Duggar Family

The Duggar family in June of 2018

### Featured On

14 Children and Pregnant Again!, Raising 16 Children, 16 Children and Moving In, On the Road with 16 Children, Duggars' Big Family Album, 19 Kids and Counting, Counting On, United Bates of America

## Family Members

### Children

Josh Duggar, Jana Duggar, John-David Duggar, Jill Dillard, Jessa Seewald, Jinger Vuolo, Joseph Duggar, Josiah Duggar, Joy-Anna Forsyth, Jedidiah Duggar, Jeremiah Duggar, Jason Duggar, James Duggar, Justin Duggar, Jackson Duggar, Johannah Duggar, Jennifer Duggar, Tyler Hutchins, Jordyn-Grace Duggar, Josie Duggar

### Grandchildren

Mackynzie Duggar, Michael Duggar, Marcus Duggar, Israel Dillard, Spurgeon Seewald, Meredith Duggar, Henry Seewald, Samuel Dillard, Mason Duggar, Gideon Forsyth, Garrett Duggar, Felicity Vuolo, Ivy Seewald, Addison Duggar, Bella Duggar, Maryella Duggar, Grace Duggar, Evelyn Forsyth, Evangeline Vuolo, Brooklyn Duggar, Fern Seewald, Madyson Duggar, Daisy Duggar, Truett Duggar, Justus Duggar, Frederick Dillard, Charlie Duggar, Brynley Duggar, Baby Boy Duggar, Gunner Forsyth, Nora Duggar, George Seewald

## Religious Details

### School Choice

Homeschool

The Duggar family has 20 children (19 biological, 1 adopted) and thirty two grandchildren from parents Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar. They have been the subject of two television shows, *19 Kids and Counting*, which aired on TLC from 2008 to 2015 and *Counting On*, which began airing on TLC in 2015, as well as several TV specials which began airing in 2006. Jim Bob and Michelle raised their children following the teachings of Bill Gothard's Institute in Basic Life Principles, although many of the married children have started to veer from these teachings with their own families. Their involvement in IBLP lead to a documentary called Shiny Happy People, which premiered on Amazon on June 1, 2023.

## Family

**Parents**

* James Robert "Jim Bob" Duggar - born on July 18, 1965
* Michelle Annette Ruark - born on September 13, 1966

**Anniversary:** July 21, 1984

Jim Bob and Michelle own commercial and residential real estate and do speaking engagements.

**Children**

To see more information about the Duggar children's weddings, please see The Guide.

### **Josh's Family**

Anna Renee Keller - born on June 23, 1988

**Anniversary:** September 26, 2008 (wedding featured in *17 Kids and Counting* episode"A Very Duggar Wedding")

Josh is currently in federal prison following a guilty verdict and a sentence of 12.5 years. Anna is a stay-at-home wife and mother.

### **John's Family**

Abbie Grace Burnett - born on April 16, 1992

**Anniversary:** November 3, 2018 (wedding featured in *Counting On* webisode "John David & Abbie's Wedding")

John used to be an elected constable of Washington County, Arkansas. He also co-founded MEDIC Corps with friend Nathan Bates and currently serves as the Director of Business. He has experience as a rescue specialist, commercial pilot, certified flight instructor and Law Enforcement Officer. He is also the CEO of Natural State Environmental Services. Abbie is currently taking time off from her nursing career to focus on being a mother.

### **Jill's Family**

Derick Michael Dillard - born on March 9, 1989

**Anniversary:** June 21, 2014 (wedding featured in *19 Kids and Counting* episode "Jill's Wedding")

Derick is an assistant district attorney in Oklahoma. Jill is currently a stay-at-home wife and mother.

### **Jessa's Family**

Benjamin Michael Seewald - born on May 19, 1995

**Anniversary:** November 1, 2014 (wedding featured in *19 Kids and Counting* episode "Jessa's Wedding")

In 2021, Jessa and Ben announced that Ben had gotten a full time pastor position at a church. Jessa is a stay-at-home wife and mother.

### **Jinger's Family**

Jeremy Joseph Vuolo - born on September 5, 1987

**Anniversary:** November 5, 2016 (wedding featured in *Counting On* episodes "Jinger's Wedding" and "The Big Day")

Jeremy has a Master of Divinity degree from The Master's Seminary and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Ministry degree. Jinger is currently a stay-at-home wife and mother.

