Mills Farmer was born in 1783, in North Carolina, according to his daughter, Leah. He arrived in the Pine Hills neighborhood of the Ouachita Valley of northeastern Louisiana (the modern Downsville region) near what was then Fort Miro (now Monroe) by 1808, possibly traveling with the family of William Wood from Adams County Mississippi. He married Susannah Wood McCowen on 13 February 1812, with Judge Thomas C. Lewis I performing the ceremony. They married again on 7 July 1817, with Methodist minister Rev. Ashley Hewitt performing the ceremony.
In late 1814, Mills Farmer joined the company of soldiers raised in Ouachita Parish by William Wood (his father- or brother-in-law), serving as the unit's sergeant. The men went south to help defend New Orleans against the British invasion and saw service around Baton Rouge and New Orleans for a few months before returning home.
Mills Farmer and his father-in-law, William Wood, as well as Susannah's brothers all settled several miles west of the Ouachita River, on creeks that drained into Bayou Choudrant, which flowed into Bayou D'Arbonne north of what is now West Monroe. The Farmers and Woods were among the earliest European residents to settle near modern Downsville, in what is now southern Union Parish, northeastern Lincoln Parish, and northwestern Ouachita Parish. This region became known as the Pine Hills. Mills Farmer served as the earliest justice of the peace for this region. Despite the remoteness of the area, basically an isolated wilderness during his lifetime, Farmer managed to provide his children with a good education. His eldest son, William Wood Farmer, grew up to serve as a justice of the peace, several terms in the Louisiana Legislature, and as Louisiana's lieutenant governor. Mills Farmer's second son, John Newton Farmer, served as one of Union Parish's earliest police jurors.
Mills Farmer lived on his Pine Hills plantation until his death in 1834. After the creation of Union Parish in 1839, the police jury named the parish seat "Farmerville" in honor of Mills Farmer.
Children of Mills Farmer & Susannah Wood:
1) William Wood Farmer
b: 27 Apr 1813, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: 21 Mar 1839, Union Par LA to Pamelia A. Mixon (22 Oct 1815 - 22 Nov 1874), daughter of Joel and Feriba Mixon, both of whom died in Jackson Parish LA
d: 29 Oct 1854, New Orleans, Orleans Parish LA of yellow fever
buried: Farmerville Cemetery
2) Sarah Elizabeth Farmer
b: 1817, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: 14 July 1836, Ouachita Parish LA to Solomon Feazel
d: 1857
buried: Feazel Family Cemetery
3) John Newton Farmer
b: 1820, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
d: 2 Jan 1852, Nevada City, California
buried: "His body sleeps on the Sierra Nevada"
John Newton Farmer served as the first Union Parish Police Juror from Ward One. He went to California in the latter 1840s, probably following the gold rush. He mined in Calaveras County California in 1850.
4) Leah Farmer
b: 1 June 1820, in Ouachita (now southern Union) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: Thomas Jefferson Wilhite (10/11 June 1814 - July 1895)
d: 1892, Hunt County Texas
buried: Clinton Cemetery, Clinton, Hunt County Texas
5) Rachel Farmer
b: 1 June 1820, in Ouachita (now southern Union) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: 25 Jan 1844, Union Par LA to Daniel Bowman Acree
d: 19 Jan 1893, near Point, Union Par LA
buried: Abscent Cemetery
6) Benjamin Franklin Farmer
b: c1822, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: to Mary Jane Hester (1834 - 22 Mar 1890)
d: 1 June 1862, Oxford, Mississippi, while serving in Company E, 19th Louisiana Inf. Regt.
Benjamin F. Farmer served as a sergeant in the "Stars of Equality", Company E, 19th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, Confederate States Army. He enlisted in mid-1861 in Union Parish and trained that fall at Camp Moore in southeastern Louisiana. He was present for duty through December 1861, but in May he was absent in the hospital. He may have been wounded in the fierce fighting that his regiment endured at the Battle of Pittsburg Landing (Shiloh) on April 6-7, 1862, or he may have died of disease.
In 1862, Benjamin and Mary Jane Farmer had five young children: Isabella R. L., Ann Eliza, William W., Stephen W., and Susan E. Farmer. In 1870, the widowed Mary Farmer lived near Downsville with her widowed mother, Elizabeth Hester, and four children: Isabella (born about 1849), Lear (born about 1852 - female), Willis (born about 1859), and Benjamin, born about 1862. In 1873, the southwestern portion of Union Parish was put into the newly-created Lincoln Parish. In 1880, Mary lived on her Lincoln Parish farm with her daughters Elizabeth (born c1852), William (born c1856), and Benjamin, born c1859. It appears that Benjamin married in the early 1880s to a woman whose first initial was "E", and that their son William "Willie" Farmer was born on 30 September 1883 and died near Downsville, in Lincoln Parish, on 19 August 1884.
