RULE, Otis
Sapulpa Herald, Creek Co., OK
01-29-1993
Longtime merchant and civic leader Otis R. Rule, 94, of Sapulpa, died today at his home.
Funeral services are scheduled for 11 am Monday at First United Methodist Church with the Revs. Don Price and Robert Lee Jones officiating.
Burial will follow at South Heights Cemetery under the direction of Smith Funeral Home.
Mr. Rule was born Dec. 25, 1898, in Afton, OK. He was of Shawnee-Cherokee ancestry and an original enrollee of Dawes Commission rolls.
Rule served in the U.S. Army and was stationed in France after entering the service in June 1918.
According to local American Legion records, Rule was the last surviving World War I veteran in Sapulpa.
Rule married Lorena Lewis in Deming, NM, on Sept. 24, 1918. They were married 74 years.
When he came to Sapulpa in 1924, Rule was a division store accountant with the Frisco Railroad, where he worked until 1934.
He was elected to the Sapulpa Board of Education in 1934, and served four years as its clerk and business manager. While in this position, Rule obtained Works Progress Administration projects to build Washington and South Heights Elementary Schools.
Rule and Milford Davis purchased the Wilson Brothers Furniture Company on Jan. 2, 1937, and started Davis Rule Furniture. Rule purchased Davis' interest in 1947 and was associated with Rule Furniture Company continuously until its closing and his retirement in 1989 at the age of 90.
Rule donated many hours of service to local civic and county organizations.
During World War II he served as chairman of the Red Cross and U.S.O. drives and 15 years as city war bond chairman.
He served on the draft board during that time, and was a past commander of the local American Legion, where he was a member for more than 70 years.
He was a past president of the Sapulpa Rotary Club and was a recipient of the Paul Harris Fellowship Award.
He was also a past Sapulpa Area Chamber of Commerce president and was named Outstanding Sapulpan in 1983.
He was president of the Sapulpa Industrial Authority for three years and spent 25 years as an officer and member of the Creek County Industrial Authority.
Rule was a member of Masonic Lodge 170 of Sapulpa, a 32nd Degree Mason and a 50-year member of the Scottish Rite, McAlester Consistory.
He attended First United Methodist Church and the Victory Sunday School Class. He also served on the church's administrative board and board of trustees.
Survivors include his wife, Lorena; son Lewis R. Rule of Sapulpa; daughters Mrs. J. R. (Joanna) Warfield of Springfield, MO, Mrs. Hobert (Jacqueline) Robertson Jr. of Sapulpa, and Mrs. Wendell (Jean) Evans Jr. of Plano, TX; 11 grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; and eight great-great-grandchildren.
Memorials may be made to First United Methodist Church, Sapulpa; Hospice of Green Country, 5525 E. 51st St., Suite 140 B, Tulsa, 74135; or a favorite charity.
RULE, Otis
Sapulpa Herald, Creek Co., OK
02-01-1993
(Additional information not in above obituary)
Serving as casket bearers were Philip Jones, Joe VanLandingham, Brian Grogan, Greg Pugmire, Larry Bayouth and Art Atkinson.
Honorary bearers were Milford Davis, Jack McKenzie, Jack Nation, Russell Frankin, Dick Clements, Ralph Williams, Marcus Horn, Ed Livermore and Arthur Foster.