Obituary courtesy of Sally Taylor Stuckey

Scans by Kenneth Randolph Taylor

GEORGE DICKEY BARRETT

Born January 25, 1910, in Habersham, County, Georgia, where his father, George Washington Barrett (1873-1956), served as pastor of the Cornelia and Demorest Methodist Episcopal Churches, South, from late 1908 to late 1910

Died Friday, February 17, 1989, at Atlanta, Georgia

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George Dickey Barrett was my grandmother Nell Barrett Taylor’s brother.

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The person who clipped the obituary from The Atlanta Constitution did not note the date or page number.

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Above:   The Historic Sanctuary, Gray United Methodist Church, Gray, Georgia

Source for All Images = Kenneth Randolph Taylor

Date for All Images = Monday, May 4, 2015

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Last Monday, May 4, when I was driving from Athens to Americus, I stopped in Gray, just north of Macon.  My great-grandfather, George Washington Barrett (1873-1956), served the Gray Methodist Episcopal Church, South (now the Gray United Methodist Church), from late 1917 to late 1919.  The now “Historic Sanctuary” was about two years old then, for the congregation had rebuilt after a fire had destroyed the previous structure.  The building I photographed did not exist in the current outward form at the time.  The choir loft and the Sunday School rooms in the back did not exist until the 1940s.  I had seen pictures of the old building via Google street view, but walking on the grounds was much better, as I expected it to be.  Street view helped me to know what to look for when I arrived.

I think of other connections to my family’s history.  Firstborn son Randolph Winburn Barrett (1905-?), may God rest his soul, however or whenever he died, would have been an adolescent while there.  Second child Sarah Claiborne Barrett (1908-1954) was a child.  Third child George Dickey Barrett (1910-1989) would have been old enough to have memories of the place.  Fourth child Lucy Seguin Barrett (1912-2001) might have had some memories of her time in Gray.  My grandmother, Nell Fox Barrett (later Taylor) (1915-2001), was too young to have memories of her time there.  The same was true of sixth (and last) child, Margaret Elizabeth Barrett (1917-2007).

Below:  Views of the Side of Building Away from the Street

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The old building is lovely.  I am glad that it is still in active use for its intended purpose.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

MAY 9, 2015 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF THOMAS TOKE LYNCH, ENGLISH CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER AND HYMN WRITER

THE FEAST OF ANNA LAETITIA WARING, HUMANITARIAN AND HYMN WRITER; AND HER UNCLE, SAMUEL MILLER WARING, HYMN WRITER

THE FEAST OF SAINT GREGORY OF NAZIANZUS, BISHOP OF CONSTANTINOPLE

THE FEAST OF SAINTS WILLIBALD OF EICHSTATT AND LULLUS OF MAINZ, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOPS; SAINT WALBURGA OF HEIDENHELM, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBESS; SAINTS PETRONAX OF MONTE CASSINO, WINNEBALD OF HEIDENHELM, WIGBERT OF FRITZLAR, AND STURMIUS OF FULDA, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOTS; AND SAINT SEBALDUS OF VINCENZA, ROMAN CATHOLIC HERMIT AND MISSIONARY

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CHILDREN, GRANDCHILDREN, AND GREAT-GRANDCHILDREN OF ROBERT WESLEY BARRETT (1860-1924) AND SARAH JANE WINBURN BARRETT (1838-1883), PART II

Scans Source = Kenneth Randolph Taylor

Robert Wesley Barrett (1860-1924) was the first child of William Wesley Barrett (1835-1911) and Sarah Jane Winburn Barrett (1838-1883) and the father of George Washington Barrett (1873-1956), my great-grandfather.  Nell Barrett Taylor (1915-2001) was my grandmother.

