May 15, 1635, John Barrow, about 26 years old and from Lancashire, England, sails outbound from Gravesend on the “Plain Joan” for the
Virginia Colony.His brother, Thomas a
militiaman, had migrated earlier and has been listed in 1623 as “dead at a
small six-man outpost at Elizabeth Citie.”At this time there were only 183 English settlers in the entire colony
which was founded in 1607.John was a headright
to John Sweete of what is now Isle of Wight and who lived on Lawnes Creek
near today’s border with Surry County, Virginia.John, like his brother Thomas, was a
militiaman and in 1853 he patented 385 acres of land on “South Side of Upper
Chippoaks Creek, South Side of James River” for the transportation of eight
persons.Then, in 1656, Captain
Merriwether assigns 600 acres to John Barrow for his militia service.The Chippoaks land is only a short distance
south of the James and is an excellent fishing or “seining” location for the
spawning fish from the ocean.Several
generations of the Barrows would settle along the beautiful Virginia and North Carolina rivers establishing
fisheries and plantations netting the fish on their yearly spawns and smoke and
salt them for sale later to the settlers.It is said that John married Mary Blow whose father owned land adjoining
John’s.
Thomas Barrow (1) came to the Colony when he
was under 20 years old. (The “1” is for our identification purposes.)We know that in 1654 Major Abraham Wood
received a grant of land for the importation of 8 persons including Mr. Thomas
Barrow from Lancashire, England.The title Mr. indicates that Thomas was a
person of considerable status and certainly not an indentured servant.
We
have much evidence that this Thomas was the son of the above John Barrow and
that he came to join his father.We know
that “Thomas Barrow, son of John, purchased 150 acres of land from John
and Mary Smith in 1680” and that John and Thomas owned other adjoining
lands.Thomas was a carpenter, and
evidently a very good one, as evidenced from an inventory of his estate which
shows in addition to land, Negroes, live stock and household items, “3 thousand
eight penny nailes and 2 thousand six penny nailes.”Nails were a very precious commodity in the
early days and we believe that Thomas made them.We know that Thomas was involved with the
construction of the famous Bacon’s Castle in SurryCounty, a short distance from the
Chippoaks land.The “Castle is one of
the oldest brick structures in America and is in fine condition
and open to the public today.One can
see the magnificent carpentry work of the early artisans and also some of the
“nailes” possibly made and driven by Thomas Barrow.Thomas appears on a 1680 tithe list to Arthur
Allen, the wealthy merchant and owner and designer of the Castle. Some Barrow
family researchers believe that Thomas (1) was the immigrant.He married Elizabeth and they had at least two
sons, Thomas and Edmund (some say Simon).Thomas died in 1684 and Elizabeth married George Blow, Jr. in
only a few months.They had at least one
child, George Blow, III.
Other Barrow family researchers believe that Thomas Barrow, Sr. son of the above
Thomas (1) was the first to come to America but this is highly unlikely
unless he came at a very early age along with his father and/or
mother.The well known Rev. David Barrow
of Kentucky wrote to his cousin James Barrow, brother of our Moses of Georgia
in 1817 stating: “I have heard my grandfather say that two lads by the name of
Barrow were early emigrants from Britton to the Northern Neck of Virginia but I
was never informed of the date nor from what part of Britton they came.One of them went off southerly but to what
part I do not remember.The other
married and settled in the Northern part of Virginia.Thomas Barrow, my grandfather and the son of
one of the above mentioned brothers moved into Southampton on the waters of the NottawayRiver ------and died between 90
and 100 years, the names of sons in order of their birth, as well as my memory
serves, were Simon, John and Thomas.Thomas the youngest was your father.”The Reverend David clearly states that Thomas, Sr. was the son of one of
the emigrants.(I am confident that the
other brother mentioned was a John Barrow who indeed did “go off southerly” and
settled in the new lands of North Carolina in PerquimansCounty.)
