The Robert Barber House
In July 1810, John