From Roots of Roane County, TN by Snyder E. Roberts, pub 1981, pages 143-145, with additions from Marilyn McCluen.
The area surrounding the junction of Little and Big Emory Rivers is of considerable significance in Roane History. "Cooper's Landing" on Big Emory was a landmark, and the ferry at that point over Big Emory carried most of the traffic along the old "stage road" from Kingston through DeArmond's Gap to Morgan County. Neighboring families to the Coopers would have included: ROBINSON, TEDDER, COFER, ELLIS, PHILLIPS, EDGEMON, SELLERS, GERON, DEARMOND, DURRETT, ADKISSON, GREEN, CROWE, BOWER, DUGGER, etc. The Cooper home on the north side of the river overlooked Cooper's Landing and the ferry. Most of the following Cooper story was drawn heavily from the "Marilyn McCluen Collection" with Marilyn's gracious permission.
JOHN COOPER
John Cooper was born in England in 1729. In 1808, at the age of 79, he and his wife, MARY, came to Roane County with two of their daughters: MARY COOPER who married (1800) THOMAS SALMON, and AGNES COOPER who married (1799) JOSIAH FIKE. They had left three daughters and a son in Person County, NC; however, their son, ABSALOM COOPER, soon followed to Roane. John and Mary settled on Oxier Creek at the present junction of Blair Road with highway #61. John died in the latter part of 1809. Mary lived with her son, Absalom, and later his widow until Mary died at the age of 101 in 1833.
ABSALOM COOPER
Born in NC about 177?, he married (1799) in Orange County, NC, CATHERINE ARMSTRONG (1780-1860), the daughter of JOHN and ANN ARMSTRONG. They came to Roane abt 1808. He was in the War of 1812, and died of illness contracted while in service on February 22, 1814. Catherine gave birth to his daughter, CATHERINE COOPER, four months after Absolom's death. This couple appears in the 1800 Person County, NC census.Children of Absalom and Catherine Cooper:
1. AZARIAH COOPER (1800-1863)
The eldest child of Absalom and Catherine Cooper was born July 22, 1800 in NC, and died a tragic death March 13, 1863 at his home in Roane County. He was the most colorful figure in the Cooper family, and accumulated a large estate. The ante-bellum Cooper homeplace overlooked Emery River at Cooper's Landing, and was a showplace. He was murdered on the porch of this home [more to the story in the book] He never married, but was the father of 3 children who were legitimatized and who inherited his considerable estate when he died.
2. BAUZIL COOPER (1801-bef 1830)
3. MALINDA COOPER (5 Dec1805 NC) mar (1819) JOHN AUGUSTUS FOOSHEE> IL & MOJohn A. Fooshee obtained a license to marry Malinda Cooper 28 Oct 1819 and they were married in Roane County, TN by Solomon Geren, JP. Malinda's brother-in-law, Josiah Fike, was bondsman for John A. Fooshee. This couple was in Morgan Co. IL 1840 and 1850 censuses.
4. MARINDA COOPER (28 March 1807, Person Co. NC)
m 1st PULASKI NELSON on 24 February 1824 in Roane County, TN.From Marilyn McCluen:
The original marriage bond (license missing) for Pulaski Nelson is in the Roane County archives. The bondsman for this bond was Zachariah HALL. It is dated 24 February 1824. This bond shows the name of the bride as being Maranna Hall. The letters from Catherine Cooper to her son Armstrong Cooper constantly refer to Pulaski Nelson and Mareny. There is no doubt the clerk was busy talking when he wrote the bond, thought he heard Mareny as Maranna and wrote that she was a Hall (same name as the bondsman) not a Cooper. We now know this clerk made numerous errors such as this and indeed this was a shock to learn.
Pulaski Nelson is shown on the 1830 Knox County, TN census as being 20-30 years of age (born 1800-1810 with one female, age 0-4 and one male 0-5 (born 1825-1830), and one female 20-30 who would have been Mareny, born 28 March 1807 from bible records),
Mareny married 2nd JOSEPH CAMPBELL. Campbell County, TN Marriage Record Book A, page 16 shows a marriage bond for Joseph Campbell and Rena Nelson. It is dated 5 May 1840. (Some descendants refer to her as "Maria")
The 1850 Campbell County, TN census for Joseph and Rena Campbell shows the surname Campbell for all the children listed in the household. I have done no research on these children but believe three of them were children born to Pulaski and Rena Cooper Nelson since they were born before Pulaski died. If Joseph had been married prior to marrying Rena Nelson, I have no knowledge of that marriage. The 1850 census shows the following children all called by the surname Campbell.
Abraham J. born 1829-30
Malinda J. born about 1834 (Mareny had a sister named Malinda)
Raphael D born about 1836.
Then there are the following:
Eliza, born about 1841 (1850 shows her age 10 and 1860 shows here age 19) She was probably the first child of Joe and Rena)
Marena, born 1842
Mary A, born 1845
Azariah C Campbell, born about 1849 and no doubt named for Rena's brother, Azariah Cooper, and the middle name is most likely Cooper.
5. JOHN COOPER (10 Dec1809 Roane Co. TN) see below
6. ARMSTRONG COOPER (1812-1891) mar (1837) MARY SILCOX, d. 1891 Concord, Morgan Co. IL.
7. CATHERINE COOPER (20 June1814 Roane Co. TN--1875 Pike Co. Indiana) married 6 March 1838 in Roane County, TN. ALFRED AGEE, SR of Campbell Co. TN. Son of James Agee and Elizabeth Tudor.
JOHN COOPER
Son of Absalom and Catherine, married (1841) CYNTHIA ADKISSON, and remained in Roane to rear his family. Their children:
- SARAH COOPER (1842-1918) mar ISAAC WHITSON
- ABSALOM COOPER (1844) mar ELIZABETH C. BRASHEAR, 7 children (d/o Joseph)
- MARY J. COOPER (1845-1910) mar WILLIAM J. COFER
- AZARIAH M. COOPER (1847-1848)
- MALINDA COOPER (1849-1868)
- WILLIAM A. COOPER (1851-1929)
- GEORGE M. COOPER (1853-1932)
- CYNTHIA E. COOPER (1854-1899) mar SAMUEL D. EAST
- JOHN C. COOPER (1856-1941) mar MARTHA M. TEDDER
- LOUISA COOPER (1858-1883) unmar
- MARGARET COOPER (1860-1865)
- MARTHA A. COOPER (1864-1865)