Carmon Thomas Hooper, III

Carmon Thomas Hooper III (“Tommy”) January 8, 1931 – March 28, 2026, Carmon Thomas Hooper III, of Brownsville, Tennessee, died March 28, 2026, at the age of 95. A lifelong resident of Haywood County, he was an attorney, public servant, and family man. 

Born January 8, 1931, Tommy was the first of four sons of C.T. Hooper Jr. and Annie Mann Hooper. Tommy attended Haywood County schools before completing high school at Kentucky Military Institute (KMI) in Lyndon, KY. In 1953, he graduated from the University of Alabama, where he was a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon. Tommy was a life-long, die-hard Crimson Tide fan, but watching his team play always made him nervous.

 Like most young men of his era, Tommy entered the military after college, joining the U.S. Air Force and earning his wings in Big Spring, TX. He attained the rank of First Lieutenant and was trained on the F-86D interceptor, an early Air Force fighter jet. He was assigned to the 339th Interceptor Squadron, stationed in Chitose, Japan. It was the dawn of the Cold War, and Tommy and his fellow airmen’s mission was to identify and intercept aircraft approaching Japanese airspace from the Soviet Union. Tommy never lost his love of flying, despite surviving a crash while piloting his father’s propellor plane in the 1950s. 

Tommy entered Vanderbilt University School of Law on the G.I. Bill in 1956, graduated in 1959, and was admitted to the Tennessee bar the same year. He joined a two-man Brownsville firm founded by Larry Morgan and Alex Gray, and following their deaths in the 1960s, he maintained a solo legal practice until the day he entered the hospital in February 2026. He was a true “country lawyer” who served multiple generations of Haywood County residents. 

Tommy was also a “citizen lawyer,” serving six years in the Tennessee House of Representatives, fifteen years on the Haywood County Commission, and eighteen years as County Attorney. In 1965, he co-founded First Federal Savings and Loan and later served as Chairman of the Board of First State Bank. An advocate for his hometown, Tommy partnered with friends to build condominiums and residential projects, including Williamsburg Lane, a residential street he developed on 6 acres of farmland in the style of Colonial Williamsburg. 

Tommy was originally a Kennedy Democrat, but later joined the Republican Party and served as county chairman for many statewide candidates. He was a longtime member of the Rotary Club of Brownsville and was a Paul Harris Fellow. He earned the rank of Eagle Scout and served as Scoutmaster of Troop 70. 

In 1962, he married Martha Graham Myatt of Memphis. They were married for 63 years and raised five children—Ashley, Allyson, Anne Sanford, Tom, and Sandy. Tommy was proud of the close-knit family he and Martha built together and often reminded his children and grandchildren that he prayed for them “every day.” 

Tommy was a man of faith, curiosity, and habits. He began each day with a Bible devotional and on Sunday mornings before church, he visited old friends in the nursing home. He read The Wall Street Journal religiously and complained when it arrived late. In the evening before bed, he shined his shoes. 

He enjoyed tennis, was an avid photographer, and liked German cars. In his later years, he read American history biographies and enjoyed driving around town in his 1971 Mercedes convertible. 

Tommy was a permanent fixture on Brownsville’s Court Square where he practiced law for 67 years. He could usually be found sitting on his office sofa, holding court with clients and friends while watching activity around the square. He was an institution and will be missed by many. 

He is survived by his wife, Martha Myatt Hooper; his children, Ashley McClure (Mark), Allyson Proctor (Pat), Anne Sanford French, Tom Hooper (Collins), and Sandy Hooper; his grandchildren, Mary Sanford Shepherd (Henry) and Myatt McClure; McKay, Anna, and Carmon Proctor; Grace Elizabeth, Holland, and Graham Hawks; Eads, Maggie, and Myatt Hooper; and one great granddaughter, Martha Mae Shepherd. He is also survived by his brothers, David Hooper, Sr, (Eleanor) and Jeff Hooper (Marjorie).  He is preceded in death by his parents and one brother, Jere Hooper.

A memorial service will be held at First United Methodist Church in Brownsville at 11 a.m. on Good Friday, April 3. The family will gather for a graveside burial before the service. Memorials may be made to First United Methodist or charity of choice.  All arrangements and services are under the direction of the Lea & Simmons Funeral Home.