Sam Faubus
John Samuel "Little Sam" Faubus (October 24, 1887 – August 24, 1966), was a small farmer and founder of one of Arkansas' few chapters of the Socialist Party of America. He was the father of the late Governor of Arkansas Orval E. Faubus.
Biography
Early life
He was born in Madison County on Mill Creek south of Combs in the Ozark Mountains, Arkansas, to William Henry Faubus and Malinda (Lindy) Sparks Faubus, who had seven children. His father died in the winter of 1900 from pneumonia shortly after relocating to Greasy Creek north of Combs, and the widow married John Nelson; she gave birth to another eight children. Altogether, John Samuel Faubus had fifteen siblings and stepsiblings and was referred to as Sam.
He received little education, and when he was seventeen went to work as a journeyman hacker hewing railroad crossties. However, Sam developed a habit of reading books and self-educated; later, he became a regular correspondent to local newspapers. In his youth, Sam was easy-going, in his later years he was characterized as domineering and strong-minded.
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