It is always possible that you ancestor lived, at least for a time, in a place that seems to make no sense, fits no migration patterns, etc. I still haven’t figured out my an uncle was in Arkansas for a few years in the 1910s. There may be a reason, but even so, in his family this is unusual. Anyone who left Illinois either went west or north. South was rare.
Never discount the possibility that a relative in the “wrong” place cannot be yours.
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Was he a Blancet ?or a variant spelling. I had family that came down from Illinois into Arkansas.
Norman Blansett
Pocahontas, Ar.
There was a small “diamond rush” in Arkansas in the 1910's. My great-grandfather was in Rushville, AR during WWI working at a diamond mine. He lived in Clark Co., IL most of his life, both before and after that.