 2

### **Joseph's Family**

Kendra Renee Caldwell - born on August 11, 1998

**Anniversary:** September 8, 2017 (wedding featured in *Counting On* episodes "Joseph's Wedding" and "Joe and Kendra Say I Do")

Joseph currently works at one of his family's used car lots. Kendra is currently a stay-at-home wife and mother

 2
 3
 4

### **Josiah's Family**

Lauren Milagro Swanson - born on May 18, 1999

**Anniversary:** June 30, 2018 (wedding featured in *Counting On* webisode "Josiah & Lauren's Wedding")

Josiah currently works at one of his family's used car lots. Lauren is currently a stay-at-home wife and mother.

 1

### **Joy-Anna's Family**

Austin Martyn Forsyth - born on December 11, 1993

**Anniversary:** May 26, 2017 (wedding featured in *Counting On* episodes "Joy's Wedding" and "Joy and Austin Tie the Knot")

Austin and Joy currently work together flipping and selling houses.

 2

### **Jedidiah's Family**

Katelyn Koryn Nakatsu - born on July 29, 1998

**Anniversary**: April 3, 2021

Jed owns and operates Champion Motorcars. Katey is currently a stay-at-home wife and mother.

### **Jeremiah's Family**

Hannah Marlys Wissmann - born on June 23, 1995

**Anniversary** - March 26, 2022

### **Justin's Family**

Claire Yvonne Spivey - born on February 27, 2001

**Anniversary:** February 26, 2021

Justin works for Claire's father at Spivey Construction based in Fort Worth, TX.

### **Miscarriages**

Michelle has had two miscarriages:

* Caleb Ryan Duggar - first-trimester miscarriage on January 23, 1989, between Josh and twins Jana and John David
* Jubilee Shalom Duggar - stillborn on December 11, 2011 weighing 4 oz and measuring 6 cm in length (miscarriage featured on *19 Kids and Counting* episode "A Duggar Loss")

### **Permanent Guardianship of Nephew**

Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar were granted temporary guardianship of Michelle's great-nephew, (then) 8-year-old Tyler Hutchins, on August 26, 2016. This guardianship was made permanent on November 21, 2016. Tyler is the son of Rachel Hutchins, who signed off on the guardianship due to her inability to care for the child.

## Family Bios

Throughout their time in the public eye, the Duggar family released bios of their children. Those can found here.

## Beliefs and Practices

### Quiverfull

The "quiverfull" movement, whose primary focus is producing as many children as possible and raising them to enter into government and civil service positions, first formed in 1995. The Duggar family joined this movement at some point in its early years. Their first public connection to the movement was in 2001, when QuiverFull posted an article referencing them as a success story. The family's original website in 2005 linked to this article but didn't go any further in depth about the movement. By 2007, any reference to the movement had been removed from their website. The Duggars have not gone on the record discussing this movement.

### Institute in Basic Life Principles

*14 Children and Pregnant Again* features the Duggar family packing up and heading to a homeschool conference in Big Sandy, TX. This conference is one of the biggest gatherings of the Institute in Basic Life Principles' Advanced Training Institute (their homeschool system), and was the first public connection tying the Duggars to this group. The group lists the following goals on their website:

> The Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP) was established for the purpose of **introducing people to the Lord Jesus Christ**, and is dedicated to giving individuals, families, churches, schools, communities, governments, and businesses clear instruction and training on how to find success by following God’s principles found in Scripture.
>
>

> These goals are accomplished primarily through seminars, educational programs, printed literature, and the operation of centers to facilitate training.
>
>

> You are invited to explore and avail yourself of the resources we offer.
>
>

The Duggars are regularly shown to follow the institute's practices, including only long skirts and long hair on the women, homeschooling the children, limiting access to television and other modern media, and adhering to strict gender roles at all times.

In addition to the ATI conference in Big Sandy, many of the older Duggar children have been seen attending other IBLP functions such as Journey to the Heart and ALERT Training.

### Homeschooling

The Duggars made the decision to homeschool their children when Josh was five years old. In later interviews, they would say that they made this decision because they felt it was "the best way to teach our Christian values". As their oldest children grew old enough to help out, the responsibility of schooling began to be one that Michelle shared with them so that the younger kids could always have someone to help. The Duggars have used a variety of different homeschool curricula over the years, but the Advanced Training Institute is one of the constant presences in their schooling.

### Buddy System

At some point prior to 2001 the Duggar family implemented a buddy system, where each older child was paired with a younger child to assist in tasks such as dressing, bathing, feeding, and schooling. By 2009, the family had switched over to buddy teams, where each of the oldest four daughters was assigned 2-4 younger buddies.

