Staggs Family History

BIRTH: 7 May 1836, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, USA
DEATH: 16 Feb 1923, Compton, Newton, Arkansas, USA
FATHER: John Blackburn McFerrin Sr (1806–1895)
MOTHER: Martha Ann Rogers (1801–1876)
SPOUSE: Clementine Tabitha McCrea (1841–1922)

When John Brown McFerrin was born on May 7, 1836, his father, John, was 30 and his mother, Martha, was 35. He had six sons and five daughters with Clementine Tabitha McCrea between 1859 and 1884. He died on February 16, 1923, in Compton, Arkansas, having lived a long life of 86 years, and was buried in Newton, Arkansas.

The Life of John Brown McFerrin

Farmer • Homesteader • Civil War Veteran • Patriarch of the Arkansas McFerrins

John Brown McFerrin was born May 7, 1836, likely in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, into a family whose roots stretched back to the Carolinas and the early frontier. He was the son of John Baird McFerrin Sr. and Martha Ann Rogers, a couple who raised their children in the rugged hill country of west‑central Alabama. John grew up in a world of small farms, hard labor, and close‑knit rural communities, where a man’s reputation was built on his work ethic and his word.

On June 4, 1857, at just twenty‑one years old, John married Clementine Tabitha McCrea, the daughter of William McCrea and Mary Ann “Polly” McCrea. Their early married life was spent in Alabama, where John worked as a laborer and small farmer. The 1860 census shows the young couple living in Tuscaloosa County with their first child, Angeline Cordelia, born the previous winter. They were just beginning their life together when the nation fractured.

Civil War Service

When the Civil War erupted, John—like many young men of Alabama—answered the call. He enlisted in the 26th Alabama Infantry, Company G, a regiment raised in the Tuscaloosa and Walker County region. This unit served under Col. Edward A. O’Neal and became part of the Army of Northern Virginia.

John’s regiment saw some of the hardest fighting of the war:

• Yorktown and the Peninsula Campaign (1862)
• Seven Pines
• Gaines’ Mill
• Second Manassas
• Fredericksburg
• Chancellorsville
• Gettysburg
• The Wilderness and Spotsylvania
• Petersburg

The 26th Alabama suffered heavy casualties throughout the war, and many of its men never returned home. John survived the long marches, the hunger, the disease, and the brutal combat that defined the Confederate soldier’s experience. By the time the regiment surrendered in 1865, it was a shadow of the force that had marched proudly into Virginia three years earlier.

John returned to Alabama a changed man—older, hardened, and ready to rebuild a life interrupted by war.

A New Beginning in Arkansas

Sometime in the late 1860s or early 1870s, John and Clementine left Alabama and moved west to Newton County, Arkansas, joining a wave of families seeking new opportunities in the Ozarks. They settled near Compton, in the high country above the Buffalo River, where land was cheap and the hills were rich with timber and game.

John purchased or homesteaded land in the area that would later become known as McFerrin Point, a high ridge overlooking the valleys below. There he built a home, cleared fields, and raised a large family. Between 1859 and 1884, John and Clementine welcomed eleven children:

1. Angeline Cordelia (1859)
2. Martha Ophelia (1860)
3. Lulecy Hester (1862)
4. Jarrett Lycurgus (1866)
5. Jerusha Alice (1869)
6. John Orestes (1872)
7. Benjamin Eugene (1874)
8. Joseph Henry (1876)
9. Ardenia Belinda (1878)
10. Martin (1881)
11. Oliver (1884) – died young, remembered only in the 1900 census

John worked as a farmer, raising corn, livestock, and garden crops on the rocky Ozark soil. He and Clementine lived a frontier life—hauling water, cutting timber, tending animals, and raising children who would go on to shape the communities of Compton, Plumlee, and the surrounding hills.

Final Years

By 1900, John and Clementine were aging but still living on their homestead near Compton. Their children had begun to marry and establish homes of their own, many of them remaining close by. The couple spent their later years surrounded by children and grandchildren, watching the next generation take root in the same hills they had settled decades earlier.

Clementine died in 1922, and John followed her on January 15, 1923, at the age of eighty‑six. They were buried in McFerrin Cemetery, not far from the land they had carved from the wilderness.

