Franklin E Barber (1836-1917)
52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks – Week 4
By Don Taylor
Intro
Sometimes learning a key bit of information about an ancestor can be complicated. In the 1910 Census, Franklin’s wife, Sarah, indicates that she is a widow. Also, their 1869 marriage record indicates that Frank was born between 1940 and 1842, depending upon how you read the record. Those “facts” had me searching and searching to no avail. Sometimes you need to go back to the beginning and grind through the documents and do a lot more analysis. It isn’t always about finding the obvious “low hanging fruit,” but rather, doing your due diligence and analysis of what you do find.
Birth
The 1869 marriage record when Franklin Barber married Sarah H Blackhurst indicated that Frank was 28 years old and was born in Sheridan, Michigan.[i] Because the marriage occurred before the license was gotten, it is unclear of the age of 28 was at the time of marriage or at the time of the license. Considering both possibilities, he would have been born between Nov 1840 and Jan 1842 by this record.
The 1880 Census, shows Frank E Barber as 40 years old, indicating a birth between 2 June 1839 and 1 June 1840. It also says he was born in Ohio.[ii]
It is interesting to note that the 1917 death certificate for Frank’s daughter, Eva Louisa (Barber) Goff, indicates that her father, Frank was born in Pennsylvania.
It is also interesting to note that the 1930 Census record for Ida Mae (Barber) Knight indicates that her father, Frank was born in Spain.[iii]
Franklin (Frank) E Barber was born between 2 Jun 1839 and Jan 1842 in Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Spain or possibly even France.
Military Service
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| Photo courtesy of Trip Advisor |
According to the 1890 Census [iv] Frank Barber enlisted in Union Army in April of 1864 and was discharged in 1865. It appears he served in Company I, Sixth Michigan Heavy Artillery. He lived in Albion Village in Calhoun County when he enlisted and was discharged at Jackson, Michigan.
The Sixth Michigan Heavy Artillery mostly saw garrison duty in Louisiana, Alabama, Arkansas, and Mississippi. However, the unit, while Frank was a part of it, was involved in the “Mobile Campaign,” including the siege and taking of Spanish Fort.[v]
Marriage
Franklin Barber and Sarah H Blackhurst were married on 8 Nov 1869 by Justice of the Peace, Stephen White, in Sheridan Township, Calhoun County, Michigan. Franklin, Sarah, both witnesses, James Hickey and Louisee Sanders, and the Justice were all from Sheridan. The village of Albion is within Sheridan Township. The record also shows that the couple didn’t get their marriage license until a couple months later, on 22 Jan 1870.
1870 – Unable to find Frank/Franklin Barber/Barbour in the 1870 Census.
1874 – The birth of their first child, a daughter Ida Mae Barber, my Great Grandmother, occurred on 24 March 1874.
1877 – The birth of their second child, another daughter, Eva Louisa Barber, occurred on 5 Dec 1877.
1880 – Frank is married to Sarah and living in Albion Village, with his wife and two girls. His occupation was a painter, but he had been unemployed for four months during the previous census year. This Census indicates his father was born in New York and his mother was born in Vermont.[vi]
1890 – It is rare to find a person in the 1890 Census. Luckily there was a Schedule “Union Veterans and Widows of the Civil War” that indicated that Frank was living in Albion.[vii] That census record also confirms the information regarding his Civil War service.
1900 – This is where the records really go awry.
Sarah, Frank’s wife, is living, as the head of the household, in in Detroit with her 22-year-old daughter, Eva. The record is legible and it indicates that Sarah is 42 years old but was born in December of 1867. If she was really born in December of 1867, she would be only 32 years old. So it is clearly an error in the census record. It also indicates that she has been married for 27 years, which indicates she was married about 1872-1873. [viii]
By 1900, Ida is on her second marriage and living in Manistee with her husband Max Fisher. The census indicates Ida was 25 years old and had been married to Max for seven years. Max was only 23. Madonna was going by the surname of Fisher and was seven years old. The freaky part of this census is that the census indicates that Ida’s father (Frank) was born in France.[ix]
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| Main Building, Soldier’s Home, Grand Rapids, MI Photo by Tichnor Brothers, Publisher [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons |
But where is Frank in 1900?
I can’t find Frank in Calhoun County in the 1900 Census. With Ida heading up her own household, I figured that Frank abandoned her. Then I found a Frank Barber in the Soldier’s Home in Grand Rapids, Michigan (about 100 miles away).[x] I had seen this record before and have vacillated between believing that the Frank Barber at the Soldier’s Home is Frank Barber of Albion and not believing it to be the case.