### Debt Free Living

In the early 90s, Jim Bob and Michelle attended a seminar on living debt-free. They implemented many of the practices suggested in this seminar and made it their goal to pay for everything through cash. By 2001 they had begun teaching these seminars out of their home. As indicated by the earliest versions of the family's website, the seminar they attended was Jim Sammons' "Financial Freedom Seminar", which is affiliated with the Institute in Basic Life Principles.

## Television Career

### Early Specials

On September 6, 2004, the first television special about the Duggar family, *14 Children and Pregnant Again* aired on Discovery Health Channel. It introduced TV viewers to the Duggar family and their fourteen children, showcasing things like homeschooling, bulk shopping, and the buddy system, before ending with the birth of their fifteenth child, Jackson. In 2006 and 2007 three more specials aired on Discovery Health Channel and TLC. These specials showcased a major vacation in the western US, the construction and completion of the family's new house, and the births of Johannah and Jennifer.

### *19 Kids and Counting*

On September 29, 2008, TLC premiered the first episode of *17 Kids and Counting*, a weekly reality program about the lives of the Duggar family. The show ran for ten seasons before being canceled in 2015. The show changed its title to keep up with the number of children the family had, and was known as *19 Kids and Counting* from season four onward. This show covered a number of major family events, including the weddings of Josh, Jill, and Jessa, the births of Jordyn, Josie, Mackynzie, Michael, Marcus, and Israel, and a number of family trips across four continents.

### *Counting On*

On December 13, 2015, TLC aired the first of a three-part series, *Jill & Jessa: Counting On*. These specials started with having the adult Duggar children and in-laws discuss their reactions to the two scandals that had rocked the family that summer, and then shifted into showing how the family had moved on through the lens of Jill and Jessa, who were the two Duggar daughters who were married at that time. The show changed its title to *Counting On* beginning with season two, as the focus expanded to include more of the adult Duggar children. *Counting On* has covered several major family events, including the weddings of Jinger, Joy, Joseph, John, Josiah; the births of Spurgeon, Henry, Gideon, Garrett, Felicity, Ivy, Addison, Bella, Brooklyn; the Dillards' time as missionaries in Central America; and the death of Mary Duggar. The births of Grace and Evangeline were also featured in special webisodes. It ran for 11 seasons before being cancelled in 2021.

### *Shiny Happy People*

On June 1, 2023, the documentary Shiny Happy People premiered on Amazon. The four part documentary was about IBLP, Bill Gothard, and the Duggars involvement with it. It explored the public release of the molestation scandal as well as Josh's arrest in 2021 and eventual conviction (all detailed below). Several members of the Duggar family were involved in the documentary: Jill Dillard, Derick Dillard, Deanna Duggar, Amy King, and Dillon King, Jim and Bobye Holt. The documentary also dove into IBLP teachings and the ATI homeschool curriculum, such as the various training centers and wisdom booklets. The rampant sexual abuse of children and women, as well as the understanding that such scandals were always swept under the rug, was also a main focus. Many former members spoke of their abuse (sexual, physical, educational, spiritual) at the hands of their parents and church elders, specifically Bill Gothard and his brother brother Steve.

### *Law and Order: SVU*

On October 12, 2015, NBC announced they would be doing a Duggar inspired episode. Patrimonial Burden aired on November 4 of that year. The episode centered around a fictional fundamentalist christian family with ten children who are visiting New York City for a purity ball as part of their reality television show.

## Scandals

For a comprehensive timeline of the scandals, please see Josh Duggar Scandal Chronology.

### Molestation

*See main article: Josh Duggar molestation scandal*

On May 21, 2015, the magazine InTouch Weekly published an article with the headline "Bombshell Duggar Police Report: Jim Bob Duggar Didn't Report Son Josh's Alleged Sex Offenses For More Than a Year". This article included a link to a redacted police report the magazine had obtained through the Freedom of Information Act which gave details of Josh Duggar molesting five underaged girls - including four of his sisters - in 2002 and 2003, when he was around fourteen years old. There was much public outrage over how Jim Bob and Michelle had handled the situation, as many people felt that they should have reported the situation to the police and made sure Josh had received proper counseling for the safety of their other daughters. This scandal eventually led to the cancellation of *19 Kids and Counting*.

