My Genealogy Hound

Below is a family biography from the book, History of Kentucky, Edition 7 by J. H. Battle, W. H. Perrin and G. C. Kniffin and published by F. A. Battey 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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JOHN D. COLLINS, M. D., a native of Winchester, Clark Co., Ky., was born July 11, 1823, and is the second in a family of ten children born to Dr. Orville and Polly (Christy) Collins; the latter, a native of Clark County, was a daughter of John Christy. Dr. Orville Collins was born in 1798, and was a son of Dillard and Sallie (Duncan) Collins. Dillard Collins was born in Virginia, and was one of the earliest settlers in Clark County, Ky. He was county clerk of Clark County one term, but most of his life was spent in farming. At the age of ten years John D. Collins moved with his parents to Hopkinsville, Ky. He was educated in the male academy of that place, and worked for about two years as clerk in a store. In. 1840 he commenced to read medicine, in which profession he graduated, first in March, 1845, from the medical department of Kemper College, St. Louis, Mo. He located at Madisonville, and practiced with his father until 1853, when he attended the Eclectic Medical College at Cincinnati, Ohio, where he graduated. Returning to Madisonville, he remained until June, 1861, when he joined the Confederate Army as a surgeon, remaining in the service till the close of the war, when he located in Henderson County, Ky. In November, 1845, he married Elvira Hatchitt, of Henderson County, daughter of John A., and three children have blessed their union, two of whom are living: Lield, who married J. D. Gunn, of Toronto, Canada West, and has four children: Donnell, Morris, Glen D. and an infant; R. A., who is a teacher in the high school, in Evansville, Ind. Mrs. Collins died in 1867, and October 28, 1879, Dr. Collins married Sadie Mc Millan, of Mason County, Ky., daughter of James and Elizabeth (Webb) McMillan. Dr. Collins moved to Covington in 1881, where he has since resided, a member of the Christian Church, while his wife is a member of the Baptist Church.

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This family biography is one of 150 biographies included in the Kenton County, Kentucky section of the book, The History of Kentucky, Edition 7 published in 1887 by F. A. Battey Publishing Company.  For the complete description, click here: History of Kentucky, Edition 7

View additional Kenton County, Kentucky family biographies here: Kenton County, Kentucky Biographies

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