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Below is a family biography included in Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Garland County, Arkansas published by Goodspeed Publishing Company in 1890.  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. Elijah A. Shippey, by no means unknown as a prominent medical practitioner of Hot Springs, was born in Spartanburg District, S. C., in 1832, and is a son of Johnson and Catherine (Austel) Shippey, natives of the same State. About the year 1833 the parents moved to Alabama, residing there until 1848. They then went to Louisiana, where the father died in 1863, and the mother in 1871. The parents were members of the Methodist Church and of English-Irish origin. The father was a very successful farmer during his life, and a man highly respected by all who knew him, his father being also a farmer and one of the heroes of the Revolution. Elijah A. Shippey, the eldest of three sons and four daughters born to the parents, was reared on a farm, and received a good academic education, at the age of eighteen years commencing the study of medicine in Louisiana. In 1854 he graduated from the Medical Department of the University of Louisville, Ky., and practiced in Louisiana until the Civil War commenced, when he enlisted and served as assistant surgeon until the close of that event. In 1857 Dr. Shippey was married to Margaret, daughter of Alex and Elizabeth Lawrence, of Louisiana, and in 1865 he moved with his wife to Arkansas. They resided two years in Magnolia, and from there went to Camden, and in 1873 came to Hot Springs, where the Doctor has resided ever since. He is one of the most successful as well as one of the oldest practicing physicians and surgeons in that section, having practiced for over thirty-five years, and has attained a reputation for skill in his profession that cannot be exceeded by any practitioner in Central Arkansas. The Doctor owns a splendid farm of 600 acres, about eight miles west of the city on the Mount Ida road, and has placed some 200 acres under cultivation besides building a fine residence. In politics he was formerly a Whig, but since the war he has voted the Democratic ticket, and is one of the staunchest adherents to that party. In secret societies he is a member of Centennial lodge No. 5, Knights of Pythias, at Hot Springs, and holds the office of Commander. He and wife both belong to the Methodist Church. They are among the foremost people in that section to aid by hearty support and influence in all commendable movements.

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This family biography is one of 55 biographies included in Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Garland County, Arkansas published in 1890.  For the complete description, click here: Garland County, Arkansas History, Genealogy, and Maps

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