Biography of Conner, Cecil Lafayette - Garfield County, Oklahoma Submitted by: Richard Edde 3 Mar 2008 Return to Garfield County Archives: http://www.usgwarchives.net/ok/garfield/garfield.html ========================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm ========================================================================== Cecil Lafayette Conner 1893-1983 Cecil was born February 24, 1893, to Clement Lloyd Conner and Ida Lee Keltner in Oklahoma City, OK. In September of that same year, his folks made the Cherokee Strip Run where they staked their claim and lived in a dug-out for the first year on that claim, during which time Clem built their house. Some years later they moved from their farm into Covington, OK. During the years 1908-12, Cecil attended Tonkawa University Preparatory School, which was a state preparatory high school, graduating in 1912. He entered the University of Oklahoma that fall. His second year was spent at the University of Chicago (1913) where he worked on the "elevated" train system as a conductor to finance his way. He also worked selling shoes at the department store, Marshall Fields. While attending the University of Chicago he attended a full day of classes and burned the midnight oil studying. He returned to the University of Oklahoma for his last year and graduated at the end of the summer of 1915 with a degree in mathematics. He completed work for the degree in three years plus one semester of summer school. While at Oklahoma University he became a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity. Upon graduation he accepted a position as principal of the high school at Davis, OK for the fall of 1915. Here, besides being principal, he also taught math, physics, geology, and was athletic director for the school, supervising all sports. A cousin of Cecil's, Lloyd C. Keltner (Claud Keltner's son) lived with him and attended high school in Davis. At the start of the second semester in the year 1917 he left Davis to accept a mathematics position with Central High School in Oklahoma City, Lloyd also accompanying him there. When World War I began wanted to volunteer for the Army since and went home to Covington to talk to his folks about it first. While home in Covington, a banker friend of his father's told Cecil that he ought to go into the banking business and that he knew where there was a bank for sale. So Cecil went to Kansas City to see about financing the bank in Garber, OK, which was not tar from Covington. Garber was then in the midst of an oil boom and Cecil was able to obtain the backing that he needed and took ownership of the Garber State Bank. His cousin, Ray S. Keltner (James W.'s son) went into the bank with him, with Cecil as president and Ray as cashier. In 1917 he was dating Maud Luther in Enid but later became interested in Maud's younger sister, Hazel Lydia Luther. He married Hazel on January 9, 1918 in Oklahoma City at the First Methodist Church. Cecil was a Baptist but Hazel was a Methodist and he later joined the Methodist Church. After they were married they went back to Garber where he continued in the bank. In August 1918, he was called into the US Army and was attached to the Medical Corps at Camp Greenleaf, which was near Ft. Oglethorpe, Chattanooga, TN. His rank was private. Hazel, his wife, accompanied him together with her mother, Lydia Mertz Luther, who had been recently widowed. While located at Camp Greenleaf, Hazel underwent emergency appendectomy at which Cecil assisted. Cecil, knowing he would never get anywhere in the Medical Corps unless he was a doctor, asked to be transferred to the Artillery Officer Candidate School, was accepted, and during October 1918, he left for Camp Zachary Taylor near Louisville, KY to enter training for an officer's commission. He was nearing completion of the course when peace was declared November 11, 1918. Ray and Lloyd Keltner had been running the bank in Garber while Cecil was in the army, and after the war, Cecil went back to the bank. In 1919 Rays' first wife contracted tuberculosis and had to be moved to New Mexico so when Ray wanted to sell out, Cecil agreed. At this time Cecil went to New Mexico and Arizona to look into the ranching business but decided against it and came back to Oklahoma where he opened up an appliance store called The Conner Electric Company in Enid, OK. After Ray's wife died, Ray came back to Enid and entered the company with Cecil and it then became known as The Conner-Keltner Electric Company. It was located in the 100 block on East Broadway, north side of the street. An infant daughter, born in October 1920, to Cecil and Hazel died several hours after birth. She is buried in the family plot in the oldest Enid cemetery. In 1921 Cecil also started another appliance store in Ponca City, OK in addition to the one in Enid. A second daughter, Lois Jean, was born on Easter morning, April 16, 1922 in Grandmother Luther's downstairs apartment at 323 East Broadway, Enid. In June of 1923 Cecil and Hazel with their small daughter moved to Ponca City to operate the store they had there. They later sold the Enid store. In 1924 Cecil and Ray decided to buy back the Garber State Bank and so Cecil went back to Garber, letting Lloyd operate the appliance store in Ponca City until it was sold. But at first, Cecil did not take active part in the bank. Instead, he became a Ford dealer selling Model T''s, the touring car as well as the roadster. However, in 1925 he became active again as bank president with Ray as cashier. A third child, Cecil Clement, was born May 1, 1925, at the family home in Garber. While in Garber, Cecil was active in the Methodist Church teaching in the Sunday School while Hazel sang solos in the choir as she had a beautiful contralto voice. Later, Lloyd, having never married, moved back to Garber and lived with Cecil and Hazel. While in Garber, Cecil, Ray, Lloyd, Enoch Miles, and V.L. Headrick developed a Maytag appliance franchise for some 25 counties in Oklahoma