When Dora Bell Rooker was born on 22 February 1885, in Tennessee, United States, her father, Anderson D Rooker, was 26 and her mother, Buannavista Grissom, was 17. She married John Malcolm "Mack" Houchen on 8 March 1902, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Oklahoma Territory, United States. They were the parents of at least 2 sons and 4 daughters. She lived in Choctaw, Oklahoma, United States for about 5 years and Ratliffe Township, Choctaw, Oklahoma, United States in 1940. She died on 15 January 1972, in Hugo, Choctaw, Oklahoma, United States, at the age of 86, and was buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery, Hugo, Choctaw, Oklahoma, United States.