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Above:  The Title Page of Songs From a Parsonage Kitchen

Image Source = Kenneth Randolph Taylor

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EDITOR’S NOTE:

My great-grandmother wrote this for her two sons, Randolph Winburn Barrett (1905-?) and George Dickey Barrett (1910-1989).  Both lived up to her wish, so far as evidence attests.  And, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, I assume the best.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

FEBRUARY 13, 2014 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF SAINTS AQUILA, PRISCILLA, AND APOLLOS, COWORKERS OF THE APOSTLE PAUL

THE FEAST OF ABSALOM JONES, EPISCOPAL PRIEST

THE FEAST OF ANDREAS KATSULAS, ACTOR

THE FEAST OF SAINT LICINIUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF ANJOU

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For “My David and Jonathan”

Go with them, O my Master,

As they fare forth today;

Look through their eyes,

Speak through their lives,

And use their hands, I pray,

In tender, loving service,

Where’er there may be need;

And let their feet

Walk in Thy steps;

And may they sow good seed

That shall grow and bring forth fruit–

Yea, e’en an hundred fold;

In them Thy life

Reincarnate,

Each thought and act controlled

By the power of Thy love,

Till life on earth shall end;

Then may they dwell

Forevermore

With Thee, their Saviour, Friend.

NELLIE SEGUIN FOX BARRETT

GAINESVILLE, GEORGIA

1923

From the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, November 7, 2009

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He was the son of George Dickey Barrett (1910-1989), my granduncle, sister of Nell Barrett Taylor, and son of George Washington Barrett.

He was also a first cousin of the novelist Olive Ann Burns.  Carolyn Burns Barrett (April 4, 1913-May 4, 1996), Dick’s mother, was a younger sister of William (Arnold) Burns (1893-1973), father of Olive Ann Burns.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

AUGUST 29, 2013 COMMON ERA

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RICHARD (DICK) BARRETT

Richard (Dick) Barrett, of Snellville, Georgia, passed away Thursday, November 5, 2009, suddenly of an apparent heart attack.  Dick is survived by his wife of 27 years, Linda Lee Barrett; two daughters, Christina and Andrea Barrett, both of Snellville, GA; sister and brother-in-law, Elizabeth and Wolf Seka of Rochester, NY; mother-in-law, Donna Hunt of Columbus, GA; other relatives and a host of many friends.  Dick was preceded in death by his father, George Dickey Barrett and mother, Carolyn Burns Barrett.  Dick was an Atlanta native, and attended Grady High School.  He graduated from the Georgia Institute of Technology, with a B.S. and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering.  He worked for various Atlanta engineering firms, and most recently for the State of Georgia in Information Technology Management.  Dick was an active member of Cannon United Methodist Church, having served as secretary of the administrative board for many years.  Dick was a dutiful and devoted family man, and was always involved in and supported his daughters’ activities.  He loved to travel with his family, visiting many countries around the world.  The Service Celebrating the Life of Dick Barrett will be held Tuesday, November 10, 2009, at 4:00 P.M. at Cannon United Methodist Church with Rev. Tom Elliott and Rev. Amy Morgan officiating.  Interment Eternal Hills Memory Gardens.  The family will receive friends from 5:00 P.M. to 8:00 P.M. on Monday at the funeral home.  Those desiring may make donations to Cannon United Methodist Church, 2424 Webb Gin House Rd., Snellville, GA 30078, in memory of Dick Barrett.

Above:  A Photograph from 1964 or 1965; Taken at Summerville, Georgia

Image Courtesy of Randolph Fleming Taylor

Top Row, Left to Right:

Randolph Fleming Taylor, my uncle;

George Dickey “Dick” Barrett (1910-1989), my grandmother’s brother; and

David Rogers (John Whisnant’s son-in-law) of Rome.

Front Row, Left to Right:

John D. Taylor, III, my father;

Richard “Dick” Fox Barrett (died November 5, 2009), my father’s cousin;

John Whisnant, brother-in-law of John D. Taylor, Jr., my grandfather;

Cousin Eugene “Gene” Taylor; and

two sons of David Rogers, one also named David.

