George (Hockerts) Hooker (1844 - 1921)

Born 8 Aug 1844 in Ihren, Germany

Husband of Elizabeth (Hufford) Hooker — married 29 Sep 1870 in Carroll County, Indiana, USA

Descendants

Died 3 May 1921 at age 76 in Carroll Co., Indiana

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Alice Beard [send private message]

Biography

George traveled to the United States when he was two years old. He, his parents, and his sister traveled on a ship called "Niobe," arriving in New York, New York, on October 14, 1846. They traveled with family -- his father's maternal uncle (Jacob BONGEN) and his wife and children. George's family stopped in Indiana long enough for his sister to be born in 1847. By 1850, the family was in Racine, Wisconsin, where two brothers were born. By 1860, George's mother had died, and his father moved the family to Tippecanoe County, Indiana, where his father had at least one BONGEN first-cousin (John Bongen). George worked as a butcher before he volunteered to join the U.S. Army on November 29, 1864, in Lafayette, Indiana. A day later, he was in the Indiana 12th Light Artillery Battery. His enlistment papers described him as 5' 6" tall, with auburn hair and gray eyes; his name was spelled HOOKARD. George was honorably discharged on July 7, 1865, at Indianapolis. He had lost much of his hearing from firing cannons. When Congress voted pensions for Civil War veterans, George was awarded a pension. He applied for an increased amount because of his hearing loss. The Veterans Administration argued that firing cannons could not have caused him to go deaf, and the VA fought George's claim for several years. Finally, the VA acknowledged that firing cannons just might have had something to do with George's hearing loss, but the increased pension was not retroactive. After the war, George married a German Baptist Brethren woman. The marriage resulted in his being excommunicated by the Catholic church. For the first 25+ years of their marriage, they lived in Carroll County, Indiana, the rural community where his wife had grown up, surrounded by her relatives. George supported his ever growing family as a farmer and a logger. He and his wife had nine children. A bad flood in the 1890s wiped out George's logging business and left him with nothing but debt. By then, his three oldest daughters were married. George and his wife moved the younger six children to Rolette County, North Dakota, where George farmed and his sons took to working on the rail road. By 1910, George and his wife were back in Carroll County, Indiana, with George doing odd jobs, such as janitoring at the local one-room school house, doing a bit of farming, and subsistence fishing. Beard-619 16:40, 29 November 2014 (EST)

Sources

• Catholic Church records from Winterspelt, Germany.
• 1846 ship's passenger list; ship's name "Niobe"; surname spelled HOCKERTY.
• 1850 U.S. Census; Racine Co., Wisconsin (spelled HOCKARDS).
• 1856: his father's record of naturalization; Racine, Wisconsin (spelled HOKERTS).
• 1860 U.S. Census; Tippecanoe Co., Indiana (spelled HICKARDS).
• 1864 military enlistment, into Indiana 12th Light Artillery Battery (spelled HOOKARD).
• U.S. Civil War Soldier Records and Profiles.
• U.S. Civil War Pension Index.
• 1870 Indiana marriage record; Carroll Co., Indiana.
• 1880 U.S. Census; Carroll Co., Indiana (spelled HOOKARDS).
• 1894 Veterans Census (found at the Indiana State Archives)
• 1890 Veterans Census; Carroll Co., Indiana (found at the Indiana State Archives).
• 1900 U.S. Census; Rolette Co., North Dakota (spelled HOOKERAS).
• 1910 U.S. Census; Carroll Co., Indiana (spelled HOOKER).
• 1910 U.S. Census; Rollette Co., North Dakota (spelled HOOKER).
• 1920 U.S. Census; Carroll Co., Indiana (spelled HOOKER).
• 1921 newspaper obituary; 7-May-1921 issue of "The Hoosier Democrat," vol. 24.
• Grave stone (photo at findagrave.com).
• Handwritten note by George's son George W., written on page 81 of his copy of "The Hufford Family History"
• His son Challence's letter dated May 1918; original in possession of Challence's grandson; copy in possession of Alice Beard. Beard-619 16:40, 29 November 2014 (EST)
• His son Challence's letter to Dana Wright, dated 3-Sep-1952; original in possession of Challence's grandson; copy in possession of Alice Beard. Beard-619 16:40, 29 November 2014 (EST)
• His daughter Dora's letter to Challence's widow, dated 13-July-1968; original in possession of Challence's grandson; copy in possession of Alice Beard. Beard-619
• His son George's son Jim's letter dated 10-Sep-1973; copy in possession of Alice Beard. Beard-619 16:40, 29 November 2014 (EST)