Mary Jane Harding

Published 2:13 pm Monday, March 31, 2025

Mary Jane Harding passed away on March 14, 2025, at Hermitage Health and Rehabilitation Center in Elizabethton, Tenn. She previously resided in Austin, Texas, for nearly 50 years and was a member of St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church in that city before moving to Elizabethton, Tenn., in 2018.

She was born Nov. 28, 1929, in Houston, Texas, the daughter of the late Clarence Douglas Duncan and the late Mildred Knox Brown Duncan. She attended Bellville, Texas, city schools, Hockaday School, and Southern Methodist University, both in Dallas, Texas. On Nov. 7, 1950, she married Lynn Blackmore Harding in Biloxi, Miss., who preceded her in death in 1997.

She is survived by her sons, Ross (Mary) Harding of Harriman, Tenn., and Scott (Deborah) Harding of Elizabethton, Tenn. She is also survived by five grandchildren: Michael (Kora) Harding, Rusty Harding (Rebecca), Lizzy Bullman (Terry), Chris Harding (Ryanne), and Jeremy Harding. Additionally, she is survived by six great-grandchildren, one niece, and three nephews.

Jane was also preceded in death by her sisters, Francis Egg (Sonny) of Edna, Texas, and Dorothy Hughes (Fred) of Houston, Texas.

Jane was an active participant in several patriotic and ancestral organizations while living in Texas: Daughters of the American Revolution, Daughters of the Republic of Texas, Colonial Dames 17th Century, Colonial Dames of America, and the Magna Carta Dames.

The family extends their gratitude to all the loving and caring aides and nurses at Sycamore Springs Memory Care, Hermitage Health and Rehabilitation Center, and especially to Tina Wiggins, her hairdresser at Paradise Beauty Salon, while she was at Sycamore Springs.

Condolences may be sent to 288 Reynolds Road in Elizabethton, Tenn. Memorials may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or the Southern Methodist University women’s golf team.