Individual Details

In 1848 Samuel Barr donated a lot at Lilleyville to the trustees of the Lutheran and German Reformed congregation and the corner-stone of a building was laid on November 3, 1849. The building was dedicated on June 16, 1851, and Rev. J. P. Shindel was installed as pastor of the Lutherans. This is known as "Samuel's church," so called for the man who donated the site. It was the second Lutheran church to be erected in Decatur township, the first having been commenced on Jack's creek, near Soradoville, in 1820, by the Lutheran and German Reformed congregations, but strife arose before the building was completed, and not until 1837 was a house of worship finished. It is known as the Stroup church, and after a few years passed entirely to the Lutherans.
The above excerpt is from page 362, "A History of the Juniata Valley and Its People", John W. Jordan, published New York 1913
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First Sunday School
The Mt. Union Times says: "Amos Smucker, of Brady township, was a pupil in the first Sunday school started in the Kishacoquillas valley. The school was started in Allensville about fifty-five years ago by SAMUEL BARR, an old school master, well known and of much repute at that time. Mr. Smucker afterwards helped start the first Sunday school ever in Mechanicsville (near Belleville) in 1840 and afterwards he was for many years Superintendent of the Sunday school held at the Metz school house, in Brady township. In those days Sunday schools were only open in the summer and boys went many miles to attend them, barefooted and coatless. A lady residing in Kishacoquillas valley says that she has frequently seen the present Governor of Pennsylvania in attendance at the old Presbyterian church barefooted. "He don't need to be ashamed of it. They didn't dress boys like circus clowns in the ante-bellum days."
Huntingdon Globe of Thursday, April 14, 1887
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From the 1886 biography of Samuel's son Thomas Lorenzo Barr in the "History of Cass County, Indiana" published in 1886 - Thomas was alive when this was written and presumably gave the information for his own biography. This is the 'ONLY' first-hand information we have about his father Samuel, so must take it as the most accurate.
According to the biography, Samuel was born in Lancaster County of German and Scotch-Irish descent. The biography says 'Dutch', but I believe it meant Deutsch (german). Samuel's sister (Jane Work) in the 1880 census says that her father was born in Ireland and her mother in Pennsylvania, so it was probably the mother who was of German descent. When a young man, Samuel moved to Huntingdon county and when son Thomas was 'of perhaps 8 years', the family moved to Mifflin county (Thomas was 8 years old in 1835, so about that year is when they moved from Huntingdon to Mifflin county). This is substantiated by the 1830 Huntingdon county census and the 1840 Mifflin county census. As Samuel and Sibella were married in December of 1820, they were obviously both single when the 1820 census was taken. Sibella was still living at home and Samuel 'could have been boarding' with a family in Huntingdon county where he was a teacher.

Birth	1 AUG 1795	Lancaster Co., PA
Marriage	28 DEC 1820	Sibella BELL
Marriage	29 SEP 1847	Sarah STOUDT
Marriage		Catherine A. (THIRD WIFE OF BARR, SAMUEL)
Death	8 SEP 1862	Lewistown, Mifflin Co., PA
Burial		Lind Memorial Cem., Lewistown, Mifflin Co., PA

Spouse	Sibella BELL (1797 - 1845)
Child	Rev. John Campbell BARR (1824 - 1895)

Spouse	Sarah STOUDT (1821 - 1858)
Child	Susan BARR (1854 - 1854)
Child	Sibella BARR (1854 - 1854)

Spouse

Catherine A. (THIRD WIFE OF BARR, SAMUEL) (1829 - 1889)

Notes