William Andrew Barnes, Son of George Barnes

William Andrew Barnes with daughter

 

William Andrew Barnes is the son of George Barnes and Rebecca Florence Hanna - he is my great grandfather. Here's a little more information on him:

Born - 21 July 1869 in Franklin Township, Izard County, Arkansas
Appears as an 11 year old on 1880 census for Franklin, Izard, Arkansas with mother Rebecca F Barnes age 42, sister Florence Barnes age 15, brother David W Barnes age 13, sister Mary V Barnes aged 5, and half-sister Martha R. Bush aged 17.

Rebecca states she was born in Alabama, her father Kentucky, her mother Tennessee. Head of house.
Florence is listed was born in Arkansas, her father Tennessee, her mother Alabama. Daughter.
David W shows as born in Texas, father Tennesse, mother Alabama. Son of head of household.
William A born Arkansas, father Tennessee, mother Alabama. Son of head of household.
Mary V is listed as born Arkansas, father Tennesse, mother Alabama. Daughter.
Martha R Bush born Arkansas, father Tennessee, mother Arkansas. Daughter.
This is a good time to point out another important genealogy lesson - primary versus secondary records. I'll use an example to explain. Let's say we have a birth certificate and a death certificate for Jane Doe. And, let's say the birth date doesn't match on the two documents. Which should you chose as her date of birth? Generally speaking, you should choose primary record. When a record is created to document an event at that time, such as a birth certificate, it is a primary record. When that same birth date is recorded on a docunment years later, such as a birthdate on a death certificate, it is a secondary record because the event did not happen at that time and is being recalled after-the-fact. The person recalling that information is providing information as they know it.

So, with that said, Rebecca recalling she was born in Alabama is technically less reliable than her recalling where her children were born because she has no recollection of her birth but should recall the birth of her children. Points of interest on the 1880 census birth information is that one child, David W, was listed as born in Texas while the others were born in Arkansas. Additionally, the listings are all consistent in listing the father's birth place as Tennessee and mother's as Alabama. Since none of the children of George and Rebecca were there to witness their parent's births, and probably did not answer the census taker, it's likely Rebecca provided the information and believed her (late) husband was born in Tennessee.

The odd entry on the 1880 census is the entry for Martha R Bush who is thought to be the daughter of Rebecca and her first husband Lee S Bush who was killed in the Civil War. She's lsited as born in Arkansas, her father Tennessee, but her mother Arkansas instead of Alabama. This could be a mistake or it could mean that she is not the daughter of Rebecca despite being listed as her daughter. Because I know other researchers of Martha, I'm going to count this as a mistake by the census taker.

Back to William.  He is found in the 1900 and 1910 census as living in Izard County Arkansas with wife Lydia F (1900) and Francis (1910). In 1910 they are listed with the last name Bornes instead of Barnes. Genealogy lesson - spelling doesn't count. Sometimes you have to march up the first names, birthdates, and birth places to recognize a surname problem. Often the person recording the information is not the informant and in families like mine, the official is working with people speak with an accent and do not read/write themselves.

William's first wife was Lydia Francis Samples but she was known as Lottie (family lore). They were married in 1894 in Izard County Arkansas. Their last child was born in 1908 and he remarried Delia Lee Sellers in 1911 so Francis/Lydia/Lottie died somewhere between 1908 and 1911.

In the 1920 and 1930 censuses William is living in nearby Craighead County Arkansas (where my mother was born and where I went to high school). He is buried in the Bowman Cemetery in Craighead County. Their last name is recorded as "Burrus" in the 1920 censos so, again, you have to look through spelling issues with genealogical research.

Children of William Andrew Barnes and Lydis Francis Samples:

David Andrew Barnes (1895-1972) my grandfather
Homer Barnes (1896 - 1900)
Florence Barnes (1900-1992)
Nancy Barnes (1904 - ?)
Ruby Ethel Barnes (1906 - 1923)
George Newton Barnes (1908 - 1986)

Children of William Andrew Barnes and Delia Le Sellers:

Zelma (1912 - 2001)
Virgie A (1915 - ?)
William Lee (1916 - 1967)
Earnest A (1917 - 1995)
Felix E (1920 - ?)