My Genealogy Hound

Below is a family biography from the book,  The History of Crawford County, Arkansas published by Goodspeed Publishing Company in 1889.  These biographies are valuable for genealogy research in discovering missing ancestors or filling in the details of a family tree. Family biographies often include far more information than can be found in a census record or obituary.  Details will vary with each biography but will often include the date and place of birth, parent names including mothers' maiden name, name of wife including maiden name, her parents' names, name of children (including spouses if married), former places of residence, occupation details, military service, church and social organization affiliations, and more.  There are often ancestry details included that cannot be found in any other type of genealogical record.

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Frank R. McKibben, of the firm of McKibben & Pape, was born in Seneca County, Ohio, in 1843, and is a son of James and Caroline L. (McManigal) McKibben. The father was of Irish descent, and born in Center County, Penn., in 1808, where he farmed and merchandised. He was twice married, his second wife being the sister of his first wife. After the death of his first wife, in Seneca County, he returned to Pennsylvania, and after his second marriage located in Ohio, having traveled 400 miles on horseback to their destination. He was a large property owner and successful merchant, and died in Seneca County in 1856. The mother was born in 1812, and died in 1852. Frank R. McKibben was the fifth of a family of six children, and was left an orphan when a boy twelve years old, and reared by Henry Isabel, a carriage trimmer in Richland County, where he began to learn the trade at the age of fourteen. In November, 1861, he enlisted in Company A, First Ohio Cavalry, and participated in fifty-two engagements. He served under Gen. Garfield in Kentucky, Gen. Burnside in Tennessee, and Gen. Sherman in Georgia. He was discharged at Nashville in March, 1865. He was tice wounded, once at Morristown, Tenn., in the breast, and once at Smoky Mountains, in the limb. After the war he worked for his brother, David A., in the mercantile business at Fort Smith, Ark., until 1870, and then superintended Shaw’s plantation. The following year he established a store in Van Buren, and in 1880 Henry T. Pape, a brother-in-law, became his partner. They have a handsome block, and carry a large line of general merchandise, hardware, clothing, furniture, etc. They carry the largest stock of general goods in Western Arkansas, and are gentlemen held in high esteem. In September, 1870, Mr. McKibben married Minnie E. Pape, daughter of Henry Pape, and a native of Cincinnati, Ohio, born in 1852. This union has been blessed with three children: Frank Pape, William Watson and Bertha Lucetta. Mr. McKibben is one of the most influential citizens of the place, and belongs to the Crawford Lodge No. 6, of the I. O. O. F. He is a member of the school board and town council, and is vice-president of the Van Buren Canning Company, and a stockholder and director in the Crawford County Bank at Van Buren. Mrs. McKibben is a member of the Presbyterian Church, and he is also a believer of that creed.

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This family biography is one of 222 biographies included in The History of Crawford County, Arkansas published in 1889.  For the complete description, click here: Crawford County, Arkansas History, Genealogy, and Maps

View additional Crawford County, Arkansas family biographies here: Crawford County, Arkansas

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