On June 3, 2015, Fox News aired an interview with Jim Bob and Michelle about the scandal, which included a preview for a June 5 interview where Jill and Jessa named themselves as two of Josh's victims.

On May 19, 2017, the identities of the two other Duggar victims were confirmed when Jill, Jessa, Jinger, and Joy filed a lawsuit against InTouch Weekly, Springdale, Arkansas, and Washington County, Arkansas, for breach of privacy. This lawsuit is still ongoing.

### Ashley Madison

*See main article: Josh Duggar Ashley Madison Scandal*

On July 15, 2015, a group called The Impact Team hacked the database of Avid Life Media. When their demands were not met, they published large caches of data stolen from the website Ashley Madison, which was a service that assisted married people in having affairs. On August 19, 2015, the website Gawker announced that they had discovered records within this data indicating that Josh Duggar had maintained two different paid accounts between February, 2013, and May, 2015. On August 20, 2015, Josh publicly confessed to cheating on his wife, and within the next few days he had checked into a faith-based rehab center in Rockford, IL, where he stayed until March 10, 2016. Since then, Josh has stayed mostly out of the public eye.

*profile photo credit*

### Car Lot Scandals

*See main articles: Josh Duggar Car Lot Scandal (part one) and (part two)*

After returning home in March 2016, Josh opened another used car lot in order to earn a living to provide for his growing family. Unfortunately it was rife for controversy, being involved in at least three scandals before finally shutting down in 2020.

### Real Estate Scandal

*See main article: Josh Duggar Real Estate Scandal*

In April 2016, Josh's real estate company, ALB Investments, as well as Edward Lewis were sued by Lewis' cousin, Carl Echols, for fraud and breach of contract. Echols claimed his cousin illegally and fraudulently sold his property to Josh, and faulting Josh for not doing his due diligence on the property. Echols won his lawsuit after Josh failed to appear in court on multiple occasions.

### Money Moving Scandal

*See main article: Josh Duggar Money Moving Scandal*

Starting in March 2019, Josh started moving money around, sparking many rumors that he was trying to avoid paying any sort of fines or judgements should he lose his real estate lawsuit or being sued again in the future. Several LLCs, and thus all the real estate he and and Anna own, have been registered in Anna's name. All but one are currently in good standing.

### Federal Arrest

On Thursday, April 29, 2021, it was revealed that Josh had been arrested by the US Marshals. On Wednesday, May 5, 2021, Josh was granted bail and scheduled to be released the following day. Due to the potentially triggering nature of this case, no further details will be published on this page. Please see the main article for further information: *Josh Duggar Federal Arrest Scandal*. **TW: CSA**