7) Shepherd Mills Farmer
b: 4 May 1825, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: c1849, probably Union Par LA to Harriett Louisa Stancil
d: 5 Sept 1852
buried: Farmerville Cemetery
Shepherd M. Farmer and his wife Harriett Stancil had two known children: Susannah R. Farmer and Shepherd M. Farmer, Jr. She married David M. Jameson in the 1850s after Farmer's death, and they lived near Spearsville in 1860.
8) Sebella B.) Farmer
b: 1827, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: (1) 20 Jan 1842, Union Par LA to William J. Payne son of Daniel & Elizabeth Payne
(2) 1850-1855, Union Parish Louisiana to William H. Carson
d: after 1880, when she lived in Hope, Hempstead County Arkansas.
Sebella and William J. Payne lived in Union Parish in 1850 with their sons Daniel M., born about 1842 and Lycurgus, born about 1848. Their son Commodore Payne was born about 1850.
By her second husband, Farmerville merchant William H. Carson, Sebella had daughters Emma Carson (born 1855) and Frida Carson (1857), both of whom died young.
In late 1814, Mills Farmer joined the company of soldiers raised in Ouachita Parish by William Wood (his father- or brother-in-law), serving as the unit's sergeant. The men went south to help defend New Orleans against the British invasion and saw service around Baton Rouge and New Orleans for a few months before returning home.
Mills Farmer and his father-in-law, William Wood, as well as Susannah's brothers all settled several miles west of the Ouachita River, on creeks that drained into Bayou Choudrant, which flowed into Bayou D'Arbonne north of what is now West Monroe. The Farmers and Woods were among the earliest European residents to settle near modern Downsville, in what is now southern Union Parish, northeastern Lincoln Parish, and northwestern Ouachita Parish. This region became known as the Pine Hills. Mills Farmer served as the earliest justice of the peace for this region. Despite the remoteness of the area, basically an isolated wilderness during his lifetime, Farmer managed to provide his children with a good education. His eldest son, William Wood Farmer, grew up to serve as a justice of the peace, several terms in the Louisiana Legislature, and as Louisiana's lieutenant governor. Mills Farmer's second son, John Newton Farmer, served as one of Union Parish's earliest police jurors.
Mills Farmer lived on his Pine Hills plantation until his death in 1834. After the creation of Union Parish in 1839, the police jury named the parish seat "Farmerville" in honor of Mills Farmer.
Children of Mills Farmer & Susannah Wood:
1) William Wood Farmer
b: 27 Apr 1813, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: 21 Mar 1839, Union Par LA to Pamelia A. Mixon (22 Oct 1815 - 22 Nov 1874), daughter of Joel and Feriba Mixon, both of whom died in Jackson Parish LA
d: 29 Oct 1854, New Orleans, Orleans Parish LA of yellow fever
buried: Farmerville Cemetery
2) Sarah Elizabeth Farmer
b: 1817, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: 14 July 1836, Ouachita Parish LA to Solomon Feazel
d: 1857
buried: Feazel Family Cemetery
3) John Newton Farmer
b: 1820, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
d: 2 Jan 1852, Nevada City, California
buried: "His body sleeps on the Sierra Nevada"
John Newton Farmer served as the first Union Parish Police Juror from Ward One. He went to California in the latter 1840s, probably following the gold rush. He mined in Calaveras County California in 1850.
4) Leah Farmer
b: 1 June 1820, in Ouachita (now southern Union) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: Thomas Jefferson Wilhite (10/11 June 1814 - July 1895)
d: 1892, Hunt County Texas
buried: Clinton Cemetery, Clinton, Hunt County Texas
5) Rachel Farmer
b: 1 June 1820, in Ouachita (now southern Union) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: 25 Jan 1844, Union Par LA to Daniel Bowman Acree
d: 19 Jan 1893, near Point, Union Par LA
buried: Abscent Cemetery
6) Benjamin Franklin Farmer
b: c1822, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: to Mary Jane Hester (1834 - 22 Mar 1890)
d: 1 June 1862, Oxford, Mississippi, while serving in Company E, 19th Louisiana Inf. Regt.