Legacy of John Brown McFerrin

John Brown McFerrin’s life was shaped by the defining forces of the 19th century—westward migration, civil war, and the hard work of building a home in the American frontier. He was not a man of public office or recorded speeches, but a man whose legacy lived in the land he settled, the family he raised, and the quiet resilience he carried from Alabama to Arkansas.

He survived the devastation of the Civil War, rebuilt his life in the Ozarks, and became the patriarch of a family whose roots now stretch across generations. His children and grandchildren became farmers, teachers, merchants, ministers, and community leaders—each carrying forward a piece of the determination and steadiness that defined him.

Today, the ridges above Compton still hold the memory of the McFerrin homestead. The fields he cleared, the paths he walked, and the family he nurtured remain part of the living history of Newton County. John’s legacy endures not in monuments or written records, but in the lives of his descendants and in the hills that still bear his name.

Parents

FATHER: John Blackburn McFerrin Sr (1806–1895)
MOTHER: Martha Ann Rogers (1801–1876)

Married

Clementine Tabitha McCrea (1841–1922)

Children

• Angeline Cordelia McFerrin (1859–1926) married Daniel Levi Smith (1861–?)
• Martha Ophelia McFerrin (1860–?)
• Lulecy Hester McFerrin (1865–1931) married James Ennis Cecil (1862–1960)
• Jarrett Lycurgus McFerrin (1866–?) married Sallie Swafford
• Jerusha Alice McFerrin (1869–1904) married Henry Edward Smith (1862–1938)
• John Orestes McFerrin (1871–1948) married Nalia Elizabeth Hamilton (1880–1949)
• Benjamin Eugene McFerrin (1876–1955) married Sarah Belle Harp (1875–1954)
• Joseph Henry McFerrin (1876–1969) married Aly Ann Howell (1878–1971)
• Ardenia Belinda McFerrin (1878–1953) married Thomas F Jones (1874–1955)
• Martin McFerrin (1881–1953) married Anna Alberta “Bertie” Allred (1882–1972)
• Oliver P McFerrin (1884–before 1910)