Above:  George Washington Barrett

An image taped inside a family history book

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From the Journal of the North Georgia Conference of The Methodist Church, 1956, pages 110 and 111

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GEORGE W. BARRETT

The Reverend George W. Barrett was born September 3, 1873, and left us for his heavenly home June 12, 1956.  He was the son of William Wesley and Sarah Jane Winburn Barrett.  He was graduated from Young Harris College in 1899.

On January 17, 1900, he was happily married to Miss Nellie S. Fox.  He is survived by his wife and following children:  George Dickey, Lucy S., Nellie F. (Mrs. John D. Taylor), and Margaret E.  Another daughter, Sarah C., passed away June 12, 1954.  His home was one of culture and refinement whose spiritual atmosphere reflected the presence of the Master who was the real head of the house.

Brother Barrett joined the North Georgia Conference in 1899.  He was ordained deacon in 1899 by Bishop Hendrix and elder in 1903 by Bishop Key.  His appointments were as follows:  Alpharetta; Blue Ridge; Palmetto; Douglasville; Cornelia; Tate; Acworth; Union Point; Asbury, Augusta; Lithonia; Gray; Tignall; St. Paul, Gainesville; Winder; St. Luke, Augusta; Commerce; Rockmart; Second Avenue, Rome; Underwood, Atlanta, from which he retired in 1945.

He was at the table of the Secretary of the Conference for twenty-eight years–for twenty-one years the Secretary of the Conference, and editor of the Conference Journal.  He was a natural born Secretary.  In correspondence with the Publishing House as Editor of the Journal he was often addressed as “the model Secretary.”  In District Conferences or other church meetings, where a secretary was needed, they usually thought of Brother Barrett, if he were present, and elected him.

George W. Barrett was not only a gentleman but a gentle man.  Smoking flax he would not quench and the bruised reed would not be further damaged in his hands.  The ugly habit of self-assertion and self-seeking was not in his make-up.  He walked in deep humility with his Lord, content to feel that always the Master was at hand.

Brother Barrett was a sound Gospel preacher.  His sermons were not cluttered up with trivialities but dealt with the profound truths of the Holy Word.  He followed in the traditions of the fathers and was little moved by modern trends.  His people loved and trusted him.  They believed that in the midst of pretense and sham here, indeed, was a real man of God.  His life was an orderly one.  He was meticulous in his attention to details.  There was method in all that he did.  He was punctual in his appointments and prompt in his obligations.  He had strong convictions and was never ashamed or afraid to declare them.

For more than eighty-two years Brother George W. Barrett had lived among us, walking in the straight and narrow way, his face always toward the morning.  At last the weary feet could carry him no farther.  The gentle knight laid down his shining sword.  The mantle of his noble calling fell from his shoulders unsoiled.  His nerveless hands could no longer hold the working tools of his loved employ.  So he left us–the earth better for his coming, heaven richer for his going–to be at home with God.

WALLACE ROGERS

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EDITOR’S COMMENT:

It is, I admit, an overwritten obituary in places, but that is excusable.  If one cannot become flowery in an obituary, where can one do so?

I do recognize one glaring omission:  There is no mention of his firstborn son, Randolph Winburn Barrett (1905-?), who disappeared in the 1930s.  I propose no single reason for this, and I hope that nobody thinks I am.  In fact, I suspect that there are at least two reasons for this and almost everything else in the realm of the human race.  I do know that, for a set of reasons, Randolph became a topic to avoid in the household, so I am not surprised that he is absent here.  Maybe the primary reason was grief.  I have no evidence to suggest otherwise, so I extend the benefit of the doubt.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

AUGUST 20, 2013 COMMON ERA

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Above:  George Washington Barrett

An image taped inside a family history book

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I have derived most information from Journals of the North Georgia Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, (through 1938) and of The Methodist Church (1939 to 1945 and 1956).  I have also drawn information from George Washington Barrett’s small book, Descendants of John Barrett and William Winburn (Decatur, Georgia:  Banner Press, Emory University, 1949).  And I have added my own knowledge from other sources.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

AUGUST 20, 2013 COMMON ERA

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Some Preliminaries:

Most pastoral moves occurred in November.  The North Georgia Conference made the transition to Summer moves after George Washington Barrett retired.

