Crawford Co., AR - Biographies - Ben Decherd

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SOURCE: History of Benton, Washington, Carroll, Madison, Crawford,
Franklin, and Sebastian Counties, Arkansas. Chicago: The Goodspeed 
Publishing Co., 1889.
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Ben Decherd was born in Franklin County, Tenn., in 1828, being a son 
of Peter Spyker and Frances Holder Decherd. The father was of German 
descent, born in Abingdon, Va., in 1800, and was a son of Michael 
Decherd, a native of Pennsylvania, and a hatter by trade. In an early 
day he went to Franklin County, Tenn., where he died about 1835. Peter 
S. was a young man when he went to Tennessee. He was there married in 
1827, and after accumulating a handsome estate he moved to McLennan 
County, Tex., in 1854, where he owned large landed estates and many 
slaves. In 1869 he came to Western Arkansas, and spent his remaining 
days on a farm near Van Buren. He died in 1879. The mother of our 
subject was born in Kentucky in 1812, and died in 1868. She was the 
daughter of John W. Holder, and the mother of eight children, of whom 
Ben was the eldest. He was educated in the literary and law 
departments of Cumberland University, Lebanon, Tenn. In 1873 he 
located near Alma, Crawford Co., Ark., where he farmed on Clear Creek. 
In 1886 he was elected circuit clerk and ex-officio county clerk and 
recorder of Crawford County, by thirty-six majority, and in 1886 was 
re-elected by 160 majority, and is now filling the position 
satisfactorily. In politics he is a Democrat, and his first 
presidential vote was cast for Pierce in 1850. In 1852 he married Miss 
Mary McClain, a daughter of Josiah S. McClain, who was county clerk of 
Wilson County, Tenn., for forty years. Mrs. Decherd was born in 
Lebanon, Tenn., in 1830, and bore our subject three children, all of 
whom are deceased. Mrs. Decherd died in 1869, and in 1873 he married 
Mrs. Ada S. Barbour, nee Alexander, who was born in Mecklenburgh 
County, N. C., in 1838. Mrs. Decherd had three children by her first 
marriage: Edward A., now city attorney at Springfield, Mo.; Mary E. 
and Annie. Mr. Decherd is an elder in the Cumberland Presbyterian 
Church.