James Paul Hopper
Last Rites Held For Paul Hopper
James Paul Hopper was born on Aug. 24, 1911, at Clay, Ky., the son of W. T. and Anna Hopper. He died at his ranch home north of Harrison on September 1 at the age of 62.
At the age of 14 he came to O'Neill, Neb., after the death of his father. He worked there at the Hickey Ranch and Dairy until he was 19. Then he was a driver for Gallagher Truck Lines in Wyoming for 20 years.
Paul was a good horseman and sometimes rode in rodeos. He worked on several ranches in western Nebraska, Colorado, and Arizona.
On Aug. 25, 1947, he married Thirza Story Anderson at Billings, Mont. In 1948 he and Mrs. Hopper took up ranching on the Story Ranch north of Harrison where he lived until his death.
He was preceded in death by his parents, a son William by a former marriage, and a brother David.
Surviving are his wife Thirza of Harrison; his step-son Darrell Anderson of Denver; a foster son Russell Hildebrand of Omaha; three brothers, Henry of Mansfield, Ohio, George and Herman of Kentucky; a sister, Mary of Kentucky; and five grandchildren.
Paul Hopper, at the time of his death, was a member of the Edgemont Southern Baptist Church where he attended regularly. He was baptized on Easter Sunday, 1971. Previous to his membership in the Baptist Church, he was active in American Sunday School work in western Nebraska, especially in the North Star Sunday School near Harrison. He was a member of the Senior Citizens Club at Edgemont.