Amos A. Chapman1

b. 15 February 1874, d. 17 October 1944
Father*Thomas J. Chapman1 b. 8 Apr 1839, d. 3 Jun 1921
Mother*Hannah R. Smith1 b. 31 Oct 1846, d. 19 Feb 1934
Birth*15 February 1874Amos A. Chapman was born on 15 February 1874 near Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri.1,2,3,4 
Name VariationHis full name was Amos Ahi Chapman.5 
(Son) Census US 188016 June 1880Amos A. was enumerated on the 1880 census taken on 16 June 1880 in the household of his parents in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. He was 6 years old and had attended school within the census year.1 
Marriage*23 November 1896He married Emma J. Phillips, daughter of Samuel P. Phillips and Belinda Jane Daniel, on 23 November 1896 in Albany, Gentry County, Missouri. They were married by a Justice of the Peace.6,2,7 
Death*17 October 1944He died of a blood clot on 17 October 1944 in his home at Waverly, Coffey County, Kansas, at age 702,4 
Burial* and was buried in Block 1, Row 3, Plot 71 of Pleasant Valley Cemetery, Agricola, Coffey County, Kansas.2 
(Son) Family PhotoThis wonderful photo of the family of Thomas Jefferson Chapman and Hannah Rebecca (Smith) Chapman of Gentry County, Missouri, was shared originally by Roxanne Held on 15 March 2022 when she posted it to her Ancestry Tree. We estimate the date of the photo as about 1895, before the death that year of the couple's fourth son, James Woodson Chapman. Their younger daughter, Minnie B. Chapman, who is not in the photo, was likely deceased as we have found no evidence of her after her enumeration with her parents and siblings in the 1880 census. And the couple's second son, William Edmond Chapman, is missing from the photo and we don't know why. He was not deceased; he was enumerated with his wife and son on the 1900 census in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri and he, with his family, relocated to Oklahoma in 1901. We wonder if he was away on a future relocation scouting-trip when the photo was taken.5,8,1,9

Family

Emma J. Phillips b. Feb 1877, d. 18 Apr 1947

Citations

  1. [S23] 1880 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas J. and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1880; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 687; Page: 426C; Enumeration District: 271. Hereinafter cited as 1880 United States Federal Census.
  2. [S748] Find a Grave website, which often provides cemetery and tombstone photos, and sometimes personal biographies, that may be obtained from the site, online at www.findagrave.com, Amos A Chapman, Memorial# 76041812. Hereinafter cited as Find a Grave website.
  3. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Amos and Jennie Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Stanberry, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 8; Enumeration District: 0083; FHL microfilm: 1240855. Hereinafter cited as 1900 United States Federal Census.
  4. [S2352] Amos A. Chapman 1944 Obituary, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Stanberry Herald - Headlight, (Stanberry, Missouri), Thursday, 9 November 1944, page 3, born near Stanberry, Missouri on 15 February 1874, Amos A. Chapman died from a blood clot on 17 October 1944 at his home in Waverly, at age 70, married to Emma Jane Phillips of Maysville, Missouri 23 November 1896, seven children, all survive, and also survived by four brothers, Price, Henry, Willis and Matthew, and one sister Mrs. Julia Gage. Hereinafter cited as Amos A. Chapman 1944 Obituary.
  5. [S2340] Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family, with many thanks to Roxanne Held who shared the photo originally on 15 March 2022; viewed online on 19 June 2022 at https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/155036499/…. Hereinafter cited as Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family.
  6. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Emma J (Phillips) Chapman, Memorial# 76041795.
  7. [S1732] Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage on 23 November 1896 in Albany, Gentry County, Missouri, USA, of Amos Chapman of Alanthus, Gentry County, over the age of 21 years, and Emma J Phillips of Alanthus, Gentry County, over the age of 18 years, referencing Missouri State Archives, Jefferson City, MO, USA, Missouri Marriage Records [Microfilm]. Hereinafter cited as Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002.
  8. [S2244] Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog, online at https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/… .Caution: This is a beautifully presented collection of "Person Pages" containing a variety of information about specific ancestors submitted by individual contributors -- often, unfortunately, with no sources. If the information we have chosen to pass along here is accurate, we are extremely grateful to the contributor(s) who have shared it. Without documentation, however, we researchers are always forced to question the validity of information. We hope what we have selected to include was originally obtained from family Bible records, or other reliable sources, and is accurate. Although, even when we have found contributed information to be unreliable, inaccurate or incomplete, we consider the information useful as possible clues as we research, citing a lovingly written story, “Susan Ella Nelson was my Grandma”, submitted by Roxanne Plummer on 24 August 2017 which we found attached under Memories for Susan Ella Sissie Dunn, online at https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/L561-67C. Hereinafter cited as Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog.
  9. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of William E. and Mary F. Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 12; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1240855.

Catherine E. Chapman1

b. 26 July 1849, d. 16 December 1917
Birth*26 July 1849Catherine E. Chapman was born on 26 July 1849 in Missouri.1 
Marriage*She married Rodney William Oglesby.1 
Death*16 December 1917She died on 16 December 1917 in Peck, Nez Perce County, Idaho, at age 68.1 
Burial*She was buried in Angel Ridge Cemetery, Peck.1 

Family

Rodney William Oglesby b. 1 Jan 1848, d. 31 Dec 1921
Child 1.Dollie Emma Oglesby+1 b. 8 Dec 1884, d. 2 May 1946

Citations

  1. [S748] Find a Grave website, which often provides cemetery and tombstone photos, and sometimes personal biographies, that may be obtained from the site, online at www.findagrave.com, Catherine E (Chapman) Oglesby, Memorial# 124712219. Hereinafter cited as Find a Grave website.

Reverend Daniel Chapman1

Marriage*He married Grizzel Dennie, daughter of Albert Dennie and Elizabeth Wakeman.1 

Family

Grizzel Dennie b. 28 Feb 1696/97, d. 10 Jun 1754

Citations

  1. [S930] Donald Lines Jacobus, compiler and editor, Families of Old Fairfield, Connecticut, online database viewed and downloaded from the New England Historic and Genealogical Society at www.AmericanAncestors.org. Originally published in 2 Volumes, New Haven, Connecticut, by The Tuttle, Morehouse & Taylor Company, 1930-1932. (Boston, Massachusetts: New England Historic and Genealogical Society, 2008), Volume I, page 182. Hereinafter cited as Families of Old Fairfield, Connecticut.

Ethyl M. Chapman1

b. 19 November 1894, d. 19 October 1968
Father*Robert P. Chapman1 b. 22 May 1866, d. 22 Feb 1953
Mother*Charlotte E. Power1 b. 24 Jul 1869, d. 16 Jul 1918
Birth*19 November 1894Ethyl M. Chapman was born on 19 November 1894 in Missouri.1,2 
(Daughter) Census US 190015 June 1900Ethyl M. was enumerated on the 1900 census taken on 15 June 1900 in the household of her parents in Cooper Township, Stanberry City, Gentry County, Missouri. She was 5 years old.1 
Marriage*7 January 1914She married Fred C. Cox on 7 January 1914 in Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri. They were married at the home of her parents.3 
(Sister) Death18 November 1950Ethyl's sister, Viola Irene Cooper, shot and killed her husband, Whitney Logan Cooper, during an argument in their home near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, on 18 November 1950. Whitney Logan Cooper was 66 years of age.4,5,6,7 
(Sister) Murder18 November 1950Coverage of Cooper's murder appeared in newspapers in Stanberry and Albany, Gentry County, Missouri, and as far south as Springfield, Greene County, Missouri, with much of the reporting overlapping with the same information, especially in Gentry County. We've selected two articles that, in spite of some duplicate information, appear to provide as much of the complete story as we've found. Our transcriptions of those two articles follow:


Springfield Leader and Press, Springfield, Missouri, Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11


Woman Faces Murder Charge
____________

Shoots Her Husband Following Argument


OSCEOLA. November 20 (Special) -- A 46-year old farm wife is being held in St. Clair County jail here today, accused of the gun slaying of her 58-year-old husband during a Saturday night argument in their home seven miles west of Collins.

Prosecuting attorney E. W. Mills said a second degree murder charge had been filed against Mrs. Viola Irene Cooper in connection with the fatal shooting of her husband, Whitney Logan Cooper.

The charge was drawn against Mrs. Cooper, Mills said, after the woman signed a statement admitting the slaying.

An inquest has been scheduled for 2:00 p.m. tomorrow in the courthouse. Mills said Mrs. Cooper won’t be arraigned until after the inquest.
____________


According to Sheriff Logan Perry, the shooting occurred about 11:15 p.m. Saturday after the Coopers and Mr. and Mrs. James Buck, (James A. Buck and Dolores J. (Walker) Buck), son-in-law and daughter of Mrs. Cooper, returned to their 80-acre hill farm after a drinking party in Humansville and nearby Collins.

Perry said the Coopers and Bucks drove to Humansville early Saturday evening and spent some time in a tavern there. They also stopped in Collins for more drinks, Mrs. Cooper told the sheriff.

Mrs. Cooper, authorities added, said her husband became jealous over a man she was talking to at one of the taverns.
____________


And after they returned to their farm home, Cooper allegedly threatened to kill his wife. Mrs. Cooper then related she ran into a bedroom to get her husband’s .38 caliber revolver. When Cooper, the woman said “came at her” threateningly she pulled the trigger. The bullet went through the left side of his chest and out his back. Cooper died instantly.

The Bucks, who had lived with the Coopers for the past six weeks, confirmed Mrs. Cooper’s account of the slaying.

Surviving Cooper, who had lived near Collins “for a couple of years”, Perry said, are a daughter, Mrs. Charlotte Lester, of Kansas City, and a sister.

Funeral arrangements are under direction of Goodrich of Osceola.
____________



The Albany Ledger, Albany, Missouri, Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1


Whit Cooper Was Buried Here Last Friday Afternoon
____________

Remains Brought to Albany for Interment Following Inquest
____________


Funeral services for Whitney Logan Cooper, a former citizen of this community, were held here last Friday afternoon at 2:30 o’clock from the Brooks Funeral Home. The service was conducted by the Rev. A. Lee Hughes, pastor of the Albany Methodist Church, and interment was in the Grandview cemetery.

The remains reached Albany last Thursday morning from Collins, Missouri, where Mr. Cooper had lived. The body was held there pending an inquest held on Tuesday of last week.

Mr. Cooper was shot in the chest at 11:15 o’clock on Saturday night, November 18. The shooting took place in his home and he was killed instantly. His wife, Mrs. Viola Irene Cooper, who formerly lived near Stanberry, gave herself up to St. Clair County authorities.

Members of the family knew little of the murder. Some of the relatives who were there for the funeral knew that Mrs. Cooper had surrendered but none of them knew the circumstances leading up to the fatal shooting. It was said that Mrs. Cooper refused to testify at the inquest.

Mr. Cooper will be remembered by many persons here. He had lived in this vicinity over a period of several years. He was associated with his brother, Walter V. Cooper, Charles E. Buck and Lewis Deloyd Buck, who now lives in Denver, Colorado.

The two brothers had worked over a period of several years at the time the Cousins Lumber Company was in operation here. Whit Cooper had charge of the construction of the present Gentry County jail here and, as far as his brother knew, it was about his last construction work in this vicinity.

The following obituary was read at the funeral here last Friday:

Whitney Logan Cooper, the son of the late Coleman and Josephine Cooper, was born on December 12, 1883 in Appleton City, Missouri, and departed this life at his home near Collins, Missouri, on November 18, 1950. He was past 65 years of age.

He lived in and near Albany the early part of his life, leaving here about 25 years ago. Most of that time since he has lived in the southern part of Missouri.

He was converted when a young man at a revival at the old Gentryville church and was baptised, taking membership in the Baptist Church.

He is survived by his widow, by one daughter born to that marriage, by one brother, Walter V. Cooper, Charles E. Buck and Lewis Deloyd Buck of Denver, Colorado, and by two sisters, Ida, Merle, Gertrude, Thelma, Docia, Luella and Ethyl, wives of Leslie R. Griffith, Walter E. Smith, John Pleasant Warden, Thomas Arthur Johnson and Fred C. Cox, respectively, of Englewood, Colorado, and Maryville. There are other relatives and friends left to morn his tragic death.
____________.8,9
 
Death*19 October 1968She died on 19 October 1968 in San Francisco, California, at age 73.2 

Family

Fred C. Cox b. 5 Oct 1885, d. 13 Jan 1971

Citations

  1. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Price and Charlotte Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Stanberry, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 27; Enumeration District: 0083; FHL microfilm: 1240855. Hereinafter cited as 1900 United States Federal Census.
  2. [S2062] California, San Francisco Area Funeral Home Records, 1895-1985, online at www.newspapers.com, funeral record for Ethel M Cox, born on 19 November 1894 in Missouri, age 73, died on 19 October 1968, daughter of Price Chapman and Charlotte Powers, married to Fred C. Cox, referencing Halsted and Company Funeral Home. Hereinafter cited as California, San Francisco Area Funeral Home Records, 1895-1985.
  3. [S2161] U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-current, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage of Miss Ethyl Chapman and Fred Cox on 7 January 1914 at Stanberry, Missouri, USA, referencing The Albany Capital, published on 8 January 1914 in Albany, Missouri, USA, citing https://www.newspapers.com/image/210432294/,0.8283619,0.30889854,0.90047276&xid=3398. Hereinafter cited as U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-current.
  4. [S2178] Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969, online at www.ancestry.com, death on 18 November 1950 in St. Clair County, Missouri, USA, of Whitney Logan Cooper, age 66, carpenter, building industry, married to Irene Cooper, born 12 December 1883 in Missouri to Coleman Cooper and Josephine Logan, autopsy, cause of death homicide in home, rural Collins, Washington Township, St. Clair County, gunshot wound, gun fired by Irene Cooper, informant Merle Smith, Maryville, burial on 24 November 1950 in Albany, referencing Missouri Office of the Secretary of State, Jefferson City, Missouri, Missouri Death Certificates, 1910-1969, Certificate# 38190. Hereinafter cited as Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969.
  5. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Springfield Leader and Press, (Springfield, Greene County, Missouri), Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11, reporting the location of is death as seven miles west of Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri. Hereinafter cited as Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  6. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, The Albany Ledger, (Albany, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1, reporting his place of death as near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  7. [S748] Find a Grave website, which often provides cemetery and tombstone photos, and sometimes personal biographies, that may be obtained from the site, online at www.findagrave.com, Whitney Logan “Leck” Cooper, Memorial# 18233247, reporting his place of death as Osceola, St. Clair County, Missouri. Hereinafter cited as Find a Grave website.
  8. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, Springfield Leader and Press, (Springfield, Greene County, Missouri), Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11.
  9. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, The Albany Ledger, (Albany, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1.

George W. Chapman1

b. 17 March 1878, d. 18 March 1963
Father*Thomas J. Chapman1 b. 8 Apr 1839, d. 3 Jun 1921
Mother*Hannah R. Smith1 b. 31 Oct 1846, d. 19 Feb 1934
Birth*17 March 1878George W. Chapman was born on 17 March 1878 in Gentry County, Missouri.1,2 
Name VariationHe was called Willis.3 
Name VariationHis full name was George Willis Chapman.4 
(Son) Census US 188016 June 1880George W. was enumerated on the 1880 census taken on 16 June 1880 in the household of his parents in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. He was 2 years old.1 
Marriage*4 October 1899He married Cora Ann Houston, daughter of John W. Houston and Laura Ophelia Saunders, on 4 October 1899 in Albany, Gentry County, Missouri. They were married by a Judge of Probate.3 
Census US 1950*14 April 1950Cora and Willis Chapman were enumerated on the 1950 census taken on 14 April 1950 on Maple Street, Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri. Willis was 72 years of age and no longer working, and Cora was 69 years of age and doing the housework. Their house was not on a farm, although it was on a place of three or more acres.5 
(Uncle) Death18 November 1950Willis's niece, Viola Irene Cooper, younger daughter of Willis's brother, Price Chapman, shot and killed her husband, Whitney Logan Cooper, during an argument on 18 November 1950 in their home near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri. Price's granddaughter, Dolores J. (Walker) Buck, and her husband, James A. Buck, who had been staying with the Coopers for about six weeks, witnessed the killing. Whitney Logan Cooper was 66 years of age.6,7,8,9 
(Uncle) Murder18 November 1950Coverage of Cooper's murder appeared in newspapers in Stanberry and Albany, Gentry County, Missouri, and as far south as Springfield, Greene County, Missouri, with much of the reporting overlapping with the same information, especially in Gentry County. We've selected two articles that, in spite of some duplicate information, appear to provide as much of the complete story as we've found. Our transcriptions of those two articles follow:


Springfield Leader and Press, Springfield, Missouri, Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11


Woman Faces Murder Charge
____________

Shoots Her Husband Following Argument


OSCEOLA. November 20 (Special) -- A 46-year old farm wife is being held in St. Clair County jail here today, accused of the gun slaying of her 58-year-old husband during a Saturday night argument in their home seven miles west of Collins.

Prosecuting attorney E. W. Mills said a second degree murder charge had been filed against Mrs. Viola Irene Cooper in connection with the fatal shooting of her husband, Whitney Logan Cooper.

The charge was drawn against Mrs. Cooper, Mills said, after the woman signed a statement admitting the slaying.

An inquest has been scheduled for 2:00 p.m. tomorrow in the courthouse. Mills said Mrs. Cooper won’t be arraigned until after the inquest.
____________


According to Sheriff Logan Perry, the shooting occurred about 11:15 p.m. Saturday after the Coopers and Mr. and Mrs. James Buck, (James A. Buck and Dolores J. (Walker) Buck), son-in-law and daughter of Mrs. Cooper, returned to their 80-acre hill farm after a drinking party in Humansville and nearby Collins.

Perry said the Coopers and Bucks drove to Humansville early Saturday evening and spent some time in a tavern there. They also stopped in Collins for more drinks, Mrs. Cooper told the sheriff.

