Suzanne Wallis talk 3-1-12

Suzanne Wallis Talk, 3-1-12

In 1982 I came to Tulsa with my husband Michael. We moved from neighboring state, Missouri, where I had enjoyed success in the field of education, working with elementary and secondary teachers throughout the state. Michael was a successful reporter, special correspondent and feature writer.

It was time for a change. Fueled with confidence, we came to Tulsa prepared to make a move into the private sector. Within a month we landed jobs in advertising agencies. Specifically, our mission was to build public relations departments. Michael headed up his department and was given a large office overlooking a pond. I was situated in a former broom closet across the hall from the woman in charge of finances who, like the rest of the agency staff, doubted any impact public relations might have on clients.

My career change was far more difficult than I had anticipated. Moving to Oklahoma put me face-to-face with situations I had written and taught about at the University of Missouri but had never experienced. Sexism was one of the most startling facts of my new reality. I knew it was difficult for women in the workplace, but how that actually played out for me was a lesson in endurance, patience and belief in my own ability.

I soon began to seek out other professional women and to learn about the accomplishments of women in Tulsa. I was disappointed to learn about the departure of Germaine Greer, controversial as she was, from her recent appointment at the University of Tulsa where, as Director of the Study of Women’s Literature, her intention was to bring light to women’s literary history and “try to turn the university into the Amherst of the Southwest.” Her efforts were lasting, but in her own words, “Here in Oklahoma they think ERA means earned run average.” Greer left.

But I stayed. I channeled my energy into making my own mark in a profession dedicated to creative and informative communication. I sought out women who inspired me and from whom I could learn how best to move forward in the world of business.

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Nancy Ingram, editor of Tulsa Home & Garden, which later became Oklahoma Home & Garden, published my first magazine article. Pat Atkinson, a no-nonsense editor at the Tulsa World, helped guide me through the process of creating and distributing news releases. Given my growing connection to media, I admired Betty Boyd, a Tulsa broadcasting pioneer and community leader. Karen Keith was a Tulsa television reporter to whom I first delivered news releases. She went on to become a television news anchor and executive producer as well as an entrepreneur launching two businesses. She served as Mayor Bill LaFortune’s Director of Community Relations and is currently County Commissioner for District 2.

Susan Savage, head of the Tulsa Crime Commission when I arrived in 1982, was elected ten years later as Tulsa’s first female mayor, and recognized as one of the top 25 mayors in the country in 1998. In more recent years I have forged a friendship with Kathy Taylor who served as the state’s Secretary of Commerce and Tourism prior to becoming Tulsa’s second female mayor. During her tenure she oversaw the completion of Tulsa’s Vision 2025 projects, including construction of the new downtown baseball park. Sheryl Lovelady, a political analyst and former communications director for Mayor Kathy Taylor, is an advocate for programs that promote women in politics.

I met and worked on several projects with Pat Woodrum, Executive Director of the Tulsa City-County Library System who helped form Tulsa’s Day Center for the Homeless. The story of Carrie Dickerson whose efforts prevented the construction of two nuclear plants, including black Fox, gave me hope that there were in Oklahoma strong women whose environmental beliefs paralleled mine.

Penny Williams, Chair of the Oklahoma House on Higher Education Committee became a friend as did Lydia Wyckoff, a curator of Native American Art at Philbrook. Lydia’s thirst for knowledge was contagious and her focus on any given day was always on the joyful pursuit of knowledge.

I was in awe of the philanthropy of Katie Westby, patron of the arts and founder of the Tulsa Arts & Humanities Council;  Leta Chapman, whose generosity resulted in, among other fields, outstanding health services, especially for women at the Hillcrest Chapman Breast Center; and many other families… McFarlins, Schustermans, and Zarrows to mention only a few.

My interest in the arts was nurtured by the Tulsa Ballet Company, founded by Moscelyn Larkin, one of Oklahoma’s five Indian ballerinas, and by Teresa Miller, now Executive Director of the Oklahoma State University Center for Poets and Writers. Teresa is an advocate for Oklahoma writers. She has brought dozens of well-known authors to Tulsa to share their wealth of knowledge and she spreads the word of local writers through her television show “Writing Out Loud”, not to mention her availability as teacher and mentor to would-be authors. Jeanne Tripplehorn’s rise to fame has been consistent since my arrival to Tulsa and I have enjoyed her performances in films and on television.

My friendship with Sharon King Davis dates back to my early days in Tulsa. She has taught me how to shine in the world of business and to engage in community activities with a spirit of determination. Sharon never fails to greet me with a smile and warm hug. Nancy Feldman’s example was particularly meaningful to me. When she arrived in Tulsa in 1946 with a degree in law from the University of Chicago, the only position she could get with a law firm was as a secretary. She began teaching at the University of Tulsa and was active in the community, eventually founding the Tulsa Center for the Physically Limited.

