Obituary: Jim Nichols, prominent Fort Worth engineer, dies at 92

Jim Nichols, who oversaw the development of the largest lake in the Tarrant Regional Water District and also was key in developing Dallas/Fort Worth Airport’s infrastructure, has died.

Mr. Nichols, 92, of Fort Worth died Thursday after suffering multiple health issues. He worked for the past 65 years at Freese and Nichols, the Fort Worth engineering, architecture, environmental science, construction and planning services firm where he was chairman emeritus, said his son John Nichols.

“Being able to give back to the community was a big deal for my father,” John Nichols said. “He always said, ‘You should leave the woodpile a little higher than you found it.’ ”

Mr. Nichols was known for developing water supplies for cities across Texas. He was principal in charge of the $400 million Richland-Chambers Reservoir, the largest lake in the Tarrant Regional Water District, with a surface area of 41,356 acres.

“It basically guaranteed good water for Fort Worth and meeting the water needs for the area,” John Nichols said.

His son said Mr. Nichols was thrilled that he could “fly across Texas from Texarkana to El Paso and never lose sight of a lake or reservoir that Freese and Nichols helped build.”

Jim Oliver, general manager of the Tarrant Regional Water District, said, “I’ve always heard every dam west of I-35, Freese and Nichols designed.”

The firm designed four lakes and dams for the Tarrant district, and was its go-to engineering company until the late ’80s.

“He was just one of the finest men I have ever met as far as someone you could trust,” Oliver said. “He did a lot for Fort Worth and the state of Texas.”

Mr. Nichols was chairman of the Texas Board of Professional Engineers and president of the Texas Water Conservation Association.

He was director emeritus of Downtown Fort Worth Inc., and was appointed by then-Gov. George W. Bush to the Texas Board of Professional Engineers. Former Gov. Rick Perry made him presiding officer in 2003.

“His technical expertise extended to aviation as well; he played a key role in the creation of Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and led Freese and Nichols’ development of the original infrastructure there in the 1970s,” according to a statement from the company.

Mr. Nichols served on many organizations, including the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, Fort Worth Convention & Visitors Bureau, United Way of Tarrant County and the Fort Worth Exchange Club. He was chairman of the board of trustees at Texas Wesleyan University.

He won countless awards and honors.

Mr. Nichols is survived by his wife, Billie, his children, Judith Nichols Sevdy, James Richard Nichols Jr. and John Marvin Nichols, and six grandchildren.

He was born in Amarillo on June 29, 1923, to Marvin and Ethel Nichols. His family moved to Fort Worth when he was 4 after his father joined Hawley and Freese Engineering — now Freese and Nichols.

Mr. Nichols graduated from Paschal High School, and then enrolled in Texas A&M University in 1941. He left to join the military in February 1943 and was in the Army for three years.

Mr. Nichols married Billie Smith in 1944, and they were together for 71 years.

He went back to A&M in 1946 and earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in civil engineering. He later went to work for Freese and Nichols, where he specialized in water and sewer projects and worked with his brother.

He spoke to the Star-Telegram last year about his brother, Bob Nichols, who died in May 2015.

“He was a good engineer,” Mr. Nichols said then. “A strong and ethical person. He was extremely well-thought-of. He was a wonderful brother and I will miss him very much.”

This story was originally published February 14, 2016 at 7:35 PM with the headline "Obituary: Jim Nichols, prominent Fort Worth engineer, dies at 92."