Mrs. Cooper, authorities added, said her husband became jealous over a man she was talking to at one of the taverns.
____________


And after they returned to their farm home, Cooper allegedly threatened to kill his wife. Mrs. Cooper then related she ran into a bedroom to get her husband’s .38 caliber revolver. When Cooper, the woman said “came at her” threateningly she pulled the trigger. The bullet went through the left side of his chest and out his back. Cooper died instantly.

The Bucks, who had lived with the Coopers for the past six weeks, confirmed Mrs. Cooper’s account of the slaying.

Surviving Cooper, who had lived near Collins “for a couple of years”, Perry said, are a daughter, Mrs. Charlotte Lester, of Kansas City, and a sister.

Funeral arrangements are under direction of Goodrich of Osceola.
____________



The Albany Ledger, Albany, Missouri, Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1


Whit Cooper Was Buried Here Last Friday Afternoon
____________

Remains Brought to Albany for Interment Following Inquest
____________


Funeral services for Whitney Logan Cooper, a former citizen of this community, were held here last Friday afternoon at 2:30 o’clock from the Brooks Funeral Home. The service was conducted by the Rev. A. Lee Hughes, pastor of the Albany Methodist Church, and interment was in the Grandview cemetery.

The remains reached Albany last Thursday morning from Collins, Missouri, where Mr. Cooper had lived. The body was held there pending an inquest held on Tuesday of last week.

Mr. Cooper was shot in the chest at 11:15 o’clock on Saturday night, November 18. The shooting took place in his home and he was killed instantly. His wife, Mrs. Viola Irene Cooper, who formerly lived near Stanberry, gave herself up to St. Clair County authorities.

Members of the family knew little of the murder. Some of the relatives who were there for the funeral knew that Mrs. Cooper had surrendered but none of them knew the circumstances leading up to the fatal shooting. It was said that Mrs. Cooper refused to testify at the inquest.

Mr. Cooper will be remembered by many persons here. He had lived in this vicinity over a period of several years. He was associated with his brother, Walter V. Cooper, Charles E. Buck and Lewis Deloyd Buck, who now lives in Denver, Colorado.

The two brothers had worked over a period of several years at the time the Cousins Lumber Company was in operation here. Whit Cooper had charge of the construction of the present Gentry County jail here and, as far as his brother knew, it was about his last construction work in this vicinity.

The following obituary was read at the funeral here last Friday:

Whitney Logan Cooper, the son of the late Coleman and Josephine Cooper, was born on December 12, 1883 in Appleton City, Missouri, and departed this life at his home near Collins, Missouri, on November 18, 1950. He was past 65 years of age.

He lived in and near Albany the early part of his life, leaving here about 25 years ago. Most of that time since he has lived in the southern part of Missouri.

He was converted when a young man at a revival at the old Gentryville church and was baptised, taking membership in the Baptist Church.

He is survived by his widow, by one daughter born to that marriage, by one brother, Walter V. Cooper, Charles E. Buck and Lewis Deloyd Buck of Denver, Colorado, and by two sisters, Ida, Merle, Gertrude, Thelma, Docia, Luella and Ethyl, wives of Leslie R. Griffith, Walter E. Smith, John Pleasant Warden, Thomas Arthur Johnson and Fred C. Cox, respectively, of Englewood, Colorado, and Maryville. There are other relatives and friends left to morn his tragic death.
____________.10,11
 
(Husband) Death19 January 1963Willis became a widower when Cora Ann (Houston) Chapman died on 19 January 1963 at age 81.12,13 
Death*18 March 1963He died two months after his wife and one day after reaching his 85th birthday, on 18 March 1963, in Union Star, DeKalb County, Missouri.2,12,13,14,15 
Burial*He was buried with his wife's parents, and probably his wife, in CA16 NW1/4 of High Ridge Cemetery, Stanberry, Gentry County.2,16,17,12 
(Son) Family PhotoThis wonderful photo of the family of Thomas Jefferson Chapman and Hannah Rebecca (Smith) Chapman of Gentry County, Missouri, was shared originally by Roxanne Held on 15 March 2022 when she posted it to her Ancestry Tree. We estimate the date of the photo as about 1895, before the death that year of the couple's fourth son, James Woodson Chapman. Their younger daughter, Minnie B. Chapman, who is not in the photo, was likely deceased as we have found no evidence of her after her enumeration with her parents and siblings in the 1880 census. And the couple's second son, William Edmond Chapman, is missing from the photo and we don't know why. He was not deceased; he was enumerated with his wife and son on the 1900 census in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri and he, with his family, relocated to Oklahoma in 1901. We wonder if he was away on a future relocation scouting-trip when the photo was taken.4,18,1,19

Family

Cora Ann Houston b. 28 Jan 1881, d. 19 Jan 1963

Citations

  1. [S23] 1880 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas J. and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1880; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 687; Page: 426C; Enumeration District: 271. Hereinafter cited as 1880 United States Federal Census.
  2. [S748] Find a Grave website, which often provides cemetery and tombstone photos, and sometimes personal biographies, that may be obtained from the site, online at www.findagrave.com, George Willis Chapman, Memorial# 53943240. Hereinafter cited as Find a Grave website.
  3. [S1732] Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage on 4 October 1899 in Albany, Gentry County, Missouri, USA, of Cora Houston, over the age of 18 years, and Willis Chapman, over the age of 21 years, both residents of Alanthus, Gentry County, referencing Missouri State Archives, Jefferson City, MO, USA, Missouri Marriage Records [Microfilm]. Hereinafter cited as Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002.
  4. [S2340] Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family, with many thanks to Roxanne Held who shared the photo originally on 15 March 2022; viewed online on 19 June 2022 at https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/155036499/…. Hereinafter cited as Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family.
  5. [S2295] 1950 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Willis and Cora Chapman, United States of America, Bureau of the Census; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790-2007; Record Group Number: 29; Residence Date: 1950; Home in 1950: Stanberry, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 4049; Sheet Number: 12; Enumeration District: 38-10. Hereinafter cited as 1950 United States Federal Census.
  6. [S2178] Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969, online at www.ancestry.com, death on 18 November 1950 in St. Clair County, Missouri, USA, of Whitney Logan Cooper, age 66, carpenter, building industry, married to Irene Cooper, born 12 December 1883 in Missouri to Coleman Cooper and Josephine Logan, autopsy, cause of death homicide in home, rural Collins, Washington Township, St. Clair County, gunshot wound, gun fired by Irene Cooper, informant Merle Smith, Maryville, burial on 24 November 1950 in Albany, referencing Missouri Office of the Secretary of State, Jefferson City, Missouri, Missouri Death Certificates, 1910-1969, Certificate# 38190. Hereinafter cited as Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969.
  7. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Springfield Leader and Press, (Springfield, Greene County, Missouri), Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11, reporting the location of is death as seven miles west of Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri. Hereinafter cited as Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  8. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, The Albany Ledger, (Albany, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1, reporting his place of death as near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  9. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Whitney Logan “Leck” Cooper, Memorial# 18233247, reporting his place of death as Osceola, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  10. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, Springfield Leader and Press, (Springfield, Greene County, Missouri), Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11.
  11. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, The Albany Ledger, (Albany, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1.
  12. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Cora Ann (Houston) Chapman, Memorial# 125699715.
  13. [S2346] Cora Ann (Houston) Chapman 1963 Obituary, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, The Maryville Daily Forum, (Maryville, Missouri), Monday, 21 Jan 1963, page 3, formerly of Stanberry, Mrs. Cora Ann Chapman, 81, died Saturday at her home in Union Star, where she and her husband had moved about two years before; survived by husband, Willis Chapman, a daughter, a sister, two grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Hereinafter cited as Cora Ann (Houston) Chapman 1963 Obituary.
  14. [S2347] George Willis Chapman 1963 Obituary, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Stanberry Herald - Headlight, (Stanberry, Missouri), Thursday, 21 March 1963, page 1, taken by death Monday morning at his home in Union Star, George Willis Chapman, 85; had resided with late wife Cora in Stanberry area until August 1961 when they moved to Union Star; survived by daughter Mrs. Wilma Miller of Union Star, two grandchildren, five great-grandchildren; Willis Chapman, son of Thomas and Hannah (Smith) Chapmen, born 17 March 1878 in Gentry County, married Miss Cora Houston 4 October 1899, she preceded him in death on 19 January 1963, Baptist. Hereinafter cited as George Willis Chapman 1963 Obituary.
  15. [S2178] Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969, online at www.ancestry.com, death on 18 March 1963 in Union Star, DeKalb County, Missouri, USA, of George Willis Chapman, 85, farmer, widowed, wife's name Cora Houston (deceased), born on 17 March 1878 in Gentry County, Missouri, to Thomas Chapman and Hannah Smith, informant Mrs. John Miller, Union Star, burial High Ridge Cemetery, Stanberry, referencing Missouri Office of the Secretary of State, Jefferson City, Missouri, Missouri Death Certificates, 1910-1969, Certificate# 11038.
  16. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Laura Ophelia (Saunders) Houston, Memorial# 53818168.
  17. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, John W Houston, Memorial# 53818167.
  18. [S2244] Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog, online at https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/… .Caution: This is a beautifully presented collection of "Person Pages" containing a variety of information about specific ancestors submitted by individual contributors -- often, unfortunately, with no sources. If the information we have chosen to pass along here is accurate, we are extremely grateful to the contributor(s) who have shared it. Without documentation, however, we researchers are always forced to question the validity of information. We hope what we have selected to include was originally obtained from family Bible records, or other reliable sources, and is accurate. Although, even when we have found contributed information to be unreliable, inaccurate or incomplete, we consider the information useful as possible clues as we research, citing a lovingly written story, “Susan Ella Nelson was my Grandma”, submitted by Roxanne Plummer on 24 August 2017 which we found attached under Memories for Susan Ella Sissie Dunn, online at https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/L561-67C. Hereinafter cited as Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog.
  19. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of William E. and Mary F. Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 12; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1240855. Hereinafter cited as 1900 United States Federal Census.

Honorable Henry Chapman1

Father*Abraham Chapman1
Mother*Elizabeth __?__1

Citations

  1. [S2037] Edward Mathews, The Thomas family of Hilltown, Bucks County, Penn'a, downloaded from the Family History Library at www.familysearch.org. (Landsdale, Pennsylvania: Arthur K. Thomas, 1884), Chapter XVI. The children of Gwently Thomas, pages 62-64, William Morris. Hereinafter cited as The Thomas family of Hilltown, Bucks County, Penn'a.

Herbert Chapman1

b. December 1892
Father*William E. Chapman1 b. Oct 1867, d. 30 Nov 1939
Mother*Mary F. Metzger1 b. 21 Oct 1872, d. 24 May 1955
Birth*December 1892Herbert Chapman was born in December 1892 in Missouri.1 
(Son) Census US 190021 June 1900Herbert was enumerated on the 1900 census taken on 21 June 1900 in the household of his parents in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. He was 7 years old, was able to read and write, and had attended school for 8 months of the census year.1 

Citations

  1. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of William E. and Mary F. Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 12; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1240855. Hereinafter cited as 1900 United States Federal Census.

Isaac Chapman1

Residence*At the time of his marriage, Isaac was a resident of Barnstable, Plymouth Colony.1 
Marriage*2 September 1678He married Rebecca Leonard of Taunton, daughter of James Leonard and Mary Jane Martin, on 2 September 1678.1 

Citations

  1. [S1142] Wm. R. Deane, Genealogical Memoir of the Leonard Family containing a full account of the first three generations of the family of James Leonard, who was an early settler of Taunton, MS. (Massachusetts), downloaded from the Boston Public Library eBooks and Texts Archive at www.archive.org. (Boston, Massachusetts: Office of the New England Historic-Genealogical Register, 1851), Genealogy, page 17. Hereinafter cited as The Family of James Leonard of Taunton.

James W. Chapman1

b. 1871, d. 1895
Father*Thomas J. Chapman1 b. 8 Apr 1839, d. 3 Jun 1921
Mother*Hannah R. Smith1 b. 31 Oct 1846, d. 19 Feb 1934
Birth*1871James W. Chapman was born about 1871 in Missouri.1 
Name VariationHis full name was James Woodson Chapman.2 
Name VariationHe was called Woodson.3 
(Son) Census US 188016 June 1880James W. was enumerated on the 1880 census taken on 16 June 1880 in the household of his parents in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. He was 9 years old and had attended school within the census year.1 
Marriage*27 December 1894He married Susan E. Dunn, daughter of John N. Dunn and Rebecca J. (Richardson) Dunn, on 27 December 1894 in Gentry County, Missouri. They were married at the home of Susan's parents by a Justice of the Peace.4 
Religion*Woodson and Susan were Baptists, and had grown to know each other and fall in love at Church where Susan was the organist, and Woodson the choir leader. He was also studying to become a Baptist preacher.5 
Illness*20 September 1895Woodson Chapman, who had been sick for some time, was thought to be slowly improving under the care of his doctor, and the news was announced under the "Alanthus Items" social events published in the Albany Ledger newspaper in Gentry County, Missouri, on 20 September 1895.3 
Death*1895 The story about a little girl's Grandma reports that James Woodson Chapman died before his first year's wedding anniversary, and before he and his wife knew they had their first child on the way. Tragically, he was crushed between a horse-drawn wagon and a tree, and died a few days later. He was 24 years old.5,6,7 
(4th Son) Family PhotoThis wonderful photo of the family of Thomas Jefferson Chapman and Hannah Rebecca (Smith) Chapman of Gentry County, Missouri, was shared originally by Roxanne Held on 15 March 2022 when she posted it to her Ancestry Tree. We estimate the date of the photo as about 1895, before the death that year of the couple's fourth son, James Woodson Chapman. Their younger daughter, Minnie B. Chapman, who is not in the photo, was likely deceased as we have found no evidence of her after her enumeration with her parents and siblings in the 1880 census. And the couple's second son, William Edmond Chapman, is missing from the photo and we don't know why. He was not deceased; he was enumerated with his wife and son on the 1900 census in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri and he, with his family, relocated to Oklahoma in 1901. We wonder if he was away on a future relocation scouting-trip when the photo was taken.2,5,1,8

Family

Susan E. Dunn b. 1 Jul 1871, d. 8 Oct 1940
Child 1.Julia Agnes Chapman9 b. May 1896

Citations

  1. [S23] 1880 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas J. and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1880; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 687; Page: 426C; Enumeration District: 271. Hereinafter cited as 1880 United States Federal Census.
  2. [S2340] Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family, with many thanks to Roxanne Held who shared the photo originally on 15 March 2022; viewed online on 19 June 2022 at https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/155036499/…. Hereinafter cited as Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family.
  3. [S2355] Woodson Chapman 1895 Illness, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Albany Ledger, (Albany, Missouri), Friday, 20 Sep 1895, page 8, the Alanthus Items social news reported, "Woodson Chapman, who has been sick for some time, is slowly improving under the care of Dr. Farr". Hereinafter cited as Woodson Chapman 1895 Illness.
  4. [S1732] Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage on 27 December 1894 at the home of John Dunn in Gentry County, Missouri, USA, of James W Chapman, over the age of 21 years, and Susan E Dunn, over the age of 18 years, both of the county of Gentry, referencing Missouri State Archives, Jefferson City, MO, USA, Missouri Marriage Records [Microfilm]. Hereinafter cited as Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002.
  5. [S2244] Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog, online at https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/… .Caution: This is a beautifully presented collection of "Person Pages" containing a variety of information about specific ancestors submitted by individual contributors -- often, unfortunately, with no sources. If the information we have chosen to pass along here is accurate, we are extremely grateful to the contributor(s) who have shared it. Without documentation, however, we researchers are always forced to question the validity of information. We hope what we have selected to include was originally obtained from family Bible records, or other reliable sources, and is accurate. Although, even when we have found contributed information to be unreliable, inaccurate or incomplete, we consider the information useful as possible clues as we research, citing a lovingly written story, “Susan Ella Nelson was my Grandma”, submitted by Roxanne Plummer on 24 August 2017 which we found attached under Memories for Susan Ella Sissie Dunn, online at https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/L561-67C. Hereinafter cited as Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog.
  6. [S2161] U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-current, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage license issued to Charles A. Nelson and Susie E. Chapman, both of Buckhart, Douglas County, Missouri in March 1900, referencing The Douglas County Herald, published on 15 March 1900 in Ava, Missouri, USA, citing https://www.newspapers.com/image/491843289/,0.44776466,0.9479741,0.53039926&xid=3398. Hereinafter cited as U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-current.
  7. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Charley and Susie E. Nelson, Year: 1900; Census Place: Brush Creek, Douglas, Missouri; Roll: 853; Page: 8; Enumeration District: 0158; FHL microfilm: 1240853. Hereinafter cited as 1900 United States Federal Census.
  8. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of William E. and Mary F. Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 12; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1240855.
  9. [S1710] Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1854-2013, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage on 11 September 1921 in Colfax, Whitman County, Washington, USA, of Agnes Chapman, age 25 , born in Mountain Grove, Missouri, daughter of James Woodson Chapman and Susan Ellen Dunn, married Fred George Held, age 41, lineman, born in Ida Grove, Iowa, son of C. W. Held and Nora O'Brien, referencing Washington State Archives, Olympia, Washington, Washington Marriage Records, 1854-2013. Hereinafter cited as Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1854-2013.

