My Genealogy Hound

WILLIS H. KILGORE, judge of the probate court. Judge Kilgore was born March 18, 1839, in the state of Georgia. His father (Willis) was a native of Georgia; his mother, whose maiden name was Isabella Lindsey, was a native of South Carolina. His parents moved to Texas in 1846, where the subject of our sketch was reared. The judge began his business career as a clerk, making that his occupation until the Spring of 1861, when he entered the Confederate army and served three years. While in the service, on April 30th, 1864, in the Saline River battle, he was wounded by a ball. After the close of the war he resumed his occupation of clerking in Texas, remaining there until 1868, when he came to Missouri and was engaged in clerking and teaching school until 1872. In 1872 he relocated in Joplin, and devoted his attention to mining and selling goods until 1878, when he was elected judge of the probate court of Jasper county, and has since that time been serving the people in that office. While living in Joplin he served several years as a member of the city council, also as collector of Joplin township. He was married March 4, 1881, to Mrs. Alice B. Mariotte, a native of Ohio. She has one child by her former husband. Judge Kilgore is evidently a self-made man, and owes much of his success to his own efforts. He is attentive to business, ever courteous and obliging to those with whom he deals, the possessor of more than an ordinary business qualification, one of Jasper county’s faithful officers, and a highly respected and valuable citizen of Carthage.