JAMES D. JEFFRESS was born August 18, 1841, in Bedford County.  His father, Thomas B. Jeffress, was born in Virginia in 1803 and came to Tennessee in about 1836.  While in Virginia he wedded Pollie H. Carter, who was born about 1805.  They died in 1876 and 1856, respectively.  James was the fifth of their seven children.  He entered the Confederate Army in 1861, in Company C, Twenty-third Tennessee Regiment, and was through the entire war, but was not wounded.  He was in many of the principal battles, Shiloh, Perryville, Murfreesboro and Knoxville being examples.  Since the war he has farmed, and since 1878 has tilled the old homestead, which he purchased, March 7, 1867, he was united in marriage to Frances A. Clay, born in Bedford County, February 16, 1846.  Three children were born to this union:  Annie Lee, Sallie H. and Thomas Ewing.  Mr. Jeffress has a comfortable competency and is a man of intelligence and education.  He and wife are members of the Missionary Baptist Church, and he is a Democrat politically.
 

L. E. JONES is a native of Tennessee. and was born in the year 1816.  His parents were North Carolinians by birth, and his maternal grandfather served his country faithfully in the Revolutionary war.  The subject of our sketch was reared on a farm by one of his uncles, Isaiah Hammond, and lived with him until after attaining his twenty-first birthday, and then began the battle of life for himself, and has been a tiller of the soil up to the present time.  In January, 1840, he united his fortunes with Miss Nancy Bryant, of Bedford County, and their union resulted in the birth of twelve children, seven of whom are now living.  Our subject has been quite prosperous in his farming enterprises, and is now living in sight of the first house that was ever built in Bedford County.  He received limited educational advantages, but has always manifested a willingness to aid in any and all enterprises pertaining to the advancement of educational interests.  His political views are Democratic, and he gives his support to that party. He has always been scrupulously honest in all his business transactions, and is considered one of Bedford County's most substantial citizens.
 

THOMAS J. JONES was born November 2, 1842, in Lincoln County, Tenn., near Petersburg, being one of the family of children born to the union of Minos C. Jones and Fannie Melson.  The father was born and raised in Bedford County.  At the age of eighteen he went to Lincoln County, where he married, lived and died, being a farmer by occupation.  Thomas J. was reared on a farm with his parents to the age of twenty-one, when he married and moved to Bedford County and farmed a short time.  In February, 1867, he came to Shelbyville and opened a bar and confectionery business.  He removed to Richmond, Bedford County, in a short time, and in 1870 he returned to Shelbyville, where he has remained ever since in the bar and confectionery business.  He was married April 14, 1864, to Mary E. Harrison, a native of this county, who has borne to him eight children, five of whom are now living, viz.:  William H., Fannie E., Katie E., Samuel R. and Albert B.  Politically Mr. Jones has always been a Democrat.  His wife is a member of the Missionary Baptist Church, and his eldest daughter is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church South.  He has been very successful in his business, and is a substantial business man of Shelbyville.
 

THOMAS J. JOYCE was born August 20, 1847, in Bedford County, and was the eldest of twelve children born to Anderson and Elizabeth Joyce.  The father was born December 24, 1820, and died November 17, 1881.  He was a successful farmer and at the time of his death was worth about $8,400 that he had accumulated by his own unaided efforts.  The mother was born about 1830 and is still living.  Our subject grew to manhood on the farm, and at the age of seventeen enlisted in the Confederate Army, Company A, Col. Hill's cavalry regiment.  He was in but one battle before the surrender -- the battle of Franklin.  At the age of twenty-two he and his eldest brother engaged in the stock business, buying and selling horses and cattle, and this they continued very successfully up to 1882.  September 24, 1874, he wedded Bettie Bounds, of this county.  The results of this union were two children:  C. A., born February 7, 1876, and L. P., born December 12, 1879.  Mr. Joyce is a good citizen and is scrupulously honest in every particular.  He is a law-abiding man; never was sued or had a lawsuit in his life.  He and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church South.  He is politically a Democrat and a member of the Masonic lodge, which body he joined about 1870.
 