Thomas, Sr. was indeed a “senior”
although he never used the tern on official papers including his will.He did name Thomas, “Jur” in his will
however.He died sometimes around 1762
at 95 to 100 years old outliving his son Thomas by about a year.He married Elizabeth Horton and lived on land
located south of the NottawayRiver and near MeherrinRiver in SouthamptonCounty and operated fisheries and
farmed.He is listed as a titheable in
the household of George Blow, JR in 1693.He also lived and owned land in Surry and Isle of Wight counties and died testate
in Southampton.His will named, “my seven children, Simon,
Thomas, Jur., John, Elizabeth, Jane, Sarah and Fortune.”We have good documentation on his will,
numerous land transactions and poof that he was in the George Blow household.
Thomas Barrow, Jr. was born in Southampton County, VA in 1698.He
married his second wife, Elizabeth Atkinson, about 1735 and was living on the
south side of NottawayRiver.In 1754, Thomas Barrow, Jr.
received a grant of 215 acres from Lord Granville in Edgecombe County, North
Carolina
signing his name which was a requirement of Lord Granville for anyone settling
on his very large land grants in northern North Carolina.He
subsequently owned lands and lived in Halifax and OnslowCounties in North
Carolina and
died testate in 1761 at his 300-acre plantation located on the banks of New River in OnslowCounty.This land is now a part of the
Camp Lejeune Marine Corps base.He
farmed and operated fisheries on the Roanoke, Tar, Nottaway and New
rivers.His wife Elizabeth died about a
year after Thomas’ death leaving three small sons, Jacob, James, and Moses
and daughter Sally, born after his death, plus
an older son, Hosea, by his first wife, Mary Killebrew.The four youngsters were sent to their
grandmother Atkinson’s in HalifaxCounty where they lived with her and near her son Solomon “On Kekuke Swamp
near the old Kekuke Meeting house.”Hosea remained on the New
River land and when of
age, Jacob operated the fishery on Roanoke River.We have much well-documented information on
the family of Thomas, Jr. including his will, many land transactions, where he
lived and when he was there, plus his father’s will.The three youngest boys, Jacob, James, and
Moses would all become Revolutionary War soldiers fighting for American
Independence.
Moses Barrow, son of
Thomas, Jr., was born 15 Oct.
1755 “on Fishing Creek” in Edgecombe
County, NC.We believe that he was married to a Mildred
Powell before marrying Martha Smith in 1790.Martha was the granddaughter to the prominent Drew Smith of NC.Martha and Moses were the parents of Jacob, twins
William and Mary Drew, Mildredge Smith and James.
Moses’
father and mother died when he was very young.When older brother Jacob was old enough to take over the inherited
fishery on the Roanoke River in Halifax County, N.C. Moses lived with him.He later moved to EdgecombeCounty and owned several
properties there.He moved to Washington County, Georgia in the very late 1700s on
land along Keg Creek in the western edge of the county.This land today is a part of a large kaolin
mining operation.He evidently was
fairly prosperous as he owned 460 acres and 7 slaves.His wealthy brother James of nearby BaldwinCounty owned thousands of acres
and 77 slaves.He had drawn the Georgia land for his service in the
Revolutionary War, having served in Captain Bacot’s 10th regiment
under Colonel Abraham Sheppard. (NSDAR Patriot Index, Page 40)
Moses
died intestate on Dec. 28, 1801 when youngest son “Jimmy”
was three days old.We have not been
able to locate his grave.His brother
James was appointed an executor of the estate and guardian of the older children
who went to live with him.Martha
married Charles Thompson, a friend of Moses, in only a few months and they
lived near High Shoals in WaltonCounty.She had several children by her new husband
and died in 1812.She is buried in an
unmarked grave in the ThompsonFamilyCemetery near High Shoals.Young James then went to his uncle’s home
until brother Jacob became of age and became his guardian.
