Source: According to a vertical file entitled "The Rook Family" found in the Mont. Co. Library, July 1999 by Lindon Tubb Cooksey.

George and Nancy owned over 1000 ac. of land on Yellow Creek and over 700 ac. in the Cedar Creek Farm area as well as several smaller tracts of land. 
  
Mr. L. T. Cooksey wrote that George "... had one slave, Rich, who was 6ft. 6 in. tall and had a athelitic built and was a powerful man, he would cut his---'task' usualy by noon on Wednesday and cut for himself the rest of the week and keep the money. 
   
Rich was a powerful man and had money of his own, so he was a 'Big Man' among the Slaves of the neighborhood.
   
Abner Brown and Sarah Lyon Vick Skelton (she was a cousin of Nancy Lyon Good Cooksey, and a daughter of Roland and Elizabeth Vick) lived down Yellow Creek from the Cooksey farm in now Houston County, Tennessee and had a number of Slaves, they had one Slave that tried also to 'Rule the Roost', he and Rich were trying to court the same woman, so Rich killed Cousin Abner's Slave.  The law was that the murderer would be hung, so my Grandfather, Andrew Jackson Cooksey and his cousin, James M. Skelton (Abner's Son) slipped Rich out at night and they rode horse back to where the Tombigee River crosses the Alabama and Missippi line and sold Rich to Uncle William (Billy) Rook.
   
My Great Grandfather, George Tubb Cooksey and his cousin, Abner Brown Skelton equally divided the money from the sale of Rich.
  
William (Billy) Rook and his brother John Rook Jr. and two of John Rook, Sr.'s descendant (apparent the sons of their older brother, Daniel Rook) owned plantations on the Tombigee River where it crosses the Alabama and Missippi state line in a south east direction, two lived in Alabama and two in Missippi in the same neighborhood. 
   
Years later when my Father, Jesse Milton Cooksey, was a teenager Rich came back to visit his relatives on Yellow Creek, Rich and two of his relatives came to see my Grandfather, Andrew Jackson Cooksey.
   
The two neighbors called my Grandfather to come to the gate and see if he recognized the third man, My Grandfather went out and said 'Why that is Rich,' they were all riding good saddle horses.
   
Rich said that he was very happy to get to come to see my Grandfather and thank him for saving his life.
   
Rich, now Rich Rook was in fact rich as for he was now a prosperous plantation owner.
   
These facts were related by my father, Jesse Milton Cooksey.  (Dec. 16, 1873-September 5, 1958)
Lindon Tubb Cooksey
This December 4, 1979"
   
The previous entry was copied as it is including spelling and punctuation.
Submitted by Jean Hancock

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