Dewey Follett Bartlett Sr. (March 28, 1919 – March 1, 1979) was an American politician who served as the 19th

governor of Oklahoma The governor of Oklahoma is the head of government of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Under the Oklahoma Constitution, the governor serves as the head of the Oklahoma Executive (government), executive branch, of the government of Oklahoma. The gover ...

from 1967 to 1971, following his fellow Republican,

Henry Bellmon Henry Louis Bellmon (September 3, 1921 – September 29, 2009) was an American Republican politician from the U.S. State of Oklahoma. A member of the Oklahoma Legislature, he went on to become both the 18th and 23rd governor of Oklahoma, mai ...

. In

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

, he became the first

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

elected governor of Oklahoma, defeating the Democratic nominee, Preston J. Moore of Oklahoma City. He was defeated for reelection in

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...

by Tulsa attorney David Hall in the closest election in state history. He was elected to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...

and served one term. In 1978, he was diagnosed with lung cancer and did not run for reelection that year. He died of complications of lung cancer two months after retiring from the Senate in 1979.Burke, Bob. ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture''. "Bartlett, Dewey Follett (1919 - 1979)." Retrieved November 23, 201

Early life

Dewey Follett Bartlett was born to David A. and Jessie Bartlett in

Marietta, Ohio Marietta is a city in Washington County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is located in Appalachian Ohio, southeastern Ohio at the confluence of the Muskingum River, Muskingum and Ohio Rivers, northeast of Parkersburg, West Virginia ...

, and attended schools in Marietta and

Lawrenceville, New Jersey Lawrenceville is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) within Lawrence Township in Mercer County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.

. Bartlett graduated from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

with an undergraduate degree in geological engineering in 1942 after completing his senior thesis, titled "Water-flooding an oil formation", under the supervision of Glenn L. Jepsen and Kenneth DePencier Watson. Bartlett was the president of his senior class while a student at Princeton. Following graduation from Princeton, Bartlett enlisted in the

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

; then served in the

U.S. Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionary ...

as a

dive bomber A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target simplifies the bomb's trajectory and allows the pilot to keep visual contact througho ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in the Pacific theatre. After the war, he moved to

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa ( ) is the List of municipalities in Oklahoma, second-most-populous city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City, and the List of United States cities by population, 48th-most-populous city in the United States. The po ...

, where he held various jobs in farming, ranching, and the oil industry, inheriting ownership of the Tulsa-based Keener Oil and Gas Company from his father, David A. Bartlett.

Political career

Prior to becoming governor, Bartlett served in the

Oklahoma Senate The Oklahoma Senate is the upper house of the two houses of the Legislature of Oklahoma, the other being the Oklahoma House of Representatives. The total number of senators is set at 48 by the Oklahoma Constitution.Oklahoma Department of Corrections The Oklahoma Department of Corrections (DOC or ODOC) is an government agency, agency of the state of Oklahoma. DOC is responsible for the administration of the List of Oklahoma state prisons, state prison system. It has its headquarters in Oklaho ...

, pushed for school consolidation, and vetoed a school code bill.Hudson, Geneva Johnston (AuthorHouse, 2005). ''Statesman or Rogue: Elected to Serve''. In 1970, he was the first Oklahoma governor eligible to seek a second term. In the

general election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

, he was challenged by then-Tulsa County Attorney David Hall. In the closest gubernatorial election in state history, Hall defeated Bartlett by a vote of 338,338 (48.4%) to 336,157 (48.1%). Following his defeat for reelection as governor, he served for one term in the

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

from 1973 to 1979 after winning the seat previously held by

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Fred R. Harris Fred Roy Harris (November 13, 1930 – November 23, 2024) was an American politician from Oklahoma who served from 1957 to 1964 as a member of the Oklahoma Senate and from 1964 to 1973 as a member of the United States Senate. Harris was electe ...

. He narrowly defeated U.S. Congressman Ed Edmondson in the 1972 election riding on President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

's coattails. During his tenure in Congress, he took a

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

stance on most issues and championed oil and gas interests during the energy crisis of the 1970s. However, he suffered health problems and, rather than face a very difficult reelection against popular Democratic Governor

David Boren David Lyle Boren (April 21, 1941 – February 20, 2025) was an American lawyer and politician from Oklahoma. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 21st governor of Oklahoma from 1975 to 1979 and thr ...

