County of site: Barry County
Location of this waymark: MO 37/76/112 (Main St.) County Courthouse
County founded: 1835
County named for: William T. Barry
The Person:
William T. Barry
American statesman
Born: February 5, 1784, Lunenburg, VA
Died: August 30, 1835, Liverpool, United Kingdom
Party: Democratic-Republican Party
Previous office: Senator (KY) 1814–1816
Education: College of William & Mary, Transylvania University
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Library of Congress
BARRY, William Taylor, a Representative and a Senator from Kentucky; born near Lunenburg, Lunenburg County, Va., February 5, 1784; moved to Fayette County, Ky., in 1796 with his parents; attended the common schools, Pisgah Academy and Kentucky Academy in Woodford County, Ky., Transylvania University at Lexington, Ky., and graduated from William and Mary College at Williamsburg, Va., in 1803; studied law; admitted to the bar in 1805 and commenced practice at Lexington, Ky.; appointed Commonwealth attorney; member, State house of representatives 1807; elected as a Democratic Republican to the Eleventh Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Benjamin Howard and served from August 8, 1810, to March 3, 1811; served in the military during the War of 1812; member, State house of representatives 1814 and was chosen speaker; elected as a Democratic Republican to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of George M. Bibb and served from December 16, 1814, until his resignation effective May 1, 1816, having been appointed to a judicial position; appointed judge of the circuit court for the eleventh district of Kentucky 1816-1817; member, State senate 1817-1821; elected lieutenant governor of Kentucky in 1820; professor of law and politics at Transylvania University 1822; secretary of State of Kentucky 1824; appointed chief justice of the State court of appeals 1825; unsuccessful Democratic candidate for election as Governor of Kentucky in 1828; appointed Postmaster General by President Andrew Jackson March 9, 1829, and served until April 10, 1835, when he resigned; appointed Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Spain May 1, 1835; died in Liverpool, England, August 30, 1835, while in route to Madrid, Spain; interment in England; reinterment in the State Cemetery at Frankfort, Ky., 1854." ~ Library of Congress
"William Taylor Barry was born in 1785 near Lunenburg, Virginia. He was educated at local academies before attending Transylvania University (Lexington, Kentucky) and then graduating from William and Mary College in 1803. After graduation, he studied the law, was admitted to the state bar in 1805, and began a law practice in Lexington.
"Around this same time, Barry began to pursue a political career, serving in the Kentucky state House of Representatives for two terms before being elected to fill a vacancy in the United States House of Representatives in 1810. He served for a year before returning to Kentucky. Shortly after his return in 1811, Barry volunteered for service in the War of 1812.
"In 1814, he returned to the Kentucky House of Representatives, but was again tapped to fill a congressional vacancy, this time serving as a United States senator from 1814 until he resigned in 1816 when he became a judge of the Circuit Court for the Eleventh District of Kentucky. Barry held this position for a year before returning to the practice of law. He did not stay out of politics for long, however, for in 1817 he returned to the Kentucky State Senate, where he served until 1821, leaving only to become the lieutenant governor of the state.
"In 1822, Barry became a professor of law and politics at Transylvania University before becoming Kentucky's secretary of state in 1824. A year later, he became the chief justice of the newly formed state court of appeals, but was voted out of office in 1826. Barry attempted a comeback in 1828 when he ran for governor, but his bid was unsuccessful.
"Soon thereafter, President Andrew Jackson offered Barry the post of postmaster general. Barry accepted and was the first person to hold that position on the cabinet level. His tenure, from 1829 to 1835, was beset with charges of corruption, allegations that forced the President to ask for Barry's resignation in 1835. Jackson tempered this blow, however, by making Barry envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary to Spain. William Taylor Barry would never fulfill these duties, for he died of a heart attack in 1835 on the way to his posting in Madrid." ~ Miller Center: University of Virginia
His listing on Find-A-Grave
The County:
Marker located at roadside turnout N side of Cassville:
N 36° 41.345 W 093° 52.078
"South of Cassville is Roaring River State Park, 2,946 Ozarks acres featuring Roaring River Spring1. At the base of a big recessed cliff, the spring sends forth a daily average flow of 28 million gallons. T.M. Sayman donated the original parksite, 1928.
