For the past two years W. W. Powell has been city attorney of Pryor. He ranks high among the prominent lawyers of the Oklahoma bar and he has built up a large and distinctively representative clientage. He has concentrated his time, energies and attention upon his professional duties and the work that he has done as advocate and counselor indicates clearly his familiarity with the principles of jurisprudence and an analytical power that enables him to correctly apply those principles to the question under consideration. He was born in Black Jack Hill, Arkansas, on the 31st of December, 1865, a son of Richard H. and Jane (Temple) Powell. Mr. Powell was a prominent and representative member of the legal profession and was a lawyer and circuit judge for thirty years. He also served a brief term on the supreme bench of Arkansas. The demise of the father occurred at Fort Smith in 1917. Mrs. Powell passed away in 1869. Three sons and three daughters were born to their union of whom W. W. Powell was the youngest.
W. W. Powell received his early education in the public and private schools of Arkansas and later enrolled in the State University of Arkansas, from which institution he was graduated with the A. B. degree in 1888. He immediately started in to practice his profession and located at Greenwood, Arkansas, where he remained until 1892. In that year he went to Washington, D. C., as private secretary to Congressman Neill of the Sixth district of Arkansas, and he was active in that position for two years. At the termination of that time he went to Batesville, Arkansas, where he edited a newspaper. In 1908 he came to Oklahoma and settled in Antlers. He made his home there until 1919, when he came to Pryor and formed a partnership with Forrester Brewster, for the practice of his profession. That association was subsequently dissolved and for the past two years Mr. Powell has been city attorney. For two terms he was County attorney of Pushmataha County and resigned during the third term to remove to Pryor. The zeal with which he has devoted his energies to his profession, the careful regard evinced for the interests of his clients and an assiduous and un-relaxing attention to all the details of his cases, have brought him a large business and made him very successful in its conduct. His briefs always show wide research, careful thought and the best and strongest reasons which can be urged for his contention, presented in cogent and logical form and illustrated by a style unusually lucid and clear.
In Greenwood, Arkansas, in 1903, occurred the marriage of Mr. Powell to Miss Ora Blakemon, a daughter of W. F. Blakemon of that city. To their union two children have been born: Katherine and Margaret. Mr. Powell gives his political allegiance to the Democratic Party, believing its policy best adapted to serve the interests of the majority. His religious faith is that of the Methodist Church, of which he is a member of the board of stewards. Fraternally he is a Mason, being master of Batesville (Arkansas) Lodge. He was a member of the state militia of Arkansas and during the World war was chairman of the public service welfare committee of the Red Cross. For recreation Mr. Powell turns to autoing and all outdoor sports and he is particularly fond of golf.
