Please use the edit button when making requests as it gives me a link to the memorial.

I would like to ask if you would take a moment to place a flower at my mother and father's memorials, Vada L. Barnes (1932-2018) and Gene H. Barnes (1928-2007), Wichita, Sedgwick County, Kansas? Other memorials include my brother-in-law Mark McCorkle (1961-2023), Michael "Mike" Breit (1960-1991), Dana Schaber (1959-1991), Tim Berlin (1960-2012), Donald "Donny" Hilger (1952-2004), Markayla Kelly (2003-2021), Robert Elmore (1954-1977), Ken Brown (1976-2021) and Chris Willems (1961-1991) outstanding people/friends/family who left us far too soon. Many thanks to those who have left flowers.
Note that Chris C. Willems died in the line of duty while protecting us all as a highly awarded Sedgwick County Sheriff. His marker accurately reads, "Here Lies A Hero." Chris left a wife, two daughters, his mother and a grandmother. Chris is further remembered at the Sedgwick County Law Enforcement Memorial located at Central and Main Streets in Wichita and at the national memorial in Washington, D. C.

This is one of my favorites. An inscription from a monument in Oxford Cemetery, Oxford, Sumner County, Kansas. "In memory of the mothers, grandmothers, sisters, daughters, wives, sweethearts and lady friends of the soldiers of 1861-1865 who saved the union and freed the prisoners who were bought and sold like cattle." Erected by J. M. Buffington, 1926.

Holly B. Sims 1929-1951 was a 1947 Wichita North High graduate who gave the ultimate sacrifice as a POW in the Korean War. Please leave a flower if you can.

Another memorial of interest is that of a hunter of man-eating big cats in India, Edward James "Jim" Corbett (1875-1955). Hunting alone and on foot, he answered these pleas for help in ventures other hunters described as too difficult or simply suicide. In 30 years Corbett put an end to 33 man-eating tigers and leopards that had claimed 1,500 human victims and years of sheer terror. For instance, the Champawat maneater (tiger) and the Panar maneater (leopard) had claimed more than 400 lives each before they "met" Corbett. He achieved this while on the big cats' own turf without aid of automobile or modern communication and while on leave from his job. And he never accepted a reward. Only after the urging of his friends Corbett wrote his first book, "Man-eaters of Kumaon" where the hunter and the hunted frequently switched roles making other thrillers seem like children's nursery rhymes. This book became a world-wide best seller with Corbett sending his first royalties to soldiers blinded in the war. When his books were released he became the most noted hunter of man-eaters, and the passing years have only verified what was suspected - that Corbett was without equal. Never one to refuse a plea for help, he later switched his gun for a camera, and became a spokesperson for big cats and all endangered wildlife. Following Corbett's death India's first national park and the indoChinese tiger were renamed in his honor.
Just 100 years later, with much of its habitat gone, the wild tiger is almost gone.

At one time or another, we have all looked at a cemetery and felt that the people buried there are not only long gone, they're also long forgotten. And if it happens to be our relatives or friends it can leave an especially empty feeling. But, Findagrave empowers us to put an end to those concerns. Therefore, I now view cemeteries as a place where people can be remembered and their stories saved and shared rather than lost.

In 2002, I interviewed Marguerite (Barnes) Dow (1897-2003) of Mount Hope, Kansas. She recalled her grandfather, Armstead L. Barnes (1843-1923), telling of riding off on his own horse to help the South win during the Civil War. I didn't fully focus on it until later that Marguerite had lived in 3 centuries!

Courthouse janitor Daniel Cason died in 1911 in Newton, Kansas. The rest is that he was a former slave and Union Civil War soldier. A real survivor.

True Grit fans should take a look at the Findagrave memorial I entered for John David "J. D." Trammell (1837-1888), a Deputy U. S. Marshal who served under the famed "hanging judge" Judge Isaac C. Parker of Fort Smith, Arkansas. Trammell was shot and killed by moonshiner John Franklin Cogburn (1867-1912), less commonly known as "Rooster," and his cousin. Both were sentenced to 2 years and served just 1 year. "Rooster" became a minister and died in Yell County, Arkansas. Calvin Whitson (1845-1926), the person suspected as being the model for Marshal Rooster Cogburn, became a Marshal under Judge Parker after his son was killed serving in that capacity. Whitson, as photos show, pulled his hat down to cover his left eye which was damaged in the Civil War. In the remake, actor Jeff Bridges as Cogburn has a patch over his right eye. Many of these bits and pieces of history seem to have been used in the book, "True Grit."

