Benjamin Franklin Barrow

Other Events and Attributes:

• Census: 1855, Liberty Co, Texas
• Census: 17 Jul 1860, Chambers Co, Texas

Notes:

from the Handbook of Texas

Benjamin Barrow, "Ben the Bearhunter," an early settler, rancher, and official of Chambers County, the son of Reuben and Mary Jane (Johnson) Barrow, Sr., was born on April 24, 1808, near Opelousas, Louisiana. Although he may have traveled to Texas with family members as early as 1824, he did not permanently settle there until 1827.

In 1838 he received a headright near the site of present Devers in Liberty County, but he does not appear to have lived on the grant. He was married on June 4, 1835, to Permelia Jane White, daughter of cattleman James Taylor White. Family legend has it that Benjamin was caught in a rainstorm around 1830, stayed at White's home for the night, and resolved to wait until Permelia, then about ten, was old enough to marry. They had nine children.

After Permelia died in 1861, Barrow married Mrs. Mary Jane Middleton Bryan. They had no children. Barrow received a pension for service in the Texas army from May 10 to August 10, 1836. He is also listed as a second lieutenant in a Liberty militia company organized during the Republic of Texas period. He established a cattle ranch on Turtle Bayou five miles northeast of Anahuac and became one of the county's largest ranchers and wealthiest men. He was a substantial slaveholder and raised cattle, blooded horses, swine, and sheep on his ranch. His upside-down-wineglass brand was a familiar sight on the prairies of Southeast Texas.

A number of legends revolve around Barrow's bear-hunting exploits. On one occasion when his dogs surrounded a bear in a briar patch, he is said to have climbed into the briars and killed the bear with a knife in order to save his hounds. Family members recall that he also kept pet bears around his house.

Barrow was elected justice of the peace in 1843 and county commissioner in 1854. In April 1868, during Reconstruction, he was appointed district clerk, a position he held for a year.

He died during a smallpox epidemic on February 7, 1877. Mrs. Barrow died of the same disease three days later.


Census:
residence 385 (widow of John White, bro of James Robert & Parmelia)
White, Martha 43 head 1817 Louisiana 10,000 41,000
John O. 19 1841 Texas farmer
Robert D. 16 1844 Texas farmer
James C. 14 1856 Texas Farmer
Joseph C. 12 1858 Texas
Mary Ann 10 1850
Martha W. 8 1852 Texas

next door:
(Assuming David is her brother - not verified he is child of Elisha.)
residence 386:
Wallis, David 38 1822 LA
Susannah Wallis 37 1823 Ireland
David 18 1842 LA
Caroline Wallis 16 1844 LA
Francis 14 1846 female LA
Emily 11 1849 LA
Altha 8 1852 LA
William 7 1853 LA
Anna 8/12 1859 TX
Henry 3 1857 TX
Ann M. Barrow 61 1799 Ireland

residence: 387 vacant

next door:
Residence 388
White Jas T. 31 1829 farmer 3,000 20,000 Texas
Amanda 33 1827 Mississippi
Jas T. 6 1854 Texas
Robert M. 3 1857 Texas
Amanda 2 1858 Texas

Residence 389
Robert White 36 1824 Louisiana farmer 3,000 19,000

Residence: 390
Barrow John S. 24 1836 farmer 3,000 600 Texas

Residence: 391
Barrow, Benjamin (Ben Franklin,
"Ben the Bearhunter" 52 1808
farmer 11,290 26,000 Louisiana
Pamila (Permelia Jane White) 40 1820 Texas
Benjamin F. 21 1839 Texas
Sarah 17 1833 Texas
Mary Ann 15 1835 Texas
Josephine 12 1838 TX
Solomon 10 1850 TX
Robert C. 7 1853 TX
Pamila J. (Permelia Jane) 4 1856 TX
LaGrange, Z 21 1839 Laborer Louisiana

