Will "My" Coy Franklin Hicks Please Stand Up?

Mary Inez Muir was my first cousin once removed, the eldest daughter of my grand uncle, Henry "Jack" Muir and his first wife, Mary Frances Canterbury. Mary Inez was born on 8 January 1922 in Raven, Virginia. According to her granddaughter, she was married as many as nine times. So far, I have found at least the surnames of eight husbands. 

On 26 January 1994 Mary Inez married Coy Franklin Hicks in Tazewell County, Virginia. For years I could not find any additional information about Coy beyond his name. Earlier this week, I tried searching for him again. I had more success than I bargained for and found three men named Coy Franklin Hicks!

Virginia marriage record for Mary Inez and Coy Franklin Hicks; 
courtesy of Ancestry.com

Coy Franklin Hicks

• Born: 17 June 1917 in Caretta, West Virginia, to Mitchell and Rebecca "Beckie" (Boothe) Hicks.
• Died: 23 May 1999 in Tazewell County, Virginia
• Married: 1) Kathleen Hopkins (died in 1988) in 1938 and 2) Mary Inez Muir in 1994; no known children

Coy Franklin Hicks

• Born: 21 December 1918 in Davidson County, North Carolina, to Marvin and Cora Louise (Klass) Hicks
• Died: 8 June 1971 in Thomasville, North Carolina
• Married: 1) Dorothy Mae Loveless in 1938; one known child

Coy Franklin Hicks

• Born: after 1940 to Coy Harrison and Elma H. (Ward) Hicks
• Married: 1) Carolyn Joy Harris and 2) Trudy (maiden name unknown); three known children by his first wife

I was able to discount the North Carolina Coy Franklin Hicks fairly quickly as he died before the 1994 marriage to Mary Inez Muir. However, I added him to my tree in order to have facts about him readily available so I could better analyze each record I was finding to determine to which Coy Franklin Hicks they related.

However, I had a "stray" marriage record that led to the third Coy Franklin Hicks. On that record he and wife, Carolyn Joy Harris, were the parents of the bride. Was this "my" Coy Franklin Hicks? Determining there was actually a third man with that name was confirmed by the obituaries of Elma (Ward) Hicks and Tina Joy (Hicks) Stewart. To find those obituaries, though, required more researching. That's how I end up with unrelated people in my family tree. And research notes with links to all the men named Cory Franklin Hicks so I, and others in the future, don't have to do the research again.

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Unraveling Henry's Children: Mary Inez Muir (1922-2002)