Wilson Oscar Dunn, 93, of Mauriceville, passed away on April 29, 2012, in Orange after a short illness.
Known as "King" to many, he was born in the sawmill community of Lemonville on June 16, 1918 to William T. Dunn and Mary A. Brown. Being one of eight children, he learned at an early age how to work. He told stories of getting up early to milk the dairy cows, walking to school, returning home to do farm chores and school work, then milking the cows again. He first attended school in Lemonville and then in Mauriceville, where he met his wife, Eloide Linscomb. At the ages of sixteen and nineteen and without telling anyone, they slipped into Louisiana and married. Eloide died in January, 2011, just prior to their 73rd wedding anniversary.
King first started working at the Wilkinson, Tillery and Dunn Mercantile store in Mauriceville in 1938. He would later work at the Orange Paper Mill and the Orange shipyards before joining the United States Army in December, 1944. He served his country overseas in France during World War II. He was appointed the postmaster for Mauriceville in 1947 and served in that capacity for thirty years.
He enjoyed being active in the community and was one of the first members of the Mauriceville Lion's Club and an organizer for the Mauriceville Volunteer Fire Department. He served several years on the Mauriceville School Board of Trustees, was a Director for the Orange County Drainage District and a charter member of the First United Methodist Church in Mauriceville. King and Eloide liked to travel and enjoyed the fellowship they had with the FUMC "High Milers" group.
Family was very important to him and he looked forward to family gatherings at the beach and getting together on holidays. He enjoyed his cattle, doing his farm chores and passing along stories of his early life to his children and grandchildren.
He is preceded in death by his wife Eloide Dunn, a daughter, Olivia Dunn; granddaughter, Deanna Dunn; brothers, Gordon Dunn, Quincy "Buck" Dunn, Asa Dunn, Wayne Dunn, Wendell Dunn, and Weldon "Sam" Dunn; a sister, Harriet Bean and son-in-law, Garlan Perry.
He is survived by six children: Nita Perry, Mauriceville; Andrew and Kathy Dunn, Orangefield; Derry and Jane Dunn, Mauriceville; Danny and Jan Dunn, Houston; Nancy and Keith Melancon, Round Rock; and Thomas and Dottie Dunn, Mauriceville. He was also known as "PaPa" to seventeen grandchildren and twenty eight great grandchildren.
Visitation will be on Tuesday, May 1, 5:00 P.M. at Claybar Funeral Home in Orange. The funeral service will be held on Wednesday, May 2, 10:00 A.M., at the First United Methodist Church in Mauriceville with the Reverend Douglas Caldwell presiding. Burial will follow at Wilkinson Cemetery in Orange County.
Serving as pallbearers will be his six oldest grandsons, Greg Perry, John Dunn, Joe Dan Dunn, Trent Marshall, Todd Dunn and Mark Dunn.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the First United Methodist Church of Mauriceville, P.O. Box 939, Mauriceville, Texas 77626.