John L. Bullion

John L. Bullion of Fort Worth, Texas, and Columbia, Missouri, passed away December 19th, 2021, at the age of 77.
John was born in Washington, DC, on October 23rd, 1944.
He was raised in Dallas, Texas, and attended Hillcrest High School and then Stanford University. During his time at Stanford, John spent his summers serving as a fire control aide at Yosemite National Park from 1965-1967. After graduating from Stanford in 1966 he attended the University of Texas, obtaining an MA and PhD in History in 1968 and 1977, respectively.
While finishing his dissertation, John began his academic teaching career in 1974 at Southwest Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas. He met his wife, Laura Bullion (nee Simmons), in nearby San Antonio during that time, and had many fond memories of attending San Antonio Spurs games when that franchise was affiliated with the American Basketball Association.
In 1978 he moved to Columbia, Missouri, and began teaching in the History department of the University of Missouri. His research specialty was eighteenth century British politics and policy relating to British North America. During four decades at Missouri, he received several teaching awards and published the book A Great and Necessary Measure: George Grenville and the Genesis of the Stamp Act in 1982.
His research interests gradually expanded to include the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson, first publishing a well-received memoir of his family's involvement with Johnson titled In the Boat with LBJ (Republic of Texas Press/Rowman & Littlefield, 2001). He is also the author of Lyndon B. Johnson and the Transformation of American Politics (Pearson/Longman, 2007). In 2008 this book was chosen as the centerpiece reading assignment for all freshmen at Texas State University, LBJ's alma mater. A lifelong Episcopalian, John also co-wrote (with Nancy Taube) a bi-weekly column on mainline Christianity in modern America for the Columbia (MO) Daily Tribune from 2002 until 2005.
He retired from the University of Missouri in 2017, and moved to Fort Worth, Texas, where he spent his remaining years happily indulging in his favorite activities: reading, writing, and watching televised sports. He is survived by Laura, his wife of 45 years, his sister Ann and stepsister Marilyn, his son Jack and daughter Chandler, and his granddaughters Sloane and Merritt. He is preceded in death by his mother, Billie Lewis Bullion, in 1983; his father, J Waddy Bullion, in 2004; and his stepmother, Wilma Smithson Bullion, in 2016.
A funeral service will be held at 2pm on January 6th, 2022, at Trinity Episcopal Church, 3401 Bellaire Dr S, Fort Worth, Texas 76109. The family requests that attendees wear masks during the service. A reception will follow at 4128 Pebblebrook Ct, Fort Worth, Texas.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that you make a donation to one of the following:
-Tarrant Area Food Bank
-Presbyterian Night Shelter of Tarrant County
-Salvation Army
-a charity of your choice
Brown Owens & Brumley Family Funeral Home
425 S. Henderson St.
(817) 335-4557