Wilma Mankiller lived in Tahlequah where I first met her in 1982, She became my friend and holds a special place in my heart.  Gentle and quiet, as Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation for ten years, she broke through the male-dominated ranks of tribal leadership and reinvigorated the Cherokee Nation through community-development projects in which men and women work collectively for the common good. A recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, Wilma once said "Prior to my election, young Cherokee girls would never have thought that they might grow up and become chief." 

Over the years I have continued to note the achievements of women in Tulsa.  As I put together this presentation, so many came to mind: Norma Eagleton, first woman to serve on the Tulsa City Commission; Peggy Helmerich, avid supporter of the library and Hillcrest Women’s Health Center; Eddie Faye Gates, teacher, historian and author who, as Social Studies Curriculum Coordinator for the Tulsa School district, implemented a multicultural curriculum; Alfre Woodard, Emmy and Screen Actors Guild award winner; Paula Marshall, who took over Bama Companies the year I arrived in Tulsa and as CEO grew the company into a worldwide business; Lucinda Rojas Ross, senior account executive at one of Tulsa’s leading public relations firms, Schnake Turnbo Frank; and Mary Beth Babcock, 2011 Oklahoman of the Year. Mary Beth is the proprietor of Dwelling Spaces, a former storage space in a rundown section of downtown Tulsa that she converted into a vibrant gift shop with eclectic offerings. Now one of the centerpieces of the Blue Dome District her store serves as a creative force and gathering place for artists, musicians, and authors and their constituencies.

One of my early lessons in the achievements of women in Tulsa came from what I considered a most unlikely source, the Tulsa Junior League. Alas, I too continued to harbor stereotypes.  Having always been interested in architecture I was delighted by the art deco architecture in Tulsa, once known as Terra Cotta City. To my added delight was the magnificent book “Tulsa Art Deco” published by the Tulsa Junior League in 1980. The book subsequently gained worldwide fame and was reprinted and re-released in 2001.

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There was much to be learned from these women in Tulsa and I was encouraged. After two years at a local advertising agency, I decided to strike out on my own with another woman, Joyce Gideon, and my husband Michael. We formed Wallis Gideon Wallis and specialized in public relations serving local and national clients. Joyce and Michael left to pursue other goals and the agency became the Wallis Group and after continued growth of a project we completed each year for Toyota Motor Sales, the client list was cut to one and the agency was renamed Project Solutions. We closed our doors in 2009.

Now, 30 years since my arrival here, I enjoy the companionship of a circle of strong female friends and I am grateful for having known some remarkable women in Tulsa.

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In my research about the early days of Tulsa, the important role of Native American women was notable.

Prior to the discovery of oil here, cattle was king. Drives from Texas passed through Indian Territory, and shipments were made from Tulsa by train. The Perrymans were among the earliest settlers, arriving in 1828. Their ranch was the largest in the area, 60,000 acres reaching from 21st to 71st streets and from the Arkansas River to Lynn Lane in Broken Arrow. The First Lady of Tulsa at that time was Aunt Rachel Perryman. Of French and Creek descent, she was married to George Perryman. Travelers were welcome to stay a few days to rest up and eat at the ranch. Aunt Rachel let outlaws, whom she thought of as boys, sit at her table, and baby chicks warm up in her kitchen. In addition to her brood of seven, children with no place to go went to live with Aunt Rachel. She was a legendary hostess. Even Washington Irving stopped at her big ranch house, making note of it in his “Tour of the Prairies”.

A descendent of the Perryman family, Lilah Lindsey, was the second teacher at the Presbyterian Mission Day School. She held bible classes, sometimes preached on Sundays and even conducted funerals. Lilah also has the distinction of being one of the first Creek women to earn a college degree. A strikingly handsome woman of Creek and Cherokee heritage, she had hip-length hair and a disarming, photogenic smile. She was likely photographed primarily because of her penchant for civic involvement. A woman who made waves in a man’s world, Lilah was involved in the suffrage movement. She was a teacher, ambassador, activist, and friend to presidents. During World War I she helped raise money and sold war savings stamps. Under her leadership, the women of the county obtained pledges for $1,210,000.00.

Midway through the first decade of 1900, Tulsa’s cattle industry faded and the city enjoyed a lucrative oil-based economy. The local population of 1,400 at the turn of the century had increased to 18,200 by 1910.  Oil reined.

But at the heart of those first two discoveries, before they could be oilmen and begin drilling, the would-be tycoons had to approach two Native American women to seek permission to drill. It was on the land allotted to Sue Bland that the first well was drilled in 1901 and Ida Glenn, a Creek Indian, owned the land where oil was discovered the morning of November 22, 1905.

