CAMP COUNTY - ROSE HILL CEMETERY


Former Pittsburg Mayor Abernathy dies 

By LOU ANTONELLI - Managing Editor
Wednesday, September 24, 2008 11:06 AM CDT

Former Pittsburg Mayor D. H. Abernathy, 96, died early Wednesday at his home in Pittsburg. Mayor of the Camp County seat for 52 years, Abernathy only retired in 2006 after setting a record for longevity in public service. Abernathy was elected to the Pittsburg City Council in 1949, and five years later, he began his remarkable 52-year tenure as mayor of Pittsburg.

During his combined 57 years of service on the city council, he was absent from only eight meetings, according to a resolution submitted by State Senator Kevin Eltife and passed in his honor in 2006 by the State Senate.

Abernathy was the great-great-great-nephew of Major W. H. Pitts, the man for whom Pittsburg was named, and was born to Walter and Callie Mae Abernathy.

He graduated from Pittsburg High School in 1929, earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Oklahoma and worked in Oklahoma and Arkansas before returning to Pittsburg to serve as the city electrical inspector for 23 years.

He also worked for the Lone Star Steel Company, where he was employed from 1947 until his retirement as division manager in 1977. 

Among his civic achievements were serving as head of the Camp County Chamber of Commerce, the East Texas Council of Governments, and the Texas Municipal League.

He was also active in the Pittsburg First Methodist Church, the statewide Fire Advisory Committee for the Texas Forest Service, the Camp County Arts Council, the Northeast Texas Economic Development District, Inc., executive committee, and the Camp County Ambulance Service.

He was the recipient of countless honors recognizing his important contributions to his community, including Man of the Year awards from the Camp County Chamber of Commerce and Pittsburg Business and Professional Women.

The Texas State Highway Commission, now the Texas Department of Transportation, presented him with a Road Hand Award, its highest honor. 

He was also recognized by the FFA, the First Methodist Church, and the Shriners of Pittsburg.

Abernathy was very involved in transportation issues, and his efforts resulted in a number of significant highway improvements, including the widening of several roads and the construction of the Green Carpet Memorial Route. Loop 179 was named D. H. Abernathy Boulevard in his honor.

Services are pending with the Erman Smith Funeral Home in Pittsburg. He is survived by his wife, Laverne, their children, Mary Lou, David, and Betty Ann, and their grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

In the resolution passed by the legislature in honor of his retirement as mayor in 2006, it was stated: "Embodying the highest ideals of public service, D.H. Abernathy has made a lasting contribution to his state, and it is indeed an honor to commend him for his years of service and dedication and for the myriad ways he has enhanced the quality of life for his fellow citizens of Pittsburg."