John A. Forrester

SOURCE: The Goodspeed Publishing Co., 1889
Contributed by Michael Brown
18 Oct 1998

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SEBASTIAN CO

John A. Forrester, farmer and prominent citizen of Hartford, Sebastian Co., Ark., was born in 1849 in East Tennessee. His parents, William and Lucinda (Dalton) Forrester, were farmers by occupation, and were born in Tennessee in 1825. After residing a short time in Arkansas and Texas they permanently located in Arkansas in 1867, and spent the remainder of their days in Franklin County. William Forrester still lives in Franklin County. His wife died November 17, 1885. William Forrester enlisted in the Confederate army in 1863, and operated on the frontier of Texas until the close of the war. Six of their eight children are living: Ephraim H., John A., Eliza, Thomas E., Maggie (Jackson) and Martha M. (Abbott). John A. Forrester was reared in Arkansas and Texas, and began life for himself as a farmer at the age of twenty years. In 1873 he espoused Miss Mary A. Simmons, who was born in Missouri on the 27th of December, 1849, and a daughter of William J. and Susan (Hahan) Simmons. The father was a minister, a teacher, a blacksmith and gunsmith, and was born in Tennessee in 1818, and died on the 30th of June, 1882. His wife was born in Missouri in 1823, and died in 1865. Their children are as follows: Naomi (Horn), Mary A. (Forrester). Elizabeth (Pyle), Barbara A. (Echols), Simon and Martha (Boling). In 1883 Mr. Forrester removed from Franklin to Sebastian County, and bought the fertile valley farm of 120 acres where he is now residing. He has 100 acres under cultivation, and is one of the prosperous and progressive farmers of the county. He is the father of six children, two of whom died in infancy: William, Thomas, George W., Addie R. and James Crockett. He is a Democrat, and cast his first presidential vote for Tilden. His grandparents, Alexander and Sarah Forrester, were of English and Irish descent, and were farmers by occupation.