Please see the Findagrave memorial for Andrew Hynes (1750-1800). He was a step-son of our ancestor James Barnes who died in Kentucky 1795, and was appointed guardian to James' daughter Jemimah. Known as Col. Hynes, he had served as an officer in the Revolutionary War previous to becoming a land surveyor in the wilderness of what became Kentucky. It was there in 1779 that Hynes and two other settlers built forts to provide defense against Indians. Hynes was appointed by Virginia Gov. Patrick Henry as one of 9 members of the Nelson County Court, and was also one of the delegates from Nelson County that formed the First Constitution of Kentucky in 1792, thereby creating the state of Kentucky (from the western part of Virginia). Near his fort, Hynes laid out lots and streets establishing the town of Elizabethtown, Kentucky which he named after his wife. Later he was named as one of the trustees to lay out the town of Louisville, Kentucky. The will of Andrew Hynes spans several pages and includes his statement that his mother is Hannah Barnes. His land holdings listed by name do not indicate acreage, but the remainder total more than 10,000 acres. Hynes established himself as a person of considerable accomplishment, wealth and influence. His daughter, Nancy, married William P. Duvall, who would become the first Governor of Florida. Duvall's early life was the basis of a book by Washington Irving who achieved international fame as the author of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle." A photo of Hynes' home in Bardstown, Kentucky, which stood for about 180 years until 1973, is shown on his Findagrave page.

You may not be aware of one of the most interesting characters connected to this Barnes family. He's Ben S. Dowell (1818-1880), brother-in-law of Armstead Barnes (1809-1854) shown below. Ben served in 2 wars, owned a saloon in what is now El Paso, Texas, became its first elected mayor and experienced adventures in the Old West that make some stories of that time seem a bit tame. Ben is the subject of a 1976 book by Nancy Hamilton, was portrayed on an episode of the television show Death Valley Days," mentioned in a novel by famed Western writer Louis L'Amour, etc., etc. You've missed out if you don't take a look at Ben Dowell on Findagrave.

The fact (our relative) Charles L. Barnes (1892-1980) lived until so recently and yet was the son of a Civil War soldier would seem remarkable enough. But, another detail of his ancestry is mind boggling to me. Charles and his twin sister, Hallie, were the youngest of their siblings, their mother, Inez, being born in 1850. When Inez's father, Josiah Dickerson, was born in 1797, George Washington was not only alive - he was still serving as President! How young is our country?

Within most people, there is a basic desire to learn the events of their family's history. The really fortunate ones get to experience those moments of discovery. As Gordon Lightfoot wrote and sang, "to know the wherefore and the why."

We are descendants of passengers of the ship Mayflower who landed in Massachusetts in 1620. In 2005, Denise Bates, a descendant of Jacob Hayden (1836-1906) became a member of the Mayflower Society by supplying the required documentation proving that this Hayden line descends from John Alden and Priscilla Mullins, passengers on the Mayflower. Jacob Hayden was a brother of Sophia S. Hayden that married Elijah Hicks Barnes (1845-1933).
The romance of John Alden and Priscilla Mullins was the subject of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's 1858 poem, "The Courtship of Miles Standish."
Every family has its important links to history. This is certainly one of ours.

My Barnes ancestry;
James Barnes, Died in 1795 in Nelson County, Kentucky.
Elijah Barnes (1777-1845) Died in Nelson County, Kentucky.
Armstead Barnes (1809-1854) Died in Meade County, Kentucky.
Elijah Hicks Barnes (1845-1933) Died in Trimble, Clinton County, Missouri.
George Richard Barnes (1870-1944) Died in Montrose County, Colorado.
Elijah Harry Barnes (1902-1973) Died in Wichita, Kansas.
Gene Harry Barnes (1928-2007) Died in Wichita, Kansas.