Comparison of Frank Barber of Albion & Frank Barber of Soldier’s Home
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Our Frank
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Soldier’s Home Frank
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Birth
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1840-1842
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Oct 1836
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Married
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1869
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1861 – 39 years
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Born
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Ohio
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Ohio
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Father Born
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New York
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New York
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Mother Born
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Vermont
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New York
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Occupation
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Painter
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Painter
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There are definitely enough points of convergence to make me think it might be the same Frank Barber and enough differences to make me think they are different Frank Barbers. So, I got to thinking. In the 1910 Census, Sarah indicates she is a widow. Could I find Frank in the 1910 Census?
1910 – Ida (now Holdsworth) is now the head of the household in Detroit with her daughter, Madonna, and her mother, Sarah, living with her. Sarah is identified as a widow, which implies that her husband, Frank, has passed. Ida reports her father (Frank) was born in Ohio.[xi]
The 74-year-old Frank Barber was enumerated in the 1910 Census. He was identified as being born in the United States, serving in the Civil War for the Union, and was widowed.[xii] [Great – hear the sarcastic tone in that “Great.”] It is certainly possible that both Frank and Sarah wanted to consider the other one dead and reported themselves as widowed. But it is not a position I felt confident with.
Returning to the National Park Service’s Search for Soldiers, (By the way, a really great and useful site – https://www.nps.gov.) I looked for Frank Barbers who fought for the Union in the Civil War. The database reported 16 individuals.
National Park Service – Results of search for Union Soldiers named Frank Barber
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Name
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Battle Unit Name
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Comments
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Franklin E Barber
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10th Reg., Ohio Cavalry
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Our Frank had located to Michigan before the war – Unlikely but possible.
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Frank Barber
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9th Reg., Mass. Infantry
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Massachusetts
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Frank Barber
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81st Reg., US Colored Inf.
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Colored
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Frank W. Barber
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91st Reg., Illinois Inf.
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Middle initial is wrong and our Frank has no history of Illinois.
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Frank Barber
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2nd Reg., Minnesota Cav.
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Minnesota
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Franklin F Barber
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2nd Reg., Illinois Cav.
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Middle initial is wrong and our Frank has no history of Illinois.
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Frank Barber
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6th Reg, Mich Heavy Artillery
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Enlisted in Albion. Definitely our Frank.
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Franklin A Barber
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1st Reg., Mich Light Artillery
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Middle initial wrong – But Possible.
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Franklin H Barber
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1st Reg., Mich Light Artillery
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Middle initial wrong – But Possible.
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Frank W Barber
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49th Reg., New York Inf.
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New York
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Franklin Barber
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7th Reg., Wisconsin Inf.
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Wisconsin
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Frank Barber
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Ind. Battery… Colored Inf.
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Colored
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Frank Barber
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62nd Reg., US Colored
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Colored
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Frank Barber
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79th Reg. US Colored
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Colored
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Frank J Barber
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4th Reg., Wisconsin Cav.
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Wisconsin
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Frank Barber
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193rd Reg. New York Inf.
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New York
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So, which of these sixteen potential Frank Barbers is the one in the Soldier’s Home in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1900 and 1910? Further looking at the Soldier Details on the NPS database revealed that Franklin A Barber was originally filed under Franklin H Barber, so it appears they are one individual.
The record that swayed me to back into believing that Frank Barber of Albion and Frank Barber of Soldier’s Home are the same person was in the Civil War Draft Registrations Records. This record shows that the Frank Barber of Albion was born in Ohio and was 26 years old on 1 July 1863. That puts his birthdate between 2 Jul 1836 and 1 Jul 1836.[xiii] Now, the 1900 Census entry indicating Frank of the Soldier’s home is consistent with Frank of Albion.
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Our Frank
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Soldier’s Home Frank
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Birth
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2 Jul 1836-1 Jul 1837
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Oct 1836
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Married
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1869
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1861 – 39 years
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Born
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Ohio
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Ohio
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Father Born
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New York
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New York
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Mother Born
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Vermont
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New York
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Occupation
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Painter
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Painter
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As I said before, I have been vacillating between Frank of Albion and Frank of the Soldier’s Home being the same person. I can live with the discrepancy of his mother’s birth location, particularly because it is the same as his father’s birth location. The discrepancy in marriage information concerns me somewhat; eight years seems like a lot.
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| Frank Barber, Co. I, 6 Mich Heavy Artillery Photo via Find-a-Grave. |
However, one last find totally convinced me that Frank Barber of Albion and Frank of Soldier’s Home is the same person. MIGenWeb (Michigan Genealogy on the Web) has a section regarding Michigan in the Civil War. A search for Frank Barber found the Frank Barber buried at Soldier’s Home in Grand Rapids was part of the 6th Infantry, Company I.[xiv] (The 6th Infantry was renamed the 6th Heavy Artillery.)
