Elton B. Stephens
Elton Bryson Stephens, Sr. (August 4, 1911–February 5, 2005) was the founder of EBSCO Industries and a Birmingham philanthropist.
Family life and Education
Stephens was the son of James Nelson Stephens and Clara Stucky Stephens. He was born and raised in the town of Clio in Barbour County, Alabama.
Stephens attended college at Birmingham-Southern from 1928 to 1932, when he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree. He then went on to earn a law degree from he University of Alabama School of Law in 1936. Later, in 1960, he completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard University.
Stephens married Alys Varian Robinson in 1935. The couple had two sons, J.T. Stephens and Elton B. Stephens, Jr., and two daughters, Jane Comer and Dell Brooke.
Formation of EBSCO Industries
Stephens supported himself through college by selling magazine subscriptions door-to-door. He continued in this field even after receiving his law degree. In 1944, he and his wife formed a partnership named the Military Service Company to sell magazines, personalized binders, and racks to the U.S. Armed Forces. The partnership went on to start several additional business in support of this and acquire the Hartsfield Printing Company (now EBSCO Media), bringing them together under conglomerate EBSCO Industries, Inc. in 1958.
Later years
In the early 1990s, Stephens began a campain that successfully revived the Alabama Symphony Orchestra.
Things named after Elton B. Stephens
- EBSCO (Elton B. Stephens COmpany) Industries
- Elton B. Stephens Expressway
- Elton B. Stephens Public Library in Clio, Alabama
- Elton B. Stephens Music Director Chair of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra
- Elton B. Stephens Science Center at Birmingham-Southern College
References
- "Elton B. Stephens, Founder of EBSCO Industries, Inc., Dies at 93." 9 Feb 2005 [[1]]. Access 24 July 2006.
- History of EBSCO. Accessed 24 July 2006.
- Alabama Academy of Honor: Elton Bryson Stephens. Accessed 24 July 2006.