Descendants
of John Early Barlow & Alice Melissa Ray: [1] JOHN EARLY [2] BARLOW (ALONZO DANIEL1) was born 24 August 1840 in Attala
Co., Mississippi [1], and died 12 October 1888 in Sierra Blanca, Hudspeth Co.,
Texas [2]. He married ALICE MELISSA RAY 7 December 1864 in Attala Co. Mississippi
[3,4] daughter of LEVI RAY and MARY REEVES. She was born 1844 in Lexington,
Holmes Co., Mississippi, and died 7 August 1930 in El Paso, Texas [5].
Notes for JOHN EARLY BARLOW:
John Early Barlow was the second child of his parents. He was said to have been
so frail that his parents despaired of rearing him, but was quite intelligent
and could read before he could walk.
John Early went to Madison College in Madisonville, Mississippi where he studied
business. When the Civil War became certain, he and his brother, Alonzo Damiel
Barlow, Jr., did not volunteer the governor of Mississippi ordered the State
Guard to report for duty. It was said that they were among the last to remove
the Union Cockade from their uniform caps. Source: Martha Barlow Montgomery's
notes made from conversations and correspondence with older relatives.
During the war, he served with various units of the Confederate Cavalry, including
that of Wirt Adams and Nathan Bedford Forrest, who did not get word of the surrender
at Appomattox for several days after it happened. Having served his regiment
as color-bearer, he did not surrender his flag which had been made by young
ladies of Columbus, Miss. Note about this flag, copied by JSB, says" This
flag given by the patriotic young ladies of Columbus, Miss. to the bearer, a
sergeant, John E. Barlow, and nine others of Forrest's Special Scouts, was furled
at the last battle of the War Bewteen the States on the banks of the Sissie
River in Alabama. It was perforated by many bullets during that engagement which
took place after the surrender of Generals Lee and Johnston.". His french-made
binoculars and the the brass tip of his flag-staff have survived in the family
and are now in the possession of his great-grandson, John Montgomery, in Dallas,
Texas. He took his own horses and body servant to war with him. Paucity of surviving
records make it impossible to identify all of the battles in which he fought,
but he suffered double pnuemonia twice, was wounded once, and was made prisoner
by Union troops at the battle of Ft. Gibson, Miss., the privations of which
did nothing to improve his health. He never fully recovered his health, suffering
from respiratory ailments, which finally resulted in tuberculosis. His brother,
Alonzo Daniel, was killed at Missionary Ridge in 1863, and his foster brother,
David Sadler, lost both legs. Some time in 1864, he married his cousin, Alice
Melissa Ray, daughter of Levi Ray and Mary Araminta Uraline Reeves. The only
record we have found of the marriage is in the family Bible, as many civil records
have been lost or irretrievably strayed.
The economy and politics of Mississippi were in disarray after the war, and
doctors continued to warn John Early Barlow that a drier climate was necessary
to his health. He continued efforts to establish his family in Canton, Mississippi,
where his first child, Alice Ray Barlow was born in 1868, followed by LeLon
in 1870, and a premature girl, Mary Eliza, who did not long survive.
In 1871 or 1872, they moved on to Indianola, Texas in search of better health
and more business opportunities, and were met on the dock by David Sadler, John
Early's foster brother. They had a promising beginning, as he was quickly employed
in the banking business with the Seeligson firm, and was also successful in
the buying and selling of hides for transhipment to England. . At that time,
Indianola was beginning to thrive as a seaport, with all sorts of ships calling
there; they were able to acquire nice silver and fine Irish household linens.
In 1873, they added another child to the family, Martha Leake Barlow, named
for Doctor Leake who delivered her.
Was Mayor of Indianola per Indianola Scrapbook, McCown, editor, Calhoun Co.
Historical Society 1974. By 1875, they were prospering in Indianola and John
Barlow had been elected Mayor. (See Indianola, the Mother of Wetern Texas by
Bronsen Malsch, Shoal Creek Publications, Autin, Texas, 1971). On Sept. 15,
1875, a hurricane struck the town and wiped it out. The storm raged for three
days. When John Early Barlow set out from home to go to town with his horse,
buggy and servant who was to take him to his office, they encountered sheets
of rain with the water rising so rapidly on the wheels of the buggy that they
turned to get his family out, but were forced to cut the horses loose at the
courthouse and get into the courthouse by the windows. The only item that was
ever recovered from their house was a tablecloth which was found wrapped round
and round a mesquite tree.
