Memorial Record of Alabama: James P. Batson sketch (his son Osee, John Ocie Batson)

Transcription

From the archive.org text layer, p. 722 ("fanner" corrected to "farmer"):

James P. Batson, merchant, of Rockford, Ala., is a son of William and Mary (Kelly) Batson, the former of whom was born in Milledgeville, Ga., in 1823. At the age of eleven he was brought by his parents to Alabama, they settling in Autauga county, near Kingston. After living here eight or nine years they moved to the western part of Coosa county. William Batson married in Coosa county in 1843, and lived in that county until 1867, when the new county of Elmore was formed, or rather when the county lines were changed, and then without moving he became a resident of Elmore county. He died in 1877. He was a planter by occupation […] The Kelly family were from North Carolina and are of Scotch ancestry. Mrs. Mary Batson was born and reared in Cumberland county, that state. William and Mary Batson reared a family of seven children, viz.: James P., a merchant at Rockford; […] James P. Batson was born in Coosa county, Ala., January 10, 1845. He began business for himself at the age of twenty-two, and followed farming near Equality until 1875 in the northern part of Elmore county, Ala. Being successful at farming, and having accumulated some capital, he commenced business as a merchant at Sykes' Mills, Elmore county, and removed his business to Rockford in 1886, where he has since remained. He carries an average stock of general merchandise of about $8,000. He was married November 4, 1866, in Elmore county, to Susan M. Wingard, by whom he has seven children, viz.: Lavinia, single; James W., clerk in probate judge's office; Osee, David C., Orestus, Viola and Adin, the last five at home. Mr. Batson is a democrat and a master Mason, and he is a prominent and successful merchant.

Citation: "James P. Batson," in Memorial Record of Alabama: A Concise Account of the State's Political, Military, Professional and Industrial Progress, Together with the Personal Memoirs of Many of Its People, vol. 1 (Madison, Wis.: Brant & Fuller, 1893), 722; Internet Archive item memorialrecordof00tayl, scan n719, https://archive.org/details/memorialrecordof00tayl/page/n719/mode/1up?q=Batson.