USA > Arkansas > Biographical and historical memoirs of eastern Arkansas, comprising a condensed history of the state, a number of biographies of distinguished citizens of the same, a brief descriptive history of each of the counties named herein, and numerous biographical sketches of the prominent citizens of such counties. > Part 25
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J. W. Edie. Among the early settlers of Jud- sonia will be found the name of J. W. Edie, who came from Buchanan County, Iowa, and settled in the town in 1873. After following the lumber busi- ness for some twelve years he began making a specialty of sash, doors and blinds, and does an extensive business. He was born in Harrison County, Ohio, December 6, 1834, and is the eldest of two children born to Thomas and Levina (Palmer) Edie, who were born in the "Keystone
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State." They immigrated to Ohio with their par- ents in 1819 and 1821, respectively, and were married in that State in February, 1834. The father was a farmer, and followed that occupation both in Ohio and after removing to Iowa in 1853, in the latter State paying much of his attention to the manufacture of lumber also. These occupa- tions received his attention until his removal to Judsonia in 1877, and from that time until his death, in February, 1883, he lived a retired life. His wife survives him. The paternal grandparents, James and Mary (Ward) Edie, were born in Penn- sylvania and England, respectively, and settled in the State of Ohio, in 1819; the great-grandfather was a Scotchman. The maternal grandparents, James and Margaret (Arnold) Palmer, were born in Maryland, and moved to Ohio in 1821, from which State they removed to Iowa in 1853, making the latter their home until his death in 1857, at the age of eighty-one years. He was a soldier in the War of 1812. His wife died, in 1868, at the age of eighty-three years. The children of Thomas and Levina Edie are: Margaret (now Mrs. Wag- ner, of Judsonia, whose husband is in the Govern- ment employ) and our subject (who was reared on his father's farm and received his education in the schools of Ohio. After his removal to Iowa with his parents, he resided there until 1856, when he was married, in Buchanan County, to Miss Rebecca J., a daughter of Joseph and Mary (Garner) Chi- tester, of Pennsylvania. The father was a mill- wright, and in 1845 moved to Shawneetown, Ill., and, in 1850, to Iowa. Since 1885 they have re- sided in Judsonia, Ark., and have passed the six- tieth milestone of their wedded life. After his marriage, Mr. Edie made his home in Iowa until 1873, then came to Judsonia and engaged in busi- ness as mentioned above. He is not an active poli- tician, but votes the Democratic ticket, and has been mayor of the town in which he lives three terms, and has also been a member of the city school board. Socially he is a member of Anchor Lodge No. 384, of the A. F. & A. M., and has been Worshipful Master of his order. He belongs to Tillman Chapter No. 19, and Occidental Coun- cil No. 1. Mr. and Mrs. Edie are worthy mem-
bers of the Baptist Church, and their union has been blessed in the birth of eight children, seven being now alive: Silas A. (died in 1878, at the age of twenty-two years), C. F. (is unmarried, and is an engineer on the Denver & Rio Grande Rail- road), Ida (now Mrs. McDearman, lives in Jud- sonia), T. M. (is married, and lives in the town; a carpenter and joiner by trade), Ada Aletha (Mrs. Sims), A. J. (a resident of Little Rock), Eva (Mrs. Croy, of Darke County, Ohio) and Stella. Mr. Edie is public-spirited, and is a member of the board of directors of the Judsonia University.
