Jonathan Marion Barton (1830 - 1910)

Born 26 Dec 1830 in Hall County, Georgia

Ancestors

Husband of Hannah Ann (Blackstock) Barton — married 30 Nov 1852 in , Hall County, Georgia [uncertain]

Descendants

Died 17 Apr 1910 at age 79 in Winston County, Alabama

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Debby Black [send private message]

Biography

Jonathan Marion "Josh" Barton was born in Hall County, Georgia where he married Hannah Ann Blackstock. Jonathan's birth family moved to Winston County, Alabama on Christmas Eve of 1859 [according to Alfred Hyde, via Wayne Wakefield]. It's not certain exactly when John and Hannah made the move, but according to the 1860 census of Winston County, John's daughter, Sarah, was listed as one year old and born in Alabama. They were enumerated in July so if the census is accurate, John and family arrived before his father, mother, and some of his other siblings.

Winston County citizens had divided sympathies between the North and the South. Jonathan and his brothers (Gilford, James, Madison, and William), along with three brothers-in-law (Thomas Blackstock, Francis Harris, and Jesse Hyde) joined the 1st Alabama Cavalry, Union Army. Other family members also joined the Union Army, but in different units.

Jonathan's military papers state he enlisted in Company L, 1st Alabama Cavalry on September 25, 1863 in Glendale, Mississippi. He was mustered out on September 25, 1863 as a Sergeant. He joined for duty at Fayette County, Alabama for one year. His salary was $300 per (?).

November and December of 1863, reported absent. Mission: recruiting by order of Lt. Col. O. J. Dodds.

January through June: present.

July and August of 1864: absent--recruiting service at Decatur, Alabama.

September 28, 1864: muster-out day. Reason: term expired.

His military papers state he was discharged at Rome, Georgia. A letter his wife, Hannah, dictated, said he was discharged at Nashville, Tennessee where he'd been hospitalized due to illness. Total amount received for clothing during service: $56.91.

According to Jonathan's military papers, he was 5 feet, 8 inches tall with blue eyes, dark hair, and fair complexion.

Jonathan, as a recruitment officer for the Union, experienced many close calls and spent freezing nights hiding out in the woods in order to evade the Rebel soldiers:

"I was threatened, shot at and molested by the rebel soldiers on account of my union principals or sentiments. They burned my still, took one mare, two mules and a buggy, knocked the heads out of my whiskey barrels after taking what they wanted and turned out the balance. They threatened to kill me and burn my dwelling if I did not come in and give up to them. The still house was burned and the mare and two mules and buggy taken by the rebels on 15th March 1863 at my house. Lieut. May was in command of the rebel soldiers who did this."^[1]

The Confederates called pro Union people in Winston and surrounding counties 'Tories'. A docu-drama about the strife between neighbors was written in a book called, TORIES OF THE HILLS.^[2] A play was once held on a regular basis in Winston County depicting a portion of the Civil War story that took place in the hill country of Alabama and included Jonathan Barton as one of the characters in the play. It was adopted as the state musical drama.^[3]

Jonathan survived the war, but one brother, William, and his brother-in-law, Thomas Blackstock, didn't.

1867: Appointed by the Republican State Executive Committee of the sixth Congressional District to serve Winston County, Alabama.

Jonathan was a farmer (according to census records) and owned a grist mill (according to his great-nephew, Cicero Musgrove). He was a well respected, self-educated man.

In 1871, Jonathan filed a claim before the Southern Claims Commission proving his loyalty to the Union and explaining his justification for filing the claim. Family, friends, and foes also testified in the claim providing a gripping account of what life was like in the area during the war. Jonathan won his case, but didn't receive nearly the money for the material losses he suffered during the war.

1872 and 1873: Representative from Winston County to the Lower House of the Legislature.

1880 Township 10, Range 9 West, Winston County, Alabama Census

Barton,

Jonathan ...Self...49 Georgia

Hannah ...Wife...45 Georgia

Roxanna ...Dau...18 Alabama

Andrew J ...Son...16 Alabama

Martha B ...Dau...13 Alabama

Mary A ...Dau...7 Alabama

Jonathan is buried beside his wife at Sardis Baptist Church Cemetery outside of Lynn, Winston County, Alabama.

Sources

1. ↑ http://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Space:The_Southern_Claims_Commission
2. ↑ http://www.amazon.com/Tories-hills-Wesley-S-Thompson/dp/B0006ATEG0/ref=sr_sp-atf_title_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1391672130&sr=1-1&keywords=Tories+of+the+Hills
3. ↑ http://www.netstate.com/states/symb/dramas/al_outdoor_musical_drama.htm

• Disposition of Hannah (Blackstock) Barton seeking a pension as Jonathan Barton's guardian.

• “Approved Pension File for Hannah Barton, Widow of Jonathan Barton, Company L, 1st Alabama Cavalry Regiment (WC-705482)”, Record Group 15: Records of the Department of Veterans Affairs, 1773 - 2007 Series: Case Files of Approved Pension Applications of Widows and Other Dependents of the Army and Navy Who Served Mainly in the Civil War and the War With Spain, 1861 – 1934.

• Military papers

• Southern Claims Commission including testimony of Jonathan Barton

• Hall County, Georgia census records (1840, 1850)

• Winston County, Alabama census records (1860, 1870, 1880, 1900)

• Timber Ridge Baptist Church records in Gainesville, Hall County, Georgia, transcribed by Darse Fant.

• Sardis Baptist Church records in Winston County, Alabama, transcribed by Debby Black

• Land records of Winston County, Alabama

• Voters' Registration Records in Winston County, Alabama

• Find A Grave Memorial# 9588015 for Jonathan Marion Barton, maintained by Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, originally Created by Bev on 12 Oct 2004.

• "United States Census, 1880," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M4V2-3QP : accessed 24 November 2015), Jonathan ..., Township 10 Range 9 West, Winston, Alabama; citing enumeration district 290, sheet 564D, NARA microfilm publication T9 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 0035; FHL microfilm 1,254,035.

*Additional data on Hannah Ann Blackstock Barton can be found on pages 536 and 537 in the book "Clan Blackstock" Published by Helen Ring Womack and printed by Henington Publishing Company, Wolf City, Texas in 1992.

Acknowledgements

• Interviews with multiple descendants of John and Hannah as well as some of the primary family genealogists: Darse Fant, Dot Camp, Doris Liles.