Archives of Maryland
(Biographical Series)

John Barnes (b. circa ? - d. 1844)
MSA SC 5496-050653
War of 1812 Claimant, Prince George's County, Maryland

Biography:

The son of Richard Barnes,1 John H. Barnes was living in Prince George's County in 1790, but he had moved to Port Tobacco in Charles County by 1800.2 Although he owned no slaves in 1790, he owned two slaves in 1800 and five in 1810.3 He inherited his father's home, Rosemary Lawn, near Durham and Port Tobacco in 1804.4

Barnes began serving as Clerk for the Charles County Court in 1791, a position he held for the rest of his life.5 Beginning in June 1814, he served for almost a month as an artillery captain in the Fifth Brigade, 43rd Regiment.6

He had one daughter, Mary Clarissa Bond Barnes. John Barnes was widowed by 1818,7 although the name of his wife is unknown. However, a John Barnes had married a Sarah Avens in Prince George's County on February 19, 1785.8 This falls into the time period when Barnes was still living in that county.

Following the war, Barnes purchased two separate properties in Port Tobacco, the county seat.9 First, in 1816, he purchased the Retreat from the late Dr. Daniel Jenifer's estate.10 Standing a little over a mile west of town, the Retreat was once the home of Dr. Jenifer's uncle, Daniel St. Thomas of Jenifer, a delegate to the Constitutional Convention and the first president of the Maryland Senate.11 Second, Barnes bought the Chimney House in Port Tobacco in 1819. Constructed around the 1760s and named after its massive double chimney, the Chimney House stands next to the courthouse.12

Barnes' wealthy friend and uncle-in-law, Samuel Bond of Prince George's County, died in 1818.13 Bond's will appointed Barnes as one of his executors. Barnes also took over Bond's claim for compensation for two slaves, Amos and James, who had escaped to the British during the War of 1812.14 Bond also bequeathed a pecuniary legacy to Barnes' daughter, Mary Clarissa Bond Compton, whom he referred to as his grandniece. Mary received a fourth of Bond's slaves, valued at $2,337.50.

The number of Barnes' slaves were increasing as well, mainly though purchases. When he bought the Retreat in 1816, Barnes also purchased eighteen slaves in the same transaction: Tom, Charles, Peter, Nace, George, Henry, Ben, John, George, and Lance, along with Letty, Sarah, Betty, Judy, Daphne, Betsey, Nancy, and Jenny.15 Barnes owned sixty-seven slaves in 1830,16 the same year that the nephew of one of Barnes' slaves escaped from Elizabeth Wilson's farm in Prince George's County. Wilson believed that the fugitive slave, William Solomon, may have headed towards Barnes' farm in "Nanjemoy, Charles County."17 Barnes owned no less than eighty-eight slaves in 1840.18

Barnes continued buying land throughout his life, often to increase Rosemary Lawn. In 1831, for instance, he added over 420 acres to the farm.19 An 1832 land record mentioned a mill and a dam on the property.20

His daughter, Mary Clarissa, died in 1833,21 and Barnes died in 1844.22 He may have been buried at the family cemetery at Rosemary Lawn.23 In his will, he freed two slaves named "Mark and William Ross," and left the part of his land called "Pointer Manor" to his grandson, Barnes Compton.24
 


Footnotes

1.     "Rosemary Lawn." CH-105. Maryland Historical Trust, Inventory of Historical Property. www.mdihp.net.
         U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for Richard Barnes, 1790, Charles County, district not stated, Page 5, Line 2 [MSA SM61-7, M 2053-1].

2.     U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for John Barnes, 1790, Prince George's County, district not stated, Page 3, Line 17 [MSA SM61-15, M 2053-1].

3.     U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for John H. Barnes, 1800, Charles County, Port Tobacco Parish, Page 3, Line 5 [MSA SM61-28, M 2055-3].
        U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for John H. Barnes, 1810, Charles County, district not stated, Page 26a, 3rd line from bottom [MSA SM61-48, M 2060-4].

4.     U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for Richard Barnes Jr., 1800, Charles County, Durham Parish, Page 9, 9th line from bottom [M 2055-3, MSA SM61-28].
        "Rosemary Lawn." CH-105. Maryland Historical Trust, Inventory of Historical Property. www.mdihp.net.

5.     The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography. Vol. 10. (New York, NY: James T. White & Company, 1909) 386.
        "Charles County Court." Daily National Intelligencer. 7 January 1813: 8. Maryland State Archives.
        Government Publications: GENERAL ASSEMBLY, Laws, 1843-1844, Volume 595, Page 187.
        Maryland Court of Appeals. Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Court of Appeals of Maryland. Vol. 12 (Annapolis, MD: George Johnston, Pringer, 1845) 372.

6.     F. Edward Wright, Maryland Militia, War of 1812: St. Marys and Charles Counties. Vol. 5 (Silver Spring, MD: Family Line Publications, 1983) 45.