James R. Barrow(Reverend) was born on Christmas Day, 1801, three days before the
death of his father.As stated
previously, he lived with his mother and stepfather until his mother’s death in
1812.His older brother Jacob of
Milledgeville became his guardian.He
became a mechanic by trade and lived in Talbot and Upson counties before moving
to CarrollCounty around 1840.He had married Lucinda “Lucy” Bivins in BaldwinCounty in 1825.He and “Lucy” were very religious and he was
a part-time preacher before moving to Bowdon.By middle age, he was badly crippled by what in those days was called
rheumatism having to walk with the aid of crutches and his hands were badly
drawn.They moved to land drawn in the
land lottery by "Orphans of Moses Barrow.” They drew two lots, one in the Smithfield community and the other in
the Jake community and somehow obtained a large lot in the town of Bowdon itself.James moved to the Smithfield land but was unable to farm
due to his health and moved to the Bowdon location.His house was where the present Dr. Smith
house stands on West College St..He was active in the EdenBaptistChurch south of Bowdon and in 1850
was ordained as a MissionaryBaptistChurch pastor by the CarrolltonChurch.He was assigned missionary duty to serve the
western part of Georgia and the newly opened lands
in eastern Alabama.He made his rounds on horseback and had to be
helped on and off his horse.We have
several news items of his preaching as far away as Tuskeegee, AL which is about 150 miles
from Bowdon.He also filled pulpits all
around the Bowdon area including those at Indian Creek, Eden and Bowdon.His first cousin, Chancellor David Barrow of
the University of Georgia, wrote that the old man
could recite from memory entire chapters of the Bible.
James
and Lucy had at least 7 children: Mildred, Martha A., Mary Emily, Sarah Jane,
John T., William Henry C.and James R., JR.Mildred and Sarah Jane married sons of Gideon Smith of the Smithfield community and son John
married Martha Smith his daughter.“Lucy” was burned terribly while working around a wash pot and died a
painful death on 21 Dec. 1873.The old preacher lived on until 30 July 1884 living with his son William in Bowdon the latter
part of his life.He and “Lucy” are
buried in the BowdonBaptistChurchCemetery.
James R. (Reeves ?) Barrow was the youngest child of
the Rev. and “Lucy” Barrow and was born in Bowdon on 31 Oct. 1844.He was a
student at Bowdon Collegiate Institute when the Civil War began and became a
member of Company B, Cobb’s Legion Infantry.The unit was formed in Bowdon by Charles McDaniel who was President of
the Institute as well as a Methodist preacher.The company took part in most of the major battles in Virginia and suffered tremendous
loss of life and limb.Private James R.
was wounded in left ankle and foot during the Battle of Crampton’s Gap Maryland on Sept. 14, 1862.He was
captured and his left leg amputated by Yankee surgeons.He recovered and was sent to prisons in Maryland and then exchanged and
returned home to Bowdon.He served in
some capacity in the army around Atlanta drawing pay for at least
into 1864.He returned to Bowdon and
married Martha S. “Mattie” Holmes on 10 Dec.
1865
at Bowdon.Mattie was the daughter of
Thomas F. and Mary J. Holmes of Bowdon.Holmes was a local blacksmith.He
never drew a Confederate pension but did receive money from the state for the
purchase of an artificial leg.
James
became a very prosperous merchant in Bowdon as well as being half-owner of
Victory Mills, a complex consisting of a gristmill, cotton gin, saw mill and
tannery located on the Little Tallapoosa River east of Bowdon.This mill boasted of having the first
circular saw in Western Georgia.He and
“Mattie” had a son, John William, a daughter Georgia, who was born on Sept. 3, 1868, and an infant who was born on Jan. 1 and died on Feb. 1, 1872.“Mattie”
died the following June 10th and on Dec.
5, 1876 little Georgia died. Then four years
latter on July 11, 1880 James R. died leaving 14 year old John William an
orphan.James died testate and named his
brother William guardian for his young son.James, “Mattie”, Georgia and the infant are buried
in the BowdonBaptistChurchCemetery.It is said that James R. died from TB
contracted in the Yankee prison camps.