Benjamin married Permelia Jane White on 04 Jun 1835 in Louisiana. Permelia (daughter of James Taylor White and Sarah Cade) was born on 16 Oct 1820 in Louisiana; died on 11 Nov 1861 in Chambers Co, Texas; was buried in White's Cem, Chambers Co, Texas. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. John Shadrick Barrow was born on 14 Mar 1836 in Louisiana; died on 14 Jun 1892 in Chambers Co, Texas.
2. Benjamin Franklin Barrow was born on 30 Nov 1838 in Chambers Co, Texas; died on 12 May 1896 in Chambers Co, Texas; was buried in Benjamin Barrow Cem, Chambers Co, Texas.
3. Sarah Cade Barrow was born on 4 Apr 1842 in Chambers Co, Texas; died on 17 Dec 1865 in Chambers Co, Texas; was buried in White Cem, Monroe City, Chambers Co, Texas.
4. Mary Ann Barrow was born on 03 Jan 1845 in Chambers Co, Texas; died on 13 Oct 1864 in Chambers Co, Texas; was buried in White's Cem, Chambers Co, Texas.
5. Josephine Barrow was born on 17 Jan 1848 in Chambers Co, Texas; died on 02 Jan 1929 in Beaumont, Jefferson Co, Texas.
6. Solomon Barrow was born on 14 Nov 1850 in Chambers Co, Texas; died on 26 Nov 1915 in Jefferson Co, Texas.
7. Robert Cade Barrow was born on 25 Nov 1852 in Chambers Co, Texas; died after 1852.
8. Permelia Jane Barrow was born on 10 Feb 1856 in Chambers Co, Texas; died on 19 Apr 1944 in Jefferson Co, Texas.
9. Eugenia Hortense Barrow was born on 21 Nov 1860 in Chambers Co, Texas; died on 28 Aug 1944 in Chambers Co, Texas; was buried in Benjamin Barrow Cem, Chambers Co, Texas.

Other Events and Attributes:

• Residence: 1787, Mobile, Alabama
• Residence: 1795, Louisiana

Notes:

Old Reuben

Any snap course in Chambers County genealogy almost always has to begin with a gentleman named Reuben Barrow, Sr., who probably never came to Texas. A brace of family genealogists have studied the Barrow family for decades, but no one has ever determined when Old Reuben was born nor when he died. The fact that he lived, however, has never been in question. A man by that name appears on the 1787 census of Mobile, Alabama, aged some 28 years, which would place his birth in the vicinity of 1759. The late Villamae Williams, a longtime researcher and a former chairman of the Chambers County Historical Commission, placed the elder Barrow in Louisiana by 1795.

Reuben was married first, possibly about 1783, to Fannie Kennedy, by whom he had two sons, Levi and Vincent.

His second marriage, to Mary Jane Johnson, took place around 1790. The 1810 census of Opelousas shows two Barrow households, one headed by Reuben and the other by his son Vincent. His other son, Levi, can be found on the census of Rapides Parish that same year. By that time, however, Reuben's household was fairly swarming with young children from his second marriage. These included their daughters Rachel, Elizabeth, Sarah, Julia and Amelia. Over the years each of these girls would marry and most of these families made their way into what would become Chambers County. Elizabeth married Samuel Barber. They would settle on Old River. Sarah married Elisha Henry Roberts Wallis (known in legal documents usually as "E. H. R. Wallis). They would settle at Wallisville. Julia married Alexander Stephens and lived briefly on Turtle Bayou. Amelia would marry Henry Griffith and settle also on Old River. Their eldest daughter, Rachel, married John Foreman, but no one has ever figured out where they settled or what became of them. Four of Reuben and Mary Jane's children (William, Marie, Victoria and Richard Barrow) died young. The legends that developed around the Barrow family most often surround the three sons of Reuben and Mary Jane. Solomon, who was born in 1801, was the oldest of the three. Reuben, Jr. followed in 1806, and Benjamin was born in 1808. Old Reuben settled just below Vermillionville, Louisiana on the lyrically named Bayou Que de Tortue, which meant the Tail of the Turtle. He had some extensive holdings along the bayou, where he farmed and raised cattle. Before we cover the lives of the three Barrow brothers, we should also address one of the major problems confronting any casual student of that family's history. Most of the Barrow families tended to name their children for other members of the family. Since most of them settled in Chambers and Liberty counties, this creates a confusing minefield for the uninitiated. Old Reuben's two sons by his first wife were also involved in the mix. His son Levi died in Louisiana in 1818 and never settled in Texas, but his son Aaron Leonard Barrow and his wife came and stayed for awhile. Levi's brother, Vincent Barrow came here after the death of his first (missing text)

