Dauntless: Paul Hilliard in WWII and a Transformed America

by Rob Citino, Ken Stickney, Lori Ochsner

Dauntless is the story of Clayton Paul Hilliard, a poor farm boy from Wisconsin who enlisted in the US Marine Corps as a teenager, served in the Pacific theater as an aviator, and returned to attend university on the GI Bill. His education was a springboard into a very successful career as an entrepreneur, independent oil man, and industry leader. Always looking for ways to give back, he also became a philanthropist and generous donor to educational and cultural institutions in the city of Lafayette and throughout southern Louisiana. Paul’s story highlights some of the most fascinating decades in American the impact of World War II, the importance of post-war social and economic changes, and the development of the oil industry from the 1950s to today. In short, Dauntless is as much a history of the United States in the twentieth century as it is a personal biography of an influential leader in Louisiana and beyond.

239 pages, Hardcover

Published December 5, 2023