Benjamin F. Farmer served as a sergeant in the "Stars of Equality", Company E, 19th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, Confederate States Army. He enlisted in mid-1861 in Union Parish and trained that fall at Camp Moore in southeastern Louisiana. He was present for duty through December 1861, but in May he was absent in the hospital. He may have been wounded in the fierce fighting that his regiment endured at the Battle of Pittsburg Landing (Shiloh) on April 6-7, 1862, or he may have died of disease.
In 1862, Benjamin and Mary Jane Farmer had five young children: Isabella R. L., Ann Eliza, William W., Stephen W., and Susan E. Farmer. In 1870, the widowed Mary Farmer lived near Downsville with her widowed mother, Elizabeth Hester, and four children: Isabella (born about 1849), Lear (born about 1852 - female), Willis (born about 1859), and Benjamin, born about 1862. In 1873, the southwestern portion of Union Parish was put into the newly-created Lincoln Parish. In 1880, Mary lived on her Lincoln Parish farm with her daughters Elizabeth (born c1852), William (born c1856), and Benjamin, born c1859. It appears that Benjamin married in the early 1880s to a woman whose first initial was "E", and that their son William "Willie" Farmer was born on 30 September 1883 and died near Downsville, in Lincoln Parish, on 19 August 1884.
7) Shepherd Mills Farmer
b: 4 May 1825, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: c1849, probably Union Par LA to Harriett Louisa Stancil
d: 5 Sept 1852
buried: Farmerville Cemetery
Shepherd M. Farmer and his wife Harriett Stancil had two known children: Susannah R. Farmer and Shepherd M. Farmer, Jr. She married David M. Jameson in the 1850s after Farmer's death, and they lived near Spearsville in 1860.
8) Sebella B.) Farmer
b: 1827, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: (1) 20 Jan 1842, Union Par LA to William J. Payne son of Daniel & Elizabeth Payne
(2) 1850-1855, Union Parish Louisiana to William H. Carson
d: after 1880, when she lived in Hope, Hempstead County Arkansas.
Sebella and William J. Payne lived in Union Parish in 1850 with their sons Daniel M., born about 1842 and Lycurgus, born about 1848. Their son Commodore Payne was born about 1850.
By her second husband, Farmerville merchant William H. Carson, Sebella had daughters Emma Carson (born 1855) and Frida Carson (1857), both of whom died young.
Mills Farmer was born in 1783, in North Carolina, according to his daughter, Leah. He arrived in the Pine Hills neighborhood of the Ouachita Valley of northeastern Louisiana (the modern Downsville region) near what was then Fort Miro (now Monroe) by 1808, possibly traveling with the family of William Wood from Adams County Mississippi. He married Susannah Wood McCowen on 13 February 1812, with Judge Thomas C. Lewis I performing the ceremony. They married again on 7 July 1817, with Methodist minister Rev. Ashley Hewitt performing the ceremony.
In late 1814, Mills Farmer joined the company of soldiers raised in Ouachita Parish by William Wood (his father- or brother-in-law), serving as the unit's sergeant. The men went south to help defend New Orleans against the British invasion and saw service around Baton Rouge and New Orleans for a few months before returning home.
Mills Farmer and his father-in-law, William Wood, as well as Susannah's brothers all settled several miles west of the Ouachita River, on creeks that drained into Bayou Choudrant, which flowed into Bayou D'Arbonne north of what is now West Monroe. The Farmers and Woods were among the earliest European residents to settle near modern Downsville, in what is now southern Union Parish, northeastern Lincoln Parish, and northwestern Ouachita Parish. This region became known as the Pine Hills. Mills Farmer served as the earliest justice of the peace for this region. Despite the remoteness of the area, basically an isolated wilderness during his lifetime, Farmer managed to provide his children with a good education. His eldest son, William Wood Farmer, grew up to serve as a justice of the peace, several terms in the Louisiana Legislature, and as Louisiana's lieutenant governor. Mills Farmer's second son, John Newton Farmer, served as one of Union Parish's earliest police jurors.
Mills Farmer lived on his Pine Hills plantation until his death in 1834. After the creation of Union Parish in 1839, the police jury named the parish seat "Farmerville" in honor of Mills Farmer.