WILLIAM L. KIMBRO, a merchant of Singleton, Tenn., was born February 8, 1856, and is one of three children born to Riley J. and Martha A. (Span) Kimbro.  The father was born and reared in this State, and was by occupation a farmer and mechanic.  He was married twice, our subject's mother being his first wife.  She was the mother of these children:  William L., James and Frederick D., and died in 1861.  Mr. Kimbro took for his second wife Mrs. Margaret Raney (nee Robertson), and six children blessed this union:  Charles H., Henry, Minnie, Walter, Ira and Zannie.  Riley Kimbro was a member of the Lutheran Church, and died October 4, 1885.  Our subject had the advantage of a good practical education, and in 1879 was joined in the holy bonds of matrimony to Miss Tennie J. Coleman.  The result of this union was four children:  Marvin L., Roy E., Argie L. and Hoyt.  Roy E. died in 1883.  In 1882 Mr. Kimbro engaged in the mercantile business at Singleton, Tenn., and has since that time continued the business at that place.  He carries a stock of $1,500, and is doing a business of $3,500, and also runs a blacksmith shop in the same town.  He is a member of the Lutheran Church, and is a leading and highly respected citizen.
 

JACKSON G. KIMERY, a prominent farmer of the Twenty-third District of Bedford County. was born January 30, 1854, son of Edwin and Caroline (Greer) Kimery.  The father was a native of North Carolina, and in 1828 he, in company with his father, immigrated to Tennessee, settling on the place where they now reside.  Edwin Kimery was the father of nine children, having been twice married.  His first wife was Miss Bettie Kiser, find there were four children born to this union.  After her death, which occurred some time in 1840, Mr. Kimery married Miss Caroline Greer, our subject's mother, and five children were born to them.  Our subject grew to manhood on the farm.  At the age of twenty-two he was married to Miss Harriet Parks, daughter of Dr. Parks, and five children blessed their union:  Edward L., Alice, Joseph W., Leona and Frederick.  Leona and Alice died in 1880 and 1884, respectively.  Mr. Kimery has always been a farmer, and has been quite successful in this occupation.  He owns 100 acres of good land in a fine state of cultivation.
 

C. M. KINCAID was born December 24, 1830, in Anderson County, Tenn.  His father, Clingan Kincaid, was also a native of that county. His paternal grandparents were both natives of Ireland and his maternal grandparents were natives of England, the grandfather serving in the Revolutionary war and when peace was declared took the oath of allegiance to the United States.  Our subject was reared on the farm and worked on the same till he was twenty years of age, after which he began working for himself at the same business until the beginning of the late war.  He entered the Confederate Army in 1863, enlisting in Company B, Fifth Tennessee Cavalry.  At the close of the war he returned home without a wound or without ever having been captured during the time he was in service.  Up to the time of the war he had been quite prosperous but that fearful catastrophe swept away nearly all his property.  Since that time he has met with many reverses but the scale of fortune finally turned in his favor, and he is now in comparatively good circumstances.  Previous to the war, in 1850, he wedded Elizabeth Barnard, of Tennessee.  Her father was one of the first settlers of Barnardsville, the town deriving its name from him.  To our subject and wife were born eight children:  Louisa, Syrene, Sarah G., Clingan, Alta, Erie, Cilena and Albert J.  Mr. Kincaid and wife are members of the Primitive Baptist Church, and he is a Democrat in politics.
 

SAMUEL F. KNOTT, a genial and enterprising citizen of Shelbyville, is a son of Anderson B. and Elizabeth (Tune) Knott.  The father is now residing in Chattanooga, where he follows the carpenter's trade.  He came to Shelbyville in his childhood and remained here till about 1876, when he removed to Chattanooga.  The mother died in 1871 The subject of this sketch was born September 3, 1848, in this county.  He secured only a common school education.  At the age of fifteen he began clerking in a drug store and continued in that vocation for fourteen years.  He then went to Nashville and traveled for William Litterer & Co., wholesale druggists, for nearly five years.  He then returned to Shelbyville, and established the drug trade, in which he has met with well deserved success.  He carries a stock of about $7,000 and does a large business.  He was married in 1870 to Julia B. Steele, a native of this county.  Three children have been born to this union, two of whom are living, viz.:  Willie and Annie.  He is an elder in the Presbyterian Church, and his wife and daughter are also members of that church.  For four years he has been an elder of the church, and was a deacon for ten years previous.  Politically he is a Republican.  He is one of the highly respected, energetic business men of the county.
 