William H. Edwards. Among the many old settlers of White County, Ark., there is none more highly esteemed than the subject of this sketch, for in his walk through life he has been honest and upright in every particular. He was born in Madi- son County, Tenn., August 7, 1811, and is a son of Sanford and Mary (Thetford) Edwards, both of whom were born in Greenville District, S. C., the former in 1787 and the latter in 1805. They were married in Tennessee, reared their family in the western portion of that State and there spent their lives, the father's death occurring in 1874 and the mother's in 1869. They were members of the Methodist Episcopal Church and he was a soldier in the War of 1812, and in his political views was an old line Whig, but was not an enthusiast in politics, being one of those quiet men whose life was without reproach. Their family was as fol- lows: Nancy (deceased, was born in 1806 and be- came the wife of a Mr. Fussell), Anderson (de- ceased, was born in 1808), William H. (the subject of this memoir), James F. (deceased, was born in 1814 and died in May, 1889, a farmer of White County), Rebecca (deceased, was born in 1817, and was the wife of James Stowbuck, a blacksmith of Tennessee), Ina (deceased, was born in 1819), Jo- seph (was born in 1822, and is a farmer of White County), Elizabeth (was born in 1823 and is the wife of Enoch Terry, of Texas), Sophronia (de- ceased, was born in 1828 and is the wife of Will- iam Tedford), and Sanford (who was born in 1831 and is a farmer of Tennessee). William H. Ed- wards received very poor chances for acquiring an education, owing to the newness of the country
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during his youth and to the fact that his services were required on the home farm. On June 4, 1835, he was married to Miss Lucinda Dockins, and to them were born the following children: James M. (a farmer of White County, born in 1836), William L. (born in 1837), George W. (born in 1839) and Mary E. and Rebecca J. (twins, born in 1841, Rebecca being the widow of James Powers). Mrs. Edwards died in 1844 and January 28, 1846, Mr. Edwards married Lucinda Wilson, daughter of James Wilson. She was born in Ten- nessee in 1825 and by Mr. Edwards became the mother of four children: Sarah Ann (born in 1847 and died the same year), Joseph M. (residing near his father, was born in December, 1848), Su- san A. (was born September 26, 1851, and died August 1, 1852), an infant (died, unnamed) and Noah A. (who was born November 15, 1854, and is a farmer of this county). After his marriage Mr. Edwards worked for his father two years and then began tilling his father's farm for himself, continuing until 1852, when he purchased a farm of his own, on which he resided for seven years. Since that date he has resided in White County, and in 1860 purchased the farm of 160 acres where he now lives. He has seventy acres under culti- vation and his farm is well adapted to raising all kinds of farm produce. He was reared a Whig, but since the war, in which he served on the Con- federate side three years, he has been a Democrat. He became a Mason at Stony Point twenty-six years ago, but is at present a member of Beebe Lodge No. 145, A. F. & A. M., and has held every office in that order. He is also a valued member of the Agricultural Wheel and has always taken hold of every movement that had for its object the social or educational welfare of the community in which he resided. He has ever lived in peace and harmony with his neighbors and he and family are worthy members of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
Thomas J. Edwards. Hayden S. Edwards, the esteemed father of the subject of this memoir, was born in Shelby County, Ky., on April 2, 1811, and was a son of Rev. James P. Edwards, one of the first Baptist ministers that came to the State
of Arkansas. He was also a surveyor and came to this State to assist a corps of engineers, and was over a large part of the State. Hayden S. was married to Miss Mary Lumkins, a native of Knox County, Tenn., on January 26, 1832, and in 1853 removed to Arkansas, locating in White County, on the farm now owned by his son, Thomas J., who took charge of the farm and cared for his par- ents the latter years of their lives. Hayden Ed- wards was a school-teacher in his younger days, and also served in the Mexican War as wagon master. He was a strong Democrat and a member of the Masonic order, and was connected with the Missionary Baptist Church, as was also his wife. He died in 1887. His wife was born in 1815, and died in 1882, leaving a family of six children, Thomas J., the principal of this sketch, being the only one living. He was born in Ballard County, Ky., on April 17, 1841. In 1861 he enlisted in the Confederate army, under Col. Patterson, and took part in all of the battles in the Missouri raid. He was wounded at Little Rock, and was taken prisoner but soon escaped. After the close of hostilities he returned home and found his family stripped of every thing of value, and as he was without means he was obliged to start from the beginning, but with a will that overcame all ob- stacles has risen to an eminence of success, and is now the owner of 280 acres of land in the old homestead and eighty south of Bald Knob, and has about 130 under cultivation. In 1884 he was married to Miss Ida N. Maxwell, a daughter of Joseph Maxwell, and who is the mother of one daughter, Mary Stokes, who was born February 5, 1885. Mrs. Edwards is a member of the Metho- dist Church. Mr. Edwards is a Democrat and a prominent citizen of White County.
