William N. Mitchell was the paternal ancestor of a long line of prominent citizens, he served as Williamson County Clerk, Marion Postmaster, was the fourth and last person to serve as President of an incorporated Marion Board of Trustees before Marion started using the Mayoral form in 1874 and he helped organize and ran on the first ever Republican ticket in Williamson County, not to mention his involvement in the first Republican county newspaper. Continue reading
Tag Archives: mayor
Harry R. Rodd was born August 15, 1912 in DuQuoin to Roy Edgar Rodd (1880-1968) and Lela May Calvert (1886-1974). Harry’s father, Roy, was born on a farm in Williamson County in 1880 in the now defunct Western precinct that we know today as Blairsville Township in the northwest corner of the county. He spent most of his life living in Marion and worked as an insurance salesman. Continue reading
Robert Lee Cooksey was born in Marion on June 5, 1919 to the late Erva Cooksey (1882-1968) and Harriet Jackson. Bob attended Marion schools, but like many youths of his day and time, only achieved an eighth grade education and focused more on job experience and survival. Continue reading
James Henderson Clarida, grandfather of Bill Butler and Mayor Robert Butler, was born March 30, 1876 at Crab Orchard, the son of William J. Clarida and Irena Culbreth. He grew up on a farm and attended school at Pleasant Grove.
In the 1880 census, James H. was 4 years old and sharing space with a sister, Ida J. Clarida, age 6, in the home of his parents on their farm in Crab Orchard Precinct of Williamson County. Continue reading
Brice Holland
It isn’t often you run across an individual who actually fought in the Civil War on both sides, but this appears to be one of them. Although there some disparities in dates and locations, that exist between his obituary and actual records, this man lead an interesting life.
Brice Holland was born on January 29, 1842, in Monongalia County, Palestine, W. Virginia, the son of Jacob Holland and Emily J. Tarleton, natives respectively of Virginia and Pennsylvania. His mother passed away in 1857. Continue reading