The Methodist Episcopal Church, South (1845-1939) reunited with its parent, the Methodist Episcopal Church (1784-1939), and a sibling, the Methodist Protestant Church (1828-1939) to form The Methodist Church (1939-1968).

The Methodist Church (1939-1968) joined with its relative, the Evangelical United Brethren Church (1946-1968), to create The United Methodist Church.

I recommend Google Street View as a wonderful way to get good images of some of these church buildings.

The Conference my great-grandfather as a troubleshooter frequently, hence many short pastorates.   Often he had only a few days’ notice before a move.

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1894

Licensed to preach on November 15

1895-1899

Student, Young Harris College, December 1, 1895-May 22, 1899

1899

Admitted to the North Georgia Conference, the Methodist Episcopal Church, South

Ordained Deacon by Bishop Eugene R. Hendrix, D.D., L.L.D.

1899-1902

Pastor, the Alpharetta Circuit (five churches)

Supply Pastor, starting July-November 1899, filling in for the pastor, who was ill

1900

Married Nellie Seguin Fox on January 17

1902-1904

Pastor, Blue Ridge Church

1903

Ordained Elder by Bishop Joseph Staunton Key

1904-1906

Pastor, Palmetto Circuit (five churches)

1905

Firstborn son, Randolph Winburn Barrett, born

1906-1908

Pastor, Douglasville Circuit (two churches)

1908

Second child, Sarah Claiborne Barrett, born

1908-1910

Pastor, Cornelia-Demorest Circuit (two churches)

A few years ago, when I taught some courses at the Demorest campus of Piedmont College, I noticed a certain building across the street.  The Demorest Womens’ Club house looked like an old church.   That is because it used to be one.  It was the home of the Demorest congregation of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South (MECS).  Demorest also had a congregation of the Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC).  The two Demorest congregations merged in 1939, when their denominations did, moving into the stately MEC building.  That building, unfortunately, has gone the way of all flesh.  In the late 1940s, however, the Methodist and Congregationalist churches of Demorest merged, forming the Demorest Methodist Congregationalist Federated Church (currently a United Church of Christ and United Methodist Church affiliate), in the home of the former Congregational Church, just up the hill and behind the old MECS church.  The bell in the yard of the Federated Church is from the former MEC structure.

So, when I look at the clubhouse of the Demorest Womens’ Club, I see a building in which my great-grandfather preached.

1910

Third child, George Dickey Barrett, born

1910-1911

Pastor, Tate-Nelson Circuit, Marietta District (two churches)

1910-1912

An Assistant Statistician of the North Georgia Conference

1911-1913

Pastor, Acworth Circuit (four churches)

1912

Fourth child, Lucy Seguin Barrett, born

1912-1917

Statistician of the North Georgia Conference

1913-1914

Pastor, Union Point Circuit (four churches)

1914-1916

Pastor, Asbury Circuit, Augusta (two churches)

1915

Fifth child, Nell Fox Barrett, my grandmother, born on February 2

1916-1917

Pastor, Lithonia Circuit (three churches)

1917-1919

Pastor, Gray Circuit (three churches)

1918

Sixth child, Margaret Elizabeth Barrett, born

1918-1924

An Assistant Secretary of the North Georgia Conference

1919-1922

Pastor, Tignall/Broad River Circuit (two churches)

1922-1925

Pastor, St. Paul Church, Gainesville, Georgia

1924-1944

Secretary of the North Georgia Conference

1925-1927

Pastor, First Church, Winder

1927-1944

Editor of the Conference Journal

1927-1929

Pastor, St. Luke Church, Augusta

1929-1931

Pastor, Commerce Circuit (two churches)

1931-1935

Pastor, First Church, Rockmart

George Dickey Barrett (George’s son) made new carved oak furniture–an altar rail, a lectern, pulpit chairs, the communion table, and choir panels for the church in 1932.  He donated his time and labor, but the church had to hold fundraisers to finance the purchase of materials.  The church used this furniture until 1954.  Sources = http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=360&dat=19831109&id=NogxAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Oz4DAAAAIBAJ&pg=2676,2069657 and family accounts

