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Below is a family biography included in The History of Laclede County, Missouri 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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James Atchley was born in Bradley County, Tenn., October 6, 1824, and is a son of John and Lizzie Atchley, and grandson of Martin Atchley, who was born, reared and married in Pennsylvania. About 1800 he located in Meigs County, Tenn., on a farm, at which occupation he became quite wealthy, but his death occurred in Bradley County in 1844. He was a soldier in the War of 1812, and was an active member of the Baptist Church. He and wife, who was born in Pennsylvania, became the parents of eleven children, all of whom lived to maturity. Seth, the eldest, now living on the home place in Tennessee, and Mahala (Mrs. Wilson), who resides in Denton County, Ark., are the only ones now living. John Atchley was the sixth child, and was born in Meigs County, Tenn., in 1804, and in 1838 removed with his family to Missouri, locating in Goodwin Hollow, where he died in 1881. He served in the “Old Men’s Regiment” during the late war. His wife was born in Kentucky, and died in 1878, having borne a family of eleven children, nine of whom are living at the present time: Noah D., Morgan L., Seth, Miles, Sarah, Elizabeth, Elder, Delilah and James. James Atchley, whose name heads this sketch, was thirteen years of age when his parents came to Laclede County, and here he has since made his home. He served in the Mexican War under Gen. Taylor, and in 1850 took a trip to Pike’s Peak, and was engaged in rafting logs on the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers for four years. He was married in 1851 to Miss Nancy Hufft, who was born in Tennessee in 1823, and died in 1865, a devoted member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. The following are their children: Dr. John B., Benjamin and Freeman. Mr. Atchley is a member of the A. F. & A. M., and is the owner of 640 acres of good land, with 320 acres under cultivation.

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This family biography is one of 99 biographies included in The History of Laclede County, Missouri published in 1889.  For the complete description, click here: Laclede County, Missouri History, Genealogy, and Maps

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