Children of Mills Farmer & Susannah Wood:
1) William Wood Farmer
b: 27 Apr 1813, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: 21 Mar 1839, Union Par LA to Pamelia A. Mixon (22 Oct 1815 - 22 Nov 1874), daughter of Joel and Feriba Mixon, both of whom died in Jackson Parish LA
d: 29 Oct 1854, New Orleans, Orleans Parish LA of yellow fever
buried: Farmerville Cemetery
2) Sarah Elizabeth Farmer
b: 1817, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: 14 July 1836, Ouachita Parish LA to Solomon Feazel
d: 1857
buried: Feazel Family Cemetery
3) John Newton Farmer
b: 1820, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
d: 2 Jan 1852, Nevada City, California
buried: "His body sleeps on the Sierra Nevada"
John Newton Farmer served as the first Union Parish Police Juror from Ward One. He went to California in the latter 1840s, probably following the gold rush. He mined in Calaveras County California in 1850.
4) Leah Farmer
b: 1 June 1820, in Ouachita (now southern Union) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: Thomas Jefferson Wilhite (10/11 June 1814 - July 1895)
d: 1892, Hunt County Texas
buried: Clinton Cemetery, Clinton, Hunt County Texas
5) Rachel Farmer
b: 1 June 1820, in Ouachita (now southern Union) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: 25 Jan 1844, Union Par LA to Daniel Bowman Acree
d: 19 Jan 1893, near Point, Union Par LA
buried: Abscent Cemetery
6) Benjamin Franklin Farmer
b: c1822, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: to Mary Jane Hester (1834 - 22 Mar 1890)
d: 1 June 1862, Oxford, Mississippi, while serving in Company E, 19th Louisiana Inf. Regt.
Benjamin F. Farmer served as a sergeant in the "Stars of Equality", Company E, 19th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, Confederate States Army. He enlisted in mid-1861 in Union Parish and trained that fall at Camp Moore in southeastern Louisiana. He was present for duty through December 1861, but in May he was absent in the hospital. He may have been wounded in the fierce fighting that his regiment endured at the Battle of Pittsburg Landing (Shiloh) on April 6-7, 1862, or he may have died of disease.
In 1862, Benjamin and Mary Jane Farmer had five young children: Isabella R. L., Ann Eliza, William W., Stephen W., and Susan E. Farmer. In 1870, the widowed Mary Farmer lived near Downsville with her widowed mother, Elizabeth Hester, and four children: Isabella (born about 1849), Lear (born about 1852 - female), Willis (born about 1859), and Benjamin, born about 1862. In 1873, the southwestern portion of Union Parish was put into the newly-created Lincoln Parish. In 1880, Mary lived on her Lincoln Parish farm with her daughters Elizabeth (born c1852), William (born c1856), and Benjamin, born c1859. It appears that Benjamin married in the early 1880s to a woman whose first initial was "E", and that their son William "Willie" Farmer was born on 30 September 1883 and died near Downsville, in Lincoln Parish, on 19 August 1884.
7) Shepherd Mills Farmer
b: 4 May 1825, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: c1849, probably Union Par LA to Harriett Louisa Stancil
d: 5 Sept 1852
buried: Farmerville Cemetery
Shepherd M. Farmer and his wife Harriett Stancil had two known children: Susannah R. Farmer and Shepherd M. Farmer, Jr. She married David M. Jameson in the 1850s after Farmer's death, and they lived near Spearsville in 1860.
8) Sebella B.) Farmer
b: 1827, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: (1) 20 Jan 1842, Union Par LA to William J. Payne son of Daniel & Elizabeth Payne
(2) 1850-1855, Union Parish Louisiana to William H. Carson
d: after 1880, when she lived in Hope, Hempstead County Arkansas.
Sebella and William J. Payne lived in Union Parish in 1850 with their sons Daniel M., born about 1842 and Lycurgus, born about 1848. Their son Commodore Payne was born about 1850.
By her second husband, Farmerville merchant William H. Carson, Sebella had daughters Emma Carson (born 1855) and Frida Carson (1857), both of whom died young.
In late 1814, Mills Farmer joined the company of soldiers raised in Ouachita Parish by William Wood (his father- or brother-in-law), serving as the unit's sergeant. The men went south to help defend New Orleans against the British invasion and saw service around Baton Rouge and New Orleans for a few months before returning home.
Mills Farmer and his father-in-law, William Wood, as well as Susannah's brothers all settled several miles west of the Ouachita River, on creeks that drained into Bayou Choudrant, which flowed into Bayou D'Arbonne north of what is now West Monroe. The Farmers and Woods were among the earliest European residents to settle near modern Downsville, in what is now southern Union Parish, northeastern Lincoln Parish, and northwestern Ouachita Parish. This region became known as the Pine Hills. Mills Farmer served as the earliest justice of the peace for this region. Despite the remoteness of the area, basically an isolated wilderness during his lifetime, Farmer managed to provide his children with a good education. His eldest son, William Wood Farmer, grew up to serve as a justice of the peace, several terms in the Louisiana Legislature, and as Louisiana's lieutenant governor. Mills Farmer's second son, John Newton Farmer, served as one of Union Parish's earliest police jurors.