Please use the edit button when making requests as it gives me a link to the memorial.

I would like to ask if you would take a moment to place a flower at my mother and father's memorials, Vada L. Barnes (1932-2018) and Gene H. Barnes (1928-2007), Wichita, Sedgwick County, Kansas? Other memorials include my brother-in-law Mark McCorkle (1961-2023), Michael "Mike" Breit (1960-1991), Dana Schaber (1959-1991), Tim Berlin (1960-2012), Donald "Donny" Hilger (1952-2004), Markayla Kelly (2003-2021), Robert Elmore (1954-1977), Ken Brown (1976-2021) and Chris Willems (1961-1991) outstanding people/friends/family who left us far too soon. Many thanks to those who have left flowers.
Note that Chris C. Willems died in the line of duty while protecting us all as a highly awarded Sedgwick County Sheriff. His marker accurately reads, "Here Lies A Hero." Chris left a wife, two daughters, his mother and a grandmother. Chris is further remembered at the Sedgwick County Law Enforcement Memorial located at Central and Main Streets in Wichita and at the national memorial in Washington, D. C.

This is one of my favorites. An inscription from a monument in Oxford Cemetery, Oxford, Sumner County, Kansas. "In memory of the mothers, grandmothers, sisters, daughters, wives, sweethearts and lady friends of the soldiers of 1861-1865 who saved the union and freed the prisoners who were bought and sold like cattle." Erected by J. M. Buffington, 1926.

Holly B. Sims 1929-1951 was a 1947 Wichita North High graduate who gave the ultimate sacrifice as a POW in the Korean War. Please leave a flower if you can.

Another memorial of interest is that of a hunter of man-eating big cats in India, Edward James "Jim" Corbett (1875-1955). Hunting alone and on foot, he answered these pleas for help in ventures other hunters described as too difficult or simply suicide. In 30 years Corbett put an end to 33 man-eating tigers and leopards that had claimed 1,500 human victims and years of sheer terror. For instance, the Champawat maneater (tiger) and the Panar maneater (leopard) had claimed more than 400 lives each before they "met" Corbett. He achieved this while on the big cats' own turf without aid of automobile or modern communication and while on leave from his job. And he never accepted a reward. Only after the urging of his friends Corbett wrote his first book, "Man-eaters of Kumaon" where the hunter and the hunted frequently switched roles making other thrillers seem like children's nursery rhymes. This book became a world-wide best seller with Corbett sending his first royalties to soldiers blinded in the war. When his books were released he became the most noted hunter of man-eaters, and the passing years have only verified what was suspected - that Corbett was without equal. Never one to refuse a plea for help, he later switched his gun for a camera, and became a spokesperson for big cats and all endangered wildlife. Following Corbett's death India's first national park and the indoChinese tiger were renamed in his honor.
Just 100 years later, with much of its habitat gone, the wild tiger is almost gone.

At one time or another, we have all looked at a cemetery and felt that the people buried there are not only long gone, they're also long forgotten. And if it happens to be our relatives or friends it can leave an especially empty feeling. But, Findagrave empowers us to put an end to those concerns. Therefore, I now view cemeteries as a place where people can be remembered and their stories saved and shared rather than lost.

In 2002, I interviewed Marguerite (Barnes) Dow (1897-2003) of Mount Hope, Kansas. She recalled her grandfather, Armstead L. Barnes (1843-1923), telling of riding off on his own horse to help the South win during the Civil War. I didn't fully focus on it until later that Marguerite had lived in 3 centuries!

Courthouse janitor Daniel Cason died in 1911 in Newton, Kansas. The rest is that he was a former slave and Union Civil War soldier. A real survivor.

True Grit fans should take a look at the Findagrave memorial I entered for John David "J. D." Trammell (1837-1888), a Deputy U. S. Marshal who served under the famed "hanging judge" Judge Isaac C. Parker of Fort Smith, Arkansas. Trammell was shot and killed by moonshiner John Franklin Cogburn (1867-1912), less commonly known as "Rooster," and his cousin. Both were sentenced to 2 years and served just 1 year. "Rooster" became a minister and died in Yell County, Arkansas. Calvin Whitson (1845-1926), the person suspected as being the model for Marshal Rooster Cogburn, became a Marshal under Judge Parker after his son was killed serving in that capacity. Whitson, as photos show, pulled his hat down to cover his left eye which was damaged in the Civil War. In the remake, actor Jeff Bridges as Cogburn has a patch over his right eye. Many of these bits and pieces of history seem to have been used in the book, "True Grit."

