Sam Houston Hooper and Aldo Sardini December 13

Sam Houston Hooper is another person in my database who it is said I am not actually related to.  But there is a connection.

Sam was born on the 12^th (some say the 9^th) of December 1857 in Texas to John Jefferson and Mahala Hooper. He married Maria Catherine Burns and they had 11 children. One died at birth and another at the age of 2.  The rest apparently had a good long life.

Sam seems to have been quite a family man since there are more pictures of him and his family than I’ve ever seen on Ancestry .com. Two of his daughters are of particular interest. They both married brothers with the last name of Myers.

Harrison Davis, Amanda Burns Wolfe and Marietta Burns Davis

Front Row: Sam Houston Hooper, Mariah Catherine Burns Hooper, Jesse Hooper, Elvira Minerva Whitton Burns, Dora Hooper and Louis Wolfe, Justine Hooper

Molly Hooper married Robert T. Myers and her sister Dora Hopper married Robert’s brother, Willie Oscar Myers. This might not seem exciting, but wait - there’s more.

Robert and Willie were both sons of Mathias Myers and wife Fannie – maiden name Welch. Fannie was the half-sister of our elusive Eliza Jane Welch, my great grandmother. This makes Robert and Willie my half-first cousins twice removed. And Mollie and Dora are the wives of my half-first cousins twice removed.

I know there are several more connections with the Hoopers, but this was the first one I found and quite by accident.

Sam died at home on his farm in Joaquin, Texas on 29 Dec 1953 at the age of 96 and was buried in the Ramah Cemetery.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Aldo Sardini was born December 12, 1912 to Antonio and Maria Adele Elena Sardini in Verona, Italy. He married Anita Nacciareti and they had at least 3 children.

He was my great uncle, a brother to my grandmother, Gina (Sardini) Bernardi.

I did discover this photo of him and that led to some stories from his grandson, Ivano Michelangelo Malta.

“Hahaha ok cool !! My mom's name is Gabriella Sardini, born in Verona 17 of July 1944. my grandfather Aldo died in Rome 1998 ! Of dementia!! He was 84 years old my grandmother died two years later! I was very close to them! My mom always says How similar I am to my grandfather basically in everything.. Makes me laugh .. Because he was a mess ...!! …. Aldo was a very good looking man, he was a good man at the end, very generous, I was close to him and he was very close to me to, I would say I was the favourite nephew   they could see the similarity!! Haha !!

He used to be in the Army beside Mussolini, then when Mussolini got killed he lost automatically his job, according to my mother, they didn't really have a easy time after that .. Time was tough for everyone! .. He's lucky was that he was an handsome man, always well dressed , that’s why he had the opportunity to work in those amazing movies, but most of the time he worked like a waiter!! but the Sardini's Side always had a good taste.”

And from my dad

“Thanks for posting this photo of Aldo. I remember him well. He would travel from Verona to Roma each time we visited Marisa. Later he moved to Rome. He was simpatico”- J E Pettey

Aldo died in Rome in 1998.