What Happened to Hiram Barnett?

Hiram Barnett, son of Samuel and Sarah (Goheen) Barnett, was born about 1811 in Caldwell County, Kentucky. He married Sarah Webb, 14 Feb 1832 in Hardeman County, Tennessee. They were the parents of: Samuel Barnett (b. abt. 1835); James W. Barnett (b. abt. 1837); Mary Barnett (b. abt. 1840); George W. Barnett (b. abt. 1843); Sarah Frances Barnett (b. abt. 1845); Elizabeth Barnett (b. abt. 1848); John N. Barnett (b. abt. 1851); Benjamin M. Barnett (b. abt. 1856); and Evaline Barnett (b. abt. 1859).

He paid taxes in Hardeman County, Tennessee in 1833 and 1834. In the 1840 U.S. census he was listed in Marshall County, Mississippi. He again paid taxes in Hardeman County, Tennessee in 1844, 1845 and 1849. He was listed in the 1850 U.S. census in Hardeman County and again paid taxes there in 1852.  After that he and his family disappear.

Did Hiram die in Tennessee or did he move? If he moved, where did he go? Did he go to Texas with the rest of the Samuel Barnett family? It’s a mystery.

Holly Springs, Mississippi

During a recent research session I noticed that Evaline Barnett married Benjamin H. Moss in 1849 in Holly Springs, Marshall Co., Mississippi. This raised questions: What was she doing in Mississippi? Was this the right person? Could this be a mistake?

Later I was at the BYU Family History Archive site. As I searched for Barnetts I found they had many Texas histories online, so I searched them for Barnetts. I found a great biographical sketch for William Y. Barnett. William was the son of George W. Barnett and grandson of Samuel Barnett. The sketch gave some information on George W. Barnett as an early settler of Collin Co., Texas. The bio stated that George’s family left Kentucky when he was three years old and settled in Mississippi; he grew up in Holly Springs, Mississippi. A search of U.S. census records found Samuel Barnett and his son, Hiram, in Marshall Co., Mississippi in the 1840 census.

One correction should be noted, the family may have left Kentucky in the early 1820s, but they apparently did not go straight to Mississippi. In the 1830 census, Samuel Barnett was listed in Hardeman Co., Tennessee and he paid taxes in that county between 1823 and 1833. The Chickasaw Indians ceded their lands to the U.S. in 1832 and Holly Springs was founded in 1835. This also seems to confirm that Samuel Barnett moved his family there in the early 1830s.