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Below is a family biography included in Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Drew County, Arkansas published by Goodspeed Publishing Company in 1890.  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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Reuben Clayton, dealer in harness, saddlery, etc., Monticello, Ark. Mr. Clayton was born in Cecil County, Md., January 31, 1819, and is the son of Thomas D. and Rachel (Dawson) Clayton, the father a native of North Carolina, and the mother of Lancaster County, Penn. The Clayton family were originally from Wales, and the grandfather, who was a major in the Revolutionary War, died in Buncombe County, N. C. The old ancestry were noted for their war fame, as some of the family were in all the wars. The father was a soldier in the War of 1812, and participated in some severe engagements, and the subject of this sketch held the rank of captain in the commissary department, in the Trans-Mississippi during the late war. His parents both died in Maryland. The father was a merchant, a fisherman and a farmer by occupation, and resided in Cherokee Bay. Of the eight children born to their marriage, four are now living. Reuben Clayton was reared on a farm, but never worked on the same, and was engaged in merchandising in Baltimore for some time. In the winter of 1856 he came to Arkansas, located near Batesville, on White River, and carried on farming until the war broke out, when he enlisted in the service. After the war he came to Monticello, Ark., engaged in his present business, and has since carried it on. He has been justice of the peace for several years, and is the owner of some real estate in town. He was married February 1, 1849, to Miss Elizabeth Blassingame, a native of South Carolina, and the fruit of this union has been one child, Effie, wife of R. F. Hyatt. Mr. Clayton was previously married in Delaware, and became the father of one child, Philo G.

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This family biography is one of 83 biographies included in Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Drew County, Arkansas published in 1890.  For the complete description, click here: Drew County, Arkansas History, Genealogy, and Maps

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