Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, May 17, 1990 TAG: 9005180423
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: E-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Junior Achievement of Southwest Virginia established the hall of fame to recognize significant and enduring contributions to private enterprise in Roanoke and the surrounding area. Inductees must be retired or no longer occupy the positions in which their principal contributions were made.
G. Frank Clement, Junius Blair Fishburn and Robert Hall "Race Horse" Smith were inducted into the hall of fame at a black-tie dinner, held Tuesday at the Roanoke Marriott.
Clement, who retired from the presidency of Shenandoah Life Insurance Co. in 1972, remained as chairman of the board until 1978. He is now director emeritus.
Clement also serves on the board of directors of Center in the Square and has been a primary fund-raiser for the cultural center. He has been involved in numerous cultural, civic and public-interest organizations and was named a Virginia Cultural Laureate in 1988. He also was on Roanoke City Council.
Fishburn, who died in 1955, was a director, president and chairman of the board of the former National Exchange Bank, which merged in 1925 with the First National Bank to form the First National Exchange Bank (now Dominion Bank). He purchased the Roanoke Times and the World-News in 1909. The two newspapers were housed under one roof, and the Times-World Corp. was established. Fishburn served as president of the company until he was succeeded by his son in 1923.
During Fishburn's travels, he became intrigued with the parks and eventually became a major contributor of parks in Roanoke and Southwest Virginia. He donated money to purchase land for Shenandoah National Park and 5,000 acres of Patrick County land, which later became Fairystone State Park. He also donated several parks in Roanoke: Wasena, South Roanoke, Lakewood, Norwich, Mill Mountain and Yellow Mountain. After his death, his home on 13th Street Southwest was donated to the city and now is the Mountain View Recreation Center.
Smith learned the railroad business from the ground up. He began his career as an axeman with the Norfolk and Western Railway while he was in college. He was promoted through the ranks and became general manager of the NW in 1936. In 1946, Smith became president of the railroad, a position he held until his retirement in 1958.
He earned the nickname "Race Horse" because of his habit of walking briskly along the railroad tracks, making sure that all was well. He took a personal interest in the welfare of the railroad and its employees, frequently spending time on the road with them.
Smith also served as president of the Roanoke School Board and the Roanoke Chamber of Commerce.
by CNB