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THE BIOGRAPHY PAGE 3 Arthur P. STROTHER, conducting an abstract business at Searcy,was born in Henry Co., KY, Mar. 4, 1874, and is a son of RobertBruce & Dorothy Ann (SPILMAN) STROTHER, who were also nativesof Henry Co., the father & son being born in the same house.The father's birth occurred June 12, 1845, & his life recordcovered the intervening years to the 18th of March, 1908. He wasa son of Rev. John Fletcher STROTHER & a grandson of the Rev.George STROTHER, who was born in Culpepper Co., VA, Feb. 14, 1776,& died in Trimble Co., KY, July 30, 1864. He was a man ofremarkable memory. He married Miss Mary DUNCAN, who was born February27, 1776, and died July 3, 1851. The Rev. John Fletcher STROTHER,grandfather of Arthur P. STROTHER of this review, was born inGallatin co., KY, Jan. 25, 1807, & died in Henry Co., KY,July 21, 1879. He was married to Lavina BRUCE & he devotedhis life to the work of the ministry, preaching the gospel asa minister of the Methodist Episcopal church, his labors beinglargely in the state of Kentucky. He was a man of very studioushabits & his wide learning made him a power for good in thechurch. In tracing the ancestral line still farther back it islearned that John STROTHER, who was married to Catherine KENNERLY,and his death occurred in 1758. He was a son of Jeremiah STROTHER,Sr., who died about 1702. The STROTHER family was located in VAas early as 1673, or perhaps prior to that date, as he is supposedto have recieved a land grant from the colonial government inVA in 1654. The maternal ancestral line of Arthur P. STROTHERcan also be traced back to a remote period. His grandfather wasHenry SPILMAN, who was born in Culpepper co. VA, & marrieda daughter of William & Mary (MARSHALL) WEBB. The latter wasa daughter of Capt. William MARSHALL of Revolutionary war fame,who entered the army from Caroline co., VA. His wife, who borethe maiden name of Ann MCLEOD, was a daughter of Torqual &Anna (CLARK) MCLEOD, the latter an aunt of General George Rogers(CLARK), who served in Revolutionary war, while Torqual MCLEODwas a cornetist in the British army. He championed the cause ofCharles STUART and for that reason left VA & joined the armyof "The Young Pretender." It was thought that he waskilled in the battle of Culloden.
It will thus be seen that Arthur P. STROTHER is descended fromvery old & prominent colonial families. His father, a farmerby occupation, was born in Henry Co., KY, June 12, 1845, &died Mar. 18, 1908. His mother was born July 12, 1850, and diedJuly 14, 1880. They were married Aug. 17, 1871, and after thedeath of his wife Robert Bruce STROTHER came to Ark. in 1895 &was making his home with his son, Arthur P., at the time of hisdemise. In their family were 5 children, but were consistent membersof the Methodist Episcopal chuch, South, and Mr. Strother wasa democrat in his political views.
Arthur P. STROTHER was educated in the public schools of KY &MO & in the Marmaduke Military Acadamy of Sweet Springs, MO.He had removed with his father to MO in 1881 & after completinghis education he wa connected with the Southern Magazine of Louisville,KY, in reading proof for a year. He next removed to Chrisman,IL, where he clerked in a store and also acted as a RR agent.He afterward returned to MO, where he engaged in general farmingand also made a specialty of raising potatoes. He afterward establishedhis home at Keytesville, MO, where he entered the abstract business,in which he was assc. with Henry C. MINTER, who had been probatejudge of the county for 36 consecutive years.
It was about the time that he engaged in the abstract businessthat Mr. STROTHER was united in marriage to Miss Mary BREATHED,a native of MO & a daughter of John & Caroline (BREATHITT)BREATHED. Her father served in the Confederate army in Capt. ElijahWhite's co., Stonewall Jackson's brigade, and was captured, beingheld prisoner of war on Chesapeake bay. He was the son of JudgeJohn W. BREATHED, who procured an order from Pres. Lincoln forhis son's parole, the latter haven become broken in health. Hisbrother, Major James BREATHED, was commander of Stuart's Horse,an artillery company, after the death of Major Pelham. Judge JohnW. BREATHED married Ann McGill WILLIAMS, a descenant of severalof the old & honored colonial families of Maryland. His father,Isaac BREATHED, married Kitty LYLES, a daughter of Dr. RichardLYLES, a prominent physician of Maryland. The ancestry is tracedstill farther back to John BREATHED, who married Jane KELLY &who emigrated from England to the new world in colonial days,settling first in PA & afterward in MD, devoting his attentionto farming in both states. John BREATHED was father of Isaac BREATHED.
