Myrl Mitchell was a legend in the ginning industry. If you ever, and I mean EVER, met Myrl, you knew it. He and his sons farmed and ran a small gin in the west Texas town of Lenorah. Although retired some years ago, Myrl and his wife Mercedine were a fixtures at the Texas Gin show, the National Cotton Council Meetings as well as the Beltwide Cotton Conference.

Myrl was known as the “Last Honest Ginner”. As I recall, that moniker came from one one of his stints as a ginner representative to the Universal Standards Conference. He was the only ginner to volunteer to retrieve the Grade Standards from the vault in Memphis when USDA staff asked for an “honest ginner” to go with the group. He said “Well, it looks like I’m the last honest ginner”. The name stuck.

He held just about every position in the cotton world that a ginner could hold. He was Texas Cotton Ginner President, Plains Cotton Growers President, National Cotton Ginners President, Chair of the Joint Cotton Industry Bale Packaging Committee. Was a delegate to the Council, a director to the Council and recipient of the National Ginner of the Year award.

Myrl passed away on Saturday February 2. He will be missed by all that had the honor to know and work with him.