Sorry to tell you, Rita, but the chances of finding an *exact* marriage date for James W. Coker and Josephine Methvin are extremely slim to non-existent. Marriage records are county records. The Marion Co court house burned to the ground in Aug 1887, taking with it every single county record. And that included the marriage records. He was far too young to serve in the Civil War so there won't be a pension application record on either side. Researchers have been trying to find family bibles, letters, diaries, etc in place of the burned county records for years and years and years. Some have been lucky. In most cases, researchers of the "Buck" Coker family have not been lucky. The best you're going to do is probably no later than nine months before their first child was born and probably no earlier than 1870 when he became of legal age and could marry with or without parental consent. There's a good description of the Aug 1887 court house fire in the abstracts from the Mountain Echo that are online at http://www.rootsweb.com/~armarion Mysty shakerag@mtnhome.com ******************************************** ----- Original Message ----- From: Rita Wallace <refwallace@yahoo.com> To: <ARMARION-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Sunday, August 12, 2001 5:49 PM Subject: Re: COKER death lookup as well as marriage lookup > I've had this on my to do list for some time. Here is a copy of the bio of J. W. Coker from A Reminiscent History of the Ozark Region: > J. W. Coker, county sheriff. Connected with the history of the elections of Marion County, Ark., no name is more prominent or has borne with it more eclat than that of Coker. This gentleman is admirably adapted to the position he fills, for he is courageous, energetic and wide-awake, yet he attends to his duties very promptly. As he was born in the county January 29, 1852, and has lived here all his life, the people have had every opportunity to judge of his character and qualifications, and naught has ever been said derogatory to his good name. He is the eldest child born to his parents (see sketch of Dr. J. M. Coker)[Dr. William L. and Elizabeth (Hudspeth) Coker, grandson of William "Buck" Coker], and his early education was acquired in the district schools, where he gained an excellent knowledge of the "world of books" through that energy and push that has been so characteristic of him. > After reaching manhood he began farming some ten miles southwest of Yellville on Hampton Creek, and there still owns a good farm of 640 acres, some of which is exceptionally fertile, and as it is located in the great mineral belt it is probably rich in minerals also. In 1893 he was elected by the Democrat party, of which he has always been a member, to the office of county sheriff and county collector and is discharging the duties of this office. He held the office of justice of the peace for some ten years in Hampton Township, and has been notary public some years. He has always been active in political matters, is one of the leaders of his party, and is well known for the interest he takes in the welfare of his section. He is a member of Jefferson Lodge of the A. F. & A. M. of this county. Miss Josephine Methvin, a native of this county, and daughter of John and Cora Methvin, the former of whom died while serving in the Confederate Army, became his wife and by him the moth! > er of the following children: Nancy B., John W., Alonzo C., Eliza, Edward, Arthur, Ansel, Garvin, and James R., who is the eldest, is married and is engaged in farming south of Yellville. Mr. Coker belongs to the Baptist Church, and his wife to the Christian Church. Since 1893 they have resided in Yellville. > > Frances Fortune <fm_fortune@hotmail.com> wrote: Seeking burial sites and death dates for the following COKER family: > John W. Coker born abt 1852 in Ark., Josephine (METHVIN) COKER born abt > 1852. In 1880 census they are living in White River Township, Marion County. > Known children were: > James R. Coker born 1871 > Nancy B. Coker born 1874 > John W. Coker born 1876 > Calvin Coker born 1879 > I figure that John W. and Josephine married about 1870..does anyone know > exact date? > Thanks > _________________________________________________________________ > Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com > > > ============================== > Visit Ancestry.com for a FREE 14-Day Trial and enjoy access to the #1 > Source for Family History Online. Go to: > http://www.ancestry.com/subscribe/subscribetrial1y.asp?sourcecode=F11HB > > > Rita Foster Wallace > 13 Millstone Court > Cold Spring, KY 41076-1861 > (859)441-1935 > > > --------------------------------- > Do You Yahoo!? > Send instant messages & get email alerts with Yahoo! Messenger. > > > ============================== > Visit Ancestry's Library - The best collection of family history > learning and how-to articles on the Internet. > http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library >