CSA Soldiers' Rest

Known CSA Veterans at Cedar Hill Vicksburg, Mississippi Not Forgotten
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(Photos by Wayne McMaster) Serg Newton Cooper Co. F 6 Ga Inf CSA Nov 11, 1840 Mar 30, 1922 On the back of Newton Cooper's monument is engraved, "Watermelon Man"	Newton Cooper was born 11 Nov 1840 and died 30 Mar 1922. He enlisted 27 May 1861 in Atlanta, Georgia, in the 6th Ga. Inf., Co. F. He signed on for the length of the war. On 4 Dec 1861, he was appointed 1st Corporal. On the Company Muster Roll of Jan-Feb 1863, he appears as 2nd Sergt. Newton Cooper. He was captured at Sharpsburg (also known as Antietam) 17 Sep 1862, and appears to have been sent to Ft. Delaware, Del. Weeks later, he was sent to Aikens Landng, Va., for exchange. Newton Cooper appears on the Muster Roll of officers and men present and paroled at Greensboro, N. C., 1 May 1865. His signature on a a pay receipt of 12 Jul 1862. His signature on a pay receipt of 5 Sep 1864.
A Commissioner of Pensions summary card for Newton Cooper dated 14 Oct 1915.		Company Muster Roll card for Nov and Dec 1861 showing Newton Cooper's enlistment date of 27 May 1861 in Atlanta and his appointment to 1st Corp on 4 Dec 1861.
In Jun 1862, he was in Farmville, Va., hospital suffering from debility, but soon returned to duty.		He was taken prison at Sharpsburg (Antietam) on 17 Sep 1862 and sent to Ft. Delaware, a miserable brick fort in the middle of the Delaware River. Weeks later, he was exchanged at Aikens Landing in Virginia.
In Aug 1864, he was admitted to the Jackson Hospital in Richmond, suffering from some kind of fever. Ten days later, he received 30 days furlough for recuperation.		According to this record, Newton Cooper may have spent his 30-day furlough in Albany, Georgia, probably his home.
Muster Roll card showing Newton Cooper's 1 May 1865 parole at Greensboro, N. C., at war's end. For these images and more, see fold3.com/image/271/36009713/		Newton Cooper's brother, Jasper Cooper, also served in the 6th Ga. Inf. He died of illness 8 Sep 1862. fold3.com/image/271/36009677/
After the War
Newton Cooper settled down in Warren Co., Mississippi, north of Vicksburg, sometime after the war. He possessed acreage that included 15 fertile acres which he chose to plant in watermelons.
Newton Cooper with one of his 50 lb. watermelons. Photo from the J. Mack Moore Collection, Courtesy of the Old Court House Museum, Vicksburg, Mississippi		Newton became famous in the area around Warren County for his success in growing and selling his watermelons and watermelon seeds. Newton's great-great-granddaughter reports that "there was always a family competition to see who could have the largest watermelon by the July 4 picnic. One year, Newton had a 110 lb. watermelon." Vicksburg's Daily Commercial of Monday, 15 Aug 1881, headed a short article on Newton "Worth More Than Cotton." In the article they described him as a "very industrious farmer" and they noted his great success in growing and selling the melons. His great-great-granddaughter, genealogist Bobbie Beyers Edwards, has written more on the life of this man. See attached article, Newton Cooper. Photo by Wayne McMaster

Thanks to Bobbie Beyers Edwards, great-great-granddaughter of Newton Cooper, for contributing greatly to this page.



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