1935-1937

Pastor, Second Avenue Church, Rome

1937-1945

Pastor, Underwood Memorial Church, Atlanta

1943-1956

Resided at 866 Euclid Road, NE., Atlanta, in a house his wife, Nellie Sequin Fox Barrett, inherited

1945

Retired

1956

Died on June 12

Above:  The Parsonage of Winder Methodist Episcopal Church, South, Winder, Georgia

Scan of a photograph reproduced in C. Fred Ingram, ed., Beadland to Barrow:  A History of Barrow County, Georgia, from the Earliest Times to the Present (Atlanta, GA:  Cherokee Publishing Company, 1983), page 265

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George Washington Barrett (1873-1956), my great-grandfather, served as the pastor of Winder Methodist Episcopal Church, South, from November 1925 to November 1927.  Thus he, his wife, Nellie Sequin Fox Barrett (1876-1958). and four or five of their six children lived in this parsonage for two years.  Randolph Winburn Barrett (1905-?) had left the nest in 1922, at Tignall (https://taylorfamilypoems.wordpress.com/2013/08/11/a-mothers-prayer/).  Sarah Claiborne Barrett (1908-1954) might have left the next before November 1925, but I know that the four youngest children were part of the household at the time of the 1930 Census.   So they would have been part of the household in 1925-1927.  They were:

• George Dickey Barrett (1910-1989);
• Lucy Seguin Barrett (1912-2001);
• Nell Fox Barrett, my grandmother (1915-2001); and
• Margaret Elizabeth Barrett (1918-2007).

Scan of a photograph reproduced in C. Fred Ingram, ed., Beadland to Barrow:  A History of Barrow County, Georgia, from the Earliest Times to the Present (Atlanta, GA:  Cherokee Publishing Company, 1983), page 279

The brick structure of the church, erected in 1904, looked like this until the early 1920s, when renovation occurred.  The building had its new front doors, front porch, and front steps when my great-grandfather and his family arrived.  The parsonage was on the right, behind the church building.

Above:  The former home of First United Methodist Church, Winder, Georgia, Circa 2010

Image from the former website of the Sanctuary of the Holy Spirit, Winder, Georgia

The First Methodist Church relocated to a new plot of land in 1964.  When I found the old building in 2010, the Sanctuary of the Holy Spirit, an independent congregation, had occupied the building and undertaken the work of restoring it.  Alas, a fire resulting from a lightning strike destroyed the structure last Summer.

When I compare the older and more recent church photographs and recall what I saw when walking the ground, I notice that the old house on the left in the older photograph was still there in 2012 and and that the old parsonage was not.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

AUGUST 20, 2013 COMMON ERA

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A Related Post:

https://taylorfamilypoems.wordpress.com/2012/07/28/former-home-of-first-methodist-church-winder-georgia/

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Above:  The Undated Primary Document from My Great-Grandmother

Scan Courtesy of Barbara Taylor Jackson

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EDITOR’S NOTE:

My great-grandmother gave birth to two sons and four daughters.  The two sons were Randolph Winburn Barrett (1905-?) and George Dickey Barrett (1910-1989).

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

AUGUST 17, 2013 COMMON ERA

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1.  Jesus, Lord of little children,

Lord today as yesterday,

From Thy radiant throne in glory,

Bend to hear us while we pray.

2.  By the shores of blue Genes’ret,

On their heads Thy hands were laid,

In Thy loving arms were babies,

Nestled gladly unafraid.

3.  While their mothers heard Thee saying,

“Let the children come to me,

Such as these make up Thy kingdom,

And in heav’n my Father see.”

4.  So to Thee we bring our baby,

Praying Thou wilt bless him now,

And in the years to follow,

With Thy grace his life endow.

NELLIE SEGUIN FOX BARRETT

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http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2013/08/17/jesus-lord-of-little-children/

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