Rosa (Shean) Cooper

Born Rosa Bruce, she was the adopted daughter of Mr. Isaac Bruce and Mrs. Emma (Rose) Bruce. It appears that her first name comes from her mother’s maiden name. She was born in late summer of 1887, in Carroll County.

In 1900, she was attending school, likely in the segregated school on Union Street in Westminster. She lived with her parents on Washington Street in a home that they owned. By 1910, she had started work as a hairdresser.

Miss Bruce married Mr. Eugene Wright sometime before 1913. The couple lived in Westminster. Sadly, their daughter, Rosa Leonia Wright, died at only 3 months old of cholera. Modern sanitation and vaccination have made cholera nearly non-existent in the US. However, in the early 1900s, childhood was a dangerous time.

The couple moved up to Troy, New York. Their second daughter was born there and named for her father, Eugenia. Mr. Wright worked as a waiter in a hotel.

In the 1920s, they moved to New York City. Mrs. Wright became the personal maid to Ms. Miriam Hopkins. Her daughter joined the Black and White Revue. The Revue was a production that would have all white performers in the first act and then African American performers in the second act.

Mrs. Wright died in the spring of 1937, a few months after her husband passed away. She was returned to Westminster and buried near her parents in Ellsworth Cemetery.