Flora Cooke

1836 - 1923  (87 years)

• Name	Flora Cooke  [1, 2, 3]
  Alt. Birth	Abt 1835	Missouri   [4]
  Born	3 Jan 1836	Missouri   [5]
  Gender	Female
  FamilySearch AFN	V9QN-5D
  Alt. Birth	1837  [3]
  Education	Bef 1855	Detroit, Wayne, Michigan   [5]
  	private boarding school
  Biographical	Abt 1855	Fort Leavenworth, Leavenworth, Kansas   [5]
  	met J.E.B. Stuart while her father was commanding the 2nd U.S.Dragoons
  Biographical	Aft 1864  [5]
  	she never abandoned her widow's clothing
  	Stuart would not have approved;  the dashing cavalier, well known for his plumed hat and red lined cape, had always chided Flor for wearing dark colors that didn't accent what he saw as her natural beauty.
  Occupation	Bef 1880	Staunton City, Virginia   [5]
  	teacher
  	Flora never remarried.  She supported herself and her family as a teacher, eventually becoming headmistress of the Virginia Femal Institute in Stuanton – Virginia's oldest college prepartory school for girls.
  Occupation	1880-1898	Staunton City, Virginia   [6]
  	principal of the Virginia Female institute
  History	1907  [5, 6]
  	The Virginia Female Institute was renamed Stuart Hall in her honor
  	Stuart Hall's Founders' Day celebrates the date, January 13, 1844, on which the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Virginia formally chartered the Virginia Female Institute (V.F.I). In 1907, the School was renamed Stuart Hall, in honor of Flora Cooke Stuart, who had served as principal from 1880 until 1899. It is the one of the oldest Episcopal schools in the state and one of the oldest college preparatory schools in the country.
  Alt. Death	1923  [3]
  Alt. Death	10 May 1923  [4]
  Name	Flora Cocke  [4]
  Name	Flora Cook  [7, 8]
  Died	10 May 1923	Norfolk, Norfolk (city), Virginia   [5]
  	Cause: injuries from a fall
  	She died of injuries sustained in a fall four days earlier.
  Buried	12 May 1923	Hollywood Cemetery, Richmond City, Virginia   [5]
  	She was buried on the 59th anniversary of her husband's death.
  Person ID	I6107	If the Legends Are True...
  Last Modified	17 Jan 2010

  
  

  Father	Colonel Philip St. George Cooke, U.S. Army,   b. 1809, Loudoun County, Virginia ,   d. 1895  (Age 86 years)
  Mother	Rachel Wilt Herzog
  Family ID	F29577	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	General J. E. B. Stuart,   b. 6 Feb 1833, Laurel Hil, Patrick County, Virginia ,   d. 12 May 1864  (Age 31 years)
  Married	14 Nov 1855	Fort Riley, Riley County, Kansas   [2, 4, 5, 8]
  	Although a gala wedding was planned for Fort Riley, Kansas, the death of Stuart's father on September 20 caused a change of plans, and the marriage on November 14 was small and limited to family witnesses. [5]
  Children	1. Flora Stuart,   b. Sep 1856, Fort Leavenworth, Leavenworth, Kansas ,   d. 1862  (Age ~ 5 years) + 2. James Ewell Brown Stuart, Junior,   b. 1860,   d. Yes, date unknown + 3. Virginia Pelham Stuart,   b. 9 Oct 1863, Virginia ,   d. 1898  (Age 34 years)
  Last Modified	17 Jan 2010
  Family ID	F2305	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Photos

  Stuart → J.E.B. with wife Flora Cook JEB Stuart bids farewell to his wife, Flora, in Dundee Plantation house, near Hanover Courthouse, Virginia.

  
  

• Notes

  Flora had rushed to be beside her husband, but arrived only to see him in death at the house of Dr. Charles Brewer. Word of her husband being wounded in battle reached her at Beaver Dam Station via messenger due to the telegraph wires being cut by Union General Sheridan's troops. Flora and their two children raced by private train and reached Ashland, finding that the tracks had been torn up by the Union troops. A group of sympathetic and loyal wounded Confederate cavalrymen gave them their ambulance which the group drove through a growing rainstorm. Throughout the journey Flora would receive erroneous word that her husband was doing well, only slightly wounded, giving her hope she would reach him in time. Finding the bridge at the Chickahominy River destroyed, blocking them from easy access to Richmond, they forded the river a mile downstream delaying their arrival at the Brewer home until 11:30 P.M. Her husband had died almost four hours earlier, receiving Confederate President Jefferson Davis as one of his last guests. (Research): The Family of Hoge claims Flora was the daughter of General William Cook and Martha Walker.  This appears to be in error. So far, this is the only significant error I have found in The Family of Hoge. "Martha m General William Cook, of United States Army; d in Washington, D. C., September 15, 1874.  General J. E. B. Stuart, of the Confederate Army, m her daughter." The Family of Hoge – page 30, item e-109 < (Medical):See attached sources. [5]

  
  

• Reference

  If the Legends Are True... by J. Craig Canada, "Flora Cooke" (accessed March 8, 2021) | http://www.palmspringsbum.com/genealogy/getperson.php?personID=I6107&tree=Legends.