John Marion Lewis

Mr. John M. Lewis, age 72 years, died at the home of his step-son, Mr. Vanover, on Mrs. G. P. Bell’s farm Tuesday morning after an illness of only a few days. Mr. Lewis came here a short time ago from near Pettigrew on the St. Paul branch and expected to go soon to Johnson to make his home. Interment was made in the Farmington cemetery.

Sources

Help identify who John M. Lewis’s wife, parents, or step-son Vanover may have been in Washington County records

Based on the obituary text you provided, we can extract several important genealogical clues that help narrow down John M. Lewis and his family connections in Washington County, Arkansas:

Name: John M. Lewis

Age at death: 72

Burial: Farmington Cemetery

Residence before death: Near Pettigrew on the St. Paul branch (Madison/Washington County area)

Died at: Home of his step-son, Mr. Vanover, on Mrs. G. P. Bell’s farm

Timeframe: Likely late 1910s-early 1920s based on wording and newspaper style

Location: Prairie Grove / Farmington area in Washington County, Arkansas

Washington County was an early-settled region of northwest Arkansas with many interconnected farm families around Prairie Grove, Cane Hill, and Farmington.

Most Likely Clue: The Vanover Step-Son

The obituary specifically states “his step-son, Mr. Vanover.”

That tells us:

John M. Lewis married a widow with the surname Vanover, or

His wife had been married previously to a Vanover man, and her son kept the Vanover surname.

The Vanover surname is common in the Ozark region (Arkansas, Missouri, Kentucky) and descends from early colonial Vanover families that spread westward into Appalachia and the Ozarks.

Because the step-son is called “Mr. Vanover”, he was likely an adult man living in Washington County around 1910-1920.