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Below is a family biography included in The History of Macon 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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Dr. Benton Cothron, farmer, was born on January 10, 1826, in what is now Macon County. He is one of eleven children of Robert E. and Winifred (Brinkley) Cothron. The father was born in 1790 in North Carolina, and moved to Sumner now Trousdale County, about 1816, and came to Macon County (then Smith) about the year 1823. His memory and constitution were remarkable. He died in 1873. The mother was born in North Carolina, and came to this county with her husband. They were of Irish and English descent. She died about 1859, nearly seventy years of age; an excellent woman. Our subject, educated in Macon County, when of age began for himself, the first year working for $40, but by persistent effort and management he has become owner of a fine home of 160 acres. February 11, 1855, he married Nancy S. Burrow. Their five children are Samuel A., Letha E. (deceased), Louisa A. and Leona, now Mrs. McDuffy. Mrs. Cothron died in April, 1863. He was afterward married twice: first to Miss J. M. Anderson, and after her death, to Miss Susan Carter. Formerly a Whig, he has been a Democrat since the war. He and his children are members of the Baptist Church, and his wife of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He is a substantial and experienced pioneer.
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This family biography is one of 24 biographies included in The History of Macon County, Tennessee published in 1887. The History of Macon County was included within The History of Sumner, Smith, Macon & Trousdale Counties of Tennessee. View the complete description here: History of Sumner, Smith, Macon and Trousdale Counties of Tennessee
View additional Macon County, Tennessee family biographies here: Macon County, Tennessee
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