James H. Edwards, one of White County's leading citizens, is a son of James and Eliza (Simmon) Edwards, natives of Haywood County, Tenn., who moved to Arkansas in 1850, and lo- cated in White County, and later moved to Cle- burne County, where Mr. Edwards, Sr., still lives, in his sixty-eighth year. He is a member of the Missionary Baptist Church, and also of the Ma- sonic order. He is still engaged in farming, and
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owns 460 acres of fine land. His wife died on August 26, 1889, at the age of sixty-two. They were the parents of fourteen children, ten of whom are still living: John F., Thomas H., Tennie (wife of J. W. Blasingim), James H. (our subject), Mary J. (wife of J. R. Fortner), Martha Ann (wife of Frank Epps), Ann Eliza (wife of Richard Davis), Nannie, Benjamin and Henry. James H. Edwards claims White County as his birthplace, his birth occurring on April 26, 1854, and remained on his father's farm until twenty-seven years of age, though part of the time was spent in farming for himself. He married Miss Emma Fortner, a daugh- ter of J. E. and Mary C. Fortner, and who was born in White County, in 1861. Joseph E. Fortner was born in Wayne County, N. C., December 4, 1812, and died in White County, Ark., July 5, 1888. In 1832 he was genuinely and soundly converted to God and joined the Presbyterian Church. After a few years of devotion to that branch of God's church he joined the Methodist Church, in which he kept his membership until God called him home. From North Carolina he moved to Tennessee, and from there to Arkansas, where he lived for thirty- four years, being among the pioneers of this coun- try. He was the father of fifteen children. His seat was never vacant at church, unless sickness kept him away. Mr. and Mrs. Edwards are the parents of two children: Adga May and Hollice Taylor. He owns a fine farm which is well under cultivation, and has been a very successful and highly respected citizen. Himself and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Politically he is a prominent Democrat, and also belongs to the County Wheel.
Thomas B. Ellis. Benjamin Ellis was a native of the Old Dominion, where he was married to Mary Malone, also of that State. They removed to Kentucky in 1807 or 1808, and the following year moved to Alabama, where they made their home until their death, Mrs. Ellis passing away in 1853 and Mr. Ellis in the following year. They were the parents of eleven children: Benjamin R. (married and residing in Shelby County, Tenn.), Sallie M. (Harris), Nancy H. (Norris), Mary H. (deceased), Thomas B. (the subject of this sketch),
James B. and William T. (both deceased), Joseph F. and John W. (residents of Alabama). Thomas B. Ellis was born in Madison County, Ala., in 1820, where he resided for over thirty years, and where he was married to Judith A. Critz, of Ala- bama, who died in 1850, leaving two children: Mary E. (now Mrs. Hussey, of Searcy, White County) and Olivia C. (now Mrs. Goodlow, also of that place). Mr. Ellis was married the second time, in 1851, to Mary A. Corrington, of Marshall County, Miss., who died in 1860, leaving three daughters: Sarah A. (Mrs. Menus, residing near Nashville, Tenn.), Martha E. (now Mrs. Lanier, of Searcy), Roberta A. (now Mrs. Dickey, residing near the old homestead). His third and present wife, was Mary A. Montgomery, a daughter of Edward and Tobitha Montgomery, of White County, Ark., to whom he was married in 1860. They are the parents of four children: Virgil B., Nora, Thomas B. and John E. (deceased). Mr. Ellis came to Arkansas in 1856, settling in Des Arc Township, White County, where he bought a farm of 560 acres with 110 cleared, and on which he still lives. He enlisted in 1861 as a forager, in which capacity he served a short time, and was then given an hon- orable discharge on account of age. He returned to his farm, which he found in a state of decay and dilapidation. He has since resided on the farm and been very successful as a farmer, remaining here until the last year, when he removed to Cen- tre Hill and started in the grocery business. Mr. Ellis is a member of the Masonic order, and be- longs to Centre Hill Lodge No. 114, and is Master of his lodge. Mr. Ellis and family are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Ellis is a prominent Democrat, and held the office of con- stable shortly after the war.
