A 100th Anniversary

100 years ago today my Grandparents Nola Shannon and Leroy Gower were married in Stone County in Northern Arkansas. He was just 22; she was only 18. Both of them were from families rooted in Stone County for several generations. 

Leroy and Nola Shannon Gower
Arkansas, 1921

Rooted In Stone County. The Gowers had been in Mountain View, Arkansas ever since Leroy's Great Grandparents, Jackson and Mary Gower came to Mountain View from Tishomingo County, Mississippi in the early 1850s. Young Jackson and Mary started their family in Stone County in 1854 when their first child, Leroy Gower, was born. This Leroy Gower was not my grandfather. Instead he was the grandfather of my grandfather Leroy Ertin Gower (1899-1974). 

The Shannons on the other hand had not been in Stone County, Arkansas quite as long. My Grandmother Nola Shannon was the daughter of Samuel Pickens Shannon who was just a child in Southern Louisiana when the Civil War broke out in 1862. Sam's father David Reid Shannon had entered the war in Louisiana but did not survive it. As a result young Sam Shannon and his siblings were taken to Arkansas in 1867, as soon as it was safe to travel after the Civil War. They were taken to Arkansas to live with Shannon relatives. So when my grandparents Leroy and Nola were married in 1921, their roots had grown deep in Stone County. The Gowers had been there for 70 years, the Shannons had been there for over 60 years. 

Leroy and Nola Shannon Gower
on their 50th wedding anniversary
September, 1971, San Diego

A Fall Wedding. We know very little about the wedding itself. We do know it took place on Thursday, September 29, 1921 in Stone County, Arkansas. They were devout Baptists so they may have had a wedding in their local Church, but we have no record of that. We do have an old picture of Nola and Leroy that may very well have been taken on their wedding day (see black and white photo above). If any of you recognize this photo and know exactly when or where it was taken please let me know.

Their Descendants Today. To Nola and Leroy 3 children were born: Hendrix, Maida and Vicki. Over the last 100 years the family of Leroy and Nola has grown to include a total of 53 direct descendants. From that union that was formed exactly a century ago, a great clan has resulted. If you add in all those folks who have married into their family, their present day clan would number close to 100. It includes family in Western Washington, Northern and Southern California, Arizona, Texas, and even Indiana and Florida. 

The oldest surviving descendant is their daughter Maida Gower Shepard of Anacortes, Washington, who will celebrate her 97th birthday on November 1. Their youngest descendant is their GGG Grandson Gunnar Bass who was born in June of this year, in Weatherford, Texas. He is the son of Lyndsey Aqua and David Bass.

On this 100th anniversary of their wedding, I honor these two, Leroy and Nola Shannon Gower, whose good lives have impacted all of us in innumerable ways. I am thankful for them and for the legacy that they left which continues to this day.
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Steve Shepard