FLGenWeb Digital Library and Archives
Hillsborough Biographies
Ray B Cralle
Source: The Lewis Publishing Co., Vol. II p127
1923
Author: The History of Florida: Past
& Present
CRALLE, RAY B. An acute, cool-headed man
of business may command respect because of his great capacities in
managing large concerns and his power to
change circumstances and conditions to suit his will, but in order to
secure the confidence of his fellow citizens he must have other
qualities, and yet
others of a still tenderer fibre to win personal affection. Those
who know RAY B. CRALLE best feel that in him are to be found not only
the sound and dependable principles which make for business
reliability, but the solid virtues of a good citizen and the admirable
characteristics which win and hold others in the bonds of sympathetic
friendship.
As president of the RAY B. CRALLE Company he occupies an
important position in the business life of Tampa, and his influence in
the automobile trade is felt over a wide area.
RAY B. CRALLE was
born at
Louisville, Kentucky, January 12, 1891, a son of S. S. and ROBINA
(STEELE) CRALLE, natives of Kentucky, the former of whom is deceased,
but the latter survives.
They had two children, RAY B. being the only son and the elder. His
boyhood days were spent in his native city, and he attended its public schools.
In 1907 he came to Tampa, and traveled out of the city on the
road until 1916, when he embarked in an automobile business as vice
president and general manager of the Hulsey Auto Agency. In October, 1921, he opened his
present business, organizing the company which bears his name, and of which he has continued president. He
is a member of the Tampa Auto Association, of which he was first
president, and he was the second president of the Florida State
Dealers’ Association, and has been very active in the work of
both organizations. He handles the
Hupmobile cars, carries a general line of accessories, and does a
general garage and station service business, his being one of the
reliable establishments in the county. Mr.CRALLE is a Blue Lodge
Mason, and he also belongs to the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and the United Commercial Travelers’
Association. He is a democrat.
In 1915 Mr. CRALLE married GRACE
HOULIHAM, of Lexington, Kentucky, and they have two children, JANE and GRACE.