Edmond’s Dark Day: The Tragic Legacy of the Post Office Shooting

The day began like any other. Postal workers were beginning their morning routines—sorting mail, making plans for their deliveries. But the usual hustle and bustle of an average workday was soon to be shattered. Patrick Sherrill, a part-time mail carrier known to his fellow mail carriers as “Crazy Pat,” was about change the lives of the local community forever. 

Sherrill entered the post office at around 7 a.m., armed with three semi-automatic pistols. He immediately went on a murderous rampage, shooting anyone within his sight. Within a matter of minutes, the scene had transformed from a bustling workplace to a chilling crime scene. Sherrill’s coworkers became victims, their lives cut short in an instant.

Location: 200 N. Broadway, Edmond, OK.

ABC NEWS VIDEO CLIP COVERING THE SHOOTING FROM AUG 20, 1986

EDMOND POST OFFICE

THE VICTIMS OF THE “GOING POSTAL” INCIDENT

Jerry Ralph Pyle
BIRTH 14 Jul 1935
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 51)
BURIAL Gracelawn Cemetery Edmond, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, USA

Leroy Orrin Phillips
BIRTH 28 Jan 1944
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 42)
BURIAL Fairview Park Cemetery St. John, Stafford County, Kansas, USA

William Frederick “Billy” Miller
BIRTH 29 Jan 1956
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 30)
BURIAL Mathewson Cemetery Piedmont, Canadian County, Oklahoma, USA

Richard Charles “Rick” Esser Jr.
BIRTH 16 Nov 1947
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 38)
BURIAL Memorial Park Cemetery  Oklahoma City, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, USA

Betty Ann Rader Jarred
BIRTH 8 Feb 1952
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 34)
BURIAL Summit View Cemetery Guthrie, Logan County, Oklahoma, USA

Patty Jean Husband
BIRTH 10 Nov 1938
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 47)
BURIAL Rose Hill Burial Park Oklahoma City, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, USA

Jonna Ruth Gragert
BIRTH 20 Apr 1956
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 30)
BURIAL Memorial Park Cemetery Enid, Garfield County, Oklahoma, USA

Patricia Ann Gabbard
BIRTH 8 Jul 1939
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 47)
BURIAL Oakland-Knowles Cemetery Crescent, Logan County, Oklahoma, USA 

Patricia Ann “Patty” Peacock Chambers
BIRTH 2 Apr 1945
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 41)
BURIAL Wyandotte Indian Cemetery Wyandotte, Ottawa County, Oklahoma, USA

Judy Stephens Denney
BIRTH 28 Jan 1945
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 41)
BURIALCheatham Hill Memorial Park Marietta, Cobb County, Georgia, USA 

Kenneth Wade “Ken” Morey
BIRTH 21 Sep 1936
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 49)
BURIAL Pleasant Hill Cemetery Edmond, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, USA

Paul Michael “Mike” Rockne VETERAN
BIRTH 15 Mar 1953
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 33)
BURIAL Memorial Park Cemetery Oklahoma City, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, USA

Patti Lou Ford Welch
BIRTH 23 Nov 1958
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 27)
BURIALSunset Memorial Gardens Lawton, Comanche County, Oklahoma, USA

Thomas Wade Shader Jr.
BIRTH 18 Nov 1954
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 31)
BURIAL Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington, Arlington County, Virginia, USA 

THE SHOOTER

Patrick Henry Sherrill perpetrated the tragic mass shooting known as the Edmond post office shooting, killing 14 coworkers and injuring several others before turning the gun on himself and committing suicide.

Sherrill’s motives for the shooting remain unclear, although there were reports of conflicts with his coworkers and supervisors prior to the attack. Sherrill’s attack inspired the American phrase “going postal”. 
Patrick Henry Sherrill VETERAN
BIRTH 13 Nov 1941
DEATH 20 Aug 1986 (aged 44)
BURIAL Watonga IOOF Cemetery Watonga, Blaine County, Oklahoma, USA

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