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April 8, 1934 - Ark. Gazette (has photo)
Mrs. Moore was Annie Codelia Turner, daughter of Blakely D. Turner,pioneer member of the Ark. bar, & Charlotte Turner. She wasborn in Brownsville, TN, Nov. 2, 1851. With her family she movedto Searcy at the age of 12 during the Civil War. Following hermarriage in the early 1870s, she & her husband came to LittleRock to reside. They built a house on East 7th St. between Rock& Commerce St. which was their home until the 1880s when theybuilt their large red brick Center St. home.
Children: J. Merrick Moore; Mrs. M. K. Kassony of New York City,who was Miss Charlotte Coleman Moore; the late Mrs. Clark Millerwho was Miss Janie Moore; and the late Blake Moore.
Grandchildren: John Moore Miller, Mrs. Robert Alexander who wasMiss Annie Turner Miller, Blake Turner Miller, and Allan ClarkMiller.
Mrs. Moore was active in civic affairs and a member of 2nd BaptistChurch. She died Jan. 31, 1901. The late Mr. Moore who was theson of Israel M. & Nancy Jane Moore, and a native of PulaskiCo., was a representative of one of the pioneer families of thestate. He was reared in Searcy & although he was but a schoolboy at the outbreak of the Civil War, he joined the 3rd Ark. Calvary& was on active duty under Generals Forrest & Wheeler.He enlisted as a private but was promoted to lieutenan & wasin command of his company at the close of the war. He was admittedto the bar at Searcy & in 1870 opened a law office in Augusta.He moved to Little Rock the following year. For over half a century,Mr. Moore was engaged in the practice of law.
April 7, 1935 - Ark. Gazette (has photo)
Mrs. Dodge was born in Burlington, Iowa, in 1841. She was LilaHaskell, daughter of Daniel Haskell of Portland, Maine, and MargaretFarmer Haskell of VA. The marriage of Mrs. Dodge's parents theirchildren heirs to the relationship of 4 presidents of the US.Mr. Haskell's mother was an Adams & Mrs. Haskell's motherwas a Harrison.
Mrs. Dodge was active in the temperance movement, publishing theIowa Index on the topic. She died Sept. 1899, & was buriedat Beebe.
Children: Mrs H. C. Gibson, Little Rock; Harry F. Dodge, LittleRock; Judge Dodge: Louis Dodge of Redondo, Cal., author of severalnovels; and Mrs. J. R. Hubbard of Portland, Oregon.
Dec. 15, 1935 - Ark. Gazette (has photo)
Jared Carswell Martin was born Oct. 4, 1850, at the old Martinfamily home at Mablevale, the son of Jared C. Martin, who migratedto Ark. in 1821 from southeast MO, and Mary Douglas Martin, whocame to this state in 1817 from TN.
As a boy, Martin attended Judge Eastman's school in Little Rock.The marriage oof Martin & Fannie Foy took place Oct. 17, 1871,in Little Rock. A year later, the bought the block bounded byMarshall, Bishop, 7th, & 6th streets & built their home,a part of which has been remodeled for the home of a daughter,Miss Blanch Martin, at 1622 W. 7th St.
Besides managing his plantation, Martin did engineering work forthe old Brodie & Ashworth Foundry & the MO Pacific shops& engaged in timber cruising from Canada to NM. Martin wasan elder in the 3rd St. Christian Church. He died in Jan., 1918.
Mrs. Martin, who was born July 16, 1852, was the daughter of WilliamFoy & Elizabeth Harper Kirby Foy, whose family settled inMiss. in the 1840s, going from VA & TN. William Foy was adescendant of John Foy, the Choctaw Indian chief, who decidedto make his home in Miss., while en route with his English bridefrom NC to the west. The government gave John Foy lands now includedin Sunflower Co., Miss.
