Arkansas Biography

Biographies in Local Histories

 * Biographical information is often found in state, county, and town histories.
 * Towards the end of the 19th century, began publishers soliciting short biographical/family histories from local founding families, offering to publish them in an upcoming local history. This then became an incentive for family members to buy a copy of the book.
 * Families represented were not necessarily prominent. Practically everyone living there, especially in the Midwest, counted as an early settler.
 * These biographies often start with the first member of the family to settle in the area, and detail their descendants at the time of publishing. They may tell where the family moved in from. Children's marriages often are given, with maiden names included.

Finding Biographies

 * The county Wiki page lists several county histories. It also lists local libraries, and societies which probably have copies of local histories.
 * Many histories are no longer under copyright and can be found in the following online, digitized book collections. Search with keywords "History" and "the name of your locality" (state, county, or town).
 * FamilySearch Books
 * Google Books
 * World Cat
 * HathiTrust
 * Internet Archive
 * The FamilySearch library has extensive collections of these local histories. Many are digitized. Search the FamilySearch Catalog under your locality for the topics "Biography" and "History".

Online Resources
The best collection of published biographies in Arkansas is at the University of Arkansas Library. Also search the biographical sections of statewide, regional, and county histories for biographical information. In 1889 and 1890 the Goodspeed Publishing Company published a series of regional biographical encyclopedias. Most have recently been reprinted and are indexed.

Family History Library Collection


 * Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Eastern Arkansas. . . . 1890. Reprint. Easley, South Carolina: Southern Historical Press, 1978. and . Online for free at the Internet Archive.  Also online at: Eastern Arkansas Biographies and Historical Memoirs ($)


 * Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Northeast Arkansas. . . . Chicago, Illinois: Goodspeed Publishing Company, 1889. and . Online for free at the Internet Archive.  Also online at: Northeast Arkansas Biographies and Historical Memoirs ($)


 * Biographical and Historical Memoirs: of Pulaski, Jefferson, Lonoke, Faulkner, Grant, Saline, Perry, Garland and Hot Springs Counties, Arkansas. . . . Chicago, Illinois: Goodspeed Publishing Company, 1889. . Online for free at the Internet Archive.


 * Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Southern Arkansas. . . . 1890. Reprint. Easley, South Carolina: Southern Historical Press, 1978. and a 1960 reprint of 1890 edition on . Online at: Southern Arkansas Biographical and Historical Memoirs($)


 * Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Western Arkansas. . . . 1891. Reprint. Easley, South Carolina: Southern Historical Press, 1978. . Online for free at the Internet Archive. Also online at: Western Arkansas Biographies and Historical Memoirs($) 


 * History of Benton, Washington, Carroll, Madison, Crawford, Franklin, and Sebastian Counties, Arkansas. . . 1889. Chicago, Illinois: Goodspeed Publishing Company. Online for free at Google Books. Also online at: Ancestry.com($)
 * Arkansas Family Biographies for most counties from numerous historical volumes are available free online at: My Genealogy Hound
 * Arkansas Biographical History at Ancestry.com ($)
 * Central Arkansas Counties Biographical Historical Memoirs at Ancestry.com ($)
 * Biographical and pictorial history of Arkansas at Ancestry.com ($)