John S. Chapman1

b. 24 October 1875, d. 4 August 1944
Father*Thomas J. Chapman1 b. 8 Apr 1839, d. 3 Jun 1921
Mother*Hannah R. Smith1 b. 31 Oct 1846, d. 19 Feb 1934
Birth*24 October 1875John S. Chapman was born on 24 October 1875 in Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri.1,2 
Name VariationHis full name was John Samuel Chapman.3 
(Son) Census US 188016 June 1880John S. was enumerated on the 1880 census taken on 16 June 1880 in the household of his parents in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. He was 4 years old.1 
Marriage*10 July 1895He married Emma Evelyn Barnes, daughter of Joseph Cyrus Barnes and Matilda Ellen Jones, on 10 July 1895 in Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa.4,2,5 
(Husband) Death23 November 1936John became a widower when Emma Evelyn (Barnes) Chapman died on 23 November 1936 at age 63.4 
Death*4 August 1944He died on 4 August 1944 in Parnell, Nodaway County, Missouri, at age 682 
Burial* and was buried in Parnell Cemetery, Parnell.2 
(Son) Family PhotoThis wonderful photo of the family of Thomas Jefferson Chapman and Hannah Rebecca (Smith) Chapman of Gentry County, Missouri, was shared originally by Roxanne Held on 15 March 2022 when she posted it to her Ancestry Tree. We estimate the date of the photo as about 1895, before the death that year of the couple's fourth son, James Woodson Chapman. Their younger daughter, Minnie B. Chapman, who is not in the photo, was likely deceased as we have found no evidence of her after her enumeration with her parents and siblings in the 1880 census. And the couple's second son, William Edmond Chapman, is missing from the photo and we don't know why. He was not deceased; he was enumerated with his wife and son on the 1900 census in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri and he, with his family, relocated to Oklahoma in 1901. We wonder if he was away on a future relocation scouting-trip when the photo was taken.3,6,1,7

Family

Emma Evelyn Barnes b. 6 Mar 1873, d. 23 Nov 1936

Citations

  1. [S23] 1880 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas J. and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1880; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 687; Page: 426C; Enumeration District: 271. Hereinafter cited as 1880 United States Federal Census.
  2. [S748] Find a Grave website, which often provides cemetery and tombstone photos, and sometimes personal biographies, that may be obtained from the site, online at www.findagrave.com, John Samuel Chapman, Memorial# 102714329. Hereinafter cited as Find a Grave website.
  3. [S2340] Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family, with many thanks to Roxanne Held who shared the photo originally on 15 March 2022; viewed online on 19 June 2022 at https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/155036499/…. Hereinafter cited as Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family.
  4. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Emma Evelyn (Barnes) Chapman, Memorial# 222246595.
  5. [S1700] Iowa, U.S., Marriage Records, 1880-1947, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage of John S Chapman of Denver, Missouri, farmer, age 20, born in Missouri, son of Thomas Chapman and Hannah Smith, married Emma E Barnes of Denver, Missouri, age 22, born in Missouri, daughter of Joseph Barnes and Matilda Jones, first marriage for both, married on 10 July 1895 in Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa, USA, referencing Iowa Department of Public Health, Des Moines, Iowa, Series Title: Iowa Marriage Records, 1880–1922. Hereinafter cited as Iowa, U.S., Marriage Records, 1880-1947.
  6. [S2244] Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog, online at https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/… .Caution: This is a beautifully presented collection of "Person Pages" containing a variety of information about specific ancestors submitted by individual contributors -- often, unfortunately, with no sources. If the information we have chosen to pass along here is accurate, we are extremely grateful to the contributor(s) who have shared it. Without documentation, however, we researchers are always forced to question the validity of information. We hope what we have selected to include was originally obtained from family Bible records, or other reliable sources, and is accurate. Although, even when we have found contributed information to be unreliable, inaccurate or incomplete, we consider the information useful as possible clues as we research, citing a lovingly written story, “Susan Ella Nelson was my Grandma”, submitted by Roxanne Plummer on 24 August 2017 which we found attached under Memories for Susan Ella Sissie Dunn, online at https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/L561-67C. Hereinafter cited as Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog.
  7. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of William E. and Mary F. Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 12; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1240855. Hereinafter cited as 1900 United States Federal Census.

Julia A. Chapman1

b. 9 October 1872, d. 21 November 1959
Father*Thomas J. Chapman1 b. 8 Apr 1839, d. 3 Jun 1921
Mother*Hannah R. Smith1 b. 31 Oct 1846, d. 19 Feb 1934
Birth*9 October 1872Julia A. Chapman was born on 9 October 1872 in Gentry County, Missouri.1,2 
Name VariationHer full name was Julia Ann Chapman.3 
(Daughter) Census US 188016 June 1880Julia A. was enumerated on the 1880 census taken on 16 June 1880 in the household of her parents in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. She was 7 years old and had attended school within the census year.1 
Marriage*1 February 1891She married John Franklin Gage, son of Abraham Lincoln Gage and Elizabeth M. Metzger, on 1 February 1891 in Wilson Township, Gentry County. Julia's brother, William Edmond Chapman, would marry John's 1st cousin, Mary Frances Metzger, the following year.4,2,5 
(Aunt) Death18 November 1950Julia's niece, Viola Irene Cooper, younger daughter of Julia's brother, Price Chapman, shot and killed her husband, Whitney Logan Cooper, during an argument on 18 November 1950 in their home near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri. Price's granddaughter, Dolores J. (Walker) Buck, and her husband, James A. Buck, who had been staying with the Coopers for about six weeks, witnessed the killing. Whitney Logan Cooper was 66 years of age.6,7,8,9 
(Aunt) Murder18 November 1950Coverage of Cooper's murder appeared in newspapers in Stanberry and Albany, Gentry County, Missouri, and as far south as Springfield, Greene County, Missouri, with much of the reporting overlapping with the same information, especially in Gentry County. We've selected two articles that, in spite of some duplicate information, appear to provide as much of the complete story as we've found. Our transcriptions of those two articles follow:


Springfield Leader and Press, Springfield, Missouri, Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11


Woman Faces Murder Charge
____________

Shoots Her Husband Following Argument


OSCEOLA. November 20 (Special) -- A 46-year old farm wife is being held in St. Clair County jail here today, accused of the gun slaying of her 58-year-old husband during a Saturday night argument in their home seven miles west of Collins.

Prosecuting attorney E. W. Mills said a second degree murder charge had been filed against Mrs. Viola Irene Cooper in connection with the fatal shooting of her husband, Whitney Logan Cooper.

The charge was drawn against Mrs. Cooper, Mills said, after the woman signed a statement admitting the slaying.

An inquest has been scheduled for 2:00 p.m. tomorrow in the courthouse. Mills said Mrs. Cooper won’t be arraigned until after the inquest.
____________


According to Sheriff Logan Perry, the shooting occurred about 11:15 p.m. Saturday after the Coopers and Mr. and Mrs. James Buck, (James A. Buck and Dolores J. (Walker) Buck), son-in-law and daughter of Mrs. Cooper, returned to their 80-acre hill farm after a drinking party in Humansville and nearby Collins.

Perry said the Coopers and Bucks drove to Humansville early Saturday evening and spent some time in a tavern there. They also stopped in Collins for more drinks, Mrs. Cooper told the sheriff.

Mrs. Cooper, authorities added, said her husband became jealous over a man she was talking to at one of the taverns.
____________


And after they returned to their farm home, Cooper allegedly threatened to kill his wife. Mrs. Cooper then related she ran into a bedroom to get her husband’s .38 caliber revolver. When Cooper, the woman said “came at her” threateningly she pulled the trigger. The bullet went through the left side of his chest and out his back. Cooper died instantly.

The Bucks, who had lived with the Coopers for the past six weeks, confirmed Mrs. Cooper’s account of the slaying.

Surviving Cooper, who had lived near Collins “for a couple of years”, Perry said, are a daughter, Mrs. Charlotte Lester, of Kansas City, and a sister.

Funeral arrangements are under direction of Goodrich of Osceola.
____________



The Albany Ledger, Albany, Missouri, Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1


Whit Cooper Was Buried Here Last Friday Afternoon
____________

Remains Brought to Albany for Interment Following Inquest
____________


Funeral services for Whitney Logan Cooper, a former citizen of this community, were held here last Friday afternoon at 2:30 o’clock from the Brooks Funeral Home. The service was conducted by the Rev. A. Lee Hughes, pastor of the Albany Methodist Church, and interment was in the Grandview cemetery.

The remains reached Albany last Thursday morning from Collins, Missouri, where Mr. Cooper had lived. The body was held there pending an inquest held on Tuesday of last week.

Mr. Cooper was shot in the chest at 11:15 o’clock on Saturday night, November 18. The shooting took place in his home and he was killed instantly. His wife, Mrs. Viola Irene Cooper, who formerly lived near Stanberry, gave herself up to St. Clair County authorities.

Members of the family knew little of the murder. Some of the relatives who were there for the funeral knew that Mrs. Cooper had surrendered but none of them knew the circumstances leading up to the fatal shooting. It was said that Mrs. Cooper refused to testify at the inquest.

Mr. Cooper will be remembered by many persons here. He had lived in this vicinity over a period of several years. He was associated with his brother, Walter V. Cooper, Charles E. Buck and Lewis Deloyd Buck, who now lives in Denver, Colorado.

The two brothers had worked over a period of several years at the time the Cousins Lumber Company was in operation here. Whit Cooper had charge of the construction of the present Gentry County jail here and, as far as his brother knew, it was about his last construction work in this vicinity.

The following obituary was read at the funeral here last Friday:

Whitney Logan Cooper, the son of the late Coleman and Josephine Cooper, was born on December 12, 1883 in Appleton City, Missouri, and departed this life at his home near Collins, Missouri, on November 18, 1950. He was past 65 years of age.

He lived in and near Albany the early part of his life, leaving here about 25 years ago. Most of that time since he has lived in the southern part of Missouri.

He was converted when a young man at a revival at the old Gentryville church and was baptised, taking membership in the Baptist Church.

He is survived by his widow, by one daughter born to that marriage, by one brother, Walter V. Cooper, Charles E. Buck and Lewis Deloyd Buck of Denver, Colorado, and by two sisters, Ida, Merle, Gertrude, Thelma, Docia, Luella and Ethyl, wives of Leslie R. Griffith, Walter E. Smith, John Pleasant Warden, Thomas Arthur Johnson and Fred C. Cox, respectively, of Englewood, Colorado, and Maryville. There are other relatives and friends left to morn his tragic death.
____________.10,11
 
(Wife) Death25 June 1953Julia became a widow when John Franklin Gage died on 25 June 1953 at age 83.4 
Death*21 November 1959She died on 21 November 1959 in Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri, at age 872 
Burial* and was buried with her husband in Jennings Cemetery, Alanthus Grove, Gentry County.2,4 
(Daughter) Family PhotoThis wonderful photo of the family of Thomas Jefferson Chapman and Hannah Rebecca (Smith) Chapman of Gentry County, Missouri, was shared originally by Roxanne Held on 15 March 2022 when she posted it to her Ancestry Tree. We estimate the date of the photo as about 1895, before the death that year of the couple's fourth son, James Woodson Chapman. Their younger daughter, Minnie B. Chapman, who is not in the photo, was likely deceased as we have found no evidence of her after her enumeration with her parents and siblings in the 1880 census. And the couple's second son, William Edmond Chapman, is missing from the photo and we don't know why. He was not deceased; he was enumerated with his wife and son on the 1900 census in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri and he, with his family, relocated to Oklahoma in 1901. We wonder if he was away on a future relocation scouting-trip when the photo was taken.3,12,1,13

Family

John Franklin Gage b. 4 Aug 1869, d. 25 Jun 1953

Citations

  1. [S23] 1880 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas J. and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1880; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 687; Page: 426C; Enumeration District: 271. Hereinafter cited as 1880 United States Federal Census.
  2. [S748] Find a Grave website, which often provides cemetery and tombstone photos, and sometimes personal biographies, that may be obtained from the site, online at www.findagrave.com, Julia Ann (Chapman) Gage, Memorial# 49575121. Hereinafter cited as Find a Grave website.
  3. [S2340] Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family, with many thanks to Roxanne Held who shared the photo originally on 15 March 2022; viewed online on 19 June 2022 at https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/155036499/…. Hereinafter cited as Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family.
  4. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, John Franklin Gage, Memorial# 41238191.
  5. [S1732] Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage on 1 February 1891 in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri, USA, of Julia A Chapman, over the age of 18 years, and John F Gage, over the age of 21 years, both residents of Gentry County, referencing Missouri State Archives, Jefferson City, MO, USA, Missouri Marriage Records [Microfilm]. Hereinafter cited as Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002.
  6. [S2178] Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969, online at www.ancestry.com, death on 18 November 1950 in St. Clair County, Missouri, USA, of Whitney Logan Cooper, age 66, carpenter, building industry, married to Irene Cooper, born 12 December 1883 in Missouri to Coleman Cooper and Josephine Logan, autopsy, cause of death homicide in home, rural Collins, Washington Township, St. Clair County, gunshot wound, gun fired by Irene Cooper, informant Merle Smith, Maryville, burial on 24 November 1950 in Albany, referencing Missouri Office of the Secretary of State, Jefferson City, Missouri, Missouri Death Certificates, 1910-1969, Certificate# 38190. Hereinafter cited as Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969.
  7. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Springfield Leader and Press, (Springfield, Greene County, Missouri), Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11, reporting the location of is death as seven miles west of Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri. Hereinafter cited as Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  8. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, The Albany Ledger, (Albany, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1, reporting his place of death as near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  9. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Whitney Logan “Leck” Cooper, Memorial# 18233247, reporting his place of death as Osceola, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  10. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, Springfield Leader and Press, (Springfield, Greene County, Missouri), Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11.
  11. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, The Albany Ledger, (Albany, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1.
  12. [S2244] Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog, online at https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/… .Caution: This is a beautifully presented collection of "Person Pages" containing a variety of information about specific ancestors submitted by individual contributors -- often, unfortunately, with no sources. If the information we have chosen to pass along here is accurate, we are extremely grateful to the contributor(s) who have shared it. Without documentation, however, we researchers are always forced to question the validity of information. We hope what we have selected to include was originally obtained from family Bible records, or other reliable sources, and is accurate. Although, even when we have found contributed information to be unreliable, inaccurate or incomplete, we consider the information useful as possible clues as we research, citing a lovingly written story, “Susan Ella Nelson was my Grandma”, submitted by Roxanne Plummer on 24 August 2017 which we found attached under Memories for Susan Ella Sissie Dunn, online at https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/L561-67C. Hereinafter cited as Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog.
  13. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of William E. and Mary F. Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 12; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1240855. Hereinafter cited as 1900 United States Federal Census.

Julia Agnes Chapman1,2

b. May 1896
Father*James W. Chapman1 b. 1871, d. 1895
Mother*Susan E. Dunn1 b. 1 Jul 1871, d. 8 Oct 1940
(Daughter) Death1895Her father died before she was born, and a story written years later by one of her mother's granddaughters explained that he died before her parents' first year's wedding anniversary, and before they knew that Julia, their first child, was on the way. Tragically, her father was crushed between a horse-drawn wagon and a tree, and died a few days later. He was 24 years old.3,4,2 
Birth*May 1896Julia Agnes Chapman was born in May 1896 in Mountain Grove, Wright County, Missouri.1,2 
(Daughter) Marriage15 March 1900Julia was three years old when her mother married a second time to Charles N. Nelson, who had also been widowed and had an eight year old daughter.2,4 
(Stepdaughter) Census US 19009 June 1900Julia was enumerated on the 1900 census taken on 9 June 1900 in the household of her mother and stepfather in Brush Creek, Douglas County, Missouri. She was 4 years old.2 

Citations

  1. [S1710] Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1854-2013, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage on 11 September 1921 in Colfax, Whitman County, Washington, USA, of Agnes Chapman, age 25 , born in Mountain Grove, Missouri, daughter of James Woodson Chapman and Susan Ellen Dunn, married Fred George Held, age 41, lineman, born in Ida Grove, Iowa, son of C. W. Held and Nora O'Brien, referencing Washington State Archives, Olympia, Washington, Washington Marriage Records, 1854-2013. Hereinafter cited as Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1854-2013.
  2. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Charley and Susie E. Nelson, Year: 1900; Census Place: Brush Creek, Douglas, Missouri; Roll: 853; Page: 8; Enumeration District: 0158; FHL microfilm: 1240853. Hereinafter cited as 1900 United States Federal Census.
  3. [S2244] Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog, online at https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/… .Caution: This is a beautifully presented collection of "Person Pages" containing a variety of information about specific ancestors submitted by individual contributors -- often, unfortunately, with no sources. If the information we have chosen to pass along here is accurate, we are extremely grateful to the contributor(s) who have shared it. Without documentation, however, we researchers are always forced to question the validity of information. We hope what we have selected to include was originally obtained from family Bible records, or other reliable sources, and is accurate. Although, even when we have found contributed information to be unreliable, inaccurate or incomplete, we consider the information useful as possible clues as we research, citing a lovingly written story, “Susan Ella Nelson was my Grandma”, submitted by Roxanne Plummer on 24 August 2017 which we found attached under Memories for Susan Ella Sissie Dunn, online at https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/L561-67C. Hereinafter cited as Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog.
  4. [S2161] U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-current, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage license issued to Charles A. Nelson and Susie E. Chapman, both of Buckhart, Douglas County, Missouri in March 1900, referencing The Douglas County Herald, published on 15 March 1900 in Ava, Missouri, USA, citing https://www.newspapers.com/image/491843289/,0.44776466,0.9479741,0.53039926&xid=3398. Hereinafter cited as U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-current.

