Bragg, George, 1926-2007

George Washington Bragg was born on January 24, 1926 in Meridian, Mississippi. Various documents name him either as George Bragg Jr., or George Bragg III, as is written on his tombstone. Similarly, his father's obituary names him has George Bragg, Sr., but his grave site names him as George Bragg II. Census records do confirm that Bragg III's grandfather had the same name, confirming him as the first of three. The 1930 Census records the family's residence in Mobile, Alabama, and the family moved to Birmingham in 1934, where Bragg III joined the Apollo Boys Choir. The 1940 Census places him in Gulf Hammock, Florida (southwest of Gainesville) with his mother, brother Louis, and other relatives, and his 1944 draft registration shows his residence in Asheville, North Carolina. Bragg moved to Denton, Texas in the mid-1940s to study at what is now the University of North Texas. During his freshman year, Bragg founded the Denton Civic Boy Choir on February 7, 1946. As Bragg explained in a 1996 interview with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, he was unable to find more of the odd jobs he had been working to pay his bills, and asked the dean of the School of Music about a job. The dean, knowing Bragg had sung in the Apollo Boys Choir, suggested he start one in Denton. An 1971 Star-Telegram article by Leonard Eureka notes that the initial choir contained 37 boys selected from 250 applicants, and the Denton-Record Chronicle announced the choir's first concert on March 31, 1946. In 1957, efforts by Fort Worth citizens secured the relocation of the choir to that city, where it took the name Texas Boys Choir. The group went on to tour internationally, performing with and for distinguished figures in popular and classical music, from Pat Boone and Jimmy Durante to Igor Stravinsky and Jean Langlais. Under Bragg's direction, the group won Grammy awards in 1966 and 1969. In February of 1975, Bragg stepped down as director of the choir, citing health concerns, but continued pursuing activities to advise and assist other boys' choirs. Bragg was in poor health for the last decade of his life, and died in Fort Worth on May 31, 2007.