Former Monroe County, Alabama slave lived to be 113 years old

Last Thursday afternoon, I got the itch to do some riding around, so I set off for Old Claiborne to visit one of the county’s most unique graves, the final resting place of Louise Cooper. Cooper, who lived to be 113 years old, is buried in the Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church at Claiborne. This historic church and cemetery are located on the Grain Elevator Road, less than a mile south of U.S. Highway 84.

Cooper, the oldest of three children, was born into slavery at Claiborne on June 5, 1863. A few months after she was born, her parents were sent to Mobile on a steamboat, but their stay was short lived. Not long after they arrived, they were called back to Claiborne and were ordered to leave infant Louise in Mobile because Claiborne was under quarantine due to a smallpox outbreak.

Sources say that rather than leave baby Louise behind, her parents put her in a small trunk and hid her aboard the Claiborne-bound steamer. The story goes that her mother only opened the trunk twice during the trip back to Claiborne to make sure that Louise was still alive. It’s said that Louise received no food during the trip upriver because her parents were afraid of getting caught with the baby.

When the boat docked at Claiborne, Louise’s father quickly carried the trunk up the steep bank to the small house where they lived. Afraid that the child was dead, her parents opened the trunk and found Louise contentedly sucking her thumb. Despite the long voyage, Louise had not cried the entire time.

It should be remembered that all of this happened during the height of the Civil War and that Mobile and Claiborne were bastions of Rebel forces during that time. Even though Abraham Lincoln had issued his famous Emancipation Proclamation in January 1863, this had little effect on enslaved people in the Deep South. Slavery wasn’t officially abolished in Alabama until December 1865, when Cooper was just two years old.

Cooper, who was known as both “Lou” and “Big Mama,” lived to the ripe, old age of 113, passing away just two days shy of her 114^th birthday in 1977. She lived all of her long life in Monroe County and was a faithful member of the Mount Zion Baptist Church. At the time of her death, she was survived by a grandson, a granddaughter, two great-grand-children and eight great-great-grandchildren.

It should come as no surprise to learn that Mrs. Cooper has many descendants living in and around Monroe County today. Popular Frisco City town councilman Woody Bullard is a direct descendant of Louise Cooper as are many others in the Frisco City and Perdue Hill area. Her memory appears to remain strong in the hearts of those descendants as evidenced by how neatly her grave is maintained by her loved ones today.

In the end, let me hear from you if you have any additional information about the life of Louise Cooper. She lived though some of the most tumultuous times in American history and saw many, many changes during her long life. I’m especially interested in any old photos of Cooper, so please let me know if you have anything along these lines.