LUCAS,
AND ONWARD
TO AUNT NORMA
We left Phillipsburg, Ks. This morning and drove toward Lucas. Just north of Lucas we turned on a country road heading north and after several twists and turns we found where Jim’s great great grandparents homesteaded. Jim had found it before, (the last time was about 20 years ago) but with memory he found it again and this time we documented distances and roads as now there is road signs out there which makes it much easier. (Instead of ‘writing turn at this silo and go left’ we can say ‘turn on country rd. such and such’) which is so much better to find a place.
If any of you Barton’s want to go find it, let me know and we will send you a map.
We found the homestead place, nothing there now but foundation remnants and some trees, a large field with corn growing but it was neat to see the place. When we were there before you could still see where the root cellar was which before that was the dugout home that they had lived in before they built a house. Great grandmother Mahala Barton used to carry a .45 revolver in her pocket because of rattle snakes. Jim’s grandfather Allan joked that he cut his teeth on a .45 because when he was little and teething sometimes his grandmother would take out the cylinder, empty the cartridges out and let him use the cylinder as a teething ring. Later, Allan and an accomplice took Grandma’s pistol and some silver dollars and buried them like a treasure in an old tin box and then they could never remember where they had buried it or locate it again. It still could be there I Suppose. I bet if Grandma was still alive at that time she would not have been happy.
On the way back to Lucas we stopped at Del Hi Cemetery and looked up where Jim’s Great great grandfather Samuel is buried along with several children and babies they lost too early. There was also some other Barton’s buried there but I don’t know how they are related exactly without looking it up and I don’t have the genealogy with us. But may write more later.
Back in Lucas we went and talked to a local lady who was also one of the librarians in town and she showed us where her mother had told her that the Barton Livery stable was possibly located west of main St. off of 2nd St. south of 2nd along the alley between Russell and Wolf St. There is a foundation there approx. the right size, etc. but to try to affirm this we are going to send the lady a copy of the picture and then she can tell us if the photo was the stable in Lucas or the one in Lincoln. This wonderful helpful lady also said she had seen a photo of the old frame house located where the Garden of Eden is now located but the frame house would have been where grandpa Allan Barton was born.
On our return trip we may try to stop there and measure what the dimensions are for sure. . If that is the stable location the gable ends would face east and west.
So, on to Lawrence we finally headed to arrive at Aunt Norma and Uncle Don’s later than expected but we arrived safe and sound.
wildfirewyoming 