Bio: Sallie Wear Laing (Mrs. Joe), Caddo Parish La Source: From Chronicles of Shreveport and Caddo Parish, Maude Hearn O'Pry, 1928, Submitted by: Kay Thompson Brown ********************************************************** ********************************************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ********************************************** ************ SALLIE WEAR LAING (Mrs. Joe) MRS. SALLIE WEAR LAING was born in Brenham, Texas. Her father, Madison Melroy Wear, her mother, Sarah Frances Middleton - one of the beautiful Middleton sisters. John William Middleton, an Englishman and his wife, a French noblewoman, Sara Frances Antoniette Son Germaine, settled in Texas with the Stephen A. Austin Colony, and so Mrs. Joe Laing is also a native of the Lone Star State, four generations back, and is a loyal daughter of the South. Her life is full of varied experiences and she was counted in her youth as a Texas belle, having been four times a Queen of May. Her character is an unusually we1l-rounded one. There is hardly a thing she cannot do and do well. Hers is the nature that rushes forth to meet and co-operate in all things for good. This is innate and although she is a sufferer, she never excuses herself from an interview with one whom she might help spiritually and give a little "backing" to. It is difficult to describe Mrs. Laing's personality. Few women can claim what she has accomplished and is still doing. Mrs. Laing has one child of her own, Mrs. Patrick White, is following in her mother's foot. steps in every line of activity, and calls Shreveport her home as she spends half of her time here. Mrs. Laing is supremely devoted to her grandson, Patrick White, Jr., who is twelve years of age and her heart's delight. She has reared and thoroughly educated eight other children as her own. She thought nothing of breaking an engagement to see a wonderful opera or play if one of the "kiddies" were ill or she found she was needed at home. She writes beautifully in both prose and poetry, rows a boat, rides horseback, dances, plays the violin and tells humorous stories. She is a brilliant conversationalist. Perhaps her forte is making people happy, writing short stories for children and adults. She wrote the poem, "Orphans" which was published in pamphlet form in 1897 and it was sold for Bqckner's Orphan Home, some of the copies selling as high as $3.50 and $3.00 per copy. Six hundred copies were disposed of in one afternoon and checks of different amounts sent in to Dr. Buckner. These were sold at the Dallas Fair to complete an Artsian Well for the Home. None doubt the good work Mrs. Laing did amongst the wives of the miners while Mr. Laing was operating the coal mine at Strawn, Texas. The miners and their families had come from Scotland and many of them were very illiterate, having no religion nor morals as to marriage certificates. This was a stupendous piece of welfare work. Mrs. Laing tried to teach them hygiene, organized a school and had a minister to go over once a month, organized a society among the wives of the miners, teaching them the things they needed to know so badly, how to cook and sew and care for their children. Mrs. Laing loved to do all these things and she had a good husband who would let her do them. While she was doing this work of being a model wife and social worker among the miners, she was also keeping the home in Dallas on Lancaster avenue, rearing the nine children in different schools and was always seen "Smiling Mrs Laing now lives on Fairfield, corner Wi1kinson, in Shreveport. She loves Shreveport and Shreveport loves her. She has lately renewed her vows to the church and is a member of First Methodist. Time has called no halt in her activities. She is eager to work, to love and live, happy in hawing she fills some place of sen-ice. She is like a beautiful cameo. becoming more beautiful the older it is. She can never hold a grudge against anyone. Many lessons are here hr the student to emulate, especially in her motto of living and loving and always, no matter what comes--"Smiling Through." Her psychology of life is rather unusual as reflected in her book, "Her Black Body."