Bohumil Makovsky

Bohumil (Boh) Makovsky (September 23, 1878 – June 12, 1950) was a band director and head of the Department of Music at Oklahoma A&M College (now known as Oklahoma State University) from 1915 to 1945. He was the co-founder of Kappa Kappa Psi, a national fraternity for college band members.

Early life Makovsky was born on September 23, 1878, in Františky, Bohemia, the current Czech Republic. His parents were Vaclav and Anna Hladik Makovsky. Makovsky was orphaned at an young age—father died before Makovsky was born and his mother died he was twelve years old. Makovsky continued to live on his family estate and was cared for by relatives but had little formal education. He received an Honorary Doctor of Music degree from the University of Tulsa in 1940. They lived in Oklahoma City, moving to Stillwater, Oklahoma in 1915. He became a naturalized citizen of the United States in May 1921. Makovsky joined the Woodward Lodge No. 189 AF&AM in 1908 and eventually became 33rd degree Mason with Frontier Lodge No. 48 AF&AM. He was also the organist for the Guthrie Temple.

Shortly after his retirement in 1943, Makovsky was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. He died at the age of 71 on June 12, 1950 in Stillwater. He was buried in the Fairlawn Cemetery in Cushing, Oklahoma.