Nellie Weldon Cocroft
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November 4, 1885
Nellie Weldon Cocroft | |
|---|---|
| Born | Ellen Estelle Weldon November 4, 1885 Quitman, Georgia, U.S. |
| Died | June 27, 1986 (aged 100) |
| Other names | N. Weldon Cocroft |
| Occupation | Composer |
Ellen Weldon Cocroft (November 4, 1885 – June 27, 1986) was an American musical composer.
Ellen Estelle Weldon was born on November 4, 1885, in Quitman, Georgia, the daughter of Richard Weldon and Virginia (Massey) Weldon.[1] She was the eldest of three daughters, including Jeanivieve (b. 1893) and Minnie (b. 1896).[1] Her father, Richard, was a traveling salesman, although he also owned the Quitman Marble Company (since 1886).[1] In early 1904, Richard moved his family and the company twenty miles west to nearby Thomasville, Georgia, where he renamed his company the Thomasville Marble Company; among their products were memorial headstones.[1]
Career
Nellie graduated with a degree in piano and organ performance in early 1905, at the age of 20, from Breneau College (now known as Brenau University). She married Christopher ("C.C.") Cocroft (also a musician) not long after, in April 1905.[1]
Nellie Cocroft was a church organist and choir director in Thomasville. Her husband ran a music store, and published her compositions to sell in the shop under the name "N. Weldon Cocroft".[2]
Published works by Nellie Weldon Cocroft included "When the Birds are Singing in the Springtime" (1909),[3] "Pinywoods Rag" (1909),[3] "When the Autumn Turns the Forest Leaves to Gold" (1909),[3] "Georgia Cracker" (1909),[4] and "I'se Gwine to Highball" (1910).[3] No musical copyrights seem to have been filed by N. Weldon Cocroft after 1910.[5]
After a lengthy divorce in 1923-1924,[6][7] and upon losing custody of her son,[1] she moved to Jacksonville, Florida, where she worked as a secretary in a law office until the late 1940s.[1] Not much is known about her after this date.[1]