, decided not to seek reelection. Two months after retiring from the U.S. Senate, he died in Tulsa from complications of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

, and was buried in the city's Calvary Cemetery. In 1990 he was inducted into the

Oklahoma CareerTech Hall of Fame The Oklahoma CareerTech Hall of Fame is an award given to individuals who, through their outstanding professional and personal achievements, have brought honor and distinction to career and technology education in Oklahoma. The Oklahoma CareerT ...

and in March, 2006, Congress passed a bill renaming the U.S. Post Office in Tulsa in his honor.

Family

Bartlett married Ann Smith, a native of

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

on April 2, 1945 at

Mission San Juan Capistrano Mission San Juan Capistrano () is a Spanish missions in California, Spanish mission in San Juan Capistrano, California, San Juan Capistrano, Orange County, California, Orange County, California. Founded November 1, 1776 in colonial ''The Califo ...

San Juan Capistrano, California San Juan Capistrano (also known colloquially as San Juan or SJC) is a city in southern Orange County, California, United States. The population was 35,253 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census. Named for Saint John of Capistrano, San Ju ...

.Stanley, Tim
Ann Bartlett, former first lady, dies at 92
''

Tulsa World The ''Tulsa World'' is an American daily newspaper. It serves the city of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and is the primary newspaper for the northeastern and eastern portions of Oklahoma. The printed edition is the second-most circulated newspaper in the sta ...

'' as published in ''

The Oklahoman ''The Oklahoman'' is the largest daily newspaper in Oklahoma, United States, and is the only regional daily that covers the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, Greater Oklahoma City area. The Alliance for Audited Media (formerly Audit Bureau Circul ...

'', January 27, 2013. (accessed June 30, 2013) They had three children:

Dewey F. Bartlett Jr. Dewey Follett Bartlett Jr. (born March 16, 1947) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 39th List of mayors of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Mayor of Tulsa, Oklahoma. An oil industry executive and political figure in Tulsa, Bartlett was t ...

, Michael and Joanie. His son,

served as mayor of

, from 2009 until losing reelection to

G. T. Bynum George Theron Bynum IV (born August 28, 1977) is an American politician and lobbyist who served as the 40th mayor of Tulsa, Oklahoma, from 2016 to 2024. Bynum was first elected to the Tulsa City Council, representing the ninth district in 2008 a ...

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

, served as a member of the

Tulsa City Council The City of Tulsa has a mayor-council form of government. This form of government has been in place since 1989, at which time Tulsa converted from a city commission form of government. The mayor is elected by the entire population and each of th ...

from 1990 to 1994, and has inherited the Keener Oil and Gas Company from his father.

References

External links

100 Years of Oklahoma Governors Biography
*

* ttps://arc.ou.edu/repositories/3/resources/2 Dewey F. Bartlett Collectionan
Photograph Collection
at the

Carl Albert Center The Carl Albert Congressional Research and Studies Center is a nonpartisan institution devoted to teaching and research related to the United States Congress and, more broadly, to strengthening representative democracy through engaged and informe ...

Voices of Oklahoma interview with Ann Bartlett.
First person interview conducted on June 5, 2010, with Ann Bartlett, wife of Dewey F. Bartlett. {{DEFAULTSORT:Bartlett, Dewey F. 1919 births 1979 deaths 20th-century Oklahoma politicians Catholic politicians from Oklahoma Republican Party United States senators from Oklahoma Republican Party governors of Oklahoma Republican Party Oklahoma state senators Politicians from Tulsa, Oklahoma Politicians from Marietta, Ohio Lawrenceville School alumni Princeton University School of Engineering and Applied Science alumni United States Marine Corps pilots of World War II United States Marine Corps bomber pilots of World War II United States Marine Corps officers Recipients of the Air Medal American people of English descent Deaths from lung cancer in Oklahoma 20th-century United States senators 20th-century members of the Oklahoma Legislature

Early life

Political career

Family

References

Further reading

External links