"Center of the famed resort area and of an agricultural county, Cassville was laid out, 1845. Named for statesman Lewis Cass, it is the third town to serve as the seat of Barry County. Named for Postmaster General W.T. Barry and organized, 1835, the county originally included a vast area and as new counties were formed from it the county seat was relocated." ~ State Historical Society of Missouri & State Highway Commission, 1955
"Barry County, Missouri is located in the watershed of several creeks, including Roaring River Spring and Shoal Creek. Fertile soil allows for the growth of oats, wheat, and corn. The county also has naturally abundant wild foods, such as deer, fish, rabbits, turkey, and several varieties of nuts and berries.
"Samuel C. Washburn was among the first settlers in the area in 1827. He and his family stayed for over ten years until they moved to Texas, where Washburn was killed in 1840. Another early settler, James T. Keet, came from England and established the first store in the region. The area where he settled became known as Keetsville, later renamed Washburn after the Civil War. A third prominent early settler was Littlebury Mason and his family, who was very wealthy and settled near present day Cassville in 1830. In 1837, Mason became the first Barry County representative to the state legislature, and remained influential until his death in 1852. In 1840, Reuben Vermillian moved to present day Monett from Ohio. His son later fought for the Union Army.
"Barry County was officially formed in 1835, and included the entirety of Missouri’s southwest corner. The county was named in honor of Willaim T. Barry, who at one time was the Postmaster General in the cabinet of President Andrew Jackson. The county gradually became smaller as several counties were formed out of Barry – Newton County in 1839, Jasper and Dade Counties in 1841, McDonald County in 1849, Lawrence County in 1845, and Stone County in 1851. Mount Pleasant, near present day Pierce City, was the first county seat. The county seat soon moved to McDonald (later renamed McDowell). As more counties were extracted from Barry, the county seat continued to move to maintain a central location. On May 8, 1844, the county seat moved to Cassville, named after Michigan politician Lewis Cass. Although no settlers in the area were related to Cass, he was respected and admired.
"Postal service was established in 1845, which helped the residents of the County stay informed on local and national news. With the establishment of the county court June of the same year, there became three main orders of business to address. These were: to solve civil disputes, make transportation easy and safe, and to help the poor. Through their efforts, the roads in Barry County were easy to travel. Many businesses flourished before the Civil War, including the Cassville Tan Yard which manufactured leather. When the Civil War began in 1861, the county—like most counties in Missouri—was divided between Union and Confederate support. Some, including Littlebury Mason’s widow Nancy, who showed hospitality to soldiers from both sides. Despite this gesture of neutrality, her house was one of the many destroyed. There were no major battles in Barry County boundaries, but the residents were plagued with guerrilla warfare and the strain of playing host to both armies. After the Battle of Carthage, there was a small skirmish in Keetsville (Washburn) in February, 1862, and a Union army train was attacked in Cassville in June of the same year.
"Governor Claiborne Jackson moved the seat of state government from Neosho to Cassville for one week, October 31-November 6, 1861, though he was soon exiled from office. During the first year of the war, the county remained in Confederate control and served as a major camp for Confederate armies before the Battle of Wilson’s Creek in Greene County. The “Wire Road,” one of the roads the county government worked to improve before the war, allowed troops to move in an out of Barry County easily. The Battle of Pea Ridge, in Benton County, Arkansas, in March of 1862 put Barry County in Union control. The Union army used the county courthouse as their headquarters, suspending county government for the duration of the war.
"During the war, most businesses had ceased operation, and over half of the population had fled the area. After its end, they slowly began to rebuild. The county sued the federal government for funds to repair the damage the Union army had caused to the courthouse when it was used as Union headquarters. The federal government granted this reparation. In the 1880s, the Frisco railroad aided reconstruction when it moved to Monett—industrial and population growth followed the railroad." ~ Springfield-Greene County Library District: Ozark in the Civil War