7.    PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, REGISTER OF WILLS, (Wills), 1808-1820, Liber TT 1, [MSA C1326-5]. Samuel Bond, July 28, 1818. Probated August 31, 1818.
        Maryland Court of Appeals. Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Court of Appeals of Maryland. Vol. 8 (Annapolis, MD: Robert F. Bonsall, Printer, 1852) 392.
        Maryland High Court of Chancery. Reports of Cases Decided in the High Court of Chancery of Maryland. Vol. 1 (Baltimore, MD: John W. Woods, 1851) 152 and 158.

8.     PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY COURT, (Marriage Licenses), 1777-1797, Film Reel: CR 50230-1, [MSA CM783-1]. John Barnes and Sarah Avans, February 19, 1785.

9.     "Port Tobacco Historic District." National Register of Historic Places. http://mht.maryland.gov/nationalregister.html

10.     "Retreat." National Register of Historic Places. http://mht.maryland.gov/nationalregister.html.

11.   "The Retreat." The Historical Marker Database. www.hmdb.org.
        "The Retreat." CH-10. Maryland Historical Trust, Inventory of Historical Property. www.mdihp.net.

12.   "Chimney House (Barnes Compton House)." CH-14. Maryland Historical Trust, Inventory of Historical Property. www.mdihp.net.
         "Port Tobacco Historic District." National Register of Historic Places. http://mht.maryland.gov/nationalregister.html.
         Earl Arnett, Robert J. Brugger, and Edward C. Papenfuse. Maryland: A New Guide to the Old Line State (Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999) 111 and 112.
         Victor Block and Fyllis Hockman. The Pelican Guide to Maryland. 2nd ed. (Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing Company, Inc., 1987) 68.

13.   PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, REGISTER OF WILLS, (Wills), 1808-1820, Liber TT 1, [MSA C1326-5]. Samuel Bond, July 28, 1818. Probated August 31, 1818.
        U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for Samuel Bond, 1790, Prince George's County, district not stated, Page 2 (right side), last line [MSA SM61-15, M 2053-1].
        U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for Samuel Bond, 1800, Prince George's County, district not stated, Page 14a, 2nd line from bottom [MSA SM61-34, M 2056-4].
        U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for Samuel Bond, 1810, Prince George's County, King George and Grub Hundreds, Page 4, Line 14 [MSA SM61-54, M 2061-1].

14.   Definitive List of Slaves and Property/, compiled ca. 1827 - ca. 1828/* ARC Identifier 1174162 / MLR Number PI 177 192*.

15.   CHARLES COUNTY COURT, (Land Records), 1832-1833, Liber IB 20, Folio 21, [MSA CE 82-57]. January 12, 1832, Minchin Lloyd to John Barnes.

16.   U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for John Barnes, 1830, Charles County, Durham Township, Page 27, 10th line from bottom [MSA SM61-88, M 68-2]. Slaves listed on Page 28, Line 10.

17.   "Thirty Dollars Reward." Daily National Intelligencer 7 October 1830: 2. Maryland State Archives.

18.   U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for John Barnes, 1840, Charles County, District 1, Page 1, Line 11 [MSA SM61-108, M 4717-3]. Slaves listed on Page 2, Line 11.

19.   CHARLES COUNTY COURT, (Land Records), 1814-1817, Liber IB 11, Folio 492, [MSA CE 82-48]. Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer, administrator of Doctor Daniel Jenifer, to John Barnes, December 11, 1816.
        "Rosemary Lawn." CH-105. Maryland Historical Trust, Inventory of Historical Property. www.mdihp.net.
        "The Retreat." CH-10. Maryland Historical Trust, Inventory of Historical Property. www.mdihp.net.

20.   CHARLES COUNTY COURT, (Land Records), 1832-1833, Liber IB 20, Folio 24, [MSA CE 82-57]. Francis Robert Hanson, Henry A. Moore, and Chloe Ann Moore to John Barnes, December 28, 1831.

21.   Maryland Court of Appeals. Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Court of Appeals of Maryland. Vol. 8 (Annapolis, MD: Robert F. Bonsall, Printer, 1852) 392.
        Maryland High Court of Chancery. Reports of Cases Decided in the High Court of Chancery of Maryland. Vol. 1 (Baltimore, MD: John W. Woods, 1851) 152 and 158.
        Baltimore: Its History and Its People. Vol. 2 (New York, NY: Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1912) 134.

22.   Maryland Court of Appeals 55.
        Maryland High Court of Chancery 152.

23.   "Rosemary Lawn." National Register of Historic Places. http://mht.maryland.gov/nationalregister.html.

24.   CHARLES COUNTY REGISTER OF WILLS, (Wills), 1833-1850, Liber DJ 16, Film Reel: WK 246-247-2, [MSA CM412-17]. John Barnes, January 5, 1844. Probated January 16, 1844.
 

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