Captain James R. Lafferry, a prominent planter in Logan County Arkansas, was born in Hall County Georgia. His family moved to Tennessee and he grew up near Chattanooga. His father, George W. Lafferry, owned a farm where both the battles of Chattanooga and Chickamauga were fought. During the Mexican War James Lafferry enlisted and was in most of the hard fighting of that war. In 1848 he married Martha Smith, who bore him the following children: George, Mary Ann, Margaret, Catherine, Nancy, Julia, Curley (Tennessee), Joshiah, James, Reuben, and Amanda (twins). Mattie and Virginia. They moved from Tennessee to Lawrence County, Arkansas, in 1851. They then returned to his old home in Tennessee where he remained for six years. In 1858, he moved to Arkansas and in 1862 enlisted in the United States Army, First Arkansas Infantry. He was in the Fayetteville fight and was with Gen. Blount in the actions at Fort Smith and Honey Springs. He was with Gen. Cloud when Dardanelle was captured the first time and was in the Haguewood fight, where he was captured and exchanged. He was captured again at the second fight at Dardanelle, again exchanged and was in the third fight there in January 15, 1865. He was in the fight at Ozark with Brooks on his retreat from Fayetteville and was wounded in the knee then. His horse was shot out from under him and in the fall broke his leg. He was elected Captain of Company B 4th Ark Cavalry on September 10, 1863 and served in that capacity until the end of the war. In his military career he was a participate in 40 battles. At the close of the war he returned to Ellsworth to cultivate 50 acres of his 318 acre farm. In 1878, President Grant appointed him United States receiver in the Dardanelle Land Office. He was a commissioner appointed to appraise the Ft Smith Reservation. He is a member of the G.A.R. and attends the Methodist Episcopal Church. (end of Excerpt from Goodspeed's Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Western Arkansas page 363)