Introduction to the Hermann Statue: George Hermann (Hermann) was a park donor. George Hermann was a cavalryman during the American Civil War. After the war, he ran a lumberyard, which is where the park is now. Later, he switched to real estate business. In 1903 He invested in digging up oil in Texas and became a millionaire. In his later years, he donated the park and the hospital adjacent to it to the City of Houston.