As she was an orphn at an early age, Fannie Foy lived with heruncle & aunt, Mr. & Mrs. Lewis Peebles of Brownsville,TN, and attended a Baptist school there. Following the Civil War,the Peebles came to Searcy, Ark., to live, bringing their niecewith them. Mrs. Martin directed her interests to church work &was a member of a small group of women in Little Rock representingthe various churches, that cared for the poor. Mrs. Martin likedto tell of her experiences as a little girl during the war. GeneralNathan Bedford Forrest was a frequent visitor at her home, andFannie Foy, the little girl, would sit on his lap & braidhis beard as the general told her stories of his battles. Mrs.Martin died Jan. 14, 1929.
Miss Blanche Martin is the only surviving daughter of the Martins.Other children were the late Mrs. Grover Kirby of Miss. &TN, who was Miss Nellie Belle Martin; the late H. Allen Martin& the late Emily S. Martin woh died in childhood. J. MartinKirby, a grandson of the Martins makes his home here with MissMartin & attends the U of Ark. Medical School.
Nov. 15, 1936 - Ark. Gazette (has photo)
Children: Richard J. Pascoe of Bald Knob, Mrs. U. B. Gay of LittleRock, & Mrs. W. G. Whitworth of Hot Springs.
Grandchildren: William C. Whitworth of Hot Springs, Orbey C. Gayof Litttle Rock, & Jerry, Tom & Clyde Pascoe of Bald Knob.
Mrs. Pascoe, who was Gertude Johnson, was b. in Elk Rapids in1869, & she lived there until her marriage (Nov. 12, 1886in Elk Rapids, Mich.)
Mr. Pascoe was one of 12 children. He was born in 1866 in Alberta,Canada, where his parents, Fanny Tucker & Richard Pascoe,came from England to make their home. Pasco was a bridge &building foreman for the MO Pacific RR Co. & he & hisfamily made their home in Ark. most of the time since their marriage.They lived at Little Rock, Hope, Ranger, Texas; and Bald Knob,having first gone to the latter place in 1905 for 3 years &returning there in 1923.
Dec. 13, 1936 - Ark. Gazette (has photo)
F. D. Utley was born Nov. 3, 1853, in Gibson Co., TN. Mrs. Utley,who was Melvina Snow, was born Aug. 3, 1856, near Mayfield, KY.The Utleys were m. Oct. 23, 1873, near Greenbriar, Faulkner Co.,AR. Mrs. Utley died Aug. 6, 1919 near Greenbriar, F. D. UtleyDec. 23, 1921, at the home of his dau., Mrs. T. F. Presley, nearMt. Vernon, Ark. The Utleys are buried at Antioch Cemetery nearthe Utley family homestead.
The original ancestor, Samuel Utley, came from Thorne, Englandto Scituate, Mass., in 1643; he m. Hannah Hatch, dau. of ElderWilliam Hatch. Samuel Utley d. in 1662, & Hannah a short timelater. Children of Samuel & Hannah Utley were sent to Hatchrelatives at Stonington, Conn., to be reared. The family scatteredwest & southeast.
William Utley Sr., of the southern branch, resided in 1753 inEdgecombe Co., what was later Wake Co. NC, near Holly Springs,25 mi. southwest of Raleigh, NC.
Greene Utley, b. 1808, a descendant of William Utley, Sr., &grandfather of F. D. Utley, went to TN at age 17. Greene Utley'sson, James Allen Utley, was killed in the War Between the Statesas a member of Forrest's Confed. Serv.
In the fall of 1870, F. D. Utley moved to Greenbrier, AR, withhis mother & stepfather.
F. D. Utley's children: Mrs. Presley; Judge Utley; W. A. Utleyof Benton; Mrs. T. W. Troxwell of Vilonia; Dr. F. E. Utley ofCabot; Mrs. R. M. Hunter of Clinton; Mrs. Charles M. Reeves ofHeber Springs; Mrs. J. E. Keathley of Conway; W. T. Utley of Hartford;late James C. Utley; late John H. Utley; late C. M. Utley.
