Bio of Garner, William L. - Grady County, Oklahoma Transcribed by: Gene Phillips 18 Jun 2006 Return to Grady County Archives: http://www.usgwarchives.net/ok/grady/grady.html ========================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm ========================================================================== WILLIAM L. GARNER. Although prominent as a contractor and builder and proprietor of one of the active planing mills of Chickasha, William L. Garner is the youngest man in the city who has arrived at the dignity of a contractor. He was born in Franklin county, Tennessee, on the 22nd of January, 1882, son of Martin D. Garner, himself a carpenter and recently identified with his son in business. The father was also born in Franklin county (in 1861) and married Mary Gilpin, who bore him six children. The paternal grandfather, John Garner, was a Tennessee farmer, who died in 1907 at the age of seventy-seven years. The father, although a carpenter by trade, located near Texhoma, Beaver county, Oklahoma, in 1901, and there he pursued his unwonted avocation of farming until the death of his wife, when he came to live with his son in Chickasha. Mrs. Martin D. Garner was formerly Susan Myers, a daughter of John Myers, and became the mother of John Henry, a farmer of Beaver county, Oklahoma; William L. Gamer, and Alice M., the latter now the wife of John Stewart, of Verden, Oklahoma. William L. Garner received a common school education, which was intermixed with his work as a carpenter under the early supervision of his father. From the age of nine years until his marriage at eighteen, their interests were in common; but the setting up of an individual household was also the commencement of an independent business. He was a wage earner until after he became a resident of Chickasha, when, having accumulated a small capital, he entered the construction field as a contractor and the experiment has proven permanent and lucrative. In January, 1907, he erected the People's Planing Mill, which has given him a great advantage as a contractor and enabled him to underbid his competitors who have not his facilities for turning out manufactured building material. When to this advantage is added his honesty and skill as a workman and his energetic management of the contracts which he undertakes, the continued success and development of his business are assured. In order to more particularly identify Mr. Garner with the building industries of Chickasha it is in place to mention that he has erected the Terrel building, Catholic parsonage, cottages for J. R. Abercrombie, and. residences for Edward Johns, R. Stephens, George Ladd, F. D. Lemon, George P. Holland, J. P. Coots, Mrs. Davidson, Webb Hendrix, L. J. Gray and Joseph and Louise Phillips. Mr. Garner was married in Franklin county, Tennessee, November 26, 1900, to Nannie M., daughter of David Wakefield and Josie Gipson. Mrs. Garner is the elder of two daughters, her sister being now Mattie, wife of a Mr. Jackson, of Franklin county, Tennessee. Mr. and Mrs. Garner's children are D. J., Rosey and Inez. No legacy or other financial aid has fallen into the lap of William L. Garner. His unfailing and well directed industry has sustained a comfortable household and developed his business, and his property at the corner of Ninth street and Choctaw avenue also represent the substantial accumulations of his brief, but active and progressive, career. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to Grady County Archives: http://www.usgwarchives.net/ok/grady/grady.html