Mariah J. Chapman1

b. 1852
Birth*1852Mariah J. Chapman was born about 1852 in Virginia.2 
Name VariationHer full name was Mariah Jane Chapman3 
Name Variation and she was often called Jane.3 
Marriage*1874She married, as his first wife, Isaac W. Hines, son of Hiram Hines and Susannah Skidmore, in 1874 in Braxton County, West Virginia.1,2 
(Paramour #1) MurderThe savage murder of Jemima Green, which occurred on 20 May 1875 near Sutton, Braxton County, produced, according to the newspapers, "a great deal of excitement." For at least four years after her murder, news articles covering her brutal killing, and the resulting multiple arrests and trials of the accused, were published in West Virginia newspapers. Some of the individuals mentioned in the news articles, as events developed, included Isaac Lewis Perkins, Samuel Ellis Perkins, David Wine, Elijah Perkins, Mariah Jane (Chapman) Hines, Isaac W. Hines, Sarah Jane Mollohan, Elizabeth (Rogers) Mollohan, William B. Young and Sarah Jane (Wine) Wine Williams. We've transcribed several of the news articles and placed them here with Jemima.4 
(Paramour #1) Trial6 December 1875She was described as a former "paramour" of Samuel Ellis Perkins, and appeared as a witness against him, at his trial for the murder of Jemima Green which began on 6 December 1875 in a special term of the Circuit Court for Braxton County. The trial lasted nine days, with 80 witnesses examined, and the examination of the State's witnesses began after it was first proven that Jemima Green had been murdered. The testimony of Mariah Jane (Chapman) Hines and Marion Nichols proved for the State that a threat was made by the prisoner on the Wednesday prior to the killing on Thursday night. The State next proved an opportunity by the prisoner at the proper time to execute his threat, and submitted several admissions that showed him to be one of the parties to the killing. The State further showed that the prisoner had attempted to remove suspicion from himself by procuring another party to charge a third person with the crime. This last evidence was the testimony of Mariah Jane (Chapman) Hines, who was, at the time of the murder, the paramour of the prisoner, Samuel Ellis Perkins, but had been abandoned by him sometime in July when he, the prisoner, "took to his bosom another woman." The position of the Defense was that Chapman, who had married Isaac W. Hines by the time of the trial, perjured her testimony to get even with her former lover. We note here that the newspaper article had some very unkind things to say about Mariah's character. Our transcription of this complete news article may be found among the others with Jemima.3 
Census US 1880*25 June 1880Mariah J. and Isaac Hines were enumerated on the 1880 census taken on 25 June 1880 in Holly, Braxton County, West Virginia. Isaac was 28 years of age, a farmer, and was unable to read or write, and Mariah J. was 28 years of age and keeping house. Their two children, Catharine, who was 5 years old, and Michael, who was age one, were enumerated with them in 1880.2 
Research Notes*The marriage between Mariah Jane (Chapman) Hines and Isaac W. Hines ended, although whether by divorce or Mariah's death we don't know. We've found no records for Mariah after her enumeration on the 1880 census, and Isaac would marry a second time in 1890.5 

Family

Isaac W. Hines b. 1851
Children 1.Catharine Hines2 b. 1875
 2.Michael Hines2 b. 1879

Citations

  1. [S1387] West Virginia, Marriages Index, 1785-1971, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage of Mariah J Chapman and Isaac Hines in 1874 in Braxton County, West Virginia, United States. Hereinafter cited as West Virginia Marriages Index 1785-1971.
  2. [S23] 1880 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Isaac and Mariah J. Hines, Year: 1880; Census Place: Holly, Braxton, West Virginia; Roll: 1400; Page: 425D; Enumeration District: 007. Hereinafter cited as 1880 United States Federal Census.
  3. [S2565] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1875 Murder of Jemima Green in Braxton County, West Virginia, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, The Weston Democrat, (Weston, West Virginia), Monday, 10 January 1876, page 3 (2). Hereinafter cited as Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1875 Murder of Jemima Green in Braxton County, West Virginia.
  4. [S2565] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1875 Murder of Jemima Green in Braxton County, West Virginia, online at www.newspapers.com, South Branch Intelligencer, (Romney, West Virginia), Friday, 4 June 1875, page 2; The Weston Democrat, (Weston, West Virginia), Monday, 5 July 1875, page 3; The Weston Democrat, (Weston, West Virginia), Monday, 19 July 1875, page 5; The Wheeling Daily Intelligencer, (Wheeling, West Virginia), Wednesday, 21 July 1875, page 2; The Weston Democrat, (Weston, West Virginia), Monday, 30 August 1875, page 3; The Weston Democrat, (Weston, West Virginia), Monday, 4 October 1875, page 2; The Wheeling Daily Intelligencer, (Wheeling, West Virginia), Monday, 29 November 1875, page 3; The Weston Democrat, (Weston, West Virginia), Monday, 27 December 1875, page 3; The Weston Democrat, (Weston, West Virginia), Monday, 10 January 1876, page 3 (1); The Weston Democrat, (Weston, West Virginia), Monday, 10 January 1876, page 3 (2); The Weston Democrat, (Weston, West Virginia), Monday, 10 January 1876, page 3 (3); The Weston Democrat, (Weston, West Virginia), Monday, 27 March 1876, page 3 (1); The Weston Democrat, (Weston, West Virginia), Monday, 27 March 1876, page 3 (2); Martinsburg Independent, (Martinsburg, West Virginia), Saturday, 29 July 1876, page 1; The Weston Democrat, (Weston, West Virginia), Monday, 15 January 1877, page 3; The Weston Democrat, (Weston, West Virginia), Monday, 22 January 1877, page 3; The Wheeling Daily Register, (Wheeling, West Virginia), Wednesday, 20 June 1877, page 4; The Wheeling Daily Intelligencer, (Wheeling, West Virginia), Monday, 6 May 1878, page 4; The Wheeling Daily Intelligencer, (Wheeling, West Virginia), Monday, 11 November 1878, page 4; The Weston Democrat, (Weston, West Virginia), Saturday, 14 December 1878, page 1.
  5. [S1387] West Virginia Marriages Index 1785-1971, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage of Isaac W Hines and Phebe J Knight in 1890 in Braxton County, West Virginia, United States.

Matthew M. Chapman1

b. 24 August 1883, d. 21 February 1961
Father*Thomas J. Chapman1 b. 8 Apr 1839, d. 3 Jun 1921
Mother*Hannah R. Smith1 b. 31 Oct 1846, d. 19 Feb 1934
Birth*24 August 1883Matthew M. Chapman was born on 24 August 1883 in Alanthus, Gentry County, Missouri.1,2,3 
Name VariationHis full name was Matthew Manford Chapman.4 
(Son) Census US 190023 June 1900Matthew M. was enumerated on the 1900 census taken on 23 June 1900 in the household of his parents in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. He was 16 years old, was able to both read and write, had attended school for six months of the census year and worked as a laborer on the family farm when not in school.1 
Marriage*11 June 1913He married Samantha Blackwood Sill, daughter of Alexander Sill and Martha Emily Blackwood, on 11 June 1913 in Clay County, South Dakota.5,2,6 
(Uncle) Death18 November 1950Matthew's niece, Viola Irene Cooper, younger daughter of Matthew's brother, Price Chapman, shot and killed her husband, Whitney Logan Cooper, during an argument on 18 November 1950 in their home near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri. Price's granddaughter, Dolores J. (Walker) Buck, and her husband, James A. Buck, who had been staying with the Coopers for about six weeks, witnessed the killing. Whitney Logan Cooper was 66 years of age.7,8,9,10 
(Uncle) Murder18 November 1950Coverage of Cooper's murder appeared in newspapers in Stanberry and Albany, Gentry County, Missouri, and as far south as Springfield, Greene County, Missouri, with much of the reporting overlapping with the same information, especially in Gentry County. We've selected two articles that, in spite of some duplicate information, appear to provide as much of the complete story as we've found. Our transcriptions of those two articles follow:


Springfield Leader and Press, Springfield, Missouri, Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11


Woman Faces Murder Charge
____________

Shoots Her Husband Following Argument


OSCEOLA. November 20 (Special) -- A 46-year old farm wife is being held in St. Clair County jail here today, accused of the gun slaying of her 58-year-old husband during a Saturday night argument in their home seven miles west of Collins.

Prosecuting attorney E. W. Mills said a second degree murder charge had been filed against Mrs. Viola Irene Cooper in connection with the fatal shooting of her husband, Whitney Logan Cooper.

The charge was drawn against Mrs. Cooper, Mills said, after the woman signed a statement admitting the slaying.

An inquest has been scheduled for 2:00 p.m. tomorrow in the courthouse. Mills said Mrs. Cooper won’t be arraigned until after the inquest.
____________


According to Sheriff Logan Perry, the shooting occurred about 11:15 p.m. Saturday after the Coopers and Mr. and Mrs. James Buck, (James A. Buck and Dolores J. (Walker) Buck), son-in-law and daughter of Mrs. Cooper, returned to their 80-acre hill farm after a drinking party in Humansville and nearby Collins.

Perry said the Coopers and Bucks drove to Humansville early Saturday evening and spent some time in a tavern there. They also stopped in Collins for more drinks, Mrs. Cooper told the sheriff.

Mrs. Cooper, authorities added, said her husband became jealous over a man she was talking to at one of the taverns.
____________


And after they returned to their farm home, Cooper allegedly threatened to kill his wife. Mrs. Cooper then related she ran into a bedroom to get her husband’s .38 caliber revolver. When Cooper, the woman said “came at her” threateningly she pulled the trigger. The bullet went through the left side of his chest and out his back. Cooper died instantly.

The Bucks, who had lived with the Coopers for the past six weeks, confirmed Mrs. Cooper’s account of the slaying.

Surviving Cooper, who had lived near Collins “for a couple of years”, Perry said, are a daughter, Mrs. Charlotte Lester, of Kansas City, and a sister.

Funeral arrangements are under direction of Goodrich of Osceola.
____________



The Albany Ledger, Albany, Missouri, Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1


Whit Cooper Was Buried Here Last Friday Afternoon
____________

Remains Brought to Albany for Interment Following Inquest
____________


Funeral services for Whitney Logan Cooper, a former citizen of this community, were held here last Friday afternoon at 2:30 o’clock from the Brooks Funeral Home. The service was conducted by the Rev. A. Lee Hughes, pastor of the Albany Methodist Church, and interment was in the Grandview cemetery.

The remains reached Albany last Thursday morning from Collins, Missouri, where Mr. Cooper had lived. The body was held there pending an inquest held on Tuesday of last week.

Mr. Cooper was shot in the chest at 11:15 o’clock on Saturday night, November 18. The shooting took place in his home and he was killed instantly. His wife, Mrs. Viola Irene Cooper, who formerly lived near Stanberry, gave herself up to St. Clair County authorities.

Members of the family knew little of the murder. Some of the relatives who were there for the funeral knew that Mrs. Cooper had surrendered but none of them knew the circumstances leading up to the fatal shooting. It was said that Mrs. Cooper refused to testify at the inquest.

Mr. Cooper will be remembered by many persons here. He had lived in this vicinity over a period of several years. He was associated with his brother, Walter V. Cooper, Charles E. Buck and Lewis Deloyd Buck, who now lives in Denver, Colorado.

The two brothers had worked over a period of several years at the time the Cousins Lumber Company was in operation here. Whit Cooper had charge of the construction of the present Gentry County jail here and, as far as his brother knew, it was about his last construction work in this vicinity.

The following obituary was read at the funeral here last Friday:

Whitney Logan Cooper, the son of the late Coleman and Josephine Cooper, was born on December 12, 1883 in Appleton City, Missouri, and departed this life at his home near Collins, Missouri, on November 18, 1950. He was past 65 years of age.

He lived in and near Albany the early part of his life, leaving here about 25 years ago. Most of that time since he has lived in the southern part of Missouri.

He was converted when a young man at a revival at the old Gentryville church and was baptised, taking membership in the Baptist Church.

He is survived by his widow, by one daughter born to that marriage, by one brother, Walter V. Cooper, Charles E. Buck and Lewis Deloyd Buck of Denver, Colorado, and by two sisters, Ida, Merle, Gertrude, Thelma, Docia, Luella and Ethyl, wives of Leslie R. Griffith, Walter E. Smith, John Pleasant Warden, Thomas Arthur Johnson and Fred C. Cox, respectively, of Englewood, Colorado, and Maryville. There are other relatives and friends left to morn his tragic death.
____________.11,12
 
Death*21 February 1961He died on 21 February 1961 in Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri, at age 772,3 
Burial* and was buried in SA 27 SW1/4 of High Ridge Cemetery, Stanberry, Gentry County.13,3 
Research Notes*We noted, in June 2022, discrepancies in the information provided on the Find a Grave memorials for Matthew Manford Chapman and his wife, Samantha Blackwood (Sill) Chapman. Matthew's, memorial page reported that his wife, Samantha, was buried next to him, and also provided the same plot identification as Samantha's, although a different cemetery. His memorial page reported he was buried in King City Cemetery. Our analysis indicates that Matthew's cemetery information is incorrect, and that both Samantha and Matthew were buried in High Ridge Cemetery in the same plot. Matthew's death certificate also identified High Ridge Cemetery as his intended place of burial.5,2 
(Son) Family PhotoThis wonderful photo of the family of Thomas Jefferson Chapman and Hannah Rebecca (Smith) Chapman of Gentry County, Missouri, was shared originally by Roxanne Held on 15 March 2022 when she posted it to her Ancestry Tree. We estimate the date of the photo as about 1895, before the death that year of the couple's fourth son, James Woodson Chapman. Their younger daughter, Minnie B. Chapman, who is not in the photo, was likely deceased as we have found no evidence of her after her enumeration with her parents and siblings in the 1880 census. And the couple's second son, William Edmond Chapman, is missing from the photo and we don't know why. He was not deceased; he was enumerated with his wife and son on the 1900 census in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri and he, with his family, relocated to Oklahoma in 1901. We wonder if he was away on a future relocation scouting-trip when the photo was taken.4,14,15,16

Family

Samantha Blackwood Sill b. 4 Apr 1891, d. 13 Jan 1970

Citations

  1. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas J. and Harrah R. Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 13; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1240855. Hereinafter cited as 1900 United States Federal Census.
  2. [S748] Find a Grave website, which often provides cemetery and tombstone photos, and sometimes personal biographies, that may be obtained from the site, online at www.findagrave.com, Matthew Manford Chapman, Memorial# 92954678. Hereinafter cited as Find a Grave website.
  3. [S2178] Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969, online at www.ancestry.com, death on 21 February 1961 in Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri, USA, of Matthew Manford Chapman, age 77, married to Samantha Chapman, farmer, born on 24 August 1883 in Alanthus, Gentry County, Missouri to Thomas J. Chapman and Hannah R. Smith, informant Mrs. Samantha Chapman, Stanberry, burial in High Ridge Cemetery, Stanberry, referencing Missouri Office of the Secretary of State, Jefferson City, Missouri, Missouri Death Certificates, 1910-1969, Certificate# 5033. Hereinafter cited as Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969.
  4. [S2340] Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family, with many thanks to Roxanne Held who shared the photo originally on 15 March 2022; viewed online on 19 June 2022 at https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/155036499/…. Hereinafter cited as Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family.
  5. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Samantha Blackwood (Sill) Chapman, Memorial# 53943237.
  6. [S2348] South Dakota, U.S., Marriages, 1905-2017, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage on 11 June 1913 in Clay County, South Dakota, USA, of Matthew M Chapman, age 29, born about 1884, resident of Stanberry, Missouri, and Samantha Sill, age 22, born about 1891, resident of Clay County, South Dakota, citing Certificate# 36934, South Dakota Department of Health; Pierre, South Dakota; South Dakota Marriage Records, 1905-2016. Hereinafter cited as South Dakota, U.S., Marriages, 1905-2017.
  7. [S2178] Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969, online at www.ancestry.com, death on 18 November 1950 in St. Clair County, Missouri, USA, of Whitney Logan Cooper, age 66, carpenter, building industry, married to Irene Cooper, born 12 December 1883 in Missouri to Coleman Cooper and Josephine Logan, autopsy, cause of death homicide in home, rural Collins, Washington Township, St. Clair County, gunshot wound, gun fired by Irene Cooper, informant Merle Smith, Maryville, burial on 24 November 1950 in Albany, referencing Missouri Office of the Secretary of State, Jefferson City, Missouri, Missouri Death Certificates, 1910-1969, Certificate# 38190.
  8. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Springfield Leader and Press, (Springfield, Greene County, Missouri), Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11, reporting the location of is death as seven miles west of Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri. Hereinafter cited as Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  9. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, The Albany Ledger, (Albany, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1, reporting his place of death as near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  10. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Whitney Logan “Leck” Cooper, Memorial# 18233247, reporting his place of death as Osceola, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  11. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, Springfield Leader and Press, (Springfield, Greene County, Missouri), Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11.
  12. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, The Albany Ledger, (Albany, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1.
  13. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Matthew Manford Chapman, Memorial# 92954678, reporting his burial in King City Cemetery, while we believe it was actually in High Ridge Cemetery, Stanberry.
  14. [S2244] Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog, online at https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/… .Caution: This is a beautifully presented collection of "Person Pages" containing a variety of information about specific ancestors submitted by individual contributors -- often, unfortunately, with no sources. If the information we have chosen to pass along here is accurate, we are extremely grateful to the contributor(s) who have shared it. Without documentation, however, we researchers are always forced to question the validity of information. We hope what we have selected to include was originally obtained from family Bible records, or other reliable sources, and is accurate. Although, even when we have found contributed information to be unreliable, inaccurate or incomplete, we consider the information useful as possible clues as we research, citing a lovingly written story, “Susan Ella Nelson was my Grandma”, submitted by Roxanne Plummer on 24 August 2017 which we found attached under Memories for Susan Ella Sissie Dunn, online at https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/L561-67C. Hereinafter cited as Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog.
  15. [S23] 1880 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas J. and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1880; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 687; Page: 426C; Enumeration District: 271. Hereinafter cited as 1880 United States Federal Census.
  16. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of William E. and Mary F. Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 12; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1240855.

