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Below is a family biography included in The History of Wayne County, Tennessee published by Goodspeed Publishing Company in 1886.  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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James P. Hollis is a son of William and Sarah (Moore) Hollis, who were born in Tennessee in 1802 and 1809 respectively. The father was a farmer and located in Wayne County in 1804. His wife, who bore him four children, died in 1834, and he then wedded Sarah Kilburn, who was born in 1814, and who became the mother of five children. She died in 1854, and his third wife, Jane Yaw, bore him five children. He lived in Wayne County until his death in 1875. His father, James Hollis, was born in 1759, and married his second wife, Sarah Choete, in 1794, she being born in 1772. He was a soldier in the Revolutionary war, and was a prosperous farmer of Wayne County. He died in 1844. Our subject, James P., lived with his father until 1853, when he married Sarah R. Dixon, daughter of John and Elizabeth (Boyd) Dixon. She was born in 1835, and is the mother of fourteen children: John D., Sarah E. (who died in 1856), William P. (who died in 1859), Mary J., Aaron M., Martha F., Nancy P., Joseph B., Columbus F., James M., Ada R., Fountain J., Arthur T., and one infant deceased, not named. Mr. Hollis has a good farm of 170 acres, on which he raises principally corn. He has held the office of deputy sheriff, constable, and in 1870 was elected justice of the peace, and yet holds the office. He is a Mason and Republican, and he and Mrs. Hollis are members of the Baptist Church.

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This family biography is one of 76 biographies included in The History of Wayne County, Tennessee published in 1886.  The History of Lawrence County was included within The History of Lawrence, Wayne, Perry, Hickman & Lewis Counties of Tennessee. View the complete description here: History of Lawrence, Wayne, Perry, Hickman and Lewis Counties of Tennessee

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

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