Mar. 7, 1937 - Ark. Gazette (has photo)
Mrs. Mitchell was Nellie Mary Chrisman, youngest child of Dr.F. M. Chrisman & Mary Phillips Chrisman, pioneer familiesof Ark. Mrs. Mitchell was b. Oct. 9, 1866, in Searcy, Ark., andcame to Little Rock with her parents in 1862. She attended ShermanSchool, St. John's College, & Mrs. Warner's Female Seminary.She m. John A. Mitchell Oct. 9, 1884, with the Rev. T. C. Tupper,rector of Christ Church, officiating.
Dr. Chrisman was a surgeon in an Ark. regiment in the ConfederateArmy (Dobbins Ark. Calvary) & served in the United StatesVolunteer Army during the Mexican War. He practiced medicine inWhite Co. & was a planter in Pulaski Co. The Chrisman homewas located at 12th & Scott Streets.
A year after the marriage of Mr. & Mrs. Mitchell, they builta home at 1117 Scott St., which is now owned by James P. See.The Mitchells' children were born in the house. They are FrancisNoel Mitchell of Yasemite Nat'l. Park, Cal., & John A. Mitchellfo Bartlesville, OK.
John A. Mitchell was b. Dec. 21, 1861, in Mt. Forest, WellingtonCo., Ontario. He came to Little Rock with his parents, James T.Mitchell & Helen Lafferty Mitchell in 1855, & lived onthe corner of 4th & Rock St. He attended school at Miss MamieHowell's Kindergarten & Sherman School. He was secretary &treasurer of the Oulta Coal Co. from 1878-1898, when he becamepres. & served until 1900. With Thomas Lafferty, Mitchellwas interested in the retail coal business in Little Rock from1878-1899, which became the John A. Mitchell Coal Co. & operatedfor 10 years longer.
Mitchell was secretary of Sewer Dist. No. 12 here & throughthe efforts of the commissioners of this distr., the City Councilconsolidated all sewer districts in Little Rock as a Public HealthDept. Mitchell was secretary & treasurer of the Dalhoff Constr.Co. from 1901-1908.
Mitchell took a leading part in national guard activities. Hewas a member of the Capitol City Guards, June J. Johnson, Cpt.,1881-1882; Quapaw Guards, John Walker, cpt., 1882, & JohnWaldron, cpt., 1884; McCarthy Light Guards, John M. Dugan, captain,1888-1891. Mitchell was elected cpt. of the Fletcher Rifles in1891 & competed in interstate drills at Ft. Smith, Ark., LittleRock, Ark.,; Louisville, Ky.;Indianapolis, In.; Galveston, Tx.;Atlanta, Ga.; Omaha, Neb.;the Chicago Worlds Fair, Tyler, Tx.;& Memphis, Tn. He was active in other sports & civic activities.
The Mitchells moved to Denver in 1908.
Feb. 19, 1939 - Ark. Gazette (has photo)
Edward Osburn Hurt was born Jan. 11, 1863, near Searcy, WhiteCo., Ark., the son of James Osborn & Ann Elizabeth PilkingtonHurt, who came to Ark. in 1853, from Tipton Co., Tn., settlingin what was then known as the Dogwood settlement & was latercalled Walker's Store & post office, White Co. James OsbornHurt was an extensive land owner. He served as Captain in theConfederate Army. He was ordained a Baptist minister. He servedas county surveyor & frequently taught school. G. E. Percival,great grandson of Capt. James Osborne Hurt, owns the epauletsCapt. Hurt wore in the War Between the States.
Edward Osburn Hurt, who was one of 11 children, 10 boys &1 girl, was 19 years old when his father died suddenly while ona business trip to Little Rock. Mrs. Hurt followed her husbandin death 2 months later.
On Jan. 6, 1884, Edward Osborn Hurt m. Miss Mary Ann Taylor atLebanon, White Co., Ark., & they had 8 children. The 4 survivingchildren are the 2 appearing in the photo which accompanied thisarticle, Willmett F. Hurt, & Mrs. Thomas W. Hanna; Mrs. N.H. Percival of Little Rock & Barney A. Hurt of Harrison, Ark.There are 7 grandchildren & 3 great grandchildren.