Mills Farmer lived on his Pine Hills plantation until his death in 1834. After the creation of Union Parish in 1839, the police jury named the parish seat "Farmerville" in honor of Mills Farmer.
Children of Mills Farmer & Susannah Wood:
1) William Wood Farmer
b: 27 Apr 1813, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: 21 Mar 1839, Union Par LA to Pamelia A. Mixon (22 Oct 1815 - 22 Nov 1874), daughter of Joel and Feriba Mixon, both of whom died in Jackson Parish LA
d: 29 Oct 1854, New Orleans, Orleans Parish LA of yellow fever
buried: Farmerville Cemetery
2) Sarah Elizabeth Farmer
b: 1817, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: 14 July 1836, Ouachita Parish LA to Solomon Feazel
d: 1857
buried: Feazel Family Cemetery
3) John Newton Farmer
b: 1820, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
d: 2 Jan 1852, Nevada City, California
buried: "His body sleeps on the Sierra Nevada"
John Newton Farmer served as the first Union Parish Police Juror from Ward One. He went to California in the latter 1840s, probably following the gold rush. He mined in Calaveras County California in 1850.
4) Leah Farmer
b: 1 June 1820, in Ouachita (now southern Union) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: Thomas Jefferson Wilhite (10/11 June 1814 - July 1895)
d: 1892, Hunt County Texas
buried: Clinton Cemetery, Clinton, Hunt County Texas
5) Rachel Farmer
b: 1 June 1820, in Ouachita (now southern Union) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: 25 Jan 1844, Union Par LA to Daniel Bowman Acree
d: 19 Jan 1893, near Point, Union Par LA
buried: Abscent Cemetery
6) Benjamin Franklin Farmer
b: c1822, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: to Mary Jane Hester (1834 - 22 Mar 1890)
d: 1 June 1862, Oxford, Mississippi, while serving in Company E, 19th Louisiana Inf. Regt.
Benjamin F. Farmer served as a sergeant in the "Stars of Equality", Company E, 19th Regiment Louisiana Infantry, Confederate States Army. He enlisted in mid-1861 in Union Parish and trained that fall at Camp Moore in southeastern Louisiana. He was present for duty through December 1861, but in May he was absent in the hospital. He may have been wounded in the fierce fighting that his regiment endured at the Battle of Pittsburg Landing (Shiloh) on April 6-7, 1862, or he may have died of disease.
In 1862, Benjamin and Mary Jane Farmer had five young children: Isabella R. L., Ann Eliza, William W., Stephen W., and Susan E. Farmer. In 1870, the widowed Mary Farmer lived near Downsville with her widowed mother, Elizabeth Hester, and four children: Isabella (born about 1849), Lear (born about 1852 - female), Willis (born about 1859), and Benjamin, born about 1862. In 1873, the southwestern portion of Union Parish was put into the newly-created Lincoln Parish. In 1880, Mary lived on her Lincoln Parish farm with her daughters Elizabeth (born c1852), William (born c1856), and Benjamin, born c1859. It appears that Benjamin married in the early 1880s to a woman whose first initial was "E", and that their son William "Willie" Farmer was born on 30 September 1883 and died near Downsville, in Lincoln Parish, on 19 August 1884.
7) Shepherd Mills Farmer
b: 4 May 1825, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: c1849, probably Union Par LA to Harriett Louisa Stancil
d: 5 Sept 1852
buried: Farmerville Cemetery
Shepherd M. Farmer and his wife Harriett Stancil had two known children: Susannah R. Farmer and Shepherd M. Farmer, Jr. She married David M. Jameson in the 1850s after Farmer's death, and they lived near Spearsville in 1860.
8) Sebella B.) Farmer
b: 1827, in Ouachita (now southern Union ) Par LA, near present-day Downsville
m: (1) 20 Jan 1842, Union Par LA to William J. Payne son of Daniel & Elizabeth Payne
(2) 1850-1855, Union Parish Louisiana to William H. Carson
d: after 1880, when she lived in Hope, Hempstead County Arkansas.
Sebella and William J. Payne lived in Union Parish in 1850 with their sons Daniel M., born about 1842 and Lycurgus, born about 1848. Their son Commodore Payne was born about 1850.
By her second husband, Farmerville merchant William H. Carson, Sebella had daughters Emma Carson (born 1855) and Frida Carson (1857), both of whom died young.
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