Documents

• Birth Records
• Wedding records
• Death records
  • Find a Grave > Birth: 7 May 1836, Walker County, Alabama, USA; Death: 16 Feb 1923 (aged 86), Newton County, Arkansas, USA
  • Burial: McFerrin Cemetery, Newton County, Arkansas, USA
• Military
  • US, Civil War Service Records (CMSR) – Confederate – Alabama, 1861-1865 > PAGE 1, PAGE 2 > Twenty-sixth (O’Neal’s) Infantry, John B. McFerrin > Publication number: M311; Nara catalog id: 586957, Nara catalog title: Carded Records Showing Military Service of Soldiers Who Fought in Confederate Organizations, compiled 1903 – 1927, documenting the period 1861 – 1865; Publisher: NARA; Record group: 109, State: Alabama
  • U.S., Civil War Soldier Records and Profiles, 1861-1865 > Name: John B McFerrin; Enlistment Rank: Private; Muster Place: Alabama; Muster Regiment: 26th Infantry; Muster Regiment Type: Infantry; Muster Information: Enlisted; Side of War: Confederacy; Title: Index to Compiled Confederate Military Service Records
  • U.S., Civil War Soldiers, 1861-1865 > Name: John B. McFerrin; Side: Confederate; Regiment State/Origin: Alabama; Regiment: 26th Regiment, Alabama Infantry (O’Neal’s); Film Number: M374 roll 29
  • U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 > Name: John B McFerrin; Enlistment Date: 1863; Military Unit: Twenty-Sixth (O’Neal’s) Infantry
  • Arkansas, U.S., Confederate Veteran Records, 1861-1956 > Name: John Brown McFerrin; Record Type: Application; Birth Date: 7 May 1836; Birth Place: Kirby, Walker, Alabama; Relation to Head: Applicant; Military Enlistment Place: USA; Military Discharge Place: USA; Father: John Blackburn Mncferrin; Mother: Martha Ann Rodgers; Description: Confederate Questionnaire, 1911
• Census Records
  • 1860 United States Federal Census > Alabama > Tuscaloosa > McMath > Name: John B McFearson; Age: 23; Birth Year: abt 1837; Gender: Male; Race: White; Birth Place: Alabama; Home in 1860: McMath, Tuscaloosa, Alabama; Post Office: McMath; Dwelling Number: 1831; Family Number: 1638; Personal Estate Value: $500; Inferred Spouse: Clementine McFearson (20); Inferred Child: Cordelia McFearson (2)
  • 1880 United States Federal Census > Arkansas > Newton > Van Buren > 114 > Name: John B. Mc Feirn; Age: 44; Birth Date: Abt 1836; Birthplace: Alabama; Home in 1880: Van Buren, Newton, Arkansas, USA; Dwelling Number: 65; Race: White; Gender: Male; Relation to Head of House: Self (Head); Marital Status: Married; Spouse’s Name: Clementine T. Mc Feirn; Father’s Birthplace: South Carolina; Mother’s Birthplace: South Carolina; Occupation: Farmer; Other Household members: Clementine T. Mc Feirn (wife, 38), L. H. Mc Feirn (15), Jarrett L. Mc Feirn (14), Jerusha A. Mc Feirn (12), John O. Mc Feirn (9), Benj. V. Mc Feirn (6), Henry J. Mc Feirn (4)
  • 1900 United States Federal Census > Arkansas > Newton > Plumlee > District 0089 > Name: John B Mc Feirn; Age: 64; Birth Date: May 1836; Birthplace: Alabama, USA; Home in 1900: Plumlee, Newton, Arkansas; Sheet Number: 7; Number of Dwelling in Order of Visitation: 108; Family Number: 109; Race: White; Gender: Male; Relation to Head of House: Head; Marital Status: Married; Spouse’s Name: Clementine Mc Feirn; Marriage Year: 1858; Years Married: 42; Father’s Birthplace: South Carolina, USA; Mother’s Birthplace: South Carolina, USA; Occupation: Farmer; Months Not Employed: 6; Can Read: Yes; Can Write: Yes; Can Speak English: Yes; House Owned or Rented: Own; Home Free or Mortgaged: Free; Farm or House: House; Other Household members: Clementine Mc Feirn (wife, 58), John O Mc Feirn (28), Joseph H Mc Feirn (13), Oliver P Mc Feirn (18)
  • 1910 United States Federal Census > Arkansas > Newton > Plumlee > District 0102 > Name: John B McFerrin: Age in 1910: 73: Birth Date: 1837: Birthplace: Alabama: Home in 1910: Plumlee, Newton, Arkansas, USA: Sheet Number: 5a: Race: White: Gender: Male: Relation to Head of House: Head: Marital Status: Married: Father’s Birthplace: South Carolina: Mother’s Birthplace: South Carolina: Native Tongue: English: Occupation: Farmer: Industry: General Farm: Employer, Employee or Other: Own Account: Home Owned or Rented: Own: Home Free or Mortgaged: Free: Farm or House: Farm: Able to read: Yes: Able to Write: Yes: Enumeration District Number: 0102: Years Married: 52: Survivor of Union or Confederate Army or Navy: Ca: Enumerated Year: 1910: Other Household members: Clemantine McFerrin (wife, 67)
  • 1920 United States Federal Census > Arkansas > Newton > Osage > District 0105 > Name: John B Mcferrin; Age: 83; Birth Year: abt 1837; Birthplace: Alabama; Home in 1920: Osage, Newton, Arkansas; Street: Coupton and Casper Road; House Number: Farm; Residence Date: 1920; Race: White; Gender: Male; Relation to Head of House: Head; Marital Status: Married; Spouse’s Name: Hemma T Mcferrin; Father’s Birthplace: North Carolina; Mother’s Birthplace: North Carolina; Home Owned or Rented: Owned; Home Free or Mortgaged: Free; Able to read: Yes; Able to Write: Yes; Other Household members: Hemma T Mcferrin (wife, 79)
• Other
  • Descendants of James McFerrin
  • McCrary Clan Newsletter-No24 (June 1985); Author: McCrary Clan > Name: Joseph H; Gender: Male; Mother: Clementine Tabitha McCrea; Spouse: Allie

Relation of Joseph Henry McFerrin to Karen Edgar: great-grandfather

Page last updated June 8, 2026

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