Notes for William W. STEWART

Notes for William W. STEWART Doug & Nancy Russell's Homepage

Notes for William W. STEWART

Per conversation with Jim Wood, son of Lucille Stewart Wood, W. Stewart was a building contactor in Oklahoma City, OK. He, along with a partner, built Oklahoma A&M University. W. Stewart and wife, A. Cooper Stewart were killed in a car accident while he was building the university. Joan moved to CA, Lucille was sent to an orphanage.

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Nancy,

I will continue to research for background information for W. Stewart. Did the car accident happen here in Stillwater, or Payne County, Oklahoma? If it did I have some information below. Also, if the accident happened before your Uncle was born, can you tell me when he was born so I know the accident was before a certain date? The information you provided below estimates it to be in the early 1920's, so am assuming your Uncle was born in the late 1920's or early 1930's. Again, see below.

I have checked several additional sources of university information since my first email to you and have still not found any references to a W. Stewart.

There is a reference to a W. W. Stewart who died on February 18, 1915 and is buried at Fairlawn Cemetery here in Stillwater. Mrs. W. W. Stewart is buried beside him and died on the same day (February 18, 1915) and it lists her with a maiden name of Cooper. These are probably your Great-Grandparents! Their plots were purchased by a L. R. Stewart. Lewis R. Stewart is buried in the same Cemetery. His birth and death dates are: August 25, 1895 and May 10 1976. He may be your Grandmother's older brother.

Does your Grandmother's death certificate list only W. as a first name for her father and an A. for her mother? If we could get some first names that would help.

Hope this helps,

David

David C. Peters
Coordinator, Special Collections
Special Collections and University Archives
Edmon Low Library
Oklahoma State University
Stillwater, Oklahoma 74078

To Whom it May Concern;

I was wondering if you might direct me to the appropriate person...

I am trying to find some information on the building of OSU. My great grandfather, W. Stewart, was supposed to be the contactor who started building OK A& M, and was killed along with his wife (A. Cooper Stewart) in a car accident while doing so. Supposedly, his name is on a plaque somewhere on campus. I do not have any information on W. Stewart, or even when the car accident occurred, other than he was originally from IL.

I would appreciate it if you could direct me possibly to someone who might have any information on W. Stewart, and when he was involved in building your campus.

Thank You,
Nancy Russell
nanruss@@icehouse.net
8306 E. Sunflower Lane
Spokane, WA 99217
509-893-1230

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From the Stillwater Gazette, Stillwater, Payne County, Oklahoma, Friday, February 19, 1915, front page.

"AWFUL TRAGEDY
W.W. Stewart Fatally Shoots Wife and Sends Bullet Through
Own Brain
MUST HAVE BEEN UNBALANCED
No Cause Is Known for the Terrible Deed--Mrs. Stewart
Dies of Wounds.
A little girl's doll and building blocks in a corner of the dining room, spattered with her mother's blood. Across the room, prone on his back against the sideboard, the father lying dead. The odor of human blood in the house. These were the mute evidences of a tragedy which took place at 811 Main Street. in Stillwater. at 9 o'clock Thursday morning.
W.W. Stewart, a well known carpenter and builder, apparently without cause or preliminary quarrel, shot his wife four times, and turning the revolver upon himself fired one bullet through his own brain, and fell dead.
No one say the tragedy. Fannie, the 16-year-old daughter of the household, was ill, and had not yet risen. She heard the shots, and ran from her bedroom to the dining room, where she found her mother lying wounded in the corner and her father dead. She screamed for Mrs. Fred Eads, who lives next door south; Mrs. Eads hastened over and when she got there Fannie was bathing her mother's face. They carried the wounded woman to a bed, and doctors were summoned. Mr. McQuown was the first to arrive, and a little later Dr. Cleverdon arrived. First aid was given the patient, who was conscious, but complained greatly of pains in the abdomen, and within half a hour after the shooting she was taken to the hospital, where Dr. Whittenberg almost immediately performed an operation in the hope of saving her life, but she died at 12:30 o'clock. There were four wounds, one in the chin, the bullet ranging upward under the skin to the temple; one in the neck, and one through the left wrist. The most serious wound was where a bullet entered the abdomen on the left side. This bullet passed through the stomach and the gall bladder. Although there were four wounds, it is not certain that Stewart shot his wife four times; two of the wounds might have been caused by the same bullet.
Scenes at he ruined home were almost indescribably solemn after the wounded woman had been taken to the hospital. O.M. Eyler was one of the first neighbors to be summoned. Neighbor women hastened in and the children were cared for in their homes. The house soon was filled with a shocked, excited, awe-stricken crowd. There was no marked disorder in the appearance of the house; no evidence of a quarrel or a struggle, just he blood in the dining room and the silent figure of the suicide lying where he fell. The body was covered with a clean sheet, which soon showed bright red spots at the edges. Officers were promptly summoned, and preparations were to once made to hold an inquest at the house. Justice of the Peace Hanner took charge of this, and empanelled Dale Lytton, O.M. Eyler, G.H. Deery, O. Emmons, E.H. Wilson, and W.H. Aulder as the jury.
No cause can be assigned for the tragedy other than the insanity of Stewart. He was known as an insanely jealous man, and had twice been before the commissioners of insanity. It was rumored that he had told Mrs. Bart Hughes, only a few minutes before the tragedy that he was going to kill himself. W.G. Clingenpeel says it could hardly have been more than ten minutes before the shooting that Stewart was in his shop. He inquired for Ed Ryno, looked around and went out. Mr. Clingenpeel did not notice anything unusual about his appearance. None of the family knew of any immediate reason for the father's desperate deed.
There are six children in the Stewart family: Georgia, aged 25, who is employed as saleswoman in a store at Cusing; Leslie E., aged 23, a student at the college; Louis, aged 21, who is married and lives in Pawnee; Fannie, age 16; Gladys, aged 10, and Lucille, aged 6."

