Remembering Wilma Elizabeth McDaniel
Music, poetry & film honor Oklahoma poet
March 16, 2009
Story by Karen Neurohr
For Immediate Release
STILLWATER -Three locations will host “Remembering Wilma Elizabeth McDaniel: Poet and Oklahoma Dust Bowl Emigrant” programs in April:
- Tuesday, April 14, 7 p.m., Stillwater, Edmon Low Library, Peggy V. Helmerich Browsing Room, locally sponsored by Oklahoma State University Library
- Thursday, April 16, 7 p.m., Stroud, First Christian Church Fellowship Hall, 323 W. 4th St, locally sponsored by Stroud Public Library
- Friday, April 17, 7 p.m., Chandler, Museum of Pioneer History, Thatcher-Hoffman-Smith Gallery, 717-721 Manvel Ave., locally sponsored by Lincoln County Historical Society
Wilma Elizabeth McDaniel was born near Stroud in 1918 to Benjamin and Anna McDaniel. The fourth of eight children, her rather idyllic childhood changed drastically when the economic conditions of the Great Depression forced her sharecropper father to seek another way to support his large family. In 1937, the family left Oklahoma, traveled Route 66, and settled in California’s Central Valley where Wilma remained until her death on April 13, 2007.
The first seventeen years of her life in Oklahoma left an indelible impression on McDaniel. She began writing poetry as a child, encouraged in the two-room country schoolhouse by her teacher. Her poetry and prose writing continued throughout her lifetime and she frequently returned to Oklahoma in her settings and subject matter. She didn’t attempt to publish her works until her mid-50s when she overcame her shyness and took a shoe box full of poems to the local newspaper. She published fifty books of poetry, vignettes, and short stories. McDaniel is well-known in Central California for her works and was named Tulare Poet Laureate and dubbed the Okie Poet. Her work is frequently included in working-class literary anthologies.
“I am pleased to present these programs to the communities and help Oklahomans learn more about this wonderful female writer,” said Karen Neurohr, Project Director. “At our programs, we will view a short award-winning documentary by Sageland Media about McDaniel titled, ‘Down an Old Road: The Poetic Life of Wilma Elizabeth McDaniel,’ listen to Oklahoma author Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz talk about her friendship with McDaniel, and hear music by The Red Dirt Rangers, who knew and corresponded with McDaniel. It will be an evening filled with Oklahoma poetry, music and cherished memories.”
All programs are free and open to the public. Books will be available for purchase. For additional information contact Karen Neurohr, 405.744.2376 or lib-pub@okstate.edu.
These programs are funded in part by the Oklahoma Humanities Council (OHC) and the We the People initiative of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of OHC or NEH.Oklahoma State University is a modern land-grant system that cuts across disciplines to better prepare students for a new world. Oklahoma's only university with a statewide presence, OSU improves the lives of people in Oklahoma, the nation, and the world through integrated, high-quality teaching, research and outreach. OSU has more than 32,000 students across its five-campus system and nearly 21,000 on its Stillwater campus; with students from all 50 states and about 110 nations. Established in 1890, OSU has graduated more than 200,000 students who have made a lasting impact on Oklahoma and the world. CREATE - INNOVATE - EDUCATE - GO STATE!
URL: http://www.library.okstate.edu/news/spring09/mcdaniel.htm
Last Updated: 16 March 2009