Edward Osburn Hurt was among the first of the settlers in therich river bottom lands south of Little Rock, long before thedays of RRs & good highways. Travel was difficult & 24-48hours were required for Hurt to make a round trip to Little Rockfor supplies. He became owner of large land interests & raisedfine cattle & stock. He later moved to Little Rock to educatehis children. He entered the general mecantile business, whichinterest he held until his retirement several years ago.
The maternal grandparents of Mrs. Mary Ann Taylor Hurt were thelate Isaac & Lucinda Chrisman, a well-known pioneer familyof Little Rock. mrs. Hurt was also the niece of Dr. F. M. Chrisman,who was a surgeon in the Ark. Regt. in the Confed. Army &served in the US Volunteer Army during the Mexican War. The oldChrisman home was at 12th & Scott St. It was with her unclethat Mrs. Hurt spent several years as a girl, attending a finishingschool for girls. After her return from school to her home inWhite Co., she m. the then young struggling farmer, Edward OsburnHurt. Prior to her marriage, Mrs. Hurt was known as the prettiestgirl in White Co.
Mar. 5, 1939 (photo of 3 as teachers in article)
Women in the photo were Miss Vashti Lane, now Mrs. A. L. Brown;Miss Sue Brown, who became Mrs. Benjamin Franklin Lewis of LittleRock; and Miss Lidie Ford, who is Mrs. John Wilson Simmons. Thedeath of Mrs. Lewis in Jan. of this year broke this circle, whichhas been held together throughout the years by ties of deep friendship& affection.
Vashti Lane was born in Poplar Bluff, Mo., Oct. 11, 1871, thedau. of Judge John F. Lane & Mrs. Rose Ann Keith Lane, whocame from Dalton, Ga., to Poplar Bluff in 1869, bringing withthem the first piano to that town. Judge Lane, who was an influentiallawyer & held various political offices in Mo., was also amusician. His dau. & son, Thomas F. Lane, followed in hisfootsteps musically. Thomas F. Lane became a lawyer & wasUS senator from Mo. 2 terms. At the time of his death in 1928,he was cheif executive in the claim dept. of the Air Service inWash. D. C.
The marriage of Miss Vashti Lane & A. L. Brown took placeAug. 6, 1893, in Poplar Bluff, and after a honeymoon in the east,the couple lived at Peach Orchard, Ark. Mr. Brown d. in Mar.,1930. A dau., Mrs. Ada Whitaker, a son, Amos Lee Brown, and 2grandchildren, Adelle Whitaker & Douglas Lee Brown, live atPeach Orchard. Mrs. Brown is a member of the Methodist church& takes an active interest in all community activities.
Sue Brown was born Holly Springs, Ms., Sept. 20, 1869, the dau.of Algernon Robert Brown & Mary Frances Williams Brown, aTennessean. Her grandfather, Dr. Charles Brown of Hanover Co.,VA, was physician to Thomas Jefferson. While a child, Sue Browncame with her parents, a sister & a brother to Beebe, whereshe grew to womanhood. She married Benjamin Franklin Lewis onApr. 16, 1896, & they went to Cabot to live. There Mr. Lewisowned & operated a drug store. In 1899 they came to LittleRock & Mr. Lewis traveled for C. J. Lincoln Drug Co., thenMcKesson Drug Co. & later Meyer Bros. Drug Co. He d. April3, 1938. Mr. & Mrs. Lewis were the parents of one daughter,Mildred Lewis, who is Mrs. Rufus Terrel Hunt of Little Rock. Mrs.Lewis was a member of Winfield Meth. Church, J. M. Keller Ch.of the United Dau. of the Confed., Rose Garden Club, & theWCTU, & at the time of her death was active in these organizations.
Lidie Ford was b. in Trenton, Tn., Jan. 13, 1870, the dau. ofJoseph Pybass Ford & Sarah Jane Flemming Ford, and with themcame to Beebe, when she was 11 mos. old. She m. John Wilson SimmonsOct. 1, 1893, at Beebe. 3 children were b. to them, a daughter,Mrs. Madeline Simmons Shelton; and 2 sons who d. in infancy. Mrs.Ruth Kyle Shelton Caperton is a granddaughter, and great grandchildrenare Ruth Ann Caperton & Jack Foster Caperton III, all of CottonPlant. The Simmons moved to Cotton Plant from Beebe in 1909 &have lived there since. Mrs. Simmons was a teacher in the schoolsof Ark. for more than 45 years, spending 27 years teaching atCotton Plant. She was an active member of the Hypsion Club formore than 20 years. She is a member of the Baptist church &president of the Woman's Missionary Society.