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From the Stillwater Gazette, Stillwater, Payne County, Oklahoma, Friday, February 26, 1915, front page.

"WAS A SORROWFUL SIGHT.
Double Funeral of W.W. Stewart and Wife, Last Saturday.
The double funeral of W.W. Stewart and his wife, Florence E., was held at the family home, 1108 Main Street, Saturday morning. In spite of the extremely inclement weather the house and yard were filled with sorrowing friends and neighbors. The service was in charge of the Modern Woodmen of America and Royal Neighbors. Rev. Virtes Williams, pastor of the Christian Church delivered the sermon.
It was a sorrowful sight, indeed, to see the two hearses, the black one bearing the body of the father and the gray one the body of the mother, followed by the crushed and heart-broken children and their relatives, wending their way through a pouring rain to Fair Lawn cemetery, where the bodies were laid to rest.
Mrs. Stewart's father and mother arrived from Winfield, Kansas, Friday at attend the funeral.

Details of the Tragedy
Stewart had emptied his revolver, firing three shots at his wife and two at himself. All these shots took effect. Mrs. Stewart had five wounds on her body, instead of four as stated last week, the wounds in her wrist and arm evidently having been made in trying to protect herself. The bullets which passed through the wrist and arm had later found lodgment in the face and neck. It was the wound in the abdomen which was fatal to her. The others were comparatively superficial.
After his wife had fallen, Stewart had turned the weapon on himself. From the first shot, the bullet entered the left breast about two inches above the nipple, but had not penetrated the walls of the chest; it evidently was deflected by a rib, and was found in the region of the left shoulder blade. It is believed Stewart fell after this shot, and that he then while in a reclining position on the floor, used his last bullet to shoot himself in the back of the head at the base of the brain. This bullet crushed the skull, passed diagonally through the head, and produced a protuberance in the region of the right temple. Death must have been instantaneous when this shot was fired. The hair was singed at the back of the head where the bullet entered.

Coroner's Inquest
The coroner's jury empanelled by Justice of the Peace Hanner, Thursday examined all the available witnesses, but elicited no facts other than those already stated. Members of the family said they knew of no domestic difficulty which should have led to the crime, and Fannie, the only member of the family who was in the house at the time of the tragedy, said she heard no sound of a quarrel. Mrs. Stewart had stated to Dr. McQuown that her husband had fired at her three times. The jury adjourned and held another inquest on the body of Mrs. Stewart Friday morning. Dr. McQuown, the coroner, who was out of the city on professional business when the inquest was held Thursday, did not think this was necessary but was urged by others because both Mr. and Mrs. Stewart carried fraternal insurance.
The verdict of the coroner's jury was that Mrs. W.W. Stewart, came to her death at the hands of her husband, and that he came to his death at his own hands."

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