NELSON'S BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY AND HISTORICAL REFERENCE BOOK OF FAYETTE COUNTY (pub 1900) page 924
Robert Farquhar, a representative farmer and citizen of Washington township, Pa., was born on the farm where he now resides January 3, 1839. He is a son of Robert Farquhar, the latter born July 19, 1798, and died in November, 1876. The wife of Robert Farquhar was Mary Martin (MASTEN).
His grandfather was Robert Farquhar, who was born near Frederick, Maryland, July 13, 1766, and died July 22, 1822. Robert Farquhar married Miss Esther, daughter of Joseph Dodson of Frederick, Md., a man of considerable wealth and owner of the greater part of the land on which the town of Frederick is located. Robert Farquhar had eight children: Joseph, born in 1789; Sarah, born in 1794, and married Benjamin Brown; Mary born in 1796, and married Levi Stephens; Robert, born in 1798, married Mary Martin (MASTEN); William, born in 1801, and married Sarah Moss; Esther, born March 11, 1803 married Samuel Griffith and is living at the age of ninety-six years; Harriet, born 1806, married Seneca McCrory; and died at the age of ninety-three years; and Rachel, born in 1809, married Aaron Bugher, William, Robert and Sarah were buried at the Providence (Quaker) burying ground.
Allen Farquhar was the father of Robert, and a pioneer of Maryland; he was a son of William Farquhar, the latter a minister in Scotland of the Society of Friends in the seventeenth century; but further back than that very little is known of the family. There were a number of brothers of William Farquhar, three of whom are said to have been Quaker ministers. William had three sons, two of whom, Allen and William, located at Frederick, Md., and the son of William located at York, Pa., where some of his descendants are well known. Allen married Sarah Moore, of Frederick, Md., and to them were born four sons and three daughters. He settled first in Washington county, Pa., near the West Land Quaker church. This is said to have been there in 1789. Remaining there but a short time he went to Washington township, Fayette County where Robert Farquhar, the subject of this sketch, resides. The children of Allen Farquhar were as follows; Thomas, who remained in Washington county, and built what is known as the Farquhar house, near Centreville, Pa.: William, settled near Richmond, Ohio, dying there at an advanced age, leaving many descendants; Robert, grandfather of our subject; Mary, married Joseph Tobbert, of Richmond,Ohio, and lived to be one hundred and three years old; Sarah, married Amos Ellis, moved to Richmond, Ohio, where she also died at an advanced age; and Rachel, married Jeremiah Cook, and lived and died at the same place.

Robert Farquhar attended the common schools of the county, afterwards engaged on the farm owned by his father, and which was the first settlement made by the family in this state. He was married in 1867, to Miss Elizabeth, daughter of James and Mary (Roughcorn) Wilgus, natives of Fayette county, where James Wilgus is still living aged eighty-six years, while Mrs. Wilgus died in 1897, aged seventy-nine, and Mrs. Elizabeth Farquhar passed away May 25, 1893. To Mr. and Mrs. Farquhar were born four sons and two daughters: John, May 3, 1868, who attended the public schools of the county, afterwards farming on the old home place, has never married, and has charge of his father's farm; Frank C., July 15, 1871. who attended the public schools and teaching school; Horace S., June 8, 1875, attended the township schools, and is at home, a carpenter; Lewis, August 11, 1878, resides at home; Bessie, April 13, 1880, at home, and Allen, November 15, 1883, at home. Robert Farquhar owns a valuable farm which has been in the family for more than one hundred years. He is a good citizen and an active business man, but of late years has nearly lost his sight. He is a Democrat.