as a sideline business. Lloyd took over management of the company, which was known as The Mid-West Maytag Company while Cecil and Ray stayed active in the bank. During the stock market crash of 1929, the vice-president of the Farmers State Bank across the street from Cecil's bank shot himself causing a run on the Farmers Bank. Cecil told the teller in his own bank that if anyone came in to draw out all their money to call for Cecil and he would close the doors rather than start a run on their bank. Luckily it did not happen. The Farmers Bank was taken over by the Crew Estate who wanted Cecil and Ray to go in with them, so Cecil and Ray agreed, closing their own bank. Cecil went over to the Farmers Bank and worked with them for some time. In 1931 Cecil decided to get out of the banking business and he moved to Wichita, KS where he tried to sell stocks and bonds in an electric company. This was not very successful so the following year, 1932, he returned to Enid, OK. The going was tough as the effects of the depression were still being felt and what with mounting debts and daily needs to worry about, Cecil tried first one thing and then another to earn a living. Some of these jobs were as follows: life insurance, new inventions, such as a new king of iron porch chair, a new king of milk bottle, and the new spring archer. But the depression was overwhelming and though he covered most of Texas and Oklahoma, none of these jobs were very successful. During this time, Hazel helped out by selling lady's ready-to-wear and later became manager of Greene's Lady's Store in Enid, OK. In 1935 the Mid-West Maytag Corporation broke up and Cecil and Lloyd's share was Osage and Washington counties in the northeast part of Oklahoma and Stephens and Comanche counties in south-central Oklahoma. Cecil took Osage and Washington counties while Lloyd moved to Duncan, OK and took Stephens and Comanche counties. It was at this time that Cecil began to get a firm footing in business again. He went to Bartlesville (Washington County) in 1935, leaving his wife and children in Enid for the first year and took over the business there. During that first year, by working night and day, he made it a substantial-enough business to bring Hazel and the children to Bartlesville, arriving one hot early June day in 1936. Here Lois Jeanne entered high school and Cecil Clement (or Bud as he was known to all) entered junior high school. During the later 1930's Cecil's business became very successful by long hours of hard work on his part. He had five stores and salesmen scattered over the two counties. The Second World War, beginning on December 7, 1941, caused supplies for such electrical appliances to become limited and finally there were no supplies except parts and the service to keep appliances working. This was the type of business that carried them through World War II. On January 1, 1945 Cecil decided to liquidate his business in Washington and Osage Counties. At Lloyd's invitation he moved to Lawton, OK to share in the operation there by taking Comanche County and Lloyd taking Stephens County. They continued to operate until Lloyd's death in 1962. After that, the Mid-West Maytag Company consisted of Cecil L., his son, Cecil C., and his daughter, Jeanne. On May 2, 1942, Jeanne married Robert Edde, Jr. Bob was associated with Cecil in the Maytag business from the end of World War II until Cecil sold the business in 1956. Children born to Jeanne and Bob were Robert Richard, Linda Kay, and David Paul. On December 21, 1947 Bud married Marguerite Earlene Seabolt (Marge). Children born to them were Stephen Bruce, Susan Layne, Alan Dale, and Jeffrey Lance. This makes a total of 7 grandchildren to Cecil and Hazel Conner. On the day before Thanksgiving, 1952, Hazel suffered a very severe heart attack and had a difficult recovery. However, she finally did recover and, though there were many things she could no longer do, she lived a happy and productive life until her death, at the age of 62, on December 13, 1958. She was a wonderful wife, mother, and grandmother, a very Christian person. In 1956 Cecil sold the Lawton store, went into semi-retirement, but retained the corporation. He then kept an office to collect on the installment contracts he had made while in business. Later he kept books for several firms on a part-time basis until 1977 when he finally retired completely. Cecil had many long, fruitful years while living in Lawton. He was active in Centenary Methodist Church and taught a large young adult Sunday School class for 15 years. At one time, the attendance would be in the 70's with a membership of 125. He enjoyed it because he never forgot his first love, teaching, and also because he wanted to be of service to his Lord. He was also chairman of the Official Board on two different occasions as well as holding other offices. Cecil was a charter member of the Kiwanis club in Enid, OK and was also a member of the Lawton Kiwanis Club. He had a perfect attendance pin for 40 years. One time he was vice-president and would have become president but for ill health that overtook him at the time. He is also a lifetime member of the Salvation Army Board in Lawton, was a member of the Knife and Fork Club, attended high school and Cameron College football games in Lawton until he was almost 80 years old. Always he was a fan of Oklahoma University football. In September 1976 a heart pacemaker was put in Cecil. His favorite son in latter years was Somewhere My Love. Probably his favorite hymn was Are Ye Able, Said the Master? Having sold his home at 1714 Kinyon in 1978, Cecil lived in McMahon Nursing home in Duncan, OK, where he enjoyed life until the time of his death. Cecil's wife, Hazel, also helped him in their Maytag store acting as a saleslady from about 1940 until her first heart attack in 1952. Cecil Lafayette Conner died on October 18, 1983. His funeral was a large affair in Centenary Methodist Church in Lawton, OK. He was next to his wife, Hazel, in Enid, OK.