Please see the Findagrave memorial for Andrew Hynes (1750-1800). He was a step-son of our ancestor James Barnes who died in Kentucky 1795, and was appointed guardian to James' daughter Jemimah. Known as Col. Hynes, he had served as an officer in the Revolutionary War previous to becoming a land surveyor in the wilderness of what became Kentucky. It was there in 1779 that Hynes and two other settlers built forts to provide defense against Indians. Hynes was appointed by Virginia Gov. Patrick Henry as one of 9 members of the Nelson County Court, and was also one of the delegates from Nelson County that formed the First Constitution of Kentucky in 1792, thereby creating the state of Kentucky (from the western part of Virginia). Near his fort, Hynes laid out lots and streets establishing the town of Elizabethtown, Kentucky which he named after his wife. Later he was named as one of the trustees to lay out the town of Louisville, Kentucky. The will of Andrew Hynes spans several pages and includes his statement that his mother is Hannah Barnes. His land holdings listed by name do not indicate acreage, but the remainder total more than 10,000 acres. Hynes established himself as a person of considerable accomplishment, wealth and influence. His daughter, Nancy, married William P. Duvall, who would become the first Governor of Florida. Duvall's early life was the basis of a book by Washington Irving who achieved international fame as the author of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle." A photo of Hynes' home in Bardstown, Kentucky, which stood for about 180 years until 1973, is shown on his Findagrave page.

You may not be aware of one of the most interesting characters connected to this Barnes family. He's Ben S. Dowell (1818-1880), brother-in-law of Armstead Barnes (1809-1854) shown below. Ben served in 2 wars, owned a saloon in what is now El Paso, Texas, became its first elected mayor and experienced adventures in the Old West that make some stories of that time seem a bit tame. Ben is the subject of a 1976 book by Nancy Hamilton, was portrayed on an episode of the television show Death Valley Days," mentioned in a novel by famed Western writer Louis L'Amour, etc., etc. You've missed out if you don't take a look at Ben Dowell on Findagrave.

The fact (our relative) Charles L. Barnes (1892-1980) lived until so recently and yet was the son of a Civil War soldier would seem remarkable enough. But, another detail of his ancestry is mind boggling to me. Charles and his twin sister, Hallie, were the youngest of their siblings, their mother, Inez, being born in 1850. When Inez's father, Josiah Dickerson, was born in 1797, George Washington was not only alive - he was still serving as President! How young is our country?

Within most people, there is a basic desire to learn the events of their family's history. The really fortunate ones get to experience those moments of discovery. As Gordon Lightfoot wrote and sang, "to know the wherefore and the why."

We are descendants of passengers of the ship Mayflower who landed in Massachusetts in 1620. In 2005, Denise Bates, a descendant of Jacob Hayden (1836-1906) became a member of the Mayflower Society by supplying the required documentation proving that this Hayden line descends from John Alden and Priscilla Mullins, passengers on the Mayflower. Jacob Hayden was a brother of Sophia S. Hayden that married Elijah Hicks Barnes (1845-1933).
The romance of John Alden and Priscilla Mullins was the subject of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's 1858 poem, "The Courtship of Miles Standish."
Every family has its important links to history. This is certainly one of ours.

My Barnes ancestry;
James Barnes, Died in 1795 in Nelson County, Kentucky.
Elijah Barnes (1777-1845) Died in Nelson County, Kentucky.
Armstead Barnes (1809-1854) Died in Meade County, Kentucky.
Elijah Hicks Barnes (1845-1933) Died in Trimble, Clinton County, Missouri.
George Richard Barnes (1870-1944) Died in Montrose County, Colorado.
Elijah Harry Barnes (1902-1973) Died in Wichita, Kansas.
Gene Harry Barnes (1928-2007) Died in Wichita, Kansas.