James Figg was born in Gates County, N. C., January 31, 1804, and received a practical educa- tion in the schools of his native State. He was married March 19, 1829, to Miss Margaret Lewis of North Carolina, who was born March 19, 1809. To their union ten children were given: Mary J. (deceased), Sophia A. (Mrs. W. H. Hallford), F. C. (Mrs. Samuel Gray, deceased), John L. (now residing in Alabama), one child who died in
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infancy (unnamed), Martha R. (who married F. M. Rice), George A. (deceased), Emma J. (Mrs. L. Byrd), Joseph J. and Mary E. Mr. Figg was a man who took an active interest in political affairs, being a Whig up to the time of the war, and a strong secessionist. A farmer and mechanic by occupation, he owned 120 acres of land highly cultivated at the date of his demise. He was a Master Mason and had held office as Tyler in New- ton Lodge No. 224, in Alabama, and was a member of Mount Pisgah Lodge No. 242 in Arkansas at the time of his death, which occurred February 10, 1873. He and wife were members of the Methodist Church, South, and he was one of the prominent factors in organizing the church in the neighbor- hood where he lived; ever taking an active interest in all church and educational matters. Joseph J. Figg received his education in Alabama, and at the age of twenty-one immigrated to Arkansas and set- tled in White County, where he is now residing. Reaching an age where he realized that it was not good for man to be alone, he selected for his life's companion Miss Mary F. Andrews, who was born February 16, 1853, a daughter of Benjamin and Elizabeth Andrews. Their marriage was consum- mated January 13, 1875, and five children have blessed their union: Lelia V. (born May 20, 1877), James L. (born February 2, 1879), Robert G. (born June 20, 1881), Maggie E. (born November 22, 1883), and one who died in infancy. Mr. Figg is a farmer and school-teacher, and owns 120 acres of hill and bottom land, with twenty-five acres under cultivation. He is Master Mason, and has held office as Junior Deacon for one term in Mount Pisgah Lodge No. 242; he was also formerly a mem- ber of the Wheel, but has recently resigned. Dur- ing his connection with that order he acted as secretary of the lodge; he has held the office of justice of the peace for three consecutive terms in the township in which he resides, serving in an acceptable manner. Mrs. Figg is a consistent member and an earnest worker of the Baptist Church.
W. E. Fisher. It has long been acknowledged that, no matter what a man's occupation in life may be if his energies are directed toward advancing
the interests of the community in which he resides, he is a useful and respected and prominent man. W. E.'s early life was surrounded with many hard- ships and privations, and his early education was acquired by reading at night by the flickering light of a brush fire after his day's work was done. Upon commencing life for himself the occupation he had been taught when young naturally became his by adoption, and he now owns 353 acres with about 155 acres under cultivation. Mr. Fisher was born in Wilson County, Tenn., November 25, 1819, and on August 11, 1840, he was married to Miss Martha Adkinson, her death occurring on September 19, 1852, after having borne a family of seven children: Anderson L. (born August 23, 1841, was married to Miss Martha Canada, be- came the father of six children, and is a farmer of White County), David (born in 1843 and died in infancy), David L. (born September 19, 1844), Cordelia M. (was born December 23, 1846; first married John Winford, by whom she became the mother of three children, and after his death she wedded John Drenon), Amanda J. (was born Feb- ruary 14, 1849, and married Thomas Martin, a farmer of Pope County, becoming the mother of seven children), Eliza J. (was born February 16, 1851, and married Paton Burris, who left her a widow with one child, and she afterward married Frank Massey, a farmer of Searcy County). In January, 1855, Mr. Fisher wedded Mrs. Susan Brown, of Carroll County, but she too died on May 31 of the following year. He espoused his third wife, Miss Harriet Agours, of Fayette Coun- ty, Tenn., June 24, 1857, and their children are as follows: Mary E. (born June 30, 1863, is the wife of S. J. Crabtree, editor of the Arkansaw Hub at Beebe, by whom she has one child living and two children deceased), Martha E. (was born April 2, 1858, and is the wife of James Martin, who keeps a meat market in Brinkley), Laura E. (was born February 23, 1865, and wedded John Watson, and they also have one child living and one deceased), Harriett A. (was born October 25, 1867, and is the wife of John Shelton, only one of their two children being now alive), George W. (born September 27, 1859), Joseph E. (born
