an innovative rancher in the late 19th and early 20th century, introducing pure-blood cattle, early windmills, and wire fencing. Interested in entomology, he was involved in efforts to eradicate the cattle tick, control boll weevils, and combat malaria. He also was active politically, sitting on the Victoria city council, helping create the local school district (Mitchell School was named in his honor), and serving in the state House, where he helped write the law creating the office of the state fish and oyster commissioner.