DONALD HUGH COPPER

The following bio was taken from page 155 of the book entitled "Rusk County History" compiled and edited and used with permission of the Rusk County Historical Commission.

Transcribed by Shirley Koym

Submitted by Gloria Briley Mayfield, Rusk County TX Coordinator

Rusk County has been my home and my parent’s home for a lifetime. My father, George W. Cooper, was born December 1, 1862, and my mother, Lurah Andrews Cooper, February 22, 1867, in the area of what is now Joinerville and New London, Texas. Six children were born of this couple, all of whom resided and died in Rusk County. Most of my immediate family and numerous relatives are buried at Mt. Hope Cemetery.

My father was a farmer, as were most settlers of the community, until the discovery of oil in the early 1930’s. However, the rewards of this boom evaded our family separated only by a barbed wire fence.

Some of my fondest memories as a boy were of my schoolteacher, Mrs. Irene Gaston, who gave untiringly of her time to the youngsters of the community. One cent then would buy all sorts of goodies at Henry Studdard’s store. Special days were trips to town in a wagon and to the Mt. Hope and Pleasant Hill picnics held once a year.

One of my first jobs in Henderson was at J. L. Cameron’s drug store. I had various other jobs but wanted to see something of the surrounding area, so I took a job with R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. It was with this company that I was educated in selling.

With the oil boom came unprecedented prosperity to the area. I ventured into business, building the Cooper Club, which eventually was known as the biggest one nightstand in the U. S. during the big band era. (See opening section about Cooper Club.) World War II changed this scene again, and after my discharge from the service in 1942, I returned home, but was no longer interested in the dance business.

In 1946 I was married to Hazel Louise Harding of Freestone County, Texas. We moved into our present home in Henderson in 1946. One year later, our son George Donald Cooper was born at Henderson Memorial Hospital. He, too, has been a lifetime resident of the city, with the exception of four years served in the U. S. Air Force (1966-1970). He was married to Tina Ann Durrett of Carthage, Texas in 1974. They have one son, Donald Casey Cooper, born in 1977.

In 1950, I was ready for selling again and enjoyed a thirty-year association with the floral business. After traveling for several companies, we established our own brokerage firm, East Texas Foliage, Inc., selling cut greens to wholesale and retail shops. We are lifetime members of the Texas State Florist Association.

George and Tina’s dream of owning a western store materialized in 1978 with the opening of Cooper’s Cowboy Country on Highway 259, South.

At this writing we are happy grandparents, enjoying Casey Cooper.

Submitted by the Hugh Coopers