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April 7, 1861), Maggie (deceased), Sallie (born November 13, 1871) and Jimmie (born July 16, 1873). All Mr. Fisher's children have received good school advantages and are intelligent young people. Our subject removed with his family to Arkansas on November 23, 1860, and located about three-quarters of a mile west of the farm on which he is now living, where he purchased 162 acres of land, and after making his home here for about nine years he bought the farm on which he is now residing. Mr. Fisher affiliated with the Democrat party until 1885, when he united with the Agri- cultural Wheel, and has been a member of the State Deputy Organization and has also served faithfully and well in the capacity of State lect- urer. At the present time he is chairman of the State Central Committee. He is a man who has always taken a deep interest in public affairs, and is well informed in all matters pertaining to county, State and national matters, taking that side in politics which he deemed best calculated to promote the interests of the people. He has served his county in the State legislature and filled this position to the entire satisfaction of his constituents. He holds membership in Beebe Lodge No. 144, of the A. F. & A. M., and has served as Senior Warden and is a Royal Arch Mason of El Paso Lodge. He and wife are mem- bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, as are also eleven of their children. Mr. Fisher is a son of Anderson Fisher and Sinie Johnson, the former of English ancestry, his people having come from England prior to the Revolutionary War. Anderson Fisher was a scout under Gen. Jackson in the War of 1812, and for a few years prior to his death drew a pension, although he had refused to do so up to that time. He died in 1876 at the age of eighty-three years, four months and six days. He was the father of ten children: Jeremiah, Eliza, Sarah, James, W. E., Leonard B., Elizabeth, John H., Anderson M., Lucinda A., and Cordelia, who died in infancy, the re- mainder of the family growing to manhood and womanhood.
J. B. Foreman is a successful planter of South Carolina nativity, and has been a resident of White
County, Ark., since 1859. He was born in York District, in 1836, and was the third in a family of seven children born to the marriage of James T. and Elizabeth Luraney (Rowell) Foreman, who were also born in York District, S. C., and were there married. The father was a planter and the year following his wife's death, which occurred in South Carolina, October 6, 1859, he removed to White County, Ark., where he became the owner of 620 acres of timber land. He died on this farm March 26, 1873, and left three children to mourn his loss: William Rowell (who is married and resides in Howard County, Ark.), Elizabeth L. (who is a Mrs. Mann and lives in the county) and J. B. The latter left South Carolina, a young man, and came direct to White County and purchased 160 acres of land on credit, but before getting it in shape to be tilled was com- pelled to rent land. In 1862 he joined Compa- ny B, Gen. McRae's regiment, and was in the battles of Helena, Prairie Grove, Little Rock and Cache River, and then joined the cavalry under Col. A. R. Witt, and was in the Missouri raid, tak- ing part in the battles of Pilot Knob, Jefferson City, Independence, Kansas City and thence to Fayetteville. Upon his return home he resumed farming, and has opened up sixty acres of land. He is a Democrat, a member of the Agricultural Wheel, a Mason, belonging to St. Mary's Lodge No. 170 of the A. F. & A. M., and he and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. He was married in White County, in Oc- tober, 1860, to Martha Ellen, a daughter of Val- entine and Alice (Carr) Harlan, who were born in Georgia, the father a farmer and carpenter by trade. He came to White County, Ark., in 1857, and here died in 1873, his wife dying November 18, 1877. Mr. and Mrs. Foreman have these children: James V. (a resident of Kentucky), Will- iam Edward (in Kentucky), Ann H., Martha E., Wade H., Bernie P. and Alice E. Mary E. died August 30, 1886, when nearly five years old.