HENRY H. LANDESS is a native of Tennessee, born July 22, 1818.  He resided in Lincoln County, Tenn., until 1851, when he moved to Bedford County.  He traveled considerably in Missouri and Arkansas in early life, being absent about six years.  Shortly after moving to Bedford County he located on his present farm, consisting of 212 acres of fertile land, furnished with a neat cottage.  December 3, 1850, he was married to Lucinda S. Hix, who was born October 6, 1832, and died July 8, 1852, leaving one child -- Henry D., born in 1851 and died July 16, 1852.  May 24, 1853, Mr. Landess wedded Susan C. Campbell, daughter of Alfred and Sallie (Reeves) Campbell.  Mrs. Landess was born May 10, 1835, and has borne her husband the following children: Sarah M., born in 1854; Alfred G., born in 1856; George W., born in 1860; Mary F., born in 1862; Grace C., born in 1865; William G., born in 1867; Mittie M., born in 1872, and Henry H. born in 1875.  Mr. Landess is a Democrat in politics, and he and wife are church members.  His parents, Henry and Grace (Thompson) Landess, were born in North Carolina and Kentucky in 1777 and 1778, respectively.  The father moved to Kentucky in 1789, and there married our subject's mother in 1798, and became the father of thirteen children.  They came to Tennessee at an early period, and died in Lincoln County in 1863 and 1801, respectively.
 

GEORGE L. LANDIS, M. D., was born in Bedford Count March 31, 1847, son of Bryant and Margaret (Ogilvie) Landis.  His early days were spent in laboring on his father's farm and in attending the common schools.  October 5, 1865, he began the study of medicine with his brother, Dr. J. A. Landis, of Kentucky, and in September, 1869, he entered the Medical University of Nashville, Tenn.  He practiced a short time and continued to read under Dr. W. F. Clary, and in the fall of 1870 again entered the University of Nashville, and graduated in March of the following year.  Since that time he has practiced in Marshall and Bedford Counties, and since May 7, 1883, has been a resident of Unionville, and is one of the leading physicians of the place.  He attended the New York Polyclinic of Medicine and Surgery in the fall of 1885.  He was married, November 4, 1875, to Mrs. Carrie Locke, and by her became the father of five children, two of whom are dead.  Those living are Alice, Florence and Robbie.   Since eleven years of age the Doctor has been a church member, and is now a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church South.  In politics he is a Democrat.
 

CHARLES W. LEFTWICH, although not long a resident of Bedford County, is one of the enterprising dry goods merchants of Shelbyville. He was born in Moore County, Tenn., April 16, 1850.  His father, Littleberry Leftwich, was born in this State.  He has been a farmer and merchant most of his lifetime, and is now conducting a mercantile trade for Charles W. at Talley,  Marshall Co., Tenn.  The mother died in 1854.  The subject of this sketch was reared on a farm.  He received his education mainly in Mulberry Academy of Lincoln County, Tenn.  He then taught school about four years.  In 1879 he engaged in merchandising in Moore County, Tenn., and continued successfully until the spring of 1885, when he established his business at Talley, which is now conducted by his father.  In December, 1885,  he began his business here and has continued successfully ever since, with a stock of $10,000 or $12,000 of dry goods and notions, boot and shoes,  hats and caps, clothing, etc.  He was married, in 1875, to Miss Maggie Morring, of Alabama.  This union has been blessed in the birth of five children, four of whom are now living, viz.: Clayton W., Thomas E., Nina P. and Littleberry.  Mr. Leftwich and wife are members of the Missionary Baptist Church.  Politically he has always been a Democrat.
 

JAMES M. LENTZ was born in Bedford County February 15, 1828.  His father, Benjamin Lentz, was born in 1800 in North Carolina, and immigrated to Tennessee in 1818, settling five and a half miles southwest of Shelbyville, and lived there to the date of his death, which occurred in 1878.  Our subject's mother, Penelope (Bussy) Lentz, was born about 1808, and is still living.  Our subject grew to manhood on the farm and received his education in the common district schools.  At the age of twenty-one he went to New Orleans, and engaged in the lumber business, remaining there about six or seven  years.  He then engaged in the carpenter's trade, and continued this business about six or seven years, after which he began farming, and has successfully continued this occupation up to the present time.  He was married, February 14, 1861, to Elizabeth Lawell, a native of Tennessee, born April 15, 1837, and to them were born nine children: John H., Samuel J., Robert M., Ethan A., Babe, Mary L. A., Necy, Eddie E., and one died unnamed.  Mr. Lentz is politically a Democrat.  He is a self-made man, having accumulated his wealth by his own unaided efforts.
 

