Inaugural Impressions
Jeannette Bartleson Edmondson (1925–90)
Jeannette Bartleson was born on June 6, 1925, in Muskogee, Oklahoma, to Augustus and Georgia Bartleson. She spent her childhood in Muskogee. Jeannette and her husband, James Howard (J. Howard) Edmondson, were childhood sweethearts who met in grade school. Both attended the University of Oklahoma (OU) in Norman, but US entry into World War II prompted J. Howard to enlist in the US Army Air Corps. Jeannette attended Hollins College (now University) in Roanoke, Virginia, and returned to OU to graduate in 1946.
Jeannette and J. Howard married in May 1946. They had three children: James Howard Jr., Jeanne, and Patricia (Patty) Lynn. Jeannette taught French while J. Howard pursued a law degree. The family moved to Tulsa in 1953, where J. Howard worked as a prosecutor before being elected Tulsa County attorney. He was elected governor of Oklahoma in 1958. He was the youngest person elected governor in Oklahoma at the time.
Jeannette was significantly involved in her husband’s campaign. She wrote letters to campaign volunteers, organized social gatherings, and made Styrofoam buttons in the shape of the state of Oklahoma. After the inauguration in January 1959, Jeannette oversaw a complete remodel of the Governor’s Mansion. Two weeks before his term ended, J. Howard resigned as governor to appoint himself US senator following the death of Robert S. Kerr. The family moved to Edmond, Oklahoma, and J. Howard resumed a private law practice after failing to win a full US Senate term in 1964.
J. Howard died suddenly in November 1971 when he was only 46 years old. Jeannette obtained a real estate license to support herself. She briefly married local builder C. E. (Jack) Duffner, during which time she lost her son to cancer. In 1979, Governor George Nigh appointed her secretary of state. She served until 1987, during which time she was elected president of the National Association of Secretaries of State and served on the Council of State Governments. Jeanette died on July 11, 1990, and is buried in Memorial Park Cemetery in Oklahoma City.
Governor J. Howard Edmondson and Jeannette Bartleson Edmondson
(23139.G305, John Dunning Political Collection, OHS)
