Rev John William (J.W.) Hampton was born May 6th, 1861, in Prairie Dell, Bell County Texas. He was the son of Rev Wade Wayman Wright (WWW) Hampton and his 1st wife Pauline (Caroline) Holder Hampton. He probably remembered when he was a little 4-year-old boy in 1865, his mother and baby sister Betty both died from complications of childbirth, (I believe). His grandfather, Nathan Holder was in the Confederate States Army. He was a soldier and died a POW the same year of 1865 in the Union Civil War Prison Camp Elmira in New York. His father W.W.W. had been a Confederate POW also once, but luckily was released after a short time in a POW exchange. After the war had ended that same year of 65 returned home with the closing of the war. So much had changed then in that one year. His father, WWW remarried to widow Mary Elizabeth Jackson Medart, bringing her existing 7 children into the family. John now had stepbrothers and sisters, and a new mother and they a new father and husband. It must have been quite a change, but one for the better, and these children like he had lost a parent and knew how painful and lonely and hard things could be, as did their mother. So, they must have been very supportive of him in his times of need. They also knew the meaning of hard times and hard work. His stepsiblings were Medarts, Thomas J, James L, William L, Martha, Hugh, Charles, and Amanda. His family had gone from 4 to 2 and now 8. W.W.W. and Mary Elizabeth added 6 more children during their 19 years of marriage: Mary Ann, David, Matilda, Michael, Virginia and Susan (who died an infant).

J.W. learned how to be preacher from his father and became a minister when his father ordained him. JW married Sarah Jane Wilkerson in 1882. They had 7 children together; Marietta, William Cornelious (Neal or Nelie), Matilda, Alan, Roy (Leonard)(Roy is my wife's grandfather), Walace Wesley and Vera Viola Hampton. J.W. and Sarah would be married for 45 years. They had 22 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren (if I counted right). (Correct me if I'm wrong!) He passed away December 11th, 1927, at the age of 66.

Please note: This bio would not have been possible without the family tree work of Robert Hampton my father in-law and grandson of JW. It had been handed down to him and told to him many times over by his stepmother Sarah who believed that remembering and passing down the names and memories of your ancestors was very important, and so Bob Hampton had this record to pass on through me.