Anderson, Clayton and Company

Anderson, Clayton and Company (sometimes written Anderson, Clayton and Co) was a cotton trading firm started in Oklahoma City in 1904.

The company was created by Monroe Dunaway Anderson, his brother Frank E. Anderson and Frank's brother-in-law William L. Clayton. In 1916, the company moved to Houston, Texas in order to have better access to a shipping port.

The company grew through meeting high cotton demand during World War I. By 1944 the company had grown to be the largest provider of cotton in the world, and had cotton oil mills and cotton gins in several countries. The company went public in 1945, and continued to expand by financing cotton growers in several states.

Monroe Anderson died in 1939, leaving a legacy which was used to fund the M.D. Anderson Foundation, which in turn funded the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center by matching funding from the state of Texas. The Anderson Foundation trustees insisted that the new school be set up in Houston near the company headquarters. The new Cancer Center originally operated out of World War II barracks; it later grew to become a substantial part of the Texas Medical Center.

As the company grew it diversified into foods and international markets, including the Chiffon margarine brand.

Eventually the company was acquired by the Quaker Oats Company which led to its delisting from the stock exchange and the closing of its Houston offices.

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