It may have been thought that the role of women in early-day Tulsa was primarily that of homemaker, but the wives of the farmers, doctors, ministers, oilmen, and merchants formed a number of cultural groups to promote art, music, and education in the community.

Women headed the Mission Schools before the turn of the century. They not only taught, but organized school societies and presented school entertainments for the children. Ida Stephens, a Cherokee, attended Moody Bible Institute in Boston. She came to Tulsa in 1884 and began teaching. She was also a fine musician and it was not long before the children learned to sing, including some of the Indian children who had not yet mastered the English language.

The Veasey House, at 1802 S. Cheyenne Avenue, was built in 1912. James Veasey, an attorney, was one of the founders of Holland Hall School and his wife taught Latin to Indian children. Their daughter, Mary, was in the first Holland Hall graduating class in 1924. A little-known fact about Mary is the important role she played in saving a Tulsa landmark. During several drought years, she and the Veasey handyman kept the Council Oak tree alive by taking buckets of water across the street from the Veasey home on Cheyenne and dumping it on the tree.

Jane Heard Clinton was a socialite raised in Elberton, Georgia, where her father was mayor. Her beautiful voice and well-trained skill at the piano made her a star in social circles from St. Louis to Washington D.C. When her new husband, Dr. Fred Clinton, brought her to the frontier town of Tulsa in 1897, the lifestyle did not suit her. She helped alleviate the lack of culture by rounding up nine other musicians in 1904 and having a meeting above a downtown drugstore. Together they stirred up the social scene and culture by starting a music club named Hyechka, the Creek word for music. The club is still active today.

Adah Robinson was an art teacher at Central High from 1918 to 1925 and at the University of Tulsa from 1928 to 1945. It was during the intervening years, 1926 and 1927, that she was invited to produce a design for the Boston Avenue Methodist Church. Five architects had submitted designs, but members had rejected them. Adah, supervising art teacher for the church’s educational program and Director of the Tulsa Art Association, was asked for her advice. She listened to the congregation’s ideas, researched the history of the Methodist church, and felt that she could produce an acceptable design if she were allowed to work with an architect of her own choosing, a former student, Bruce Goff. Sketches were designed and proved acceptable. Adah Robinson was given a contract by the church stipulating that she was to be supervisor of all matters artistic, both in interior finish and outside design.   

 

Tulsa’s first hospital was a six-room cottage near Archer and Greenwood, co-founded by Dr. Fred Clinton to handle an epidemic of smallpox. After the epidemic had passed it served as a general hospital but was closed a year later in 1901. In response to an influenza epidemic after World War I, Morningside Hospital, later renamed Hillcrest, was opened in 1918 under the guidance of a registered nurse, Dolly McNulty.

To make certain that oil field workers chose Tulsa as their domicile, civic leaders promoted a special 15-coach train, the Coal Oil Johnny, to transport the workers back and forth to their jobs. They were served breakfast at the Pig’s Ear, just across from the station, while the proprietor’s wife packed their lunch pails. Upon their return in the evening, fried chicken and other goodies awaited them.

At the same time, the women of Tulsa were taking advantage of the growing culture and society in the city, set apart across the river from the rough and tumble oil fields. In 1910 Nelle Jackson opened a lingerie shop on the balcony of a downtown jewelry store. After a few months, business was booming and the shop was moved into a larger building on South Main Street. By 1916, Tulsa was becoming the “Oil Capital of the World” and downtown streets were being paved. Nelle moved her shop to the new Sinclair Building at Fifth and Main streets where she introduced a new concept to Tulsa shoppers, giftwrapping. It was Nelle Jackson’s belief that “Miss Jackson’s Shop exists for the sole purpose of making life more elegant, more enjoyable and more relaxed for its patrons; and, in the world of real values, culture counts for more than coin.”

Josephine DeHaven and her husband built their first greenhouse in 1905 and sold flowers in Shackles Drug Store. Soon the fresh cut flower business grew and Mrs. DeHaven opened a Flower Room at Miss Jackson’s. Along with all the progressive businesses in downtown Tulsa, Mrs. DeHaven’s also grew and moved five times before ultimately settling at 15^th and Boston. The shop personnel made sure to incorporate artistry, integrity, and quality into every floral arrangement. Their motto was “With roots in the past and our eyes on the future, Tulsa has no equal in floral design.”

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My years in Tulsa have been years of constant discovery. I felt lost during my first months here, and wondered at the sexism I encountered, but I soon recognized the contributions of women in the formation and growth of Tulsa. They observed needs and opportunities and did not hesitate to step in and take an active part in solving problems and building ideas. During the early years the men may have been more visible than their counterparts in most instances, but we have the vision of women to thank for the multifaceted urban setting we call home. I have told you about only a very few women, but I encourage you to explore the history of Tulsa and discover how powerful we have been and continue to be.