Bienville Families:James L Stewart biography
Submitted by
Donna Sutton
ladyhawke1214@hotmail.com


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Biography of James L. Stewart 

      This biography is from Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Northwest Louisiana, originally published in 1890 by the Southern Publishing Company, Nashville and 
Chicago. The information in the biographies was usually obtained from the person or family members. A fee was generally paid to place an article in the book.

      James L. Stewart, cotton planter and farmer, Arcadia, LA. Mr. Stewart has been a resident of Bienville Parish, La., since 1859, and is recognized as one of the 
stalwart and representative men of the same. His honesty and integrity have never been doubted, and his genial, social disposition has shed its light over many. He was 
born in Jackson County, Florida, the land of flowers, on September 27, 1827. His parents, James and Sarah (Tucker) Stewart, were natives of South Carolina and 
Georgia, born in 1795 and 1796, respectively. The father was a stock-raiser and an agriculturist, and lived to be ninety-one years of age. The mother died in May 1890. 
They were educated in the primitive log school-house of former days. Their children are named in order of their births as follows: Mary T. (deceased, married and was 
the owner of a large amount of land in Texas), Lucinda (resides in Lincoln Parish, and became the wife of S.P. Sutton, deceased, who was a fine scholar and a 
successful agriculturist) Sarah J. (deceased), James L. (resides in Bienville Parish), and Candis (resides in Lincoln Parish and is single). Mr. Stewart received the 
principal part of his education by the light of the “pine knot”, when he would spend a considerable portion of each evening poring over his books. In this manner he
 fitted himself in an admirable manner for the arduous duties of life, and is an example of industry and perseverance, which any young man would do well to follow.
 He is a gentleman who has been familiar with toil and hard work from an early age, for he started out in life with nothing but a pair of willing hands and an unusual 
amount of perseverance. After two years spent on the farm he engaged in the manufacture of boots and shoes, and this continued for almost 20 years. He was 
married on October 11, 1849, to Miss Lovey I. Wise, a native of Alabama, born in 1829, and who was reared and educated among the Indians. Her father, 
Ezekial Wise, was a native of the Old Dominion and was a farmer. The mother, whose maiden name was Winifred Bullock, was a native of Georgia. Both are 
deceased. To Mr. and Mrs. Stewart have been born seven children – four living and three deceased. Those living are: E.T. (married and resides in Bienville Parish, 
where he is engaged as a farmer and a tanner), Selesta L. (resides in Bienville Parish and is the wife of T.J. Land, who is a first-class farmer), Ada C. (resides in 
Bienville Parish and is the wife of T.C. Johnson, a farmer), and Willie D. (who resides with his parents, and is an agriculturist by occupation). He was well educated 
in the common branches. During the war Mr. Stewart was the only one in his parish who had an independent detail, which was an honorary title, and a position
 which was an arduous and important one. Mr. Stewart has always been a Simon-pure Democrat, and his first presidential vote was cast for James K. Polk. 
He, with his worthy wife, belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church South, and Mr. Stewart has been superintendent in the Sunday-school for almost five years.
 He has also filled the same position in the home schools for three years. He has been remarkably punctual in his Sunday-school work, and was the organizer 
and founder of the Sunday-school in Arcadia. He asserts this fact, that during the years from 1885 to 1890, the Methodist Episcopal Sunday-school increased 
from ninety-seven to 200 pupils, and during that time but three of the pupils have died, which is a remarkable record. Mr. Stewart is the owner of 270 acres 
of good land, and is one of the public-spirited citizens of the community.