William Walker Cooper (1915 - 1991)

Born 8 Jan 1915 in Atherton, Missouri

Ancestors

Died 11 Apr 1991 at age 76 in Scottsdale, Arizona

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Biography

William Walker Cooper, known as Walker, was an American professional baseball player. He was a catcher in Major League Baseball who played for six National League teams from 1940 to 1957. He was known as one of the top catchers in baseball during the 1940s and early 1950s.

Walker was born to Robert J. Cooper Sr. and Verne M. Frazier Cooper. He was the fourth son of five children all born in Missouri. Robert was a postal worker and owned a farm where all the children had daily chores to do. Verne was a homemaker, caring for the family. Walker's older brother Morton would join Walker in major league baseball as a pitcher.

Walker began his baseball career with the St. Louis Cardinals, where he played from 1940-1945. He made his debut on September, 1940 and achieved two World Series titles with the Cardinals in 1942 and 1944.

In May, 1945, Walker enlisted in the Navy for the duration of World War II. He was honorably discharged in April, 1946. While he was enlisted he made the 1945 All Star Game, and his contract was purchased by the New York Giants where he played from 1946-1949.

Cooper was traded to the Cincinnati Reds in June 1949 and set the Reds record for most productive game at the plate in July. In one game against the Chicago Cubs, he had six hits: three homers, two doubles, and a single (15 total bases and 10 RBIs). Walker played for the Reds until the 1950 season. He was traded to the Boston/Milwaukee Braves (1950-53) and to Pittsburgh Pirates for the 1954 season. He finished his 18 year career with the Chicago Cubs (1954-55) and finally back to the Cardinals in 1956. He retired from baseball September 20, 1957.

"When Big Coop was on your club, you didn't have to worry about squabbles with anybody else, because he was in all of them. He was the brawling type of fellow who comes to play, didn't ask for any quarter, and certainly didn't give any." - Teammate Stan Musial in The Cardinals Encyclopedia (Mike Eisenbath, Temple University Press, 05/14/1999, Page 158)

Walker had a .285 lifetime average, 173 home runs and 812 RBI's in 1,473 games. He was an eight time All-Star and a two time World Series champion. Walker and his brother, hard-throwing Mort, formed the best and most well known brother battery in baseball history.

He married Doris and they had two daughters: Sara and Jane. Sara, who was Miss Missouri in 1957, married Cardinals second baseman Don Blasingame, a teammate of her father. At the time, Walker noted, "It's time to quit when you've got a daughter old enough to marry a teammate."

Walker died in April, 1991 at the age of 76. He was cremated.

Sources

• Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walker_Cooper

"United States Census, 1930", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHFS-1F2 : 8 December 2015), Walker Cooper in entry for Robert J Cooper, 1930.

"Missouri, Reports of Separation Notices, 1941-1946," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2Q4-8HDX : accessed 5 September 2016), William Walker Cooper, 03 Apr 1946; citing Military Service, St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, United States, Missouri State Archives, Jefferson City.

Baseball Reference - http://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/Walker_Cooper

Baseball Almanac - http://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/player.php?p=coopewa01

"United States, GenealogyBank Obituaries, 1980-2014," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QV5W-L7KP : 4 September 2015), Walker Cooper, Missouri, United States, 17 Apr 1991; from "Recent Newspaper Obituaries (1977 - Today)," database, GenealogyBank.com (http://www.genealogybank.com : 2014); citing , born-digital text.