Apr. 30, 1939 - Ark. Gazette (has photo)
Martha Phoebe Moore was a descendant of Mordecai Moore who cameto Md. with Lord Baltimore as his physician. She was also descencedfrom Thomas Lloyd of Dolobron, Mongomeryshire, Wales. Lloyd wasa Quaker & came to Pa. in 1683, serving a governor of thecolony in the absence of William Penn. Samuel Preston, the 1stmayor of Pa., was another ancestor of Martha Phoebe Moore. Shewas the 5th child of Henry Morris Moore 7 Phoebe Yoemans Dartt& was born June 24, 1843, in Tioga Co., Pa.
Coming to Ark. at age 3, Martha P. Moore spent her childhood withher grandparents, Mordecai & Margaret Moore, near Little Rock.After their deaths, she went to Searcy to live with her aunt,Mrs. Stephen Carlisle. Martha Moore's uncle, Israel Merrick Moorehad in 11848 acquired the townsite & Sulphur Springs at Searcy.A dispute concerning the title of the land required an act ofthe legislature & a decision of the Supreme Court of the USto settle. Thus Searcy is the only town in Ark. to which titleof land has been adjudicated by the highest tribunal.
In Searcy, Martha Moore met & later m. William Andrew HarrisonYarnell on July 9, 1861. She spent her married life in Searcy.
William Andrew Harrison Yarnell was born Dec. 22, 1834, in HaywoodCo., Tenn. He was the son of James Yarnell, who was b. Dec. 4,1804, in Wilson Co., TN, and his wife, Nancy Rainbolt of MadisonCo., AL, who was b. Nov. 8, 1807. William attended college inDresden, TN, and taught school in Searcy in 1860.
Ten months after his marriage, Yarnell joined the Southern forcesin the War Between the States & was at the Battle of Helena,when the Confederates camped at La Grange. His company was musteredout in Texas in the spring of 1865. Because of trouble with bushwhackers& conditions of the time, he could not get home or get a letterthrough to his family. He rented land and made a crop, sellingit in the field. Later, he walked all the way home, although hemet a friend in Little Rock who offered him a ride to Searcy inhis buggy. Yarnell said he could get there sooner by walking &he did. His wife had mourned him as dead for a year. One nightwhile Mrs. Yarnell was at church, her husband came home to hisfamily & there he remained until his death.
Mr. & Mrs. Yarnell were devout members of the Methodist church& raised their nine children in an affectionate & deeplyreligious home life. It was a habit of Mr. Yarnell's to call hischildren about him in the evenings to read to them from the Bible& have family prayers. (gives his prayer)
Children: William Carlisle; Charles Wesley, who married J.B.Butts;Allie, who married Alexander Fitzhugh; James Henry, who died atthe age of 20; John S., who married Margaret Atwood Smith; Sadie,who married W.C.Bedford; Nell; and Otis Aaron, who d. at age 16.
After returning from the war, Yarnell bought a dry goods &grocery store. In 1867, he was joined by his 3 brothers, who movedto Searcy from TN. His brother, Albert Wesley Yarnell, bought1/2 interest in the store, which was known as Yarnell Bros. In1872 there was much agitation for a railroad to connect the Cairo& Fulton RR & W. A. Yarnell was a charter member of thebusiness group that sponsored the Searcy Branch RR Co. from thetown & continued to run it for a number of years.
Yarnell was always interested in education & in 1875, he wasone of a group in Searcy to file articles of inc. of the SearcyMale & Female High School of the Methodist Church, South.
Yarnell d. Aug. 27, 1895. His wifee d. in July, 1915. Survivingchildren are Mrs. Butts of Helena, Mrs. Fitzhugh of Augusta, andMrs. Bedford of Desdemona, Tex. There are 9 grandchildren &18 great grandchildren living.