After this disaster, the family followed their friend, Dr. Leake, to Dallas,
and then moved to Ft. Worth where John Early Barlow joined the banking firm
of McCreary and Barlow, with offices at 241 Houston St. Ft. Worth, Tx. (1879
Ft. Worth City Directory, consulted by Susan Guthrie and John S. Barlow). John
Early Barlow family 1878 & 1879 shown living on Broadway, between Jennings
& Hemphill, another year on Lamar between 13th & 14th, according to
JSB notes. A son, Robert, was born in March of 1877, but died in August of that
year. Records of the Pioneer Rest Cemetery in Ft. Worth show that the child
was buried there, but there is no grave marker for him. Roberta Early Barlow
born 1879 in Ft. Worth, shown on 1880 census. Barlow & McCreary went under
when it backed a building contractor, said to be a family friend from Mississippi,
who was building a courthouse in Ft. Worth, and presumably defaulted. (Notes
from MEBM).
Ft. Worth Daily Democrat 9-29-1880 p. 4, "Capt. J.E. Barlow was on the
streets again yesterday, having just recovered from a severe hemorrhage of the
lungs. Glad to see him all right again."
After this debacle, still needing to support the family and to live in a drier
climate, John Early Barlow got a contract to supply forts in west Texas, followed
the railway west. They evidently stopped in Abilene, where John Sadler Barlow
was born in 1881, said to be so small that he would fit into a quart measure.
They were living in a tent with a wooden floor.
They proceeded on to Sierra Blanca, Texas, now in Hudspeth Co., took up two
sections, and some town lots there and tried to pick up the pieces of their
lives. There are mines on the property, some of which were worked for a time,
but not ever for enough to make any money, apparently. He evidently became a
magistrate there, as a report from the El Paso newspaper about his older son,
LeLon, shooting Joshua M. Sooter 6 or 7 times in the groin with a Winchester,
describes LeLon as the "son of Justice John E. Barlow".
In October of 1888, John E. Barlow took some friends hunting in the mountains
near Sierra Blanca; a norther came up and drenched them with freezing rain.
He arrived home suffering from a chill, followed by a cold, which resulted in
pnuemonia. He died on Oct. 22, 1888 leaving his wife, Alice Melissa, pregnant
with Octavia, who was not born until June of 1889.
Contact contributor
Notes for ALICE MELISSA RAY:
1870 Census Holmes Co. Mississippi her mother and sister Fannie are living next
door; father dead, sister Mattie presumably married also.
She was a graduate of Huntsville Ala. Female Seminary, qualified to teach. After
the death of her husband and the birth of her last child, she tried to teach,
but had to take train to another town an hour's ride away. The baby was frail,
and she had charge of her grandson, Rowe Binford, most of the time as well,
so the teaching post did not work out well for her. She moved into El Paso where
she ran a boarding house. In 1905 lived at corner of Lawton and Upson Aves.
- got a card dated Nov. 10 1905 - from Wells Fargo express to pick up a package.
Octavia, the last child, was said to be so undernourished at birth that her
arms & legs were bendable.
Alice, the eldest daughter, married the brother of a schoolmate in December
of 1887 and was near her time of delivery when John Early Barlow died. He had
been buried only a short time when his widow was summoned to Austin to the bedside
of Alice, who was suffering from the ill effects of a difficult childbirth,
of which she died on the 12th of December. Her child, Rowe, became another of
his grandmother's responsibilities as she raised him most of the time.
Letter from R.J. Breckenridge of First National Bank of Austin dated Aug. 18,
1900, with offer to sell for her sections 42 and 44, Block 71, of 640 acres
each, containing Hunter and other mines, for $12,800. States he had a letter
from a Mr. Lawrence saying that he would have a commission on the sale, &
wanted to know if she was willing to sell at their price. He offers to sell
his 1/2 interest for $4,800, and says no more interest to be paid on the land
until August of 1901. (That land never sold, still in family as of October 2000.)
Letter from same man dated June 13, 1902 stating that the interest on the land
would have to be paid to the state before Nov. 1 & recommending that payments
on the principal be made whenever possible in order to get title to the land
and stop paying interest, and offering again to find a purchaser. Evidently
section 42 was called the "LeLon Barlow section".
Nov. 10, 1902 postmark, on agreement with Mr. Breckenridge to deed his 1/2 interest
and the Barlow 1/2 interest in Sections 42 & 44, Township 7, block 71 to
the Barlow Copper Mining Co., goes on to specify payment amounts, bind themselves
to $10,000 operating money to be raised by issueing 50,000 shares of stock at
$10.00 per share.
Adress in El Paso lock box 815, some mail sent simply to "Smelter town",
a Wells Fargo parcel pickup notice sent to "cor Lawton and Upson Aves"
in El Paso. Visited daughter Early and her husband, E. Brooke Jones,in Quimby,
La. Teusas Parish 1905. Also visited with her sister, Fannie McDade RFD #9,
Dallas, Texas, in Nov. 1905. In 1896 lived at 614 N. Kansas St. El Paso, per
city directory. In September 1910 living at 1222 E. Boulevard, El Paso. Son
John in Washington State, working with Gray's Harbor & Puget Sound RY Co.
Her niece, Mildred Estill at 605 W. 16th, Austin, Texas in 1916, wrote that
she had visit from "Aunt Fannie (McDade), Gertie & Lena" in mid-August.
