Joseph Cecil Dawson

Joseph Cecil Dawson was born the youngest of 7 children on December 29, 1919 in Byars, Oklahoma. His parents, Gus and Mollie Dawson, were farmers and he spent his childhood in and around Garvin and McClain counties. When he was 15, Joe (also known as Uncle Joe, Uncle Jake and J. C.) left Oklahoma to join some of his brothers and sisters in California. Joe and his first wife Mary eloped to Las Vegas and made their home in California. They had four children, Donald, Patsy, Joe and Jimmy. Joe was married three more times and remained married to his fourth wife Velma until her death at the beginning of last summer. In 1950, Joe moved to Alaska where he worked several jobs. In 1969, he was a safety man at one of the last underground Atom Bomb tests at Amchitka, AK and in 1976, he retired from the Alaska Pipeline. After retiring, Joe moved back to California where he spent most of his remaining years. He was living in Oklahoma when he developed heart and respiratory problems and he died on October 17, 2007 shortly after moving to Texas. Service will be held Saturday, October 20th at Beaty Baptist Church in Oklahoma.