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Below is a family biography included in Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Randolph 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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William R. Bigger is a native resident of Randolph County, Ark., and was born on the farm where he now lives January 1, 1850, and was the eleventh of thirteen children, three now living, born to the marriage of James N. Bigger and Lucretia Parrish, who were born in the State of Missouri in 1810 and 1812, and died in Randolph County, Ark., in 1872 and 1874, respectively. Their marriage was consummated in Missouri, and they afterward came to this State and settled on the farm on which their son, William R., is now living, which they made their home until their death. They were members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and were well-to-do residents of the county. Their children who are living are Chesterfield, who is a farmer of the county; Caroline, wife of Arthur Barm, also a farmer of the county, and William R. The latter remained with his parents until their demise, and at that time he and his brother took charge of the home farm, which then consisted of 400 acres of land, and by industry and good management have added considerable more land to the original amount. Laura McKee, who was born in North Carolina in 1855, a daughter of John McKee, became his wife in 1879. She is an earnest member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and he is a stanch Democrat in politics. He is an energetic and successful agriculturist, and has vastly improved the property left him by his parents.

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This family biography is one of 110 biographies included in Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Randolph County, Arkansas published in 1889.  View the complete description here: Randolph County, Arkansas History, Genealogy, and Maps

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

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