By Louis Hofferbert

No Indeed, said Mrs. Anna Louvenia HUDSON Cromeenes firmly she could not possibly have her picture made. Not that she minded the picture, you understand; only that she had too much to do. "People will be dropping in you know," she explained in her soft but precise voice. "I have to wash my windows and do the woodwork..." She didn't really have to do because they were already spotless. Even if they were not, any visitors to the modest white home at 627 E. 11 1/2 St. would understand.

You see: Mrs. Cromeenes is 100 years old today. "Oh yes, she said. I do all the housework, the cooking the grocery shopping. I always walked to the store, but lately my grandson has been taking me in the car on Saturdays." It is hard to believe that Mrs. Cromeenes is 100, or even 75. And though she later relented about the picture, it is hard to believe how active she is in keeping the neat home where she has lived for 30 years.

Reaching 100 is more than a personal triumph for Mrs. Cromeenes, In its own special way it is a memorial to those of her family who sighted the goal but didn't quite make it. There was her older sister Mrs. Nancy Blair, (Nancy Jane Hudson - wife of Harrison W. Blair my Great Grandparents) who died when she was eight months short of her 100th birthday, another older sister, Mrs. Elizabeth Bryant, who died three years ago. Had she lived another seven weeks she, too, would have reached 100.

"Died "Young": Others of the family died young by comparison, Mrs. Cromeenes" Brother James reached 96, her sisters Lillian and Mollie were 86 when death overtook them. This remarkable family goes back to a comfortable farm in Russell County, KY. Where Anna Louvenia Hudson - known then and now as "Venia"-was born on April 3, 1866, the seventh of nine children. After her mother's death her father married a widow with four youngsters, and the second marriage brought four more.

"It got to be a little complicated," Mrs. Cromeenes recalled with a twinkle in her still-bright blue eyes. "Some older ones left before the youngest was born, but we did have 15 in the family at one time."

Wed Civil War Vet: When she was 21 Venia married James Cromeenes, almost 20 years her senior. He was a farmer, a Civil War veteran, and a widower with several children. These became her family, since she never had children of her own. In 1890, three years after her marriage, the family packed up and headed for Texas in a covered wagon. It took from April through July to make the trip from Western Kentucky to a farm in northern Waller County. What was Texas like 76 years ago? "Well, there were no wolves in Kentucky, but there were plenty in Texas. There were no roads to speak of, no gas, no electricity, and no trains. It was a pretty hard life." Later the family moved to Brookshire, where Cromeenes operated a furniture store until his death in 1919. Mrs. Cromeens and her widowed sister, Mrs. Bryant, remained in the Brookshire home until the move to Houston more than 15 years later.

Tough Winter: "Why did I move? Well, I guess you could say it was the firewood." The firewood had to be cut in the river bottoms and hauled in before the winter rains, she explained. But one year she was visiting in Kentucky and failed to place her firewood order in time. It was a tough winter. So the widowed sisters, then 70 and 73, set out for town. Here she had lived ever since with Mrs. Bryant for company until her death and then alone. "Oh, I'm not as chipper as I once was," Mrs. Cromeenes said with a rare smile. "But I manage."

Indeed she does: Her hair is snow white and drawn into a firm knot, But her face is almost unwrinkled, her voice is firm her sight and hearing are excellent. A few teeth are missing, but those remaining are her own. She reads with old-fashioned spectacles and occasionally uses a magnifying glass "for the small print, you know."

Work And Visits: Her days are busy with housework, and visiting back and forth with her long-time friend and neighbor, Mrs. Mabel Richey, two doors down the street. Until recently she mowed her lawn and tended her flowers. Now those chores are done by a neighbor. It's all so nice and comfortable, she said with a sigh. "The gas and lights and grocery are handy to have. "But, you know, I would give it all up in a minute to be back on the old farm in Kentucky."

(This was in the Houston Chronicle Newspaper Houston, Texas, Sunday, April 3, 1966 Section 2.)

Can you help me? There is a picture of Aunt Louvenia, with is story but it is very hard to see. The person who copied it must have had the newspaper folded in half and there is a line going down the middle of her face. If anyone reading this lives or has access to this article I would be more than happy to pay you for getting a good copy of this article. I would just love to have a good copy of her picture so that I may share it with other family members and add it to her story here. I'm in need of a date of death a copy of her obituary . I'm sure that her death couldn't have been much after this article in 1966. Please email me if you can help me out.

 

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