James Coulter Sneden

James married Mary Ellen Holloway on 13 Oct 1881. Mary was born on 17 Oct 1845 in Ironshire, Worcester County, Maryland; and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Sheryl Falk sent the following information about her paternal great-grandmother, Anna Shenden Thompson, excerpted from a book Anna wrote about her life:

She writes that her maternal grandmother Hester (Hetty) Lucas (born 1812) was the daughter of Hester Bowen (Boen) and Parker Lucas. She lived with her family in the Eastern part of Virginia at Accomak county. They lived in a fine estate and raised Thoroughbred horses.

Hetty married Lemuel Holloway of Lewes Delaware. They married and lived for quite a time at Ironshire, Maryland. There Mary Ellen Holloway was born Oct. 17, 1845. Mary Ellen grew up and moved to Philadelphia, living with her older sister, Esther Anne Holloway Purnell (or Purcell). Esther's husband accidently shot himself leaving her to rais her children alone.

Anna's father James Coulter Sneden was born in Philadelphia Jan. 18, 1851 at 16th and Pine Street. His parents came to America from Belfast lreland. His father William Sneden started to work as a carpenter but soon began building houses for himself. James Coulter Sneden often spoke of going to Independence Hall when he was 10 years old to see the body of Abraham Lincoln lying in state.

James Coulter and Mary Ellen met at a church social -Pine Street Church (3rd and Pine streets). They were married Oct. 13th, 1881 by the Rev. Adair. My great grandmother, Anna Sneden Thompson was born Sept. 2, 1885. (The baby's name was originally recorded at City Hall as "Ann Jane", however the maternal grandmother did not like that, so they added an "a" to Ann and substituted Sneden for Jane). Grandfather Sneden lived just long enough to see the baby.

Anna married Walter Samuel Falk on 26 Aug 1911. Walter (son of Andreas "Andrew" Falk and Catharine Luft) was born on 26 Feb 1880 in Monroe, Monroe County, Michigan; and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

WALTER S FALK 22 Mar 1914 27 May 2001 (V) 78756 (Austin, Travis, Texas) (none specified) 173-05-5372 Pennsylvania

Walter married Josephine Anne Glennon Pearce on 2 Jun 1944 in Biloxi, Harrison County, Mississippi. Josephine (daughter of Jefferson Clayton Pearce and Nora Iduma Latimer) was born on 18 Oct 1923 in Pascagoula, Jackson County, Mississippi; died on 18 Dec 1994 in San Patricio County, Texas; was buried in Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery, Bexar County, Texas. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Legendary Texas artist, Walter S. Falk III died unexpectedly on Tues., July 10, while painting in his home studio in Rockport. The son of the late Anne and Lt. Col. Walter S. Falk, Jr., he is survived by wife Rhonda Stout Falk, Rockport; daughter Sheryl Falk, Houston; sons Nathan and Benjamin Falk, Rockport, sister Patricia Falk, Bridgeport, CT; and devoted friends and collectors around the world.

Born Sept. 20, 1945, in Philadelphia, Walter graduated from The University of Texas at Austin. He attended graduate school in philosophy, but when his advisor lost his Ph.D. dissertation, Falk crossed Guadalupe St. and began painting and selling watercolors on the sidewalk. Falk pushed to establish a dedicated marketplace for artists and craftspeople, which led to the creation of the People's Renaissance Market.

Falk was an exquisite artist with a distinctive artistic style-lyrical, whimsical and captivating. He combined dreamlike color in watercolor, acrylic, or oil backgrounds, with human figures inked with unerring gesture and movement, with brief, poetic titles. He had gallery shows, but he felt art belonged to the people, not to the upper crust alone. So he sold his paintings on the street and in festivals, which made him a keen human observer, contributing to his artistic reach even as it challenged him materially. Walter loved beauty, and made many sacrifices for his art. He sold nearly 40,000 original works in his life time, an achievement friends believe is unequalled, and he sold them on every continent on the globe.

Falk traveled extensively throughout Mexico, Canada, Europe, and South America. He had great adventures, climbing pyramids, mountains, and waterfalls, swimming with alligators and fighting bandidos. He shared his adventurous spirit in his paintings and through his captivating stories. He was a larger than life character who has been compared to Hemingway and Steinbeck. He relished life, and stayed true to himself throughout his.

A funeral service will be held this Sunday, 2:30 pm, at the First United Methodist Church, Rockport. A celebration of his life will be held soon in Austin. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made toward any charity supporting the arts or the environment or the American Heart Society.

(Courtesy of Sheryl Falk)

Walter married Living [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Walter married Living [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]