Marie Gramann was born July 31, 1913 in Cuero, Texas and died October 19, 2016.
She was the daughter of Carl Albert Gramann and Marie Graham Gramann. She graduated from the University of Texas in 1936 where she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma. She would become the first female to enter the graduate program in geology at the University of Texas. She subsequently worked as a geologist for the Texas Railroad Commission, Standard Oil of Indiana, Mobil, and Heap Oil Company. She moved to Brownwood in the 1960s and taught geology at Howard Payne University from 1965 to 1990 when she retired as Assistant Professor Emeritus of Geology. She continued with active interests in the field of geology and was an active member of the American Association of Professional Geologists for over 65 years. They honored her in 2015 with a feature story in their publication The Explorer as well as a video. She received many honors including a Resolution of Appreciation from Howard Payne University upon her retirement, and the Lasso was dedicated to her in 1974.
She was a long time member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church where she was a reader. She served on the Board of the Brown County Museum, and was a member of the HPU Women’s Club and the Howard Payne Retired Employees Association as well as the Junior 20th Century Club.
She is survived by nephews: Dr. Ned Snyder III of Houston and Dr. David Snyder of Santa Fe, New Mexico; nieces: Marian Pirkle of Dallas and Molly Williams of Houston; as well as many great nephews and nieces. The family would like to thank the staff at Oak Ridge Manor for their excellent care.
The funeral will be at St. Mary’s Catholic Church at 2PM Saturday, October 22nd. In lieu of flowers the family asks that donations be made to St. Mary’s Catholic Church or the Geology Department at Howard Payne University.