Terry Barton

Terry is an 8th generation Texan, who has lived in Georgia since 1973.  He is an ardent family historian, an amateur genealogist, and a pioneer in the still emerging field of genetic genealogy.  He treasures all of the friends he's made through genealogy, especially the "cousins" he has found.  Some of the more interesting ancestors that he has found are listed at the end of this biography.  In case you're wondering about the photos in the banner, the little girl is his grandmother, Josephine Cresap Waddell Barton (1897-1974) and her mother (Mabel Clair Rentz Waddell (c1875-1956), while the man is his gggg-grandfather, Eben Woodward (1790-1837)).   You can also find portraits of two of his gggg-grandmothers -  Charlotte Deberry Kirby Martin (1791-1844), in the "Do You Want to Prove..." section on the Home page and Eleanor (Montgomery) Waddell (1768-1814) on the Search page.

Terry is co-founder of WorldFamilies.net, President of the Barton Historical Society (BHS) and Co-Leader of the 200+ member Barton DNA Project and the 95 member Hodges-Hodge DNA Project, as well as many others.  He is the “Line Leader” for the Thomas (1,2,3) Barton family of Stafford Co VA and for the David Barton married Ruth Oldham family.  He has made a number of presentations about using DNA in Genealogy, the Barton DNA project and his great-grandparent's "Barton House" and has written many articles for the BHS Newsletters and website. 

Terry has been featured in two newspaper articles which touched on his interests in genealogy and his work in using DNA in genealogy:

Speaking engagements:

Contact Terry for details if you wish to attend a presentation. 
Most of these organizations will allow a few non-members to attend - if arranged in advance.

Terry does have a life outside of genealogy.  He earned an Engineering degree from Texas Tech University and a MBA from Emory University.  After working for 27 years for a major multi-national corporation, Terry “retired”.  Since then, he spends more time with the family (a wife, a daughter just graduated from college and a son who recently returned from active duty in Iraq, who is working for WorldFamilies.net), is a Master Gardener, plays tennis and is an active leader in his church.  During his full-time employment, his family lived in Ireland, California, France and Belgium.  Business took him to over 50 countries through the years.  England, home of most of his ancestors, is still his favorite.  His time in Europe preceded his genealogy phase, so now it’s time to get back to the “olde country” and do some research.

Through World Families Network, Terry intends to share his learning and acquired skills with others who are running Surname Projects and trying to help their family organizations in becoming more effective.  He says: “If World Families Network can help other surname projects accomplish even a fraction of what the Barton DNA Project and Barton Historical Society have done for the  Barton family in terms of learning together, fun, and sharing, this will be well worth it!”

Some of Terry’s more “interesting” ancestors.

  • Thomas Edgerly, “Sailed from Yarmouth, England in the ship "Arabella" on 8 Apr 1630”;  “One of the seven Judges of His Majesties Province of New Hampshire”; Founder of the Edgerly family, which stayed in Durham/New Durham NH for nearly 300 years until descendant, Daniel Edgerly “"Came down the beautiful Ohio ...  to Cresap Grove WV ... to woo Eleanora Keene Cresap and later married her there"
     

  • Thomas (1,2,3) Barton of Stafford County, VA.  Settled on the Quantico River by 1678 (on land that is now a part of the Quantico Marine Base). Thomas (1) signed the 1675 planter’s protest against Sir William Berkeley, but somehow avoided being punished after the resulting Bacon’s Rebellion.  Thomas (2) returned home one June Sunday afternoon in 1700 to “ye most horrible murder in these parts”.  Indians had raided his farm and killed his 3 children and a family of five who were staying with them.  (yDNA identified on 106 markers)
     

  • George Harlan, a Quaker from Monkwearmouth (“nigh Durham in Bishoprick, England”) who crossed into County Down, Ireland for a few years before moving to what is now Chester County, Pennsylvania in 1687.  His descendants in Terry’s line were good PA Quakers until 1746/7.  At that time, grandson Aaron was living in Union District SC and was “…complained of for his marriage by a priest, and neglecting meetings.”  In 1749, he was “disowned at Centre Meeting.” (yDNA tentatively identified on 37 markers)
     

  • Colonel Thomas Cresap, renowned frontiersman, led Maryland’s interests in boundary dispute with Pennsylvania that was later resolved by the Mason-Dixon line.   Member of the Ohio Company sent to survey and settle the Ohio Country, Surveyor of the Braddock Road, active in the French & Indian War.
     

