Texas Butane turning 66 under family ownership

Although very young, Judy White remembers her father opening Texas Butane 66 years ago — or at least 66 years ago as of April 15.

Her dad had a Humble station at the corner of Bankhead and Fort Worth Highway at the time.

“We lived across the street,” Judy said, “and I would sell Girl Scout cookies at that station. And he made everybody buy them.”

She recalls one night when a truck came in about 10 p.m. with a flat tire. Judy asked the driver if he would buy some Girl Scout cookies and the driver gave her a gruff “no.”

Her dad told the driver it was late and he wasn’t going to fix the tire. The truck driver was mad and he went out to his truck. 

“When he left daddy said go out there and tell him if he buys two boxes of cookies. I'll change the tire.”

With that type of family support, Judy sold the most Girl Scout cookies in Parker County two years in a row.

Judy’s father sold the gas station to get the propane business, and the kind of family support he showed his daughter has made Texas Butane the “go-to” place for fuel more than 65 years now.

In fact, Judy worked in the business in her early years, and now her children and grandchildren work there, making it a five-generation business. Not only that, Judy met her future husband, Morris, when he was working at Texas Butane.

“He says he married the boss's daughter, and all he's ever gotten is hard work,”Judy quipped.

Judy and Morris celebrated their 59th wedding anniversary on Tuesday, March 5, and have spent their married life together in the business.

Despite the name, Judy and Morris said they sell more propane than anything these days. The versatile fuel can operate commercial busses, power home heating, operate generators, and heat your home.

Texas Butane services Parker County and surrounding counties, and counts multi-generational customers along with their multi-generational business.

But the business is more than hooking up and filling propane tanks.

“Safety comes first,” Judy said. “Many a time we don’t fill a tank if it’s not safe for the people.”

Judy recalls one incident when her driver called making a delivery to a house with a woman and small children. The driver said there was a leak and Judy instructed him not to fill the tank. Judy called a plumber and sent him to the home. The next morning, the lady called Judy and thanked her. 

“You saved our lives,” the woman said. “We had a broken pipe under the house and we wouldn’t be here if you had filled that tank.”

“You can go somewhere and get warm,” Judy said. “It was more important to keep them safe.”

Texas Butane is also committed to keeping supply on hand.

“We have 150,000 gallons of storage and we’re about to put in more,” Judy said, “so we have the supply on hand when people need it. In 66 years, we’ve never been without propane.”

When you call, you’ll hear a friendly voice on the phone.

“We have the greatest employees, they care. They care just like we do,” Judy said. “I feel like it's a family - they turn into our family. We have two granddaughters that work here. Two sons that work here. And a son that does part time work.”

You can call Texas Butane at the same phone number they had 65 years ago, 817-594-2612, or visit them at the same location on the square in Weatherford.