Minnie B. Chapman1

b. September 1879
Father*Thomas J. Chapman1 b. 8 Apr 1839, d. 3 Jun 1921
Mother*Hannah R. Smith1 b. 31 Oct 1846, d. 19 Feb 1934
Birth*September 1879Minnie B. Chapman was born about September 1879 in Missouri.1 
(Daughter) Census US 188016 June 1880Minnie B. was enumerated on the 1880 census taken on 16 June 1880 in the household of her parents in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. She was nine months old.1 
(Younger Daughter) Family PhotoThis wonderful photo of the family of Thomas Jefferson Chapman and Hannah Rebecca (Smith) Chapman of Gentry County, Missouri, was shared originally by Roxanne Held on 15 March 2022 when she posted it to her Ancestry Tree. We estimate the date of the photo as about 1895, before the death that year of the couple's fourth son, James Woodson Chapman. Their younger daughter, Minnie B. Chapman, who is not in the photo, was likely deceased as we have found no evidence of her after her enumeration with her parents and siblings in the 1880 census. And the couple's second son, William Edmond Chapman, is missing from the photo and we don't know why. He was not deceased; he was enumerated with his wife and son on the 1900 census in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri and he, with his family, relocated to Oklahoma in 1901. We wonder if he was away on a future relocation scouting-trip when the photo was taken.2,3,1,4

Citations

  1. [S23] 1880 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas J. and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1880; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 687; Page: 426C; Enumeration District: 271. Hereinafter cited as 1880 United States Federal Census.
  2. [S2340] Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family, with many thanks to Roxanne Held who shared the photo originally on 15 March 2022; viewed online on 19 June 2022 at https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/155036499/…. Hereinafter cited as Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family.
  3. [S2244] Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog, online at https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/… .Caution: This is a beautifully presented collection of "Person Pages" containing a variety of information about specific ancestors submitted by individual contributors -- often, unfortunately, with no sources. If the information we have chosen to pass along here is accurate, we are extremely grateful to the contributor(s) who have shared it. Without documentation, however, we researchers are always forced to question the validity of information. We hope what we have selected to include was originally obtained from family Bible records, or other reliable sources, and is accurate. Although, even when we have found contributed information to be unreliable, inaccurate or incomplete, we consider the information useful as possible clues as we research, citing a lovingly written story, “Susan Ella Nelson was my Grandma”, submitted by Roxanne Plummer on 24 August 2017 which we found attached under Memories for Susan Ella Sissie Dunn, online at https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/L561-67C. Hereinafter cited as Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog.
  4. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of William E. and Mary F. Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 12; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1240855. Hereinafter cited as 1900 United States Federal Census.

Robert P. Chapman1,2

b. 22 May 1866, d. 22 February 1953
Father*Thomas J. Chapman3 b. 8 Apr 1839, d. 3 Jun 1921
Mother*Hannah R. Smith3 b. 31 Oct 1846, d. 19 Feb 1934
Birth*22 May 1866Robert P. Chapman was born on 22 May 1866 in Missouri.4,3,5,6 
Name VariationHis full name was Robert Price Chapman.4,7 
Name VariationHe was often called Price.4 
(Son) Census US 187027 August 1870Robert P. was enumerated on the 1870 census taken on 27 August 1870 in the household of his parents in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. He was 4 years old.8 
(Son) Census US 188016 June 1880Robert P. was enumerated on the 1880 census taken on 16 June 1880 in the household of his parents in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. He was 14 years old, was able to both read and write and had attended school within the census year. His occupation was recorded as at home.3 
Marriage*16 August 1888He married Charlotte E. Power, daughter of John Power and Lottie Hultz, on 16 August 1888 in Gentry County, Missouri.1,2,9 
Census US 1900*15 June 1900Lottie and Price Chapman were enumerated on the 1900 census taken on 15 June 1900 in Cooper Township, Stanberry City, Gentry County, Missouri. Price was 36 years of age and worked as a fire knocker, which was a job offered by the railroad companies. A description found online explained that after a train completed its run and was parked in a railway yard, the fire knockers would clear the engine of fire and cinders over a cinder pit. Charlotte was 34 years of age. They were both able to read and write, rented their house, had been married for 11 years and Charlotte had given birth to two children, only one of whom was living. Ethyle M., who was 5 years old, was enumerated with her parents in 1900. A boarder was also enumerated with the family in 1900. William Wrightsman was a widow, 41 years of age and worked as a mail carrier.5 
(Husband) Death16 July 1918Price became a widower when Lottie (Power) Chapman died at age 48 of stomach cancer on 16 July 1918. She was 8 days short of her 49th birthday.9 
Census US 1930*28 April 1930Price Chapman was enumerated on the 1930 census taken on 28 April 1930 in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. He was a widower, 63 years of age and worked as a blacksmith on his own account, in his own blacksmith shop. He rented his house, which was not on a farm, for $6.00 per month and did not own a radio set. He was reported to have been 22 years of age at his first marriage. His daughter, Irene Walker, and his granddaughter, Dolores J. Walker, were enumerated with him in 1930. Irene was 25 years of age and recorded as a widow, although she was actually divorced. She reported she had been 22 years of age at her first marriage, although our research indicates she was about age 17 when she married Raymond Earl Williams, and about age 20 when she married Melvin James Walker. She was not working outside the home in 1930. Her daughter, Dolores, was 3 years old. Everyone in the household, including Dolores, was reported as able to read and write.10 
Census US 1940*17 April 1940R. Price Chapman was enumerated on the 1940 census taken on 17 April 1940 in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. He was a widower, 73 years of age, had completed his education through the 8th grade of elementary school, and worked in his own blacksmith shop. He rented his home, which was not on a farm, for $2.00 per month, and had worked in his business for 60 hours the week before the census was taken. Enumerated with him in 1940 was his granddaughter, Dolores J. Walker, the older daughter of his daughter, Viola Irene Cooper. Dolores was 13 years old, had completed her education through the 6th grade of elementary school, and had attended school within the census year. On 1 April 1935, Price and Dolores had both resided in St. Joseph, Buchanan County, Missouri. Two items of note: first, Dolores had already been enumerated on the 1940 census taken nine days earlier in St. Joseph with her mother and stepfather, Whitney L. Cooper; and second, the family of Dolores's uncle, Martin E. Walker, her deceased father's brother, was enumerated on the 1940 census just five households away from Dolores and her grandfather, on the previous census page.4,11,12 
Social News*December 1940The Stanberry, Missouri newspaper's Social News reported that Price Chapman and his granddaughter, Dolores Walker, visited Price's daughter and son-in-law, Irene and Whit Cooper, and their daughter, Charlotte Cooper, Dolores's half-sister, in December 1940 in St. Joseph, Buchanan County, Missouri.13 
(Grandfather) Social News12 December 1940The newspaper reported on 12 December 1940, in their Social News for Alanthus and Community, that Dolores Walker and her sister Charlotte Cooper had come to the home of their grandfather, Price Chapman, on Thursday and that "to be sure, Granddad is happy to have them with him."14 
Social News*29 March 1945The Stanberry, Missouri newspaper's Social News reported on 29 March 1945 that Price Chapman had returned home from a visit of several months with his daughter and son-in-law, Irene and Whitney L. Cooper, in Kansas City, Wyandotte County, Kansas.15 
Social News*26 July 1945The newspaper in Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri, reported on 26 July 1945 in their Social News for Alanthus and Community that Charlotte Cooper of Kansas City was visiting her grandfather, Price Chapman.16 
(Grandfather) Census US 19507 April 1950Robert P. Chapman was enumerated on the 1950 census taken on 7 April 1950 in the household of his granddaughter and her husband, Dolores Jacqueline and James A. Buck, at 621 South 26th, Shawnee, Wyandotte County, Kansas. He was 83 years of age, a widower, and no longer working.17 
(Father) Death18 November 1950Price's daughter, Viola Irene Cooper, shot and killed her husband, Whitney Logan Cooper, during an argument in their home near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, on 18 November 1950. Price's son-in-law was 66 years of age.18,19,20,21 
(Father-in-Law) Murder18 November 1950Coverage of his son-in-law's murder appeared in newspapers in Stanberry and Albany, Gentry County, Missouri, and as far south as Springfield, Greene County, Missouri, with much of the reporting overlapping with the same information, especially in Gentry County. We've selected two articles that, in spite of some duplicate information, appear to provide as much of the complete story as we've found. Our transcriptions of those two articles follow:


Springfield Leader and Press, Springfield, Missouri, Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11


Woman Faces Murder Charge
____________

Shoots Her Husband Following Argument


OSCEOLA. November 20 (Special) -- A 46-year old farm wife is being held in St. Clair County jail here today, accused of the gun slaying of her 58-year-old husband during a Saturday night argument in their home seven miles west of Collins.

Prosecuting attorney E. W. Mills said a second degree murder charge had been filed against Mrs. Viola Irene Cooper in connection with the fatal shooting of her husband, Whitney Logan Cooper.

The charge was drawn against Mrs. Cooper, Mills said, after the woman signed a statement admitting the slaying.

An inquest has been scheduled for 2:00 p.m. tomorrow in the courthouse. Mills said Mrs. Cooper won’t be arraigned until after the inquest.
____________


According to Sheriff Logan Perry, the shooting occurred about 11:15 p.m. Saturday after the Coopers and Mr. and Mrs. James Buck, (James A. Buck and Dolores J. (Walker) Buck), son-in-law and daughter of Mrs. Cooper, returned to their 80-acre hill farm after a drinking party in Humansville and nearby Collins.

Perry said the Coopers and Bucks drove to Humansville early Saturday evening and spent some time in a tavern there. They also stopped in Collins for more drinks, Mrs. Cooper told the sheriff.

Mrs. Cooper, authorities added, said her husband became jealous over a man she was talking to at one of the taverns.
____________


And after they returned to their farm home, Cooper allegedly threatened to kill his wife. Mrs. Cooper then related she ran into a bedroom to get her husband’s .38 caliber revolver. When Cooper, the woman said “came at her” threateningly she pulled the trigger. The bullet went through the left side of his chest and out his back. Cooper died instantly.

The Bucks, who had lived with the Coopers for the past six weeks, confirmed Mrs. Cooper’s account of the slaying.

Surviving Cooper, who had lived near Collins “for a couple of years”, Perry said, are a daughter, Mrs. Charlotte Lester, of Kansas City, and a sister.

Funeral arrangements are under direction of Goodrich of Osceola.
____________



The Albany Ledger, Albany, Missouri, Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1


Whit Cooper Was Buried Here Last Friday Afternoon
____________

Remains Brought to Albany for Interment Following Inquest
____________


Funeral services for Whitney Logan Cooper, a former citizen of this community, were held here last Friday afternoon at 2:30 o’clock from the Brooks Funeral Home. The service was conducted by the Rev. A. Lee Hughes, pastor of the Albany Methodist Church, and interment was in the Grandview cemetery.

The remains reached Albany last Thursday morning from Collins, Missouri, where Mr. Cooper had lived. The body was held there pending an inquest held on Tuesday of last week.

Mr. Cooper was shot in the chest at 11:15 o’clock on Saturday night, November 18. The shooting took place in his home and he was killed instantly. His wife, Mrs. Viola Irene Cooper, who formerly lived near Stanberry, gave herself up to St. Clair County authorities.

Members of the family knew little of the murder. Some of the relatives who were there for the funeral knew that Mrs. Cooper had surrendered but none of them knew the circumstances leading up to the fatal shooting. It was said that Mrs. Cooper refused to testify at the inquest.

Mr. Cooper will be remembered by many persons here. He had lived in this vicinity over a period of several years. He was associated with his brother, Walter V. Cooper, Charles E. Buck and Lewis Deloyd Buck, who now lives in Denver, Colorado.

The two brothers had worked over a period of several years at the time the Cousins Lumber Company was in operation here. Whit Cooper had charge of the construction of the present Gentry County jail here and, as far as his brother knew, it was about his last construction work in this vicinity.

The following obituary was read at the funeral here last Friday:

Whitney Logan Cooper, the son of the late Coleman and Josephine Cooper, was born on December 12, 1883 in Appleton City, Missouri, and departed this life at his home near Collins, Missouri, on November 18, 1950. He was past 65 years of age.

He lived in and near Albany the early part of his life, leaving here about 25 years ago. Most of that time since he has lived in the southern part of Missouri.

He was converted when a young man at a revival at the old Gentryville church and was baptised, taking membership in the Baptist Church.

He is survived by his widow, by one daughter born to that marriage, by one brother, Walter V. Cooper, Charles E. Buck and Lewis Deloyd Buck of Denver, Colorado, and by two sisters, Ida, Merle, Gertrude, Thelma, Docia, Luella and Ethyl, wives of Leslie R. Griffith, Walter E. Smith, John Pleasant Warden, Thomas Arthur Johnson and Fred C. Cox, respectively, of Englewood, Colorado, and Maryville. There are other relatives and friends left to morn his tragic death.
____________.22,23
 
Death*22 February 1953He died on Monday Morning, 22 February 1953, in the Pine Tree Rest Home, Butler, Bates County, Missouri, at age 86.6,24 
(Son) Family PhotoThis wonderful photo of the family of Thomas Jefferson Chapman and Hannah Rebecca (Smith) Chapman of Gentry County, Missouri, was shared originally by Roxanne Held on 15 March 2022 when she posted it to her Ancestry Tree. We estimate the date of the photo as about 1895, before the death that year of the couple's fourth son, James Woodson Chapman. Their younger daughter, Minnie B. Chapman, who is not in the photo, was likely deceased as we have found no evidence of her after her enumeration with her parents and siblings in the 1880 census. And the couple's second son, William Edmond Chapman, is missing from the photo and we don't know why. He was not deceased; he was enumerated with his wife and son on the 1900 census in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri and he, with his family, relocated to Oklahoma in 1901. We wonder if he was away on a future relocation scouting-trip when the photo was taken.7,25,3,26

Family

Charlotte E. Power b. 24 Jul 1869, d. 16 Jul 1918
Children 1.Ethyl M. Chapman5 b. 19 Nov 1894, d. 19 Oct 1968
 2.Viola Irene Chapman+1 b. 1905, d. 17 Aug 1994

Citations

  1. [S1508] Iowa, U.S., Select Marriages Index, 1758-1996, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage of Viola Irene Chapman, age 18, daughter of Robert Chapman and Charlotte Power, and Raymond Earl Williams, son of Ed Williams and Frances Bonesteel, on 19 December 1922 in Council Bluffs, Pottawattamie County, Iowa, citing FHL Film# 1476880, Reference ID: 2:3WV1RNV. Hereinafter cited as Iowa, U.S., Select Marriages Index, 1758-1996.
  2. [S1732] Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage on 16 August 1888 in Gentry County, Missouri, USA, of Robert P Chapman and Charlotte E Power, referencing Missouri State Archives, Jefferson City, MO, USA, Missouri Marriage Records [Microfilm]. Hereinafter cited as Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002.
  3. [S23] 1880 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas J. and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1880; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 687; Page: 426C; Enumeration District: 271. Hereinafter cited as 1880 United States Federal Census.
  4. [S1441] 1940 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of R. Price Chapman, Year: 1940; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: m-t0627-02106; Page: 8A; Enumeration District: 38-18. Hereinafter cited as 1940 United States Federal Census.
  5. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Price and Charlotte Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Stanberry, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 27; Enumeration District: 0083; FHL microfilm: 1240855. Hereinafter cited as 1900 United States Federal Census.
  6. [S2178] Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969, online at www.ancestry.com, death on 22 February 1953 in Pine Tree Rest Home, Butler, Bates County, Missouri, USA, of Robert Chapman, 86, widowed, blacksmith, born in Missouri on 22 May 1866, informant St. Clair County Welfare, burial in Stanberry cemetery, referencing Missouri Office of the Secretary of State, Jefferson City, Missouri, Missouri Death Certificates, 1910-1969, Certificate# 4786. Hereinafter cited as Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969.
  7. [S2340] Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family, with many thanks to Roxanne Held who shared the photo originally on 15 March 2022; viewed online on 19 June 2022 at https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/155036499/…. Hereinafter cited as Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family.
  8. [S37] 1870 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1870; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: M593_776; Page: 673B. Hereinafter cited as 1870 United States Federal Census.
  9. [S748] Find a Grave website, which often provides cemetery and tombstone photos, and sometimes personal biographies, that may be obtained from the site, online at www.findagrave.com, Charlotte E. “Lottie” (Power) Chapman, Memorial# 103052784. Hereinafter cited as Find a Grave website.
  10. [S91] 1930 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Price Chapman, Year: 1930; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Page: 9A; Enumeration District: 0017; FHL microfilm: 2340923. Hereinafter cited as 1930 United States Federal Census.
  11. [S1441] 1940 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of W. L. and Irene Cooper, Year: 1940; Census Place: St Joseph, Buchanan, Missouri; Roll: m-t0627-02088; Pages: 7A and 7B; Enumeration District: 11-55.
  12. [S1441] 1940 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Martin E. and Hazel I. Walker, Year: 1940; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: m-t0627-02106; Page: 7B; Enumeration District: 38-18.
  13. [S2304] Price Chapman, Dolores Walker, Irene, Whitney and Charlotte Cooper (December 1940) Visit, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Stanberry Herald - Headlight (Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 2 January 1941, page 4, Alanthus and Community Social News: Price Chapman and Dolores Walker visited last week with his son-in-law and daughter, Mr. and Mrs. Whit Cooper, and daughter, Charlotte, in St. Joseph. Hereinafter cited as Price Chapman, Dolores Walker, Irene, Whitney and Charlotte Cooper (December 1940) Visit.
  14. [S2307] Price Chapman Visited by Granddaughters Walker and Cooper (December 1940), online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Stanberry Herald - Headlight (Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 12 December 1940, page 9, Alanthus and Community Social News: Deloris Walker and sister Charlotte Cooper visiting their grandfather, Price Chapman. Hereinafter cited as Price Chapman Visited by Granddaughters Walker and Cooper (December 1940).
  15. [S2305] Price Chapman Visit to Cooper Daughter and Son-in-Law (Winter 1945), online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Stanberry Herald - Headlight (Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 29 March 1945, page 9, Social News: Price Chapman has returned home from a visit of several months in the home of his son-in-law and daughter, Mr. and Mrs. Whitney Cooper, at Kansas City, Kansas. Hereinafter cited as Price Chapman Visit to Cooper Daughter and Son-in-Law (Winter 1945).
  16. [S2306] Charlotte Cooper July 1945 Visit to Grandfather Price Chapman, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Stanberry Herald - Headlight (Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 26 July 1945, page 7, Alanthus and Community Social News: Charlotte Cooper of Kansas City is visiting her grandfather, Price Chapman. Hereinafter cited as Charlotte Cooper July 1945 Visit to Grandfather Price Chapman.
  17. [S2295] 1950 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of James A. and Dolores Jacqueline Buck, United States of America, Bureau of the Census; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790-2007; Record Group Number: 29; Residence Date: 1950; Home in 1950: Shawnee, Wyandotte, Kansas; Roll: 6264; Sheet Number: 1; Enumeration District: 105-20. Hereinafter cited as 1950 United States Federal Census.
  18. [S2178] Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969, online at www.ancestry.com, death on 18 November 1950 in St. Clair County, Missouri, USA, of Whitney Logan Cooper, age 66, carpenter, building industry, married to Irene Cooper, born 12 December 1883 in Missouri to Coleman Cooper and Josephine Logan, autopsy, cause of death homicide in home, rural Collins, Washington Township, St. Clair County, gunshot wound, gun fired by Irene Cooper, informant Merle Smith, Maryville, burial on 24 November 1950 in Albany, referencing Missouri Office of the Secretary of State, Jefferson City, Missouri, Missouri Death Certificates, 1910-1969, Certificate# 38190.
  19. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Springfield Leader and Press, (Springfield, Greene County, Missouri), Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11, reporting the location of is death as seven miles west of Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri. Hereinafter cited as Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  20. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, The Albany Ledger, (Albany, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1, reporting his place of death as near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  21. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Whitney Logan “Leck” Cooper, Memorial# 18233247, reporting his place of death as Osceola, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  22. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, Springfield Leader and Press, (Springfield, Greene County, Missouri), Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11.
  23. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, The Albany Ledger, (Albany, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1.
  24. [S2344] Robert Price Chapman 1953 Obituary, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Stanberry Herald - Headlight, (Stanberry, Missouri), Thursday, 26 February 1953, page 1, obituary for R. P. (Price) Chapman, 86, resident of Stanberry and Alanthus area for most of his life, died Monday morning at a Butler, Missouri nursing home where he had been cared for the past several years; had suffered stroke about four years ago and had been in ill health from that date, burial in High Ridge cemetery; during his residence in Stanberry he had operated a dray business and for a number of years was employed as a mechanic in the Wabash Railroad Company shops, born near Alanthus, son of late Thomas and Hannah Chapman, married in 1890 to Miss Lottie Powers who died in 1917, during early life a farmer, member First Baptist church, left Stanberry about seven years ago to live with granddaughter in Kansas City until condition of his health required nursing home care, his two daughters, Mrs. Ethel Cox of California and Mrs. Irene Cooper of Butler County, Missouri, two brothers, Willis Chapman and M. M. Chapman, both of Stanberry, one sister Mrs. Julia Gage of Alanthus, four grandchildren and four great grandchildren, survive him. Hereinafter cited as Robert Price Chapman 1953 Obituary.
  25. [S2244] Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog, online at https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/… .Caution: This is a beautifully presented collection of "Person Pages" containing a variety of information about specific ancestors submitted by individual contributors -- often, unfortunately, with no sources. If the information we have chosen to pass along here is accurate, we are extremely grateful to the contributor(s) who have shared it. Without documentation, however, we researchers are always forced to question the validity of information. We hope what we have selected to include was originally obtained from family Bible records, or other reliable sources, and is accurate. Although, even when we have found contributed information to be unreliable, inaccurate or incomplete, we consider the information useful as possible clues as we research, citing a lovingly written story, “Susan Ella Nelson was my Grandma”, submitted by Roxanne Plummer on 24 August 2017 which we found attached under Memories for Susan Ella Sissie Dunn, online at https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/L561-67C. Hereinafter cited as Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog.
  26. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of William E. and Mary F. Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 12; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1240855.