  • David Barton, Road Surveyor, Mill Owner, Keeper of an “Ordinary” (tavern), frequenter of the court records in the Northern Neck of VA.  According to legend, was killed by British-led Indians while on a Daniel Boone led expedition to blaze the Wilderness Trail into Kentucky in 1775. (yDNA identified on 106 markers)
     

  • Captain Michael Cresap, Captain of the Maryland Rifles, a militia unit called up in 1775 at the beginning of the American Revolution. Died in New York City, while returning home, ill after a 25 day, 650 mile forced march from western Maryland to Massachusetts and is buried in Trinity Cemetery, on Wall Street.  He received a full military honors parade in NYC.   Michael was falsely accused of killing an Indian leader during a 1774 uprising.  Thomas Jefferson included the charge in his writings.  Family historians have spent the past 200 years arguing against the charge.  According to family legend, George Washington wrested family land from Michael’s heirs in what is now West Virginia.
     

  • Abishai Woodward, whose family was in Connecticut in the 17th century, was a carpenter from New London, Connecticut.  Abishai was employed to build the first lighthouse on Bald Head Island, NC in 1784.  A few years later, in 1803, he built the first Lynde Pointe Lighthouse at the mouth of the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook Harbor.  (Through an Internet contact, Terry acquired a copy of Abishai’s son, Eben’s portrait, which was done in New Orleans in the1820s.)  (yDNA tentatively identified at 37 markers)
     

  • Elder John Parker, a Primitive Baptist Preacher, was the father of the fiery Rev. Daniel Parker, founder of the first Baptist Church in Texas.  John was a member of the same Baptist church in Franklin Co GA as Conway Oldham Barton’s father, Thomas Barton (another ancestor of Terry’s).  He was also a preacher in TN and IL before moving to TX in 1833. John was killed at Fort Parker in an 1836 Comanche Indian raid that captured his granddaughter, Cynthia Ann, who later married an Indian Chief and was the mother of Quanah Parker, most famous of the Comanche Indian Chiefs. (yDNA identified at 24 markers)
     

  • Conway Oldham Barton, Planter, was born on his grandparent’s plantation in SC and spent his early childhood in GA.  He moved with his father, Thomas,  “the first white man to settle on the north side of the Tallapoosa River”, which is now Montgomery AL and then moved his own family to Columbus MS and Caddo Parish LA, before finally settling on the banks of the Brazos River in TX.  The family received Federal Land grants in AL, MS & LA, indicating that they were the original settlers on the land - Conway must have been one of those planters who cleared the forest and then moved on when the land was “farmed out”.  He lost a fortune in the “War Between the States”, which included losing 157 slaves who were freed by the Emancipation Proclamation and 150 bales of cotton confiscated by the US Govt. after the war.  (yDNA identified on 106 markers)
     

  • Reverend Joseph Perkins Sneed, a Methodist Circuit Rider, who preached in early Texas, before and after the Texas Revolution.  A slave owner, “He also devoted a decade of his ministry-far more than any other white preacher during the development of Texas statehood - to black slaves.” 
     

  • Private John Barton, who served with Hood’s Texas Brigade, one of the most storied fighting units of the Civil War, lost an arm in the cornfield at Sharpsburg (Antietam).  He later served as County Sheriff for several terms.  (Terry has a copy of his full-uniform photo, probably taken in Richmond in 1861, and the Colt navy pistol which was tucked into his belt in the photo.)  (yDNA identified on 106 markers)
     

  • Private Richard Hodges, ran away from his home state of Tennessee as a teenager.  He enlisted in the 22nd Texas Infantry in 1862.  In 1864, he was under arrest for desertion.  (This is the only branch of his family that can’t be traced into the 18th century.  Family genealogists had suspected that Richard changed his name or possibly wasn’t really from Tennessee.  Terry has used DNA testing to prove that Richard really was a Hodges and now has some leads on his family in Tennessee - which will hopefully lead to a breaking through the blank wall of Richard’s heritage.)  (yDNA identified on 74 markers)
     

  • Joseph James Barton, raised by his grandmother and great-aunt after his mother died when he was three months old.  Partnered with two uncles in the cattle ranching business on the High Plains of Texas shortly after the Comanche Indians were subdued.  Upon learning that a railroad was going to pass through his ranch, JJ built a town and beautiful home.  The railroad didn’t come and terrible blizzards killed most of his cattle.  The town was moved away and only the big house and a few sections of land were saved.  Eventually, the house was donated and moved to the National Ranching Heritage Center, where it is the centerpiece of their outdoor museum.  (Terry played in the house as a boy and grew up on a remnant of the great ranch.)  Terry has prepared and delivered a presentation on the story of the Barton House and family several times.  (yDNA identified on 106 markers)

Terry has really "caught the bug" and now leads (or co-leads or sponsors) a number of his ancestral Surname DNA Projects.  Unfortunately, he hasn't found a male to represent all of his families.