Knowing Frank was buried at Soldier’s Home made it easy to find a Find-a-Grave record for him. According to Find-a-Grave, Frank Barber died on 7 April 1917 and is buried at Grand Rapids Veterans Home Cemetery, (Soldier’s Home Cemetery) Grand Rapids, Kent County, Michigan at lot 7, Row 10, Grave 13.[xv]
Certainly, the idea that Frank went into the Soldier’s home in his early sixties and his wife and children moved on without him is disturbing. That both he and his wife thought of themselves as widowed in 1910 is also saddening. We may never know how or why Frank went into the home but it is worth pursuing.
Further research needed:
Find Franklin Barber in the 1870, 1860, 1850, and 1840 Censuses.
Determine Franklin Barber’s parents’ names.
Learn more about Frank Barber’s Civil War Experience.
Determine why Frank went into the Soldier’s home at such an early age.
Endnotes
[Note: The bold numbers refer to my source database.]
[i] 481. “Michigan, Calhoun, Certified Copy of a Marriage Record,” Don Taylor, Maine, Don Taylor
[ii] 609. “1880 Census,” Sheridan, Calhoun, Michigan, USA, 13, Frank E Barber (Line 48), 1 Jun 1880, Digital Image, Image from Ancestry.Com, 3/7/14.
[iii] 269. “1930 Census,” Ancestry, https://www.Ancestry.com.
[iv] 612. “1890 Census of Union Veterans and Widows of the Civil War,” Albion, Calhoun, Michigan, 10 of 146, Frank Barber (Line 16), 1 June 1890, Digital Image, Family Search, 15 Jan 2016.
[v] 613. National Park Service, “Union Michigan Volunteers,” 6th Regiment, Michigan Heavy Artillery, https://www.nps.gov/civilwar/search-battle-units-detail.htm?battleUnitCode=UMI0006RAH, 15 Jan 2016.
[vi] 609. “1880 Census,” Sheridan, Calhoun, Michigan, USA, 13, Frank E Barber (Line 48), 1 Jun 1880, Digital Image, Image from Ancestry.Com, 3/7/14.
[vii] 612. “1890 Census of Union Veterans and Widows of the Civil War,” Albion, Calhoun, Michigan, 10 of 146, Frank Barber (Line 16), 1 June 1890, Digital Image, Family Search, 15 Jan 2016.
[viii] 610. “1900 Census,” Detroit Ward 4, Wayne, Michigan, Roll 748, Page 13B, ED 0036, Sarah Barber, 1 Jun 1900, Digital Image, Ancestry.com, 15 Jan 2015.
[ix] 614. “1900 Census,” Manistee Ward 6, Manistee, Michigan, Sheet 4A, Max Fisher, 1 Jun 1900, Digital Image, Ancestry, 14 Sep 2010.
[x] 611. “1900 Census,” Grand Rapids, Kent, Michigan, Frank Barber, Roll: 723; Page: 4A; Enumeration District: 0148; FHL microfilm: 1240723, 1 Jun 1900, Digital Image, Ancestry, 15 Jan 2016.
[xi] 615. “1910 Census,” Detroit Ward 7, Wayne, Michigan, Roll: T624_683; Page: 8A, Ida Holdsworth, 15 Apr 1910, Digital Image, Ancestry, 13 Sep 1910.
[xii] 616. “1910 Census,” Grand Rapids, Kent, Michigan, Roll: T624_655; Page: 10A, Frank Barber, 15 Apr 1910, Digital Image, Ancestry, 16 Jan 2016.
[xiii] 617. “U.S., Civil War Draft Registrations Records, 1863-1865,” Franklin Barber, NAI: 4213514; Archive Volume Number: 1 of 3.
[xiv] 618. “Michigan Veterans of the Civil War, Buried at Soldiers Home, Grand Rapids, MI,” Frank Barber, https://www.migenweb.org/michiganinthewar/gravesites/soldiershome.htm, MIGenWeb (Michigan Genealogy of the Web), Don Harvey.
[xv] 619. “Find a Grave,” Frank Barber – Memorial #14714632, https://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=14714632.
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This was very interesting? Have you been able to locate the records of the home? I found my great great grandmother cousin in the home in Togus Maine. He had been listed alternately as a cousin or a boarder in her household for years in Charleston Massachusetts. He was about 62 when he entered the home. Doesn't seem old to me now at 63 but it may have been old in 1917 ad life expectancy was shorter. When I found the home record she was listed as his cousin and next of kin. Good luck!
This was very interesting? Have you been able to locate the records of the home? I found my great great grandmother cousin in the home in Togus Maine. He had been listed alternately as a cousin or a boarder in her household for years in Charleston Massachusetts. He was about 62 when he entered the home. Doesn't seem old to me now at 63 but it may have been old in 1917 ad life expectancy was shorter. When I found the home record she was listed as his cousin and next of kin. Good luck!
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