DR. THOMAS LIPSCOMB, one of Bedford County's oldest and best citizens, was born in Louisa County, Va., July 22, 1808, to the marriage of William Lipscomb and Ann Day Cook, natives of Spottsylvania and Louisa Counties, Va., respectively.  The father was killed by a falling tree in January, 1829, having been a farmer.  The mother attained the ripe age of ninety years, and her old age was marked with great vitality.  With her own hands she knit over 100 pairs of socks for the Confederate soldiers after she had passed eighty years of age.  She lived nearly forty years a widow.  The subject of this sketch was reared with his parents on a farm, and received a common school education.  At the age of twenty-one he went to Winchester, Tenn., and began the study of medicine.  Thence he attended the Medical University of Pennsylvania, at Philadelphia, whither he proceeded and returned the most of the way on horseback.  After one course of lectures he returned to Franklin County, Tenn., where his parents had moved in 1826.  In 1831 he came to Shelbyville, where he has spent a lifetime in the practice of medicine, surgery and obstetrics, and has attained eminence in his profession.  He has been president of the Medical Society of Tennessee, of the Bedford County Medical Society and of the Female Institute at Shelbyville.  Since entering into the practice of his profession the honorary title of M. D. has been conferred upon him by the University of Louisville and by the University of Tennessee.  He has been successful financially.  Since 1855 he has carried on farming.  He is the president and largest stockholder of the Victor Mills, of Shelbyville, and was the president of the Branch Bank of Tennessee at Shelbyville at the opening of the war.  The advancement of the schools and churches is due greatly to him.  For two years he held the Shelbyville post office, the emoluments of which he allowed to the widow of a former postmaster.  He is not now actively engaged in the practice, but at the age of seventy-three he successfully performed the difficult ovariotomy operation for the first time in his life.  He was married, May 22, 1832, to Rebecca Stevenson, who bore him ten children, all of whom were raised.  This wife died December 6, 1880, and he then wedded, October 26, 1882, Miss Mary A. Cowan.  Dr. Lipscomb and wife are members of the Presbyterian Church, as was his first wife.  Politically he is a Democrat, and wields large influence as a worthy citizen of the county.
 

JACOB LYNN, farmer, was born in Warren County, Tenn., December 23, 1827, son of Andrew J. and Isabella (Hawes) Lynn, and of English extraction.  The father of our subject was born in Warren County, Tenn., in 1805, and the mother in Virginia about 1808.  They were married about the year 1826, and reared a family of seven children.  The father died in Coffee County, Tenn., February 13, 1850, and the mother died in Arkansas in 1865.  Jacob Lynn, Sr., the grandfather of our subject, and Benjamin Stinnett, the grandfather of the last Mrs. Lynn, the wife of our subject, were both in the war of 1812, and participated in the battle of New Orleans.  Our subject received a practical education in the common schools, and at the age of twenty-one he began business for himself.  During the civil war he enlisted in the Twenty-third Tennessee Regiment Infantry, and served eighteen months, participating in the battle of Shiloh, and was discharged at Tupelo, Miss., on account of his age.  He has been married four times.  The first marriage occurred in 1847 to Miss Sarah Stroud, of Coffee County, Tenn., and resulted in the birth of one son, John A., who was a. soldier in the late war.  Our subject was married the second time, October 13, 1859, to Mrs. Mary E. L. Giles, daughter of Noble L. Majors.  Of this alliance there were two children, one son and one daughter, named. respectively, Joseph T. and Louise Jane.  Mrs. Lynn was born July 4, 1820, and died in the same county October 15, 1876.  Mr. Lynn was married the third time, September 14, 1877, to Mrs. Mary A. Moses, a native of Tennessee, born March 2, 1882, and died January 26, 1884.  His last marriage occurred April 23, 1885, in Bedford County, Tenn., to Miss Rebecca Hill, daughter of Jacob Hill.  This lady was born November 24, 1841.  Mr. Lynn is a Democrat, and he and wife are members of the Christian Church.