NED and MARY CHAPMAN

by Arvord M. Abernethy

"The Hamilton Herald-News"          0914/1995

A wise may of yesteryear once said, "East is East and West is West, and never the twain shall meet."  He did not say anything about the north and the south because we can see a young gentleman by the name of Ned Chapman of Hamilton County did meet a fair young maiden by the name of Mary Duty from Kyle, down this side of San Antonio, a meeting that led to the long happy life of our own Ned Chapman.

You may say, "What's so unusual about that?"  In this time when many people are becoming interested in their ancestors, some unusual things are revealed.  In this case when the Chapmans traced their family back, they found that Mary's great great great-grandmother was Elizabeth Stuart who married Goodloe Warren.

Then, when Ned's ancestors were traced back, they found that Ned's great great great-grandmother was Elizabeth Stuart, the same person who was Mary's ancestors.  Here is where north meets south.  A small world after all.  I suppose if we had time and records, we would find that we had lots of kinsmen through Adam.

Ned's mother was Stella Pierson of one of the Pierson families who were truly pioneers of this section.  There were two Pierson families in Hamilton County.  One was the Louis Edward Pierson family whose lived west of Hamilton and some of the descendants are still here.  The others were descendants of John Hogue Pierson, one being the late Ned Chapman.  Most of us will also remember Craik Pierson, who was manager of Hamilton branch of Higginbotham Lumber Co., for a number of years.

This Pierson family also had a very interesting part in the development of not only Hamilton County, but also of Texas.  I hope I can bring to you this family's story soon through this column.

Now back to the main characters in today's story, Ned and Mary Chapman.  After Mary's graduation from Kyle High School, she attended Southwest Texas State University at San Marcos and then began her long teaching career.  After teaching some at San Marcos Baptist Academy and at a school in Williamson County, we find her answering a call to come and teach at Gatesville.  And it is here that the daughter of a mail carrier at Kyle met the son of a mail carrier at Gatesville. Ned was a paint contractor at that time and had landed the contract of painting the new First Baptist Church there in Gatesville.

This was in the early 1930's and many of us can remember how deep the Great Depression was, so starting a new home had to be delayed by Ned and Mary.

After teaching for two years in Gatesville, Mary returned to San Marcos to complete her education.

Fortunately, a stamp only cost two cents then so the ties of Ned and Mary never cooled.  They were married Feb. 15, 1935, in the family home in Kyle.

At that time, New was manager of the Perry Brothers Store here in Hamilton so Mary got her first taste of Hamilton life then.  

Since fathers of both had positions with the United States Postal Services, Ned saw the opportunity there so put in his application for that type of service.  Later a vacancy opened in Fort Worth and the Chapmans moved there where Ned was placed in the air terminal handling overseas mail.  Mary applied at Delta Airlines and was placed in the reservations department so it worked out so well for both to work in the same terminal.

In 1949, Ned received word from Harry Boynton, the Hamilton postmaster, that there was an opening in the office there, so the Chapmans returned to Hamilton to make it their permanent home.

Ned greeted all of us at the post office with that warm friendly smile until a severe stroke struck in 1968.  Even after that, that warm, friendly greeting would come as you met him downtown.  This had to end at his passing in 1990.

On returning to Hamilton, Mary resumed her teaching profession behind the fourth grade teacher's desk and continued there until she retired in 1971, ending a useful profession fo 33 years.

Who says that North and South will never meet?

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OBITUARY

NED PIERSON CHAPMAN
"THE HAMILTON HERALD-NEWS"        September 20, 1990

Ned Pierson Chapman, 81, of Hamilton died September 11, 1990, at his residence following a short illness.  Funeral services were held Friday, Sept. 14, at Riley Funeral Home with the Rev. Cal Hoffman officiating.  Burial was in Oakwood Cemetery.  

He was born March 4, 1909, in the Lanham community to Henry Thomas and Stella M. Pierson Chapman.  He had been a resident of the Hamilton area most of his life.  He was a postal clerk, and a member of the Masonic Lodge and the First United Methodist Church.

On Feb. 15, 1935, he married Mary Wyatt.

Survivors include his wife, Mary Wyatt Chapman of Hamilton; two sons, Carl Henry Chapman of Panama and David Ned Chapman of Richardson; one sister, Bess Chapman of Temple; one brother, Neal Chapman of Ruidoso, New Mexico; three grandchildren, Lynn Glover, Carlton Chapman and Carlos Chapman and one great grandchild, Flynn Glover.

Pallbearers were A. T. Jones, Ray Harper, Bob Jones, Milton Harelik, Carl Rice Embrey, Bob Gautier, David Lengefeld, and Bill Barkley.