Miss Mary Jane Looper, daughter of Joseph and Sarah Hester Looper of near Dacusville, was married to Matthew Hendricks, son of John O'dell and Rosa Keith Hendricks of Oolenoy, on March 22, 1866, at the home of the bride's parents with the Rev. Thomas Looper, uncle of the bride, officiating. The only attendants were Martha Looper, sister of the bride and Samuel Edens. Following the ceremony, a supper of wild turkey was served. For her wedding, the bride wore a dress of blue calico. It contained nine yards of cloth purchased for $25 a yard in Confederate money. Her dog skin shoes were tanned and made at Dacusville. A hand-knitted shawl completed her outfit. The groom wore a suit of home-woven blue jeans and a hat made by Mr. Manning Jones of Oolenoy . The wool for this suit was clipped from Mr. Jones' sheep. The cost was $60 in Confederate money - just before it became worthless. His shoes were also made by Mr. Jones. The engagement ring was a band of yellow gold purchased for $8 in Confederate money. Matthew bought it for Mary while stationed at Lynchburg, Virginia, during the Civil War. Mary had her ring hanging in the corner of the cupboard when Sherman's troops came marching through. One of them spied the ring and said, "This will just about fit my gal's finger, " and put it in his pocket.

The day following the wedding the groom brought his bride to the Hendricks' home for the infare dinner. They made the trip in an open buggy. On the way up it began to drizzle rain and Matthew said to Mary, "You better put your hat under the seat to keep it from getting wet and wear your bonnet." This, she did, and put on her split bonnet. The bride's brother, Joe, accompanied on horseback.

At the Hendricks' home at Oolenoy, Cornelius Keith, III and wife, Harriet Lynch Keith, Steven Keith and wife, Ann Griffin Keith, were waiting with the family to welcome this bridal party. Together, they enjoyed the feast of the infare dinner.

They came to a log house built by the groom's grandfather, Allen Keith, and they later built their home on this same hill. This house is the exact design and measurement of a house Matthew Hendricks camped near in the first battle of Manassas.

SPLIT BONNET: They stitched the crown then put white oak splits between the stitching to make it stiff.

INFARE DINNER: It was the custom to marry at the bride's home - on the following day they went to the groom's home for the infare dinner. I don't know how it originated.

When segments of Sherman's army came pillaging in this area they stopped at the Looper home. When they heard they were in the community they began to hide things they thought these troops might want or might destroy. They had taken up planks in the big room and stored hams under the house and had hidden my grandfather under a brush pile in a gully because the Yankees were killing all old men. The Yankees searched for the old man and believed he was hidden under the brush pile but could not find him. One suggested they set fire to the brush pile and see if he wouldn't come out, but they had no matches and they were too far away to get coals from the kitchen. They shot chickens and ordered them cooked which the women did. They got coals of fire from the kitchen, set fire to a crib of corn near by and sat down to wait for the chickens to cook. The Loopers had hound dogs. At this time a big dog smelled the ham, dug away under the house and came dragging out a ham. The Yankees sent up a yell- seize the ham and went into the house and raised the floor and took all the hams. When they had devoured all the chicken and food the women had prepared, they shot an old horse, took two young ones and marched away. This infuriated my grandfather so he shot the dog that brought out the ham and skinned it and from the hide my Mother's wedding shoes were made. There were no suitcases in that time so ladies used a small trunk to carry their clothes, small enough that it would fit in back of a buggy. Northern people used carpet bags.