John C. Fussell, farmer and stock raiser. The life of this gentleman affords an example which might well be imitated by the young men of the present day, for his capital on commencing life
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for himself was limited, and throughout his career he has been industrious and frugal. He was born in Madison County, Tenn., February 23, 1845, and was brought to Arkansas by his parents in 1859, they having been married in 1840. They first settled on railroad land in White County, but later pre-empted 160 acres of wild land and began building a home, but traded this in 1876 for eighty acres where our subject, John C., now lives. Wyatt Fussell, the father, prior to coming to Ar- kansas, was a business man of Jackson, Tenn., and kept one of the best livery stables in the place. He was marshal of the town for several years, and in his political views was an old line Whig. He and wife, whose maiden name was Elizabeth Mat- tox, were members of the Baptist Church, and their deaths occurred in Arkansas, August 12, 1889, and Tennessee, in 1853, respectively. Of six children born to them four lived to be grown: William N. (who is a physician of Denmark, Tenn.), John C., Elmira (deceased, the wife of J. J. Rogers, a farmer of Lonoke County) and Mary E. (the wife of J. B. Shelton, of White County). John C. Fussell was reared to a farm life, and al- though his facilities for acquiring an education were very poor, he acquired a thorough knowledge of the three R's. Until twenty-five years of age he worked for his father and sisters, then was married to Miss Mary E. Powers, a daughter of A. M. Powers, a farmer of Tennessee, who came to Arkansas in 1860. Their union resulted in the birth of three children, two of whom are living: James W. (a young man residing with his father) and Betty O. Jennie died in childhood. Mr. Fussell is a man who has always been interested in the welfare of his county, and always supports enterprises which tend to benefit the same. He is a member of Stony Point Lodge No. 20, of the Agricultural Wheel. His wife is a daughter of A. M. and Eliza (Moore) Powers, who were Tennes- seeans, and as above stated came to Arkansas in 1860, locating near Beebe, where he became the owner of a large number of slaves, and resided for fourteen years. He and his wife reared a family of eight children to manhood and womanhood, their names being as follows: Mary E. (Mrs. Fus-
sell), Robert (a mechanic), Nancy (wife of William L. Edwards, a farmer of White County), Martha (wife of James Edwards, also a farmer), Jennie (widow of William Hartbrooks), William (a farmer of Beebe) and Sophia (is wife of Jobn Lestie, of Lonoke County).
Uriah E. Gentry is a native of South Carolina and a son of Cornelius and Mary (Johnson) Gentry, also natives of that State, where they lived until after their marriage, removing thence to Georgia when our subject was a child. Later they became located in Tennessee, and in 1836 in Alabama, where the father died in 1842 at the age of thirty- nine. After this unhappy event Mrs. Gentry went to Mississippi with her family and located on the head waters of the Tom Bigbee River, going in 1856 to Texas, and remaining until 1868 when they came to Arkansas, settling in Independence County. The family consisted of nine children the follow- ing being the only ones living at this time: Susanah (now Mrs. Provence), Thomas, Uriah E., M. V. and Parthenia (wife of Elisha Bass). Uriah E. Gen- try was born in Spartanburg, S. C., on July 12, 1830, and continued with his mother until twenty- two years of age when he commenced for himself as a farmer. In 1863 he enlisted in the Confeder- ate army, in the Twenty-ninth Texas Cavalry, in which he served only a short time, having received a wound; after this he was put on detached duty. Upon the close of the war he rented a farm in Texas for two years, but coming to Independence County, Ark., here bought a farm and remained until 1874 when he sold out and located in White County. He now owns a farm of 200 acres with a large portion of it under cultivation, and has also helped his boys in getting a substantial start in life. Mr. Gentry was married after reaching man- hood to Mary Davis, who died in 1864, leaving a family of children, two of whom only are living: Robert C. (a farmer of this county) and Louisa (the wife of a Mr. Saulefor, of Independence County). In 1865 he was married to Miss Winnie Bass, who died in 1868, having borne two children: Thomas R. and Jerry L., both farmers of this county. In 1869 Miss Elizabeth Thomas became Mr. Gentry's third wife. She died in 1872. In 1873 his fourth
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