John William Barrow was born in Bowdon on 5 Sept. 1866 during the reconstruction era of the beaten South
to a disabled Rebel soldier father.He
was orphaned at the age of 14 and went to live with his Uncle William who was
appointed his guardian.He attended
school in Bowdon and then entered MercerUniversity.He did not finish but returned to Bowdon to
enter business.He traded his inherited
half-interest in Victory Mills for a store in Bowdon and established a
mercantile business on the north side of the main street.He later built several brick buildings on the
south side of the street and expanded into a general store and even later
specializing in hardware.The store
became one of the largest and most successful in the area.He was a director of the local bank, director
of the railroad and oil mill and was part owner of an unsuccessful pickle factory
venture.He was also a trustee of BowdonCollege and active in the BaptistChurch, the Masonic Lodge and
other civic organizations.He became
wealthy only to lose everything during the great depression of the 1920s and
30s.With all the disappointments, he
maintained his great love of Bowdon and his fellow man, many of whom owed him
money which was never repaid.He started
several smaller businesses after the hardware store closed and in his last
years could be found on the streets and especially on “Second Tuesdays”,
Bowdon’s Trade Day, swapping and selling knives.He was great fun to be around and was
Bowdon’s greatest booster.
“J.
W.” married Martha Ellen Lovvorn on Christmas Day, 1887 in Bowdon.Ellen was the daughter of the prominent citizen,
W. D. Lovvorn, owner of the Lovvorn Mill complex on Indian Creek a mile or so
north of Bowdon.Their children were:
Otis who married Alice Walker, Roy, Hugh Witt, infant Guy, Gladys who married
Mallory “Bubba” Rumble and Frances who married Harvey Jackson.To make ends meet after the business failure,
“Miss” Ellen, as she was known, turned the “Barrow House”, which they had built
around the turn of the century, into a boarding house.It was known for the great food and for a
clean and safe home away from home for travelers as well as many of Bowdon’s
college students and schoolteachers.Ellen died in Dec. 1943 and J. W. lived with his beloved Hugh and
Virginia in the Barrow House until his death on 29
July 1951.He and Ellen are buried in the
BowdonCityCemetery.
Hugh Witt Barrow was born in Bowdon on Friday the 13th of January 1894.He always said that this was bad luck and
maybe it was.He attended GordonMilitaryAcademy in Barnesville where he was
a close friend and classmate of his distance cousin, future Georgia Governor
and Senator Richard Russell.He returned
to Bowdon and worked in the family hardware store and was in charge of their
two White trucks, hauling all types of goods from Atlanta.After the store closed, he took the trucks and
hauled material for building highways in Alabama.Soon the trucks were taken also.He then was shop foreman at Folds Motor Co.
in Carrollton and then a furniture salesman in Rockmart.He returned to Bowdon and worked at Sewells
for many years and later, was a rural mail carrier.
Hugh
married Virginia Mae Trammell daughter of Thomas Appling and Lelia Johnson
Trammell of Bowdon and Five Points, AL on 28 Oct. 1917.They were
the parents of Virginia Ellen (Jean)
who married John H. Barr, Jr, infant Sue, Hugh
Will (Bill) who married Bonnie Jeanne Spruill, and David Trammell.“Gin” worked
at Sewells for many years, and after the death of Hugh on Nov. 10 1950, continued to care for his dad until his
death.She then struck out on her own
and became a housemother at The Church’s Home For Girls in Atlanta where she became the
trusted “mother’ and friend to hundreds of young girls who were coming to the
big city to find jobs.She retired and
returned to live out her life in her “little house” in Bowdon next door to the
Barrow House and to enjoy her children and grandchildren, her Church and Sunday
School, her “As You Like It” Club and her many friends.She died on 21
May 1969 and is buried with Hugh in the BowdonCityCemetery.