Thurston David Cooke (1875 - 1930)

He was married to Grace Eleanor Oliver . County unknown in Virginia @ 1900.

First hand knowledge tells me he died young @1929 when my father was about 15 yrs old and siblings of my father were Wm Harris Cooke, b. 1910, Grace Marshall Cooke, B. 1912, Thurston D. Cooke Jr b. @1916, Mildred Victoria Cooke B @ 1918 (?) Paul S. Cooke and Joseph Cooke B @ 1920 and 1922. They were born at Ampthill Plantation, Cartersville, Va where the family lived until Thurston D. Cooke bought his own farm. (about 1925).

Due to Thurston D. Cooke's early death, the family was unable to own property but instead lived at various farms including Elk Hill in Goochland Co, Va. where my father Henry Edward Cooke b. 1914, spoke to me of farming in his youth.

For a time following marriage to Audrey Irene White in Oct. 1934, they resided with Aunt Ari Miller White along the Cumberland and Buckingham County line.

My sibling Dallys Marie Cooke was born there December, 1935.

At least once every summer an old black woman, "Aunt" Peggy Scott, would come to visit for a few days. She had told Grace that she was once a slave for the Cooke family. Her son, Willie Scott [or was it Walter Archer? See 1910 Census], was taught cooking by Grace's mother, Grace Eleanor Oliver Cooke. Willie later became a butler with a related family (the Carringtons?) in their Northern VA home. Grace told of a visit during a wedding that her mother made to that NOVA home. Willie, upon seeing her, hugged and kissed her, and thanked her for teaching him the skills he had learned.

Grace also told that her mother lived with Aurianna Miller White, a cousin, between the time of TD Cooke Sr's death and Grace Cooke's mrg to Benny Richardson (the Cooke children, Grace included, thought little of Benny Richardson).

One more story: Grace told me about an incident when Aunt Peggy was visiting. A severe thunderstorm was raging. Aunt Peggy led the Cooke kids into a room and told them to "sit down and be quiet. The Lord is doing his work!" Young Henry Edward Cooke, Grace's brother and my grandfather, asked, "Aunt Peggy, don't the Lord do his work when the sun shines, too!?" Aunt Peggy, she said, was speechless. jim cooke: collected on 1/4/1997.