A Hampton Sisters Tribute

 

Honoring:

Aletra Hampton

Virtue Hampton

 

            Aletra, born in 1918, and Virtue, born in 1922, were two of 12 children born to Clarke “Deacon” Hampton and Laura (Burford) Hampton.  Born in Middletown, Ohio, the Hampton children had musical instruments in their hands at the early age of three.

            In the late 1920s, Deacon Hampton took his family on the road.  Called “Deacon Hampton and the Cotton Pickers,” the family band traveled throughout the Eastern United States and into the deepest parts of the segregated American South.  The group performed as a family band, and was enjoyed by many audiences as a novelty act because of the young ages of many of the Hampton children.

            In 1938, the Hampton Family moved to Shelbyville, Indiana, and later to Indianapolis following an extended booking at the Cotton Club and the Sunset Tavern.  During WWII, the family act disbanded as the brothers went to war to fight for their country.  The Hampton Sisters created their own group called the Hamptonians.

            After the war ended in 1945, the Hamptons reunited and began traveling once again, this time under the direction of oldest son, Duke.  While much of the family still played in the band, they needed more musicians to complete the sections.  Local musicians such as Alonzo “Pookie” Johnson, who still plays with the sisters, and Tom Whitted, who eventually married Virtue, joined the band.  Although they played at almost every nightclub in the city, the Hamptons were best known for their live shows at Stein’s, located at 1110 North Meridian Street.  Although times were tough, music served as an escape for the sisters, helping them put their worries aside.  The Hampton Sisters continued to perform in Indianapolis for the next twenty years.

            Carmalita, one of the four sisters, passed away in 1987 and Dawn moved to New York.  Aletra and Virtue still play frequently around Indianapolis at various social functions, fundraisers and for school children as well.  The band currently features Aletra on piano and vocals, Virtue on bass and vocals, Alonzo “Pookie” Johnson on saxophone and Larry Clark on drums.

            Recently another milestone was reached by Aletra and Virtue.  With the help of Pookie and Larry, the Hampton Sisters recorded their first full length CD, right her in the Indiana History Center Theater.  The album will allow the Hampton Sisters to continue to bring joy to their fans for many years to come.

 

(text from concert program, sponsored by The Indiana Historical Society)

 

Additional donations to the Hampton Sisters can be made, payable to the Indiana Historical Society, 450 West Ohio Street, Indianapolis, IN 46202-3269

Write “Hampton Sisters Donation” in the memo.