J. S. Willingham, born in 1851 in Alabama, with his wife, Julia Gardner Willingham, and his father, A. J. Willingham, born in 1807 in Georgia, came to Arkansas in 1867 and located in the western part of Marion County. They had made the trip overland with oxen, crossing the Mississippi River near Memphis, Tennessee, on a ferry. Mr. Willingham was a farrner and, in addition to farming, also taught school for many years in Marion County. Mrs. Willingham's father, Harmon Gardner, came to Marion County from Greene County, Missouri. They were the parents of ten children: C. A.; Lerra; Pink; Kate; R. L.; Murphy; Kirby; Carroll; Chester; and Pearl.
The member of the family known to all people of this county was C. A. Willingham, born in 1872. When young, he attended school five months each year and assisted his father on the farm the remainder of the time. At the age of eighteen he began farming on his own and taught school. In 1914 he became tax assessor of Marion County and served in that office for four years. In 1920 he became sheriff and tax collector.
In 1883 Mr. Willingham married Mattie King, daughter of B. King. They became the parents of six children: Hobart; Dale; Wynona; Bernice; Russell; and Paul. Hobart married Ora Adams, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Q. Adams, Sr. Hobart is deceased, and Ora lives in Yellville. Dale married Lou Freeman and they had one daughter. All of them are deceased. Wynona has never married. Bernice married Fred Berry, son of Mr. and Mrs. Cam Berry. They were the parents of a son, Fred. Russell and Paul both died while they were young men.
Fred Berry was a banker. He was a grandson of J. H. Berry and A. S. Layton, the latter of whom established the Bank of Yellville in 1892. When the depression struck, the bank closed. Soon Fred opened what was called the Yellville Banking Exchange, which later became the Bank of Yellville. Fred and Bernice worked together until his death in 1939. After that Bernice continued the work. Today the Bank of Yellville is one of the best in this part of the state with a beautiful new building in Yellville, a branch at the new town of Bull Shoals, and a staff of about 20 employees, the results of the business abilities of Bernice Berry. Wynona Willingham and Bernice's son, Fred, are also connected with the banking business.
Reprinted with permission from History of Marion County edited by Earl Berry, copyright 1977.