Grave Stones

Granny's Field Cemetery, Jasper County, Mississippi

These stones are of the Hosey and Moss families, all relatives of Anna Hosey, wife of Jesse Cooper. This is a very small family cemetery that has long ago been forgotten and fallen into a state of decrepitude. All of the Hosey stones are detached from their bases and are on their sides, and some stones are not located near their corresponding foot stones. There are at least two sunken areas, matching the dimensions of a casket, that are filled with leaves and twigs. Likely, there are additional stones, beyond those photographed, lying on their sides that are covered with debris and were undetected. Approximately twenty-five feet west of where the Hosey family members are two Moss-family graves. These two Moss stones remain on their bases, though leaning.

Meridian Cemetery, near Farmersville, Union Parish, Louisiana

The stone is that of Anna Cooper (1797 - 1857), wife of Jesse Cooper (1797 - 1842). There is another person buried next to her, and this is likely Jesse Cooper, who was the father of Thomas Sterling Cooper.

TOMBSTONE INSCRIPTIONS IN THE MERIDIAN BAPTIST CHURCH CEMETERIES UNION PARISH, LA OCTOBER, 1998:

PART A—INTRODUCTION:

The Meridian Baptist Church building is located in Union Parish, Louisiana. It is about 6 miles west of Marion, LA, on parish road 6616. This Missionary Baptist Church was organized in October, 1856 and closed in 1976. The church building is on the line between setions 14 and 15, township 22 north, range 1 east. In the west cemetery the latitude is north 32 degrees 53.805 minutes and the longitude is west 92 degrees 20.648 minutes. Church minutes indicate both white pioneers and a few slaves in attendance in this congregation prior to the civil war. This was a very active church until the fertile soil of the sandy-clay hills became depleted and the farms no longer were competitive. The minutes of this church are available in the special collections of the Louisiana Tech University library in Ruston, LA.

Two separate fenced cemeteries are a part of the Meridian Church grounds. A total of 148 marked graves are in these enclosures. These cemeteries will be identified for this document as Meridian Baptist Church West Cemetery and Meridian Baptist Church South Cemetery. Both of these burial grounds are well maintained. The inscriptions from the monuments were copied in October, 1998 by James T. Ballard and Jerry D. Daniels. This document was compiled and prepared by Nancy Hall Ballard.

PART B—MERIDIAN BAPTIST CHURCH WEST CEMETERY, UNION PARISH, LA, OCTOBER, 1998:

This is the younger and larger of the two cemeteries located with the Meridian Baptist church. It is on Union Parish road #6616 and is due west of the church building. Residents of the community believe that this burial ground contains only the remains of persons of European ancestry. There are 103 marked graves in this cemetery. The inscriptions in the south(other) cemetery are presented later in this document.

An index of all Union Parish, Louisiana, Cemeteries is available.

Concord Baptist Church Cemetery, near Marion, Union Parish, Louisiana

These stones are those of Martha Jane Morris Cooper (1866 - 1902), who was the first wife of William Sterling Cooper, Sr., and of Rosa Cooper (1890 - 1904), who was the daughter of William Sterling Cooper, Sr., and Martha Jane Morris Cooper.  Both Martha Jane Morris Cooper and Rosa Cooper died at a young age.  William Sterling Cooper, Sr., is buried with his second wife, Selma Leona Powell Phillips, in the Roscoe Cemetery, Roscoe, Texas.

An index of all Union Parish, Louisiana, Cemeteries is available.

Masterson Cemetery, Lawrence County, Alabama

These stones are of the Alabama Materson Clan at the Masterson Cemtery, west of Masterson Mill Community, Lawrence County, Alabama. The first wife of Thomas Sterling Cooper (1830 - 1912) was Jane Manerva Masterson (c. 1834 - 1863), whose family was from a small Masterson Mill Community in Lawrence County, Alabama. 

A roster of the Masterson Cemetery is available.

Hampton Cemetery, Edhube, Fannin County, Texas

The stone is that of Thomas Sterling Cooper (1830 - 1912) and his second wife, Mary Frances Dawkins (1839 - 1919).  Thomas Sterling Cooper was the son of Jesse Cooper, Sr., (assumed buried in the Meridian Cemetery) and the father of William Sterling Cooper, Sr. (buried in the Roscoe Cemetery, Roscoe, Texas).

Lula Cemetery, Lula, Pontotoc County, Oklahoma

These stones are those of the family of William Dixon Cooper and his family with his second wife, Matilda Simms. William Dixon Cooper moved to Lula, Texas, from Fannin county, Texas, in the early 1900s.  He stopped in Atoka county, Oklahoma, and lived at a place called Boggy Depot.  This is near the town of Wapanucka, Oklahoma. He married his second wife in Atoka County, which was Choctaw land and in the Choctaw Nation at that time.

Roscoe Cemetery, Roscoe, Texas

These stones are those of the family of William Sterling Cooper, Sr., and his two wives:  Martha Jane Morris (buried at the Concord Cemetery, Union Parrish, Louisiana) and Selma Leona Powell Phillips (buried adjacent to William Sterling Cooper, Sr.).

Willis Cemetery, Willis, Texas

These stones are those of the family of Dr. Jesse Marshall Cooper and his sons. Dr. Jesse Marshall Cooper was the fourth child of Thomas Sterling Cooper.

Willow Creek Cemetery, Bonham, Fannin County, Texas

This stone is that of William Dixon Cooper, son of Jesse Cooper, and his wife, Matilda Simms.