George Morgan Perry, a native of Iowa, moved to the Texas Panhandle town of Ochiltree in 1886 and took an active role in the formal organization of the county, serving as county clerk, district clerk, and county judge. A supporter of railroad building in the Panhandle, he was honored by the Santa Fe Railroad when the town of Perryton was established on the rail line and named for him in 1919. He served as first president of the Chamber of Commerce and continued to promote settlement and business development in the city until his death in 1944.