## References

1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.23 1.24 1.25 1.26 1.27 1.28 1.29 1.30 1.31 1.32 1.33 1.34 1.35 1.36 1.37 1.38 1.39 1.40 1.41 1.42 http://www.duggarfamilyblog.com/p/birthdays.html
2. ↑ https://www.geni.com/people/Caleb-Duggar/6000000021645968129
3. ↑ http://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-moms/news/jim-bob-and-michelle-duggar-granted-custody-of-nephew-w453410
4. ↑ http://www.theblaze.com/news/2011/12/16/duggars-take-heartbreaking-pictures-with-stillborn-baby-girl/
5. ↑ https://www.today.com/parents/another-duggar-anna-duggar-announces-pregnancy-discusses-miscarriage-1C7399545
6. ↑ https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-moms/news/anna-josh-duggar-welcome-baby-no-6-a-daughter/
7. ↑ https://imgur.com/ugGIBDG
8. ↑ https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/john-david-duggar-marries-abbie-grace-burnett-photo/
9. ↑ https://www.co.washington.ar.us/home/showdocument?id=18594
10. ↑ https://mediccorps.org/who-we-are-2/
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16. ↑ https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-moms/news/jessa-duggar-gives-birth-to-baby-no-3-with-husband-ben-seewald/
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19. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVUe7I-74zk
20. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=undg6AoAjQM&pp=ygUNamVzc2Egc2Vld2FsZA%3D%3D
21. ↑ http://www.jingerandjeremy.com/2019/03/big-announcement/
22. ↑ http://www.jingerandjeremy.com/2018/07/baby-girl-vuolo/
23. ↑ https://imgur.com/a/mC89bH2
24. ↑ https://www.instagram.com/p/CAxx05PljNI/?igshid=tq7i0vibsbi5
25. ↑ https://www.today.com/parents/jinger-dugger-husband-welcome-2nd-child-daughter-evangeline-jo-t200820
26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 "Kendra's Got a Secret." *Counting On*. TLC. Silver Spring. 5 Nov. 2019. Television.
27. ↑ http://duggarfamily.com/duggar-news?ID=017b07d4-7e5a-45c1-a026-ca64a7305461
28. ↑ https://www.joeandkendra.com/2019/11/introducing-addison-renee-duggar/
29. ↑ https://www.eonline.com/uk/news/1240844/counting-ons-kendra-and-joseph-duggar-welcome-baby-no-3
30. ↑ https://www.atkinsonfuneralhome.net/obituaries/Peggy-Ann-Caldwell?obId=28294265
31. ↑ https://imgur.com/a/hJB3ypL
32. ↑ https://www.instagram.com/p/Bi7cLmkhuuh/?taken-by=siduggar
33. ↑ https://people.com/tv/josiah-duggar-engaged-lauren-swanson/
34. ↑ https://people.com/tv/josiah-duggar-lauren-swanson-married-wedding-photo/
35. ↑ https://imgur.com/m58MrOS
36. ↑ "Who's the Most Romantic?." *Counting On*. TLC. Silver Spring. 15 Oct. 2019. Television.
37. ↑ https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-moms/news/josiah-duggar-lauren-swanson-welcome-1st-child-after-miscarriage/
38. ↑ https://imgur.com/a/p2aNNfD
39. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVvfEPj11tQ
40. ↑ https://imgur.com/a/ElzxFFK
41. ↑ https://www.instagram.com/p/B1W0oiPpqE5/
42. ↑ http://duggarfamily.com/duggar-news?ID=8fd79875-ef91-4c27-88ae-b8fca83316ba
43. ↑ https://www.instagram.com/p/BzeqBV7pKvo/
44. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ECmeJxU7QA
45. ↑ https://www.instagram.com/p/CESClGHJfUv/
46. ↑ https://www.instagram.com/p/CsgcYoqLLzd/?igshid=NjZiM2M3MzIxNA%3D%3D
47. ↑ https://www.nakatsus.com/16th-birthday-katey/
48. ↑ https://www.instagram.com/p/CdHtsZPMWH6/?igshid=YTM0ZjI4ZDI=
49. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3E7xvWfqez0
50. ↑ https://www.instagram.com/p/BzExkxCAeVI/
51. ↑ https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/counting-ons-jeremiah-duggar-hannah-wissmann-are-married-photos/
52. ↑ https://www.instagram.com/p/Cm42h\_9Ps\_9/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
53. ↑ https://www.instagram.com/p/Czy6RSMOB6M/
54. ↑ https://i.imgur.com/N03J2Av.jpg
55. ↑ https://www.instagram.com/p/CLxzP5Mj5pL/?igshid=1lxf4i6zq2cfk
56. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20050203214850/http://www.quiverfull.com:80/articles.php/id20/
57. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20050111173230/http://www.duggarfamily.com:80/
58. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20071011015209/http://www.duggarfamily.com/index.html
59. ↑ http://iblp.org/about-iblp/what-we-do
60. ↑ http://www.quiverfull.com/articles.php/id20/
61. ↑ http://www.parents.com/parenting/better-parenting/style/raising-14-kids/
62. ↑ http://www.quiverfull.com/articles.php/id20/
63. ↑ http://www.parenting.com/blogs/show-and-tell/duggar-family-interview-finding-me-time
64. ↑ http://www.quiverfull.com/articles.php/id20/
65. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20051106034910/http://www.duggarfamily.com:80/articles/new-home.php
66. ↑ https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/counting-on-canceled-by-tlc-amid-josh-duggar-scandal/
67. ↑ http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/josh-duggar-19-kids-counting-cancelled/story?id=31243623
68. ↑ https://www.aol.com/article/entertainment/2017/05/19/jill-jessa-jinger--joy-duggar-sue-breach-privacy-molestation-lawsuit/22099187/
69. ↑ http://www.duggarfamily.com/2015/8/statements-from-jim-bob-and-michelle-duggar-and-josh-duggar
70. ↑ http://www.duggarfamily.com/michelles-blog?ID=fd82bcb8-6dec-49b5-bdaa-5bed13fa3f7e
71. ↑ http://www.duggarfamily.com/index.cfm?p=statementjd1234
http://people.com/tv/josiah-duggar-courting-lauren-swanson/

http://www.duggarfamilyblog.com/2018/01/duggar-courtship-news.html