such manner did the first part of the Barrow clan find their way here. wife, Gertrude Thibodeaux and received a land grant near Hankamer. His sons were Levi Oliver, who married Tabitha Isabel Weed; Reuben "Dutch Reuben," who first married Elizabeth Weaver and second to Susan Benton Albritton Courtney (who had been widowed twice); Benjamin Anatoile "French Ben," who married Eliza Weed; Louisa, who married Lucien Abshier; Adaline, who married John Dunman; and Zilphia, who married Robert Dunman.

The pivotal event in the Barrow exodus from Louisiana to Texas is a lengthy journey conducted in the late fall or winter of 1824, when Elisha Henry Robert Wallis and his wife Sarah Barrow loaded their four children and all of their possessions into wagons and set out for the Trinity River. It was not a particularly perilous journey, but it was arduous. There were lots of streams, bayous and rivers to cross. Mr. Wallis came with his three young brothers-in-law. This was a practical way for a family to travel. All of the men helped in fording the streams and driving their combined livestock. They arrived in Liberty on Christmas Day in 1824 and then headed south into present-day Chambers County. Old legends say that skirted the woods to the east, camped along Turtle Bayou, and kept huge fires burning at night to keep away the alligators. In such manner did the first part of the Barrow clan find their way here.

- THE BARROW BROTHERS OF CHAMBERS COUNTY
By Kevin Ladd, Director Wallisville Heritage Park
----
http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=juuledwards&id=I1123

-----------------
from Opelousas Post
ROBERT BARROW - native of North America; son of Richard Barrow and Maria Godenne (?); MARIA JOHNSON - daughter of Daniel Johnson and Susana Daly
Julia - baptized January 7, 1802; five years old; Godparents, Estevan deville and his wife
Richard - baptized January 7, 1802; three years old; Godparents, Clark Barton and Carlota Reed
Solomon - baptized January 7, 1802; one year old; Godparents, Thomas Hofpower and Clarisa Mils

RUBEN BARRORD (BARROW) - son of Richard Barrord and Maria Godenne; MARIA JOHNSON - daughter of Daniel Johnson and Susana Daly.
Emilia - baptized August 17, 1803; one year old; Godparents,
Guillermo Perry and Anna Robert
(Ed. Note: Are the two above couples the same, or were two
brothers married to the same woman?)

Reuben married Mary Jane Johnson-Barrow, (dau?) in 1789 in Mobile, Spanish West Florida. Mary (daughter of Daniel Johnson, (son of who?) and Susanne Daley) was born about 1771 in North Carolina; died after Apr 1807 in of, Opelousas, St. Landry Parish, Louisiana. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Richard married Maria Godenne. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

some trees show son of Mathias Johnson 1719 NJ -1778 Pitt Co, NC; who was son of Henry J. Johnson 1670 Bergen, NJ - 25 Mar 1730 Staten Island, NY
http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/27571083/family/pedigree

Daniel married Susanne Daley. Susanne was born in 1745 in Roberson, North Carolina; died about 1807 in Johnsons Bayou, Calcaseu Parish, Louisiana. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]