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Below is a family biography included in Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Sharp 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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John C. McKinney, a leading farmer of Lawrence County, Smithville post office, was born in Alabama, February 20, 1839, a son of James and Patsey M. (Holder) McKinney. James was born in North Carolina, April 3, 1819, was reared and married in Alabama, came to Polk County, Mo., about 1844, and in 1857 moved to Sharp County, where he resided until his death, in 1863. His father, Francis McKinney, of Scotch and Welsh descent, was born in South Carolina. He served throughout the Revolutionary War, and died in Polk County, Mo. Our subject’s mother was born in Alabama in 1826; she died about 1867, being the mother of ten children, five of whom are now living: Thomas M., Elizabeth A., William B., Samuel B., and John C., our subject, who came to Polk County, Mo., at the age of eight years, where he received his education. On March 4, 1860, he married Lucinda Daily, who was born in Polk County in 1839, and died in September, 1882. She was the mother of six children, all living: Sarah J., wife of William Hollen; Melvina J., wife of Jeff D. Estes; Mary A., Davis L., William G., Dora J. In November, 1884, he married Hannah Williams, who was born in Louisiana in 1855. Mr. McKinney has 285 acres of land, about 100 cultivated, located on Strawberry River. He enlisted in Company F, Shaffer’s regiment, Seventh Arkansas Infantry Volunteers, and served until May, 1865. He was a private the first year, corporal the second, and afterward captain of a company till the close, when he returned home and resumed farming. He has been a resident of this county since 1875, and has held the office of justice of the peace two years. He is a Democrat, having cast his first presidential vote for Breckinridge. He is a member of Masonic Lodge No. 29, at Smithville. His wife is a member of the Baptist Church.

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This family biography is one of 43 biographies included in Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Sharp County, Arkansas published in 1889.  View the complete description here: Sharp County, Arkansas History, Genealogy, and Maps

View additional Sharp County, Arkansas family biographies here: Sharp County, Arkansas Biographies

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