RELEASE DATE: AUGUST 13, 2006

KINSEARCHING

by

Marleta Childs
P. O. Box 6825
LUBBOCK, TX 79493-6825
[email protected]
 

     The work of ten years culminates in the new book OLD MAN HOOPER: HIS 3 WIVES, AND THEIR 13 CHILDREN compiled by Macile Hooper LeJeune with research assisted by Faye and Arianna Shannon. As the title implies, the publication focuses on the family of Francis Marion Hooper (Jr.), nicknamed "Old Man" by his daughters-in-law, who was born in 1871 in Shelby County, Texas (where he was raised) and died in 1949 in Lake Charles, Louisiana. His three wives were Mary Elizabeth SANDERS, born in 1870 and died in 1890; widow Lucy (McGEE) HICKS, born in 1862 and died in 1928; and Mary HICKS, born in 1882 and died in 1955. Although many of his descendants now reside in southwestern Louisiana, some descendants and many kinfolks still live in Shelby County, Texas.

     A pedigree chart at the front of the volume traces the Hooper lineage back to Richard HOOPER, born about 1694. LeJeune stresses, however, that this is not a straightforward family history. Instead, the book is a compilation of her chronological anecdotes about finding and meeting relatives and gathering family data, and of reminiscences. The recollections, which are provided by LeJeune (who personally knew most of the people named in the book's title) and her kin, are generally written in a "folksy" style.

     Material is divided into sections on Francis Marion and each of his wives. Data on the children of each wife follow the segment concerning their mother. Since Lucy was the only wife to bring offspring from a previous marriage into the Hooper family, LeJeune furnishes information on the HICKS brood and the ancestry of their father John Lyfus HICKS.

     Although the book is not a family history per se, LeJeune attempted to locate at least three sources for data on individuals. When possible, she supplies census records, obituaries and other newspaper articles, marriage and death certificates, legal documents, and miscellaneous items. Hooper descendants will relish the numerous black-and-white photographs of family members and tombstones.

     Since the compiler hopes the book will continue to grow, she arranges the data using a special system of page numbers. Each wife and child of Frances Marion has his or her own code. This will allow LeJeune to append new material on each line as she discovers it. As a result, the more than 100-page book has clear plastic covers but is not bound so the extra pages can be easily added later. Any future additional pages will be sold separately.

     A hard copy of the book OLD MAN HOOPER: HIS 3 WIVES, AND THEIR 13 CHILDREN costs $28.00 postpaid. A CD of the book in which most pictures are in color costs $8.00 postpaid. Slide show stills, suitable for printing, on a CD also costs $8.00 postpaid. A combination of the book and slide show on CD is priced at $11.00 postpaid. A DVD of the slide show with music and animation, an events archives CD, slide show stills, and picture folders are also available upon request. Orders may be sent to Macile Hooper LeJeune, 3205 West Highway 90, Sulphur, LA 70663-9495 (phone 337-527-3187 or, if busy, 337-302-0205; e-mail [email protected]).

     Charles N. Ferguson, 811 South Market, Shawnee, OK 74801 is seeking information about Nathaniel A. WARE, who received a land grant near the Red River in Texas. Did he fight in the Texas Revolution? His granddaughter married Samuel Wragg FERGUSON on 28 August 1862, maybe in Louisiana or Texas. Is Nathaniel an ancestor of George W. WARE who married Nancy DAVENPORT in Wise or Jack County, TX?