Joseph Rial Fergeson of Scottish descent was born in 1795 in Virginia.  He was a merchant who owned a big red brick house and slaves.  He signed a note for a man who did not pay and went broke.  He moved to Kentucky in 1848 and then to Yell County, AR in 1860.  He died in 1871. 

His wife, Jane Ayers Fergeson, was born ca 1903 in Virginia.  She bore him 8 children.  She died in 1869.

Joseph Rial Fergeson & Jane Ayers Fergeson
Joel Fergeson	John A. Fergeson + Nancy Farrell	W. H. Fergeson + 1st wife ? then Sara E. Stout	Edward Calhoun Fergeson	Mary Susan Fergeson	Joseph Rial Fergeson, Jr.	Sarah F. Fergeson	Olive Salee Fergeson + Mary Mollie Smith

Joel Fergeson was born ca 1841.  
John A. Fergeson was born in 1829.  An early settler he married Nancy Ferrell Fergeson (b. 1851)  Dec. 21, 1871.  He died Oct. 31, 1889.
W. H. Fergeson was born in 1830 in Virginia.  He became a planter and owner of a cotton gin and shingle and saw mill in Belleville, Arkansas.  He moved to Danville, Arkansas, was elected sheriff there.  He married his first wife in 1852.  She died in 1864.  In 1869 he married Sarah E. Stout Fergeson, the daughter of Pope County pioneers.
Olive Salee Fergeson, the youngest child,  was born in Virginia on June 4, 1848.  He became a teacher, farmer and merchant.  He married Mary Mollie Smith Fergeson, a.k.a. "Addie", who was born Sept. 29, 1858 in Arkansas.  She died Dec 31. 1887 in Havana, Arkansas.

W. H.  Fergeson  and his first wife had two known children.  One was Mollie Fergeson who married James Thompson.  The other was Benjamin Lee who became a Methodist minister.  He died in 18809 in his pulpit in Ozark, Arkansas after declaring, "If I had two wings of an angel, I'd fly away to heaven."  

W.H. Fergeson and his second wife, Sarah E. Stout, had seven children:  William H. Jr., Addie/N.J. Bucknam,  James C., Sallie, Charlie, Fannie Pearl and Lillie Irene, who moved to California. Sallie married Montgomery ("Gum") Nelson and was the grandmother of Joyce Nelson Wilson of Danville, AR.  Joyce, an R.N.  married Jack Wilson, the postal carrier,  and they had two children: Martha Lynn and "Little" Jack.  Martha Lynn, an English  teacher and very talented musician, married Robert Burke from Louisiana.  They had two children: Lyndsey and Wilson.  Lyndsey was killed in a car wreck.  

Olive Salee Fergeson and Mary Mollie Smith had 3 children.  Edgar Lee Fergeson was born Dec. 16, 1880 and died Feb. 20, 1930. (His wife was Emma Chesney, who was born in Aug. 16, 1878 and died Oct. 9, 1920.  They had five children:  Lola, Blanche, Samuel Oliver, Edgar Lee ("Nub") and Mary.)  Mollie Smith Fergeson died.  Johnnie May Fergeson, the older sister, raised her younger brother, Olive James Fergeson.  Johnnie May then married Dr. H. A. Britt.  Their children are Henry, Lee, Mayme and James Oliver Britt.

Olive James Fergeson.  See below:

Olive James Fergeson was born Feb. 4, 1887 in Havana, Arkansas.  He was a lawyer, but his great love was for farming.  He taught Sunday School for many years at the Danville Methodist Church in Danville, Arkansas. He passed away July 20, 1969.  His wife, Ovie Fergeson, was born June 28, 1897 in Barber Arkansas.  She taught in a one-room school house.  On June 16, 1921, she  and "Jim" were married.  They had three children:  James Oliver, Mary Katherine and Virginia Ann Fergeson.

James Oliver Fergeson was born March 8, 1923 in Havana. Arkansas.  He became a surgeon and lives in Sarasota, Florida with his wife,  Mary Jim Kaiser Fergeson, daughter of  Mr. & Mrs. Frederick Green Kaiser of Little Rock, AR.  Their son, James Oliver, Jr., "Jay", was born Sept 29, 1948 in Rochester, Minnesota while "Jim" was doing his residency at Mayo Clinic.  Jay married Robyn Tacey (b. Feb. 4, 1950 in Tom's R., N.J.).  Jay is a lawyer in Sarasota.  They had two children: Adam and Matthew Fergeson.

Mary Katherine Fergeson Kealthey was born  Nov. 27, 1924 in Havana, AR.  She became a teacher and then a librarian.  She married  Robert Compton Keathley.  He was born Oct 21, 1914 in Danville, AR in the same house in which he was married.  He worked with United Fruit in Honduras and returned to Arkansas to farm and run a tractor business.   He and Katherine had one child:  Mary Frances Keathley.  

Mary Frances Keathley was born Jan. Jan. 24, 1953 in Danville, AR.  She is a teacher.  On Feb 7, 1981 she married Thomas (Tom) Paul Brown of Ft. Smith AR, who was born Feb 8, 1950 in Superior, Nebraska. Frances is a teacher and Tom is an architect in Houston, TX.  They have 3 children:  Elizabeth and Robert, twins, were born ______ and Meredith was born in ______ in Houston.

Virginia Ann Fergeson was born Oct. 29, 1926 in Havana, AR.  She married  and gave birth to Linda Ann Reed.  Later she married Ottis Clinton Morris, the answer to Linda's prayers.  Virginia was a teacher and Ottis a U.S. Forester.  Virginia and Ottis produced James Clinton (Clint) Morris, the answer to Linda's other prayer which was for a brother. 

Linda Ann (b.  March 24, 1947 in Fayetteville, AR)   married and Ollie Sean  was born.  She was a nurse in south Louisiana and New Orleans and then returned to college at Loyola University of New Orleans and graduated in journalism.  She then married Aylmer Lee Morgan III and became step-mother to Scott, Betty Lee, Ayl & Betty Lee. 

James Clinton (b.  Nov. 29, 1963 in Mt. Ida, AR) was a major in the U.S. Army and then went to Bosnia on a demining operation.  He is currently in computer networking.  On Jan. 30, 2000 he married Bobbie Sue Sanders of Alma, AR.

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