Said Aunt Fannie looked very broken, older than her mother, Lena not pretty
but Gertrude quite good looking, much improved. Also said they did not know
that John was married again and had not known that he had lost his first wife.
Jan 1917 visiting Box 9, Solomonsville, Arizona - Octavia & Lavie evidently
living there at the time. Dec. 1918 Octavia living at Mercedes in Hidalgo Co.
Texas - had been at Ysleta in between.
April 1919 visiting John & Elizabeth Barlow at 1420 S. Fedora, Los Angeles
- had letter from Mattie Shrewsbury, bewailing flu that had laid several of
them low, including Kate Cardwell and Ola, whose ears were still bothering her.
Early's letter to Martha dated 29 July 1957 says that "Mama lost two children
in Ft. Worth and then I was born there in 1879". One of the children was
Robert, born & died in 1877. The other may have been Sarah, said to have
been the prettiest of the babies, who died at about 10 months of age. I have
no record of when she was born. She died in El Paso and is buried in Evergreen
Cemetery there.
Children of JOHN BARLOW and ALICE RAY are:
2. i. ALICE RAY3 BARLOW, b. 16 September 1867, Canton, Madison Co. Mississippi;
d. 12 December 1888, Austin, Texas.
ii. LELON BARLOW, b. 18 January 1869, Mississippi6; d. 28 May 1890, El Paso,
Texas7.
Notes for LELON BARLOW:
Shot Joshua M. Hooter to death 3 March 1887 by 6 or 7 shots to the groin with
a Winchester in an argument resulting from accusation that LeLon insulted lady
friend of Hooter's. Allegation that he tried to kill a Mr. Hutchinson the previous
year. Published El Paso Times 3,4,5 March 1887, 19 Oct. 1887, EPDH
9 June 1890.
27 May 1890, LeLon shot to death by A.D. Gaudin, a brakeman for the railroad
who has seen Mattie while going through Sierra Blanca and showed considerable
interest in her. Gaudin was 23, Mattie 16. LeLon ordered Gaudin to stay away,
fisticuffs, threats on both sides. A day or so later, in El Paso, LeLon entered
the Gem saloon in El Paso where Gaudin & some of his friends were, and Gaudin
opened fire, giving LeLon mortal injuries. Gaugin said LeLon was armed &
looking for trouble, witnesses said LeLon unarmed, he was carried to hotel across
the street where died several hours later with Mattie in attendance.
iii. MARY ELIZA BARLOW, b. 1871, Canton, Madison Co. Mississippi; d. 1871, Canton,
Madison Co. Mississippi.
Notes for MARY ELIZA BARLOW:
premature, did not live long.
iv. MARTHA LEAKE BARLOW, b. 1873, Indianola, Calhoun Co, Texas; d. 13 August
1903, El Paso, Texas [8].
Notes for MARTHA LEAKE BARLOW:
Was the unwitting occasion of her brother LeLon's death. 27 May 1890, LeLon
shot to death by A.D. Gaudin, a brakeman for the railroad who has seen Mattie
while going through Sierra Blanca and showed considerable interest in her. Gaudin
was 23, Mattie 16. LeLon ordered Gaudin to stay away, fisticuffs, threats on
both sides. A day or so later, in El Paso, LeLon entered the Gem saloon in El
Paso where Gaudin & some of his friends were, and Gaudin opened fire, giving
LeLon mortal injuries. Gaugin said LeLon was armed & looking for trouble,
witnesses said LeLon unarmed, he was carried to hotel across the street where
died several hours later with Mattie in attendance.
She was a clerk in the El Paso Co. Clerk's office, considered "gem of office"
when at herself, lost her mind, and was sent to insane asylum in San Antonio.
Went home to El Paso in 1903 where she died and is buried in family plot at
Evergreen Cemetery there.
SARAH BARLOW, b. About 1875; d. Unknown.
Notes for SARAH BARLOW: age 10 months at death, said to have been the prettiest
of her mother's babies. No information available on where she was born or when;
we do have a picture of her.
A note of Early Barlow's to Martha Montgomery said that her mother had lost
2 babies in Fort Worth before she was born there; one was Robert and it is possible
that Sarah is the other. Have found no record of her birth or death.
3. vii. ROBERTA EARLY BARLOW, b. 18 April 1879, Ft. Worth, Tarrant Co. Texas;
d. 23 November 1959, Sierra Blanca, Hudspeth Co., Texas.
4. viii. JOHN SADLER BARLOW, b. 7 September 1881, Abilene, Taylor Co., Texas;
d. 29 August 1947, Dallas, Dallas Co., Texas.
5. ix. BARBARA OCTAVIA BARLOW, b. June 1889, Sierra Blanca, Hudspeth Co., Texas;
d. 23 November 1959, Sierra Blanca, Hudspeth Co., Texas.
Contact contributor
|
|
Links last checked 1/20/05
|
 |
