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Below is a family biography included in the book, The History of Hardeman County, Tennessee published by Goodspeed Publishing Company in 1887.  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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Prominent among the early settlers of Hardeman County were William and Tabitha (Coburn) Reynolds, both natives of North Carolina. In 1824 William came to Hardeman County and helped clear the forest from the spot where the town of Bolivar now stands. Some time after this he married and settled in this county, making it his permanent home. Their family consisted of seven children, only three now living. The father was a Democrat before the war and a strong out-spoken Union man afterward. For a calling in life he followed manufacturing and selling furniture. He died in 1878. The mother is still living, is over three score and ten years of age and is a member of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. William H., the eldest son of William and Tabitha (Coburn) Reynolds, was born June 21, 1837, in Bolivar, where he received his education. At the age of eighteen he took charge of his father’s business, learning the cabinet-maker’s trade, at which he has worked ever since. In 1867 he married Jennie Estes, and the fruits of this union were six children, five of whom are living. In 1859 William H. went to Arkansas, where he remained for some time. In 1866 he returned to Bolivar and since then has been engaged in the undertaking and furniture business. In 1884 he opened a grocery and hardware store and is engaged in this business at the present. He is also somewhat interested in farming. He is a Democrat in politics and for forty-nine years has made this county his home. Twenty years of that time he was intimately associated with the business interests of Bolivar. Although not a church member, he is liberal toward churches, schools and all other worthy enterprises. He also took an active part in raising the funds and helped survey the grounds, etc., for the new asylum. He is of Scotch-Irish origin.

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This family biography is one of 101 biographies included in the book,  The History of Hardeman County, Tennessee published in 1887 by Goodspeed.  The History of Hardeman County was included within The History of Fayette and Hardeman Counties of Tennessee. For the complete description, click here: History of Fayette and Hardeman Counties, Tennessee

View additional Hardeman County, Tennessee family biographies here: Hardeman County, Tennessee

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