On a beautiful hilltop, near the Western North Carolina town of Robbinsville, stands a most unusual grave site. Buried there, are Thomas Jefferson Hooper and his wife, Catherine Colvard Hooper. This unique grave, called "The Sheltered Grave" by local residents, has an interesting story, dating back to the American Civil War.

T.J. Hooper served in the Confederate Army during the entire Civil War. During that service, he suffered greatly from exposure to the elements and said he almost froze to death on many occasions. As a result of those experiences, he told his family that he wanted a shelter built over his grave when he died, "to protect his bones from the elements". When he died, in 1895, the family honored that request and built a large wooden shelter to protect his grave. For more than 114 years, the Hooper family has maintained this most unusual grave site.

My grandmother's side of the family were Hoopers and my grandfather's side were McClungs. The Hoopers are descendants of William Hooper, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.

Photos taken with a Panasonic LX3 digital camera.

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