Shirle Williams

Shirle Charlene Lamb was born in Wagoner, Oklahoma on 21 July 1926 to Charles Dorsey and Ola Agnes (Caton) Lamb in the home of her grandfather, Vanner Lamb. Her early years were spent in the Seminole oil fields; Springfield, Missouri; and Wagoner.

During the Depression the family moved to her father’s Cherokee allotment land on Grand River and lived in the Lambs’ sharecropper housing. She graduated as valedictorian from Wagoner High School in 1944. She attended Kansas City Art Institute and later transferred to the University of Tulsa where she received a B.A. degree in commercial art in 1947.

In 1948 she married George Frederick Williams, a Wagoner native, and they started married life in an apartment over Grand Chevrolet Garage in Wagoner. George had returned from World War II, after serving in the Army Air Corps in the Philippines and Japan. The couple lived and worked in Muskogee and Wagoner for the next several years, before moving permanently to Tulsa. Shirle and George had two children, Charles Frederick born 7 December 1957, and Melinda Kay born 27 May 1960.

Shirle had a long and successful career in advertising, first working in Tulsa for an advertising agency as an artist for Vandevers Department Store. Returning to Wagoner, she commuted to Muskogee to serve as advertising and display manager for Durnil’s Department Store. Shirle later established her own advertising agency in Tulsa, doing newspaper, radio and television work for diverse clients including clothing (Woolf Bros., Streets), furniture (Mayo’s), sporting goods (P&S Sales), and military surplus (Oklahoma Army Surplus). Shirle retired in 1983.

Following retirement, Shirle and George enjoyed many years of travel, and both loved to gamble at casinos and to fish at their dock on Fort Gibson Reservoir. Shirle also became very active in genealogical and historical research. She was a member of more than 15 lineage societies, often serving as an officer. Her extensive research on Wagoner history culminated in the publication of “Wagoner … in the beginning”, which documents the early history of her hometown; from settlement in 1887 by her great-grandparents in Indian Territory through early statehood. Her extensive archive of historical documents and photos was donated and is archived in the Oklahoma Historical Society collections.

She is survived by her son Charles F. (Rick) Williams and his wife Rosemary J. Smith of Pocatello, Idaho; her son-in-law Michael L. Morgan and his partner Kim Riggs, of Claremore, Oklahoma; and grandson Stephen M. Morgan of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

She was preceded in death by her daughter Melinda Kay Williams Morgan (d. 2 November 2016), and her husband George F. Williams (d. 24 April 2017). She will be buried in her family plot in Elmwood Cemetery in Wagoner, Oklahoma.

In lieu of flowers donations may be sent in her memory to: Oklahoma Historical Society 800 Nazih Zuhdi Drive, Oklahoma City, OK 73105 405-521-2491  https://www.okhistory.org/pdf/annualgivingreturn.pdf

There are no formal services planned at this time.

The family of Shirle Williams has entrusted her care and cremation to Mallett Funeral Home and Crematory, 417 East Cherokee Street, Wagoner, Oklahoma, 74467. 918-485-2911