Sallie Ann Chapman1,2

b. 19 July 1920, d. 5 November 2000
Birth*19 July 1920Sallie Ann Chapman was born on 19 July 1920.2 
Marriage*June 1949She likely married William Jackson Garrett, son of John E. Garrett and Cynthia E. Valentine, shortly after their license was issued in Knoxville, Knox County, Tennessee, in June 1949. Jack was 29 years of age and gave his address as 631 Johnston Street, and Sallie Ann was 28 years of age and her address was 220 Bayless Street.1,3,2 
(Wife) Death1 October 1988Sallie became a widow when William Jack Garrett died on 1 October 1988 at age 68.3 
Death*5 November 2000She died on 5 November 2000 at age 802 
Burial* and was buried with her husband in Plot B-2831B, Row 22, of Knoxville National Cemetery, Knoxville, Knox County, Tennessee.2,3 

Family

William J. Garrett b. 26 Dec 1919, d. 1 Oct 1988

Citations

  1. [S2161] U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-current, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage license issued to William Jackson Garrett, age 29, of 631 Johnston Street, and Sally Ann Chapman, age 28, of 220 Bayless Street, in June 1949 in Knoxville, Knox County, Tennessee, referencing The Knoxville News-Sentinel, published on 22 June 1949 in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA, citing https://www.newspapers.com/image/773063236/,0.39926955,0.7482559,0.50095916&xid=3398. Hereinafter cited as U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-current.
  2. [S748] Find a Grave website, which often provides cemetery and tombstone photos, and sometimes personal biographies, that may be obtained from the site, online at www.findagrave.com, Sallie Ann Garrett, Memorial# 49902121. Hereinafter cited as Find a Grave website.
  3. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, PFC William Jack Garrett, Memorial# 49902164.

Thomas H. Chapman1

b. 15 March 1869, d. 13 January 1948
Father*Thomas J. Chapman1 b. 8 Apr 1839, d. 3 Jun 1921
Mother*Hannah R. Smith1 b. 31 Oct 1846, d. 19 Feb 1934
Birth*15 March 1869Thomas H. Chapman was born on 15 March 1869 in Gentry County, Missouri.1,2 
Name VariationHe was called Henry.2 
Name VariationHis full name was Thomas Henry Chapman.3 
(Son) Census US 187027 August 1870Thomas was enumerated on the 1870 census taken on 27 August 1870 in the household of his parents in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. He was one year old.4 
(Son) Census US 188016 June 1880Thomas H. was enumerated on the 1880 census taken on 16 June 1880 in the household of his parents in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. He was 1 years old, unable to write, although he could read, and had attended school within the census year.1 
Marriage*22 February 1899He married first Lillie Ruch, daughter of John Ruch and Mary Jane Lewis, on 22 February 1899 in Gentry County, Missouri. They were married at the home of Martin Baker by G. L. Bowman, a Minister of the Gospel.5,2,6 
(Husband) Death21 January 1905Henry became a widower when Mary Lilly (Ruch) Chapman died on 21 January 1905 at age 29.5 
Marriage*20 July 1906He married second Florence McCrery on 20 July 1906 in Gentry County, Missouri.7,2,8 
Death*13 January 1948He died on 13 January 1948 in Ravenwood, Nodaway County, Missouri, at age 782 
Burial* and was buried in Greenridge Cemetery, Gentry County, Missouri.2 
(Son) Family PhotoThis wonderful photo of the family of Thomas Jefferson Chapman and Hannah Rebecca (Smith) Chapman of Gentry County, Missouri, was shared originally by Roxanne Held on 15 March 2022 when she posted it to her Ancestry Tree. We estimate the date of the photo as about 1895, before the death that year of the couple's fourth son, James Woodson Chapman. Their younger daughter, Minnie B. Chapman, who is not in the photo, was likely deceased as we have found no evidence of her after her enumeration with her parents and siblings in the 1880 census. And the couple's second son, William Edmond Chapman, is missing from the photo and we don't know why. He was not deceased; he was enumerated with his wife and son on the 1900 census in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri and he, with his family, relocated to Oklahoma in 1901. We wonder if he was away on a future relocation scouting-trip when the photo was taken.3,9,1,10

Family 1

Mary Lilly Ruch b. 15 Sep 1875, d. 21 Jan 1905

Family 2

Florence McCrery b. 1883, d. 1959

Citations

  1. [S23] 1880 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas J. and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1880; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 687; Page: 426C; Enumeration District: 271. Hereinafter cited as 1880 United States Federal Census.
  2. [S748] Find a Grave website, which often provides cemetery and tombstone photos, and sometimes personal biographies, that may be obtained from the site, online at www.findagrave.com, Thomas Henry “Henry” Chapman, Memorial# 47292664. Hereinafter cited as Find a Grave website.
  3. [S2340] Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family, with many thanks to Roxanne Held who shared the photo originally on 15 March 2022; viewed online on 19 June 2022 at https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/155036499/…. Hereinafter cited as Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family.
  4. [S37] 1870 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1870; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: M593_776; Page: 673B. Hereinafter cited as 1870 United States Federal Census.
  5. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Mary Lilly (Ruch) Chapman, Memorial# 47341464.
  6. [S1732] Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage on 22 February 1899 at Martin Baker's, in Gentry County, Missouri, USA, of Lillie Ruch of Alanthus Grove, Gentry County, who was over the age of 18 years, and Henry Chapman of Alanthus Grove, Gentry County, who was over the age of 21 years,, referencing Missouri State Archives, Jefferson City, MO, USA, Missouri Marriage Records [Microfilm]. Hereinafter cited as Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002.
  7. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Florence (McCrery) Chapman, Memorial# 46918717.
  8. [S1732] Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage on 20 July 1906 in Gentry County, Missouri, USA, of Henry Chapman and D F Mccrery, both of Gentry, Gentry County, referencing Missouri State Archives, Jefferson City, MO, USA, Missouri Marriage Records [Microfilm].
  9. [S2244] Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog, online at https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/… .Caution: This is a beautifully presented collection of "Person Pages" containing a variety of information about specific ancestors submitted by individual contributors -- often, unfortunately, with no sources. If the information we have chosen to pass along here is accurate, we are extremely grateful to the contributor(s) who have shared it. Without documentation, however, we researchers are always forced to question the validity of information. We hope what we have selected to include was originally obtained from family Bible records, or other reliable sources, and is accurate. Although, even when we have found contributed information to be unreliable, inaccurate or incomplete, we consider the information useful as possible clues as we research, citing a lovingly written story, “Susan Ella Nelson was my Grandma”, submitted by Roxanne Plummer on 24 August 2017 which we found attached under Memories for Susan Ella Sissie Dunn, online at https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/L561-67C. Hereinafter cited as Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog.
  10. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of William E. and Mary F. Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 12; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1240855. Hereinafter cited as 1900 United States Federal Census.

Thomas J. Chapman1

b. 8 April 1839, d. 3 June 1921
Birth*8 April 1839Thomas J. Chapman was born on 8 April 1839 in Randolf, Clay County, Missouri.1,2 
Name VariationHis full name was Thomas Jefferson Chapman.2 
Marriage*1865He married Hannah R. Smith, daughter of Pleasant F. Smith and Thursey Means, about 1865.1,3,2,4 
Census US 1870*27 August 1870Hannah R. and Thomas J. Chapman were enumerated on the 1870 census taken on 27 August 1870 in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. Thomas was 32 years of age and a farmer with real estate valued at $600, and Hannah was 24 years of age, could read and not write, and was keeping house. Three children were enumerated with them in 1870. Robert P. was 4 years old; William E. was age 3; and Thomas was one year old. Hannah's mother, Thursey (Means) Smith, whom we suspect had been widowed, was enumerated with Hannah's two youngest siblings two households below the Chapman's in 1870.5 
Census US 1880*16 June 1880Hannah R. and Thomas J. Chapman were enumerated on the 1880 census taken on 16 June 1880 in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. Thomas was 39 years of age and a farmer, and Hannah was 34 years of age and was not able to write, although she could read. They were enumerated with their nine children in 1880. Robert P. was 14 years old, able to both read and write and had attended school within the census year. His occupation was recorded as at home. William E. and Thomas H. were ages 12 and 11 years, respectively. They were unable to write, although both could read, and had attended school within the census year. James W., Julia A. and Amos A., were ages 9, 7 and 6 years, respectively, and had all attended school within the census year; John S. and George W. were ages 4 and 2 years, respectively; and baby Minnie B. was nine months old.1 
Census US 1900*23 June 1900Hannah and Thomas J. Chapman were enumerated on the 1900 census taken on 23 June 1900 in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. Thomas was 61 years of age and a farmer, and Hannah was 53 years of age. They owned their farm with a mortgage, had been married for 38 years, and Hannah had given birth to ten children, eight of whom were living. Their youngest son, Matthew M., was enumerated with them in 1900. He was 16 years old, was able to both read and write, had attended school for six months of the census year and worked as a laborer on the family farm when not in school. William C. Smith, was also enumerated in the Chapman household in 1900. He was 46 years of age, single, and worked as a laborer on the farm. No relationship to Hannah was identified, and it's possible there was none and he was "just another Smith."6 
Death*3 June 1921He died on 3 June 1921 in Alanthus Grove, Gentry County, Missouri, at age 822 
Burial* and was buried in Jennings Cemetery, Alanthus Grove.2 
Family Photo*This wonderful photo of the family of Thomas Jefferson Chapman and Hannah Rebecca (Smith) Chapman of Gentry County, Missouri, was shared originally by Roxanne Held on 15 March 2022 when she posted it to her Ancestry Tree. We estimate the date of the photo as about 1895, before the death that year of the couple's fourth son, James Woodson Chapman. Their younger daughter, Minnie B. Chapman, who is not in the photo, was likely deceased as we have found no evidence of her after her enumeration with her parents and siblings in the 1880 census. And the couple's second son, William Edmond Chapman, is missing from the photo and we don't know why. He was not deceased; he was enumerated with his wife and son on the 1900 census in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri and he, with his family, relocated to Oklahoma in 1901. We wonder if he was away on a future relocation scouting-trip when the photo was taken.7,8,1,9

Family

Hannah R. Smith b. 31 Oct 1846, d. 19 Feb 1934
Children 1.Robert P. Chapman+1 b. 22 May 1866, d. 22 Feb 1953
 2.William E. Chapman+1 b. Oct 1867, d. 30 Nov 1939
 3.Thomas H. Chapman1 b. 15 Mar 1869, d. 13 Jan 1948
 4.James W. Chapman+1 b. 1871, d. 1895
 5.Julia A. Chapman1 b. 9 Oct 1872, d. 21 Nov 1959
 6.Amos A. Chapman1 b. 15 Feb 1874, d. 17 Oct 1944
 7.John S. Chapman1 b. 24 Oct 1875, d. 4 Aug 1944
 8.George W. Chapman1 b. 17 Mar 1878, d. 18 Mar 1963
 9.Minnie B. Chapman1 b. Sep 1879
 10.Matthew M. Chapman6 b. 24 Aug 1883, d. 21 Feb 1961

Citations

  1. [S23] 1880 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas J. and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1880; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 687; Page: 426C; Enumeration District: 271. Hereinafter cited as 1880 United States Federal Census.
  2. [S748] Find a Grave website, which often provides cemetery and tombstone photos, and sometimes personal biographies, that may be obtained from the site, online at www.findagrave.com, Thomas Jefferson Chapman, Memorial# 41235304. Hereinafter cited as Find a Grave website.
  3. [S2313] Hannah Rebecca (Smith) Chapman 1934 Obituary, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Stanberry Herald - Headlight, (Stanberry, Missouri), Thursday, 22 February 1934, page 1, Mrs. Hannah R. Chapman, a resident of Gentry County for 80 years, died at her home in Alanthus on Monday morning at 6:25 o'clock. death due to ravages of old age, 87 years, 3 months, 18 days old, born on 31 October 1846 in Platte County, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Pleasant Smith, married T. J. Chapman about 1865, he died in 1921, ten children, eight living: R. P. Chapman of Alanthus, W. E. Chapman of Apache, Oklahoma, Henry Chapman and Mrs. Julia Gage of Gentry, Amos Chapman of Mt. Ida, Kansas, John Chapman of Parnell, Missouri, Willis and M. M. Chapman of Stanberry; also survived by one brother Sam Smith and many other relatives and friends; Funeral Tuesday at the Baptist Church in Alanthus and interment in Jennings Cemetery. Hereinafter cited as Hannah Rebecca (Smith) Chapman 1934 Obituary.
  4. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Hanna Rebecca (Smith) Chapman, Memorial# 41235143.
  5. [S37] 1870 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1870; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: M593_776; Page: 673B. Hereinafter cited as 1870 United States Federal Census.
  6. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas J. and Harrah R. Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 13; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1240855. Hereinafter cited as 1900 United States Federal Census.
  7. [S2340] Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family, with many thanks to Roxanne Held who shared the photo originally on 15 March 2022; viewed online on 19 June 2022 at https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/155036499/…. Hereinafter cited as Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family.
  8. [S2244] Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog, online at https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/… .Caution: This is a beautifully presented collection of "Person Pages" containing a variety of information about specific ancestors submitted by individual contributors -- often, unfortunately, with no sources. If the information we have chosen to pass along here is accurate, we are extremely grateful to the contributor(s) who have shared it. Without documentation, however, we researchers are always forced to question the validity of information. We hope what we have selected to include was originally obtained from family Bible records, or other reliable sources, and is accurate. Although, even when we have found contributed information to be unreliable, inaccurate or incomplete, we consider the information useful as possible clues as we research, citing a lovingly written story, “Susan Ella Nelson was my Grandma”, submitted by Roxanne Plummer on 24 August 2017 which we found attached under Memories for Susan Ella Sissie Dunn, online at https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/L561-67C. Hereinafter cited as Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog.
  9. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of William E. and Mary F. Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 12; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1240855.

Viola Irene Chapman1

b. 1905, d. 17 August 1994
Father*Robert P. Chapman2 b. 22 May 1866, d. 22 Feb 1953
Mother*Charlotte E. Power2 b. 24 Jul 1869, d. 16 Jul 1918
Birth*1905Viola Irene Chapman was born about 1905 in Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri.1,3,2 
Name VariationShe was called Irene.1 
Marriage*19 December 1922She married first Raymond Earl Williams, son of Edward C. Williams and Frances E. Bonesteel, on 19 December 1922 in Council Bluffs, Pottawattamie County, Iowa.2 
Marriage*13 April 1925She married second, as his first wife, Mr. Melvin J. Walker, son of Elza Ackert Walker and Bertha Etta Coffey, on Monday evening, 13 April 1925 at 4:30 PM in the parlors of the Grandview Hotel, Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri. Irene married using her maiden name, and the Pastor of the Christian Church performed their ceremony. Melvin was working in Omaha, Nebraska, and the couple planned to live there.4,5 
Divorce*September 1927Irene filed for divorce against Melvin in 1927, and in September 1927, the Circuit Court in Albany, Gentry County, Missouri, in the case of Irene Walker, Plaintiff, vs. Melvin J. Walker, Defendant, awarded a Decree of divorce to the plaintiff. Additionally, the care and custody of their minor daughter, Dolores J. Walker, who was ten months old, was also awarded to Irene.6 
(Daughter) Census US 193028 April 1930Irene Walker was enumerated with her daughter, Dolores J. Walker on the 1930 census taken on 28 April 1930 in the household of her widowed father, Price Chapman, in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. Irene was 25 years of age and recorded as a widow, although she was actually divorced. She reported she had been 22 years of age at her first marriage, although our research indicates she was about age 17 when she married Raymond Earl Williams, and about age 20 when she married Melvin James Walker. She was not working outside the home in 1930. Her daughter, Dolores J. Walker, was 3 years old. Everyone in the household, including Dolores, was reported as able to read and write.7 
Marriage*She married third, as his second wife, Whitney Logan Cooper, son of Coleman Cooper and Josephine Logan.1 
Census US 1940*8 April 1940Irene and Whitney L. Cooper were enumerated on the 1940 census taken on 8 April 1940 on Bartlett Street, St. Joseph, Buchanan County, Missouri. Whitney was 49 years of age, had completed his education through two years of college, and worked as a carpenter doing building construction for the government. Irene was 35 years of age, had completed her education through the 8th grade of elementary school, and was doing the housework. Irene's daughter from her second marriage, Dolores J. Walker, was enumerated with the surname Cooper. She was 13 years old, had completed her education through the 6th grade of elementary school, and had attended school within the census year. Everyone in the household was recorded as having lived in rural Gentry County, Missouri on 1 April 1935. Of note is that nine days after this census was taken, Irene's daughter, Dolores, would be enumerated a second time in the household of her maternal grandfather, Robert Price Chapman, in Wilson, Gentry County, Missouri who lived just five households away, on the next census page, from Dolores's uncle, Martin E. Walker, brother of Dolores's deceased father.8,9,10 
(Daughter) Social NewsDecember 1940The Stanberry, Missouri newspaper's Social News reported that the Coopers, Irene, Whit and their daughter, Charlotte, who lived in St. Joseph, Buchanan County, Missouri, were visited in December 1940 by Irene's father, Price Chapman, and his granddaughter, Dolores Walker, Irene's other daughter, who lived with her maternal grandfather in Gentry County, Missouri.11 
(Daughter) Social News29 March 1945The Stanberry, Missouri newspaper's Social News reported on 29 March 1945 that Irene's father, Price Chapman, had returned home from a visit of several months with his daughter and son-in-law, Irene and Whitney L. Cooper, in Kansas City, Wyandotte County, Kansas.12 
Census US 1950*20 April 1950Irene and Whitney Logan Cooper were enumerated on the 1950 census taken on 20 April 1950 in Washington, St. Clair County, Missouri.1 
(Wife) Death18 November 1950She became a widow when she shot and killed her husband, Whitney Logan Cooper, during an argument on 18 November 1950 in their home near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri. He was 66 years of age.13,14,15,16 
(Wife) Murder18 November 1950Coverage of her husband's murder appeared in newspapers in Stanberry and Albany, Gentry County, Missouri, and as far south as Springfield, Greene County, Missouri, with much of the reporting overlapping with the same information, especially in Gentry County. We've selected two articles that, in spite of some duplicate information, appear to provide as much of the complete story as we've found. Our transcriptions of those two articles follow:


Springfield Leader and Press, Springfield, Missouri, Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11


Woman Faces Murder Charge
____________

Shoots Her Husband Following Argument


OSCEOLA. November 20 (Special) -- A 46-year old farm wife is being held in St. Clair County jail here today, accused of the gun slaying of her 58-year-old husband during a Saturday night argument in their home seven miles west of Collins.

Prosecuting attorney E. W. Mills said a second degree murder charge had been filed against Mrs. Viola Irene Cooper in connection with the fatal shooting of her husband, Whitney Logan Cooper.

The charge was drawn against Mrs. Cooper, Mills said, after the woman signed a statement admitting the slaying.

An inquest has been scheduled for 2:00 p.m. tomorrow in the courthouse. Mills said Mrs. Cooper won’t be arraigned until after the inquest.
____________


According to Sheriff Logan Perry, the shooting occurred about 11:15 p.m. Saturday after the Coopers and Mr. and Mrs. James Buck, (James A. Buck and Dolores J. (Walker) Buck), son-in-law and daughter of Mrs. Cooper, returned to their 80-acre hill farm after a drinking party in Humansville and nearby Collins.

Perry said the Coopers and Bucks drove to Humansville early Saturday evening and spent some time in a tavern there. They also stopped in Collins for more drinks, Mrs. Cooper told the sheriff.

Mrs. Cooper, authorities added, said her husband became jealous over a man she was talking to at one of the taverns.
____________


And after they returned to their farm home, Cooper allegedly threatened to kill his wife. Mrs. Cooper then related she ran into a bedroom to get her husband’s .38 caliber revolver. When Cooper, the woman said “came at her” threateningly she pulled the trigger. The bullet went through the left side of his chest and out his back. Cooper died instantly.

The Bucks, who had lived with the Coopers for the past six weeks, confirmed Mrs. Cooper’s account of the slaying.

Surviving Cooper, who had lived near Collins “for a couple of years”, Perry said, are a daughter, Mrs. Charlotte Lester, of Kansas City, and a sister.

Funeral arrangements are under direction of Goodrich of Osceola.
____________



The Albany Ledger, Albany, Missouri, Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1


Whit Cooper Was Buried Here Last Friday Afternoon
____________

Remains Brought to Albany for Interment Following Inquest
____________


Funeral services for Whitney Logan Cooper, a former citizen of this community, were held here last Friday afternoon at 2:30 o’clock from the Brooks Funeral Home. The service was conducted by the Rev. A. Lee Hughes, pastor of the Albany Methodist Church, and interment was in the Grandview cemetery.

The remains reached Albany last Thursday morning from Collins, Missouri, where Mr. Cooper had lived. The body was held there pending an inquest held on Tuesday of last week.

Mr. Cooper was shot in the chest at 11:15 o’clock on Saturday night, November 18. The shooting took place in his home and he was killed instantly. His wife, Mrs. Viola Irene Cooper, who formerly lived near Stanberry, gave herself up to St. Clair County authorities.

Members of the family knew little of the murder. Some of the relatives who were there for the funeral knew that Mrs. Cooper had surrendered but none of them knew the circumstances leading up to the fatal shooting. It was said that Mrs. Cooper refused to testify at the inquest.

Mr. Cooper will be remembered by many persons here. He had lived in this vicinity over a period of several years. He was associated with his brother, Walter V. Cooper, Charles E. Buck and Lewis Deloyd Buck, who now lives in Denver, Colorado.

The two brothers had worked over a period of several years at the time the Cousins Lumber Company was in operation here. Whit Cooper had charge of the construction of the present Gentry County jail here and, as far as his brother knew, it was about his last construction work in this vicinity.

The following obituary was read at the funeral here last Friday:

Whitney Logan Cooper, the son of the late Coleman and Josephine Cooper, was born on December 12, 1883 in Appleton City, Missouri, and departed this life at his home near Collins, Missouri, on November 18, 1950. He was past 65 years of age.

He lived in and near Albany the early part of his life, leaving here about 25 years ago. Most of that time since he has lived in the southern part of Missouri.

He was converted when a young man at a revival at the old Gentryville church and was baptised, taking membership in the Baptist Church.

He is survived by his widow, by one daughter born to that marriage, by one brother, Walter V. Cooper, Charles E. Buck and Lewis Deloyd Buck of Denver, Colorado, and by two sisters, Ida, Merle, Gertrude, Thelma, Docia, Luella and Ethyl, wives of Leslie R. Griffith, Walter E. Smith, John Pleasant Warden, Thomas Arthur Johnson and Fred C. Cox, respectively, of Englewood, Colorado, and Maryville. There are other relatives and friends left to morn his tragic death.
____________.17,18
 
Death*17 August 1994She died as Viola Irene Cooper on 17 August 1994 at Bethany Medical Center, Kansas City, Wyandotte County, Kansas, at age 89.3 

Family 2

Melvin J. Walker b. 27 Nov 1904, d. 25 Aug 1932
Child 1.Dolores J. Walker19 b. 19 Jan 1927, d. 15 Aug 1973

Family 3

Whitney Logan Cooper b. 12 Dec 1883, d. 18 Nov 1950
Child 1.Charlotte Cooper20 b. 11 Mar 1932, d. 7 Jun 1994

Citations

  1. [S2295] 1950 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Whitney L. and Irene Cooper, United States of America, Bureau of the Census; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790-2007; Record Group Number: 29; Residence Date: 1950; Home in 1950: Washington, St Clair, Missouri; Roll: 4034; Sheet Number: 72; Enumeration District: 93-26. Hereinafter cited as 1950 United States Federal Census.
  2. [S1508] Iowa, U.S., Select Marriages Index, 1758-1996, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage of Viola Irene Chapman, age 18, daughter of Robert Chapman and Charlotte Power, and Raymond Earl Williams, son of Ed Williams and Frances Bonesteel, on 19 December 1922 in Council Bluffs, Pottawattamie County, Iowa, citing FHL Film# 1476880, Reference ID: 2:3WV1RNV. Hereinafter cited as Iowa, U.S., Select Marriages Index, 1758-1996.
  3. [S2311] Viola Irene (Chapman) Cooper 1994 Obituary, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, The Kansas City Star, (Kansas City Missouri), Thursday, 18 August 1994, page 33, Viola Irene Cooper, age 89, died on 17 August 1994 at Bethany Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas, Services held at Newcomer’s Overland Park Chapel, cremation; born in Stanberry, Missouri, widow of Whitney Cooper, survivors included five grandchildren, ten great grandchildren, eight great-great grandchildren. Hereinafter cited as Viola Irene (Chapman) Cooper 1994 Obituary.
  4. [S748] Find a Grave website, which often provides cemetery and tombstone photos, and sometimes personal biographies, that may be obtained from the site, online at www.findagrave.com, Melvin James Walker, Memorial# 65425808. Hereinafter cited as Find a Grave website.
  5. [S2161] U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-current, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage of Mr. James Melvin Walker and Miss Viola Irene Chapman on Monday evening, 13 April 1925 in the parlors of the Grandview Hotel, J. F. Bickel, Pastor of the Christian Church officiating, citing The Stanberry Herald - Headlight, published on 16 April 1925 in Stanberry, Missouri, USA, viewed 15 May 2022 online at https://www.newspapers.com/image/222897580/,0.51592475,0.33414394,0.58806413&xid=3398&_gl=1*ff9gwn*_ga*MTMwMTEzNDg0My4xNTc0ODcxNzM1*_ga_4QT8FMEX30*MTY1MjYyNDMxNy41MS4xLjE2NTI2MjU0MTkuMA..&_ga=2.22642619.1215081614.1651618066-1301134843.1574871735. Hereinafter cited as U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-current.
  6. [S2296] Irene Walker vs. Melvin J. Walker 1927 Divorce Decree, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, The Stanberry Herald - Highlight, Stanberry, Gentry County, Ohio, Thursday, 15 September 1927, page 4, report from the court regarding Irene Walker vs. Melvin J. Walker divorce, decree of divorce for the plaintiff, and care and custody of minor child awarded to plaintiff. Hereinafter cited as Irene Walker vs. Melvin J. Walker 1927 Divorce Decree.
  7. [S91] 1930 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Price Chapman, Year: 1930; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Page: 9A; Enumeration District: 0017; FHL microfilm: 2340923. Hereinafter cited as 1930 United States Federal Census.
  8. [S1441] 1940 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of W. L. and Irene Cooper, Year: 1940; Census Place: St Joseph, Buchanan, Missouri; Roll: m-t0627-02088; Pages: 7A and 7B; Enumeration District: 11-55. Hereinafter cited as 1940 United States Federal Census.
  9. [S1441] 1940 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of R. Price Chapman, Year: 1940; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: m-t0627-02106; Page: 8A; Enumeration District: 38-18.
  10. [S1441] 1940 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Martin E. and Hazel I. Walker, Year: 1940; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: m-t0627-02106; Page: 7B; Enumeration District: 38-18.
  11. [S2304] Price Chapman, Dolores Walker, Irene, Whitney and Charlotte Cooper (December 1940) Visit, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Stanberry Herald - Headlight (Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 2 January 1941, page 4, Alanthus and Community Social News: Price Chapman and Dolores Walker visited last week with his son-in-law and daughter, Mr. and Mrs. Whit Cooper, and daughter, Charlotte, in St. Joseph. Hereinafter cited as Price Chapman, Dolores Walker, Irene, Whitney and Charlotte Cooper (December 1940) Visit.
  12. [S2305] Price Chapman Visit to Cooper Daughter and Son-in-Law (Winter 1945), online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Stanberry Herald - Headlight (Stanberry, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 29 March 1945, page 9, Social News: Price Chapman has returned home from a visit of several months in the home of his son-in-law and daughter, Mr. and Mrs. Whitney Cooper, at Kansas City, Kansas. Hereinafter cited as Price Chapman Visit to Cooper Daughter and Son-in-Law (Winter 1945).
  13. [S2178] Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969, online at www.ancestry.com, death on 18 November 1950 in St. Clair County, Missouri, USA, of Whitney Logan Cooper, age 66, carpenter, building industry, married to Irene Cooper, born 12 December 1883 in Missouri to Coleman Cooper and Josephine Logan, autopsy, cause of death homicide in home, rural Collins, Washington Township, St. Clair County, gunshot wound, gun fired by Irene Cooper, informant Merle Smith, Maryville, burial on 24 November 1950 in Albany, referencing Missouri Office of the Secretary of State, Jefferson City, Missouri, Missouri Death Certificates, 1910-1969, Certificate# 38190. Hereinafter cited as Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1969.
  14. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, Springfield Leader and Press, (Springfield, Greene County, Missouri), Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11, reporting the location of is death as seven miles west of Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri. Hereinafter cited as Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  15. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, The Albany Ledger, (Albany, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1, reporting his place of death as near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  16. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Whitney Logan “Leck” Cooper, Memorial# 18233247, reporting his place of death as Osceola, St. Clair County, Missouri.
  17. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, Springfield Leader and Press, (Springfield, Greene County, Missouri), Monday, 20 November 1950, page 11.
  18. [S2312] Newspaper Stories Regarding the 1950 Murder of Whitney Logan Cooper near Collins, St. Clair County, Missouri, online at www.newspapers.com, The Albany Ledger, (Albany, Gentry County, Missouri), Thursday, 30 November 1950, page 1.
  19. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Dolores J. Buck, Memorial# 3652247.
  20. [S1456] Social Security (U.S.) Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007, online at www.ancestry.com, Social Security information for Charlotte Joan Cooper, born on 1 March 1930 at Alanthus Gen, Missouri, child of Whitney L Cooper and Viola I Chapman, died in 7 June 1994, agency notes: Mar 1946: Name listed as CHARLOTTE JOAN COOPER; Jan 1947: Name listed as CHARLOTTE J HEITZMAN; Jan 1955: Name listed as CHARLOTTE JOAN LESTER; Jul 1956: Name listed as CHARLOTTE JOAN LOHMEIER; 15 Jun 1994: Name listed as CHARLOTTE J LOHMEIER. Hereinafter cited as Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007.

Wilhelmina Chapman1

Father*Abraham Chapman1
Mother*Elizabeth __?__1
Marriage*She married Mathias Morris, son of Isaac Morris and Elizabeth Mathias, in Doylestown, Bucks County, Pennsylvania.1 
(Wife) Death9 November 1839Wilhelmina became a widow when Mathias Morris died on 9 November 1839 at age 52.1 

Family

Mathias Morris b. 12 Sep 1787, d. 9 Nov 1839
Child 1.Mary Ann Morris1

Citations

  1. [S2037] Edward Mathews, The Thomas family of Hilltown, Bucks County, Penn'a, downloaded from the Family History Library at www.familysearch.org. (Landsdale, Pennsylvania: Arthur K. Thomas, 1884), Chapter XVI. The children of Gwently Thomas, pages 62-64, William Morris. Hereinafter cited as The Thomas family of Hilltown, Bucks County, Penn'a.

William E. Chapman1

b. October 1867, d. 30 November 1939
Father*Thomas J. Chapman1 b. 8 Apr 1839, d. 3 Jun 1921
Mother*Hannah R. Smith1 b. 31 Oct 1846, d. 19 Feb 1934
Birth*October 1867William E. Chapman was born in October 1867 in Missouri.1,2,3 
Name VariationHis full name was William Edmond Chapman.4 
(Son) Census US 187027 August 1870William E. was enumerated on the 1870 census taken on 27 August 1870 in the household of his parents in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. He was 3 years old.5 
(Son) Census US 188016 June 1880William E. was enumerated on the 1880 census taken on 16 June 1880 in the household of his parents in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. He was 12 years old, unable to write, although he could read, and had attended school within the census year.1 
Marriage*6 March 1892He married Mary F. Metzger, daughter of George Lawrence Metzger and Frances L. Maddox, on 6 March 1892 in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. William's sister, Julia Ann Chapman, had married Mary's 1st cousin, John Franklin Gage, the previous year.6,7,2 
Census US 1900*21 June 1900Mary F. and William E. Chapman were enumerated on the 1900 census taken on 21 June 1900 in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri. William was 32 years of age and a farmer, and Mary was 28 years of age. Both were able to read and write. They rented their farm, had been married for eight years, and Mary had given birth to one child. Their son, Herbert, was 7 years old, was able to read and write, and had attended school for 8 months of the census year.3 
Relocation*1901William and Mary moved with their son in the Fall of 1901 to Apache, Caddo County, Oklahoma, when it was a town of tents, and the next Spring moved to a farm three miles northwest of town.4 
Death*30 November 1939He died on 30 November 1939 in Oklahoma at age 722 
Burial* and was buried in Fairview Cemetery, Apache, Caddo County, Oklahoma.2 
(2nd Son) Family PhotoThis wonderful photo of the family of Thomas Jefferson Chapman and Hannah Rebecca (Smith) Chapman of Gentry County, Missouri, was shared originally by Roxanne Held on 15 March 2022 when she posted it to her Ancestry Tree. We estimate the date of the photo as about 1895, before the death that year of the couple's fourth son, James Woodson Chapman. Their younger daughter, Minnie B. Chapman, who is not in the photo, was likely deceased as we have found no evidence of her after her enumeration with her parents and siblings in the 1880 census. And the couple's second son, William Edmond Chapman, is missing from the photo and we don't know why. He was not deceased; he was enumerated with his wife and son on the 1900 census in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri and he, with his family, relocated to Oklahoma in 1901. We wonder if he was away on a future relocation scouting-trip when the photo was taken.8,9,1,3

Family

Mary F. Metzger b. 21 Oct 1872, d. 24 May 1955
Child 1.Herbert Chapman3 b. Dec 1892

Citations

  1. [S23] 1880 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas J. and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1880; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 687; Page: 426C; Enumeration District: 271. Hereinafter cited as 1880 United States Federal Census.
  2. [S748] Find a Grave website, which often provides cemetery and tombstone photos, and sometimes personal biographies, that may be obtained from the site, online at www.findagrave.com, William E. Chapman, Memorial# 36810904. Hereinafter cited as Find a Grave website.
  3. [S34] 1900 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of William E. and Mary F. Chapman, Year: 1900; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: 855; Page: 12; Enumeration District: 0091; FHL microfilm: 1240855. Hereinafter cited as 1900 United States Federal Census.
  4. [S2351] William Edmond Chapman 1939 Obituary, online at Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s, at www.newspapers.com, The Apache Review, (Apache, Oklahoma), Friday, 8 December 1939, page 1, died in his sleep early Thursday morning, William Edmond Chapman, age 72, born near Stanberry, Missouri on 11 October 1867, married Miss Mary Metzger at Stanberry on 6 March 1891, one son, Herbert Ralph who died last July, Baptist; survived by widow, sister, Mrs. John Gage of Stanberry, six brothers, Price, Henry, John, Willis and Matt Chapman, of Stanberry, and Amos Chapman of Mt. Ida, Kansas, and additional relatives. Hereinafter cited as William Edmond Chapman 1939 Obituary.
  5. [S37] 1870 United States Federal Census, online at www.ancestry.com, household of Thomas and Hannah R. Chapman, Year: 1870; Census Place: Wilson, Gentry, Missouri; Roll: M593_776; Page: 673B. Hereinafter cited as 1870 United States Federal Census.
  6. [S1732] Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002, online at www.ancestry.com, marriage on 6 March 1892 in Wilson Township, Gentry County, Missouri, USA, of William E Chapman and Mary F Metzgar, referencing Missouri State Archives, Jefferson City, MO, USA, Missouri Marriage Records [Microfilm]. Hereinafter cited as Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002.
  7. [S748] Find a Grave website, online at www.findagrave.com, Mary Frances (Metzger) Chapman, Memorial# 36811088.
  8. [S2340] Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family, with many thanks to Roxanne Held who shared the photo originally on 15 March 2022; viewed online on 19 June 2022 at https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/155036499/…. Hereinafter cited as Family Photo of the Thomas J. and Hannah R. (Smith) Chapman Family.
  9. [S2244] Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog, online at https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/… .Caution: This is a beautifully presented collection of "Person Pages" containing a variety of information about specific ancestors submitted by individual contributors -- often, unfortunately, with no sources. If the information we have chosen to pass along here is accurate, we are extremely grateful to the contributor(s) who have shared it. Without documentation, however, we researchers are always forced to question the validity of information. We hope what we have selected to include was originally obtained from family Bible records, or other reliable sources, and is accurate. Although, even when we have found contributed information to be unreliable, inaccurate or incomplete, we consider the information useful as possible clues as we research, citing a lovingly written story, “Susan Ella Nelson was my Grandma”, submitted by Roxanne Plummer on 24 August 2017 which we found attached under Memories for Susan Ella Sissie Dunn, online at https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/L561-67C. Hereinafter cited as Family Search Ancestry Discovery Blog.

Judith Chardon1

b. 12 October 1735
Father*Peter Chardon1
Mother*Sarah Colman2 b. 20 Feb 1709
Baptism*12 October 1735Judith Chardon was baptized on 12 October 1735 at Brattle Square Church, Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts Bay Province (New England).1 
Marriage*9 December 1767She married John Scott on 9 December 1767 at Brattle Square Church, Boston.3 
(Heir) Will9 November 1776Judith Scott, described as his dear friend and kinswoman, was named as a beneficiary of the Reverend Ebenezer Turell in his will dated 9 November 1776 in Medford, Middlesex County, Massachusetts (Continental Congress). Turell's will gave Judith (Chardon) Scott his large silver sugar box finely wrought.4 

Family

John Scott

Citations

  1. [S929] Brattle Square Church, The Manifesto Church, records of the Church in Brattle Square, Boston, with lists of communicants, baptisms, marriages, and funerals, 1699-1872, downloaded from the Family History Library at www.familysearch.org. Microreproduction of original published in Boston by The Benevolent Fraternity of Churches, 1902. (Salt Lake City, Utah: filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1968), page 158. Hereinafter cited as Brattle Square (Boston) Church records, 1699-1872.
  2. [S929] Brattle Square Church, Brattle Square (Boston) Church records, 1699-1872, page 243.
  3. [S929] Brattle Square Church, Brattle Square (Boston) Church records, 1699-1872, page 253.
  4. [S485] Probate Records 1648-1924, Middlesex County, Massachusetts (886 microfilm reels of original records in the Middlesex County Courthouse, Cambridge, Massachusetts), LDS Family History Library, Salt Lake City, Utah, Ebenezer Turell 1778 probate packet# 23046, FHL Film# 421543. Hereinafter cited as Probate Records 1648-1924, Middlesex County, Massachusetts.

Peter Chardon1

Marriage*6 December 1733He married Sarah Colman, daughter of John Colman and Judith Hobbey, on 6 December 1733 at Brattle Square Church, Boston.2 

Family

Sarah Colman b. 20 Feb 1709
Children 1.Judith Chardon1 b. 12 Oct 1735
 2.Peter Chardon3 b. 11 Sep 1737
 3.Sarah Chardon4 b. 10 Sep 1742

Citations

  1. [S929] Brattle Square Church, The Manifesto Church, records of the Church in Brattle Square, Boston, with lists of communicants, baptisms, marriages, and funerals, 1699-1872, downloaded from the Family History Library at www.familysearch.org. Microreproduction of original published in Boston by The Benevolent Fraternity of Churches, 1902. (Salt Lake City, Utah: filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1968), page 158. Hereinafter cited as Brattle Square (Boston) Church records, 1699-1872.
  2. [S929] Brattle Square Church, Brattle Square (Boston) Church records, 1699-1872, page 243.
  3. [S929] Brattle Square Church, Brattle Square (Boston) Church records, 1699-1872, page 160.
  4. [S929] Brattle Square Church, Brattle Square (Boston) Church records, 1699-1872, page 165.

Peter Chardon1

b. 11 September 1737
Father*Peter Chardon1
Mother*Sarah Colman1 b. 20 Feb 1709
Baptism*11 September 1737Peter Chardon was baptized on 11 September 1737 at Brattle Square Church, Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts Bay Province (New England).1 

Citations

  1. [S929] Brattle Square Church, The Manifesto Church, records of the Church in Brattle Square, Boston, with lists of communicants, baptisms, marriages, and funerals, 1699-1872, downloaded from the Family History Library at www.familysearch.org. Microreproduction of original published in Boston by The Benevolent Fraternity of Churches, 1902. (Salt Lake City, Utah: filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1968), page 160. Hereinafter cited as Brattle Square (Boston) Church records, 1699-1872.

Sarah Chardon1

b. 10 September 1742
Father*Peter Chardon1
Mother*Sarah Colman1 b. 20 Feb 1709
Baptism*10 September 1742Sarah Chardon was baptized at one week of age on 10 September 1742 at Brattle Square Church, Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts Bay Province (New England).1 
Name VariationShe was called Sally.2 
(Heir) Will9 November 1776Sally Chardon, described as his kinswoman, was named as a beneficiary of the Reverend Ebenezer Turell in his will dated 9 November 1776 in Medford, Middlesex County, Massachusetts (Continental Congress). Turell's will gave Sally his large silver ladle.2 

Citations

  1. [S929] Brattle Square Church, The Manifesto Church, records of the Church in Brattle Square, Boston, with lists of communicants, baptisms, marriages, and funerals, 1699-1872, downloaded from the Family History Library at www.familysearch.org. Microreproduction of original published in Boston by The Benevolent Fraternity of Churches, 1902. (Salt Lake City, Utah: filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1968), page 165. Hereinafter cited as Brattle Square (Boston) Church records, 1699-1872.
  2. [S485] Probate Records 1648-1924, Middlesex County, Massachusetts (886 microfilm reels of original records in the Middlesex County Courthouse, Cambridge, Massachusetts), LDS Family History Library, Salt Lake City, Utah, Ebenezer Turell 1778 probate packet# 23046, FHL Film# 421543. Hereinafter cited as Probate Records 1648-1924, Middlesex County, Massachusetts.

Wilmot Robertson Gertrude Charlton1

b. 13 February 1875, d. 6 August 1960
ChartsDescendants of Thomas Gerrard of Gibbstown, County Meath, Ireland and his Brothers
Birth*13 February 1875Wilmot Robertson Gertrude Charlton was born on 13 February 1875 in County Westmeath, Ireland.1 
Marriage*1901She married John Gerrard Collins, son of Joseph Clarke Collins Esq. and Eleanor Gerrard, in 1901 in Sitapur, Sitapur District, Uttar Pradesh Province, India.1 
(Niece) Census Ireland 19112 April 1911Wilmot Robertson Gertrude Collins was enumerated with her husband, daughter and mother-in-law, on the 1911 census taken as of the night of 2 April 1911 in the household of her husband's uncle, Thomas Gerrard, at Gibbstown Demesne, Donaghpatrick, County Meath, Ireland. Wilmot was 36 years of age and reported that she and her husband had been married for ten years. John was 43 years of age and his occupation was recorded as "Reserve of Officers", and their daughter Eleanor was 2 years old. In addition to the family members, the household included nine domestic servants.2 
(Wife) Death27 September 1915Wilmot became a widow when Major John Gerrard Collins died at the Battle of Loos, Loos, France, on 27 September 1915 at age 48.3,1 
(Widow) Probate3 November 1916Probate of her husband's will was granted to his brother, Major Thomas Gerrard Collins Gerrard, on 3 November 1916 at Dublin. The value of his effects was estimated at £6,502 13s 4d.3 
Death*6 August 1960She died on 6 August 1960 in County Meath at age 85.1 

Family

John Gerrard Collins b. 11 Jul 1867, d. 27 Sep 1915
Child 1.Eleanor Wilmot Letitia Collins1 b. 1901

Citations

  1. [S1982] Martin Notcutt, "Descendant Chart for Robert Collins (1800-1868)", with accompanying email of information and clarification, received 25 April 2020 (e-mail address). . Hereinafter cited as "Descendant Chart for Robert Collins (1800-1868)", with accompanying email of information and clarification.
  2. [S1536] 1911 Ireland Census, online at the National Archives of Ireland, www.census.nationalarchives.ie, household of Thomas Gerrard, house# 11 in "Gibstown" Demesne, Donaghpatrick, Meath, online at http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1911/Meath/…. Hereinafter cited as 1911 Ireland Census.
  3. [S1663] National Archives of Ireland, Calendar of Wills and Administrations, 1858-1922, online at http://www.willcalendars.nationalarchives.ie, will proved on 3 November 1916 of John Gerrard Collins, late of Navan, County Meath, Major, who died 27 September 1915 at Loos, granted at Dublin to Thomas G. C. Gerrard, Major, Effects £6,502 13s 4d, online at http://www.willcalendars.nationalarchives.ie/reels/cwa/…. Hereinafter cited as National Archives of Ireland, Calendar of Wills and Administrations, 1858-1922.

Francis Charstow

(Witness to Will) Will21 September 1766John Carr, Francis Charstow and William Johnston witnessed the will of John Hinds of Kilmainham, County Cavan, Ireland, dated 21 September 1766 and proven on 7 Feb 1769.1 

Citations

  1. [S342] John Hinds will (21 Sep 1766), Copy of the Last Will and Testament of John Hinds, late of Kilmainham (County Meath), proven 7 Feb 1769, National Archives of Ireland, Dublin, Ireland. Hereinafter cited as Will of John Hinds, proven 1769.

Margaret Charters1

b. 1816, d. 10 April 1881
ChartsDescendants of John Hinds, including our Walters and Ralphs
Birth*1816Margaret Charters was born, as calculated from her recorded age at death, about 1816 in Ireland.2,3,4 
Marriage*circa 1844She married Walter Thomas Hinds, son of Walter Hinds and Jane Smith, circa 1844 in Ireland.1 
(Wife) Death26 June 1879Margaret became a widow when Walter Hinds died on 26 June 1879.5,6 
Death*10 April 1881Margaret (Charters) Hinds died on 10 April 1881 in Bellananagh, County Cavan, at age 65. Her death was certified and the cause was paralysis of "something" for ten days and "hemophilia" for 6 days. Her daughter, Bella Hinds of Ballinagh, was present at her death, which was officially registered on 14 May in the Registrar's District of Ballinagh, in the Union of Cavan in the County of Cavan.7 
Burial*12 April 1881She was buried on 12 April 1881 at Ballintemple Church (St. Patrick's), Bellananagh. Her burial ceremony was performed by the Reverend Edward Potterton.8 

Family

Walter Thomas Hinds b. 1799, d. 26 Jun 1879
Children 1.John Hinds+1 b. c 1844
 2.James Hinds+1 b. May 1844, d. 22 Oct 1922
 3.Robert Hinds+1 b. c 1845
 4.Bella Hinds1 b. c 1850
 5.Fanny Hinds1 b. b 2 Jan 1851, d. 2 Jan 1920
 6.Henry Hinds+1 b. 1855, d. 22 Feb 1936
 7.Edward Charters Hinds+1 b. 1859, d. Apr 1924
 8.Richard Hinds1 b. b 3 Jul 1861, d. 3 Jul 1901

Citations

  1. [S24] Florence Black, History of the Family of James and Margaret Black and Relatives, November 1987. Hereinafter cited as James & Margaret Black Family.
  2. [S24] Florence Black, James & Margaret Black Family, noting her year of birth as 1819.
  3. [S1498] Margaret Hinds, Parish of Ballintemple Burial Records on microfilm, Church of Ireland, Braemor Park, Churchtown, Dublin 14, Ireland , 12 April 1881, recording her age as 65 in 1881.
  4. [S209] Margaret Hinds, Certified Death Registration number 45 (14 May 1884), General Register Office, 8-11 Lombard Street East, Dublin 2, Ireland, reporting her age as 65 in 1881. Hereinafter cited as Margaret Hinds Death Registration.
  5. [S208] Walter Hinds, Certified Death Registration number 105 (4 Jul 1879), General Register Office, 8-11 Lombard Street East, Dublin 2, Ireland, recording his age as 79. Hereinafter cited as Walter Hinds Death Registration.
  6. [S497] Marguerite Clayton (Michigan), compiler, "Hinds Family Research Collection" (Research results and analysis, letters and photos, in the possession of Shirley Ertz of Nebraska), Family Tree prepared by Rev. Edward "Joe" Isaac, grandson of Walter Hinds (1800-1879) and Margaret Charters (1815-1881). Hereinafter cited as "Hinds Family Research Collection."
  7. [S209] Margaret Hinds, Margaret Hinds Death Registration.
  8. [S1498] Margaret Hinds, Parish of Ballintemple Burial Records on microfilm, Church of Ireland, Braemor Park, Churchtown, Dublin 14, Ireland.

Augustus Chase

(Neighbor) Land Transfer20 December 1796Jonathan Bolton of Bridgewater, in the County of Plymouth, purchased land in Freetown, Bristol County, Massachusetts, with his son John Bolton of Freetown, a yeoman, from Beuthal Borden, a yeoman, for the sum of $275. The deed was dated on 20 December 1796, signed and delivered on 3 Jul 1799, but not recorded until 15 Dec 1805. The land was described as a certain tract of land lying in Freetown, bounded Westerly by the land of Perigrine White, Southeasterly by the highway, Easterly by the land of Francis Pigsley and Nehemiah Donnerswilde and Northerly by the land of Augustus Chase. It was recorded as "containing 50 acres, be it more or less," and was signed by Beuthal Borden and Mary Borden with John Borden and Thomas White as witnesses.1 
(Neighbor) Land Transfer31 October 1806Jonathan Bolton, a yeoman of Freetown, and his wife Thankful Bolton signed a deed agreement on 31 October 1806 to sell land in Freetown, Bristol County, Massachusetts, to Thomas White, a yeoman of Dartmouth, for the sum of $200. The deed was dated and signed on 31 October 1806, and recorded on 1 Nov 1806. It described the tract or parcel of land situated in Freetown, bounded as follows: Containing twenty-six acres ___________ and bounded Northerly by land belonging to Augustus Chase, Easterly and Southerly by Calvin Reynolds' land, Westerly by Peregrine White's land and is the one-half of that lot of land, taken off at the North end, which he, Jonathan Bolton, and his son, John Bolton, bought from Bethuel Borden. It was signed with the marks of Jonathan Bolton and Thankful Bolton, with Thomas Bolton and David Bolton as witnesses.2 

Citations

  1. [S597] Bristol County (Mass.) deed records, v. 1-556, (1686-1900 and 1686-1956) index -, 1686-1956. Microreproduction of original records in the registrar's office, Taunton, Massachusetts. Includes index. Note: Part I of Volume 7, pages 1-654 of this series was found on Film# 1405193 and has been referenced separately in this project as Source# 597. volume 85, pages 442-443; on microfilm volume 84-85 for 1804-1805, Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah. Hereinafter cited as Bristol County, Massachusetts Deeds: Taunton Registry (1686-1900).
  2. [S597] Bristol County, Massachusetts Deeds: Taunton Registry (1686-1900), volume 86, page 501; on microfilm volumes 86-87 for 1806-1807.