Biography of Edwin Ruthven Shapard, Jr. (1880-1969)

Edwin Ruthven Shapard, Jr., was born on August 3, 1880, at the New Hope Seminary, Oak Lodge, Skullyville, Choctaw Nation, Indian

Edwin Shapard Jr., c. 1880

Territory. He was the son of Rev. Edwin R. Shapard and Jennie (Hall) Shapard. In 1883, he moved with his family to Fort Smith, Arkansas, living in a wood planked house on Lexington Avenue. In 1886, he returned with his family to Indian Territory, living at Eufaula in the Creek Nation. A year later he moved to Savanna in the Choctaw Nation, only to return to Eufaula in 1888. When his father retired from the ministry in 1889, the Shapard family reestablished their residence at Fort Smith, Arkansas. When Edwin was only 9 years of age, his father died of pneumonia. His older brother Sumner Shapard at the age of 14 assumed the roll of provider for the family. Over the following years, Edwin attended public school in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Edwin R. Shapard, Jr.

In 1896, his brother Sumner purchased a grocery store in South McAlester, Indian Territory and Edwin moved there with his family, working as a stockboy in the business. Whilst there, he attended the Methodist Episcopal Church South and became a member of the Epworth League. In October of 1897, the Shapard family left the grocery business and returned to their home on Lexington Avenue in Fort Smith, Arkansas. In 1898, Edwin obtained employment with W.J. Echols & Co., working initially as an assistant bookkeeper and stenographer, until being promoted to a traveling salesman circa 1904. As a young man, Edwin was described as being very popular and well-liked, having blue eyes, black hair and a medium build.

May G. Miller

On October 16, 1909, Edwin married May Gullette Miller, daughter of J. T. and Mary J. (Trester) Miller of Fort Smith, Arkansas. Over the years, Edwin and May would be blessed with three children: Barbara Shapard (1912-1998), John Miller Shapard (1915-2015) and Edwin Ruthven Shapard III (1918-1998).

Edwin continued to work as a traveling salesman for the W. J. Echols & Co., until he moved to Muskogee, Oklahoma, in 1927, eventually accepting a job as a shoe salesman for the International Shoe Company. In 1931, Edwin lost his sister Elizabeth, when she was murdered in Washington D.C. Only a few years later in 1935, he lost his remaining siblings Sumner and David; one to a heart attack and the other to a car accident. Edwin assumed a fatherhood roll for his nephew, David Conger Shapard, after the loss of his father.

Edwin Jr., in middle with sons John (left) & Edwin III (right)

Edwin remained in Muskogee for the remainder of his life. He was a member of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church and had been awarded a 50-year pin by the Oriental Lodge #430 AF & AM. He had been a member of the United Commercial Travelers for 65 years. He was also an historian and genealogist at heart, supporting and donating items to the Oklahoma Historical Society. He was preceded in death by his wife on October 31, 1968. Edwin Ruthven Shapard, Jr., died a year later, at the age of 89 years old, on August 4, 1969, and is buried next to his wife, his brother and his parents at Forest Park Cemetery in Fort Smith Arkansas.

Biography of Elizabeth Mitchell Shapard Jaynes (1872-1931)

Elizabeth Mitchell Shapard (1872-1931), affectionately known as “Lizzie,” was born in Shelbyville, Tennessee, on February 21, 1872. She was the daughter of Rev. Edwin Ruthven Shapard and Jennie (Hall) Shapard. Her middle name was in honor her paternal grandmother’s maiden name. At only eight months of age, she was taken to Indian Territory, when her father became the Superintendent for the New Hope Seminary at Oak Lodge, Skullyville, in the Choctaw Nation. It was among this pastoral educational setting that she would spend the next decade of her life. Her early education was among the faculty and Choctaw students of the seminary, however, in 1886, she was admitted to the Harrell Institute at Muskogee in the Creek Nation. Lizzie faired well at school and was elected Secretary of the Juvenile Mission Society and elected Secretary of the Parsonage Society of Muskogee. She was also appointed as a librarian for the McGavock Library, which was located at the school.

Elizabeth M. Shapard c. 1886

Lizzie was a graduate of the 6th term of the Harrell Institute in 1887. After spending the summer with her family at Eufaula in the Creek Nation, she was sent to “the States” for a better education, attending Brookhaven Mississippi Female Institute from September 1887 until June of 1888. This institute became the present-day Whitworth College, which operated as a four-year women’s college from 1859 until 1928. In the fall of 1888, Lizzie transferred to the North Texas Female College in Sherman, Grayson County, Texas. Whilst away, on November 16, 1889, her father would die in Fort Smith, Arkansas. At the time of her father’s death, Lizzie was as only 17 years of age. On June 10, 1890, Miss Elizabeth Shapard graduated from college, and returned to her family home in Fort Smith, Arkansas, teaching briefly at Belle Point school.

Elizabeth M. Shapard wedding 1891

Lizzie returned to Sherman, Texas, where she was courted by Mr. William Burton Jaynes. They were married in Paris, Lamar County, Texas on December 26, 1891. Mr. Jaynes was born in South Carolina in 1866. He studied law in Dahlonega, Georgia, and then moved to Sherman, Texas, to establish his legal practice. In 1893, he was approached by Texas Representative (and future senator from 1901-1913) Joseph Weldon Bailey and offered a job as his personal secretary for the sum of $150 per month. Upon accepting the position, Mr. Jaynes and Lizzie moved to Washington D.C., in 1894, and initially rented a small room on Capital Hill. Mr. Jaynes remained Senator Bailey’s personal secretary for the duration of his political career. Mr. Jaynes and Lizzie were members of the Mount

Vernon Place Methodist Episcopal Church South, where in 1909 she began teaching a class, and did so for 22 consecutive years. She was also the church treasurer for the Woman’s Missionary Society.
Lizzie’s mother passed away on April 9, 1910 in Fort Smith, Arkansas, after a lingering illness of three months. Over the following years, Lizzie remained active in her church and also assisted her husband through secretarial work.

In 1931, she was working as a cashier at the Garden T Shoppe. On April 3rd, at closing time, two masked men entered the fashionable tea shop. One held a gun at Lizzie while the other removed the $90 from the cash register. Without warning the gun discharged and the thieves ran out the door. The police were immediately summoned and Lizzie gave a full report of the incident, not yet realizing she had been shot. Lizzie returned to her house where hours later her leg went numb and she was rushed to Garfield Hospital. Lizzie survived her injury for two days, yet, succumbed at 6:15 pm on Sunday April 5, 1931, at the age of 59 years old. Funeral Services were held on April 8th at Mount Vernon Place Methodist Episcopal Church South. Her three brothers, Sumner, Edwin, Jr., and David attended the funeral services and interment at Fort Lincoln Cemetery. Such a sad and tragic end to such a bright and beautiful spirit. Lizzie and her husband had no children.