Revered General Contractor Bartlett Cocke Jr. Dead at 93

Bartlett Cocke Jr., a San Antonio businessman who founded Bartlett Cocke General Contractors, has died at the age of 93.

His firm, headquartered in San Antonio but with an office in Austin, cemented its place as Central Texas’ eighth-largest commercial construction firm in 2022, the Austin Business Journal reported. Some of its high-profile projects include renovations of Austin Community College’s Rio Grande Campus and the Linden, a 28-story residential tower on the edge of downtown Austin.

Cockefounded the company in 1959 under the name Bartlett Cocke Jr. Construction Company. The firm played a pivotal role in constructing iconic San Antonio landmarks such as Hemisfair, the site of the 1968 World’s Fair. Cocke also led developments like One Riverwalk Place, buildings on the UTSA and Texas A&M University – San Antonio campuses, Methodist Hospital, the Greehey Children’s Cancer Research Institute and UT Health Medical Arts and Research Center.

In 2020, Bartlett Cocke General Contractors was recognized for projects such as Christus Children’s Hospital, the Toyota manufacturing facility and university campus buildings, the outlet said.

Cocke’s impact on the industry extended beyond his company, as he served as president of the Associated General Contractors of Texas and San Antonio. He was actively involved in organizations and established the Bartlett Cocke Executive-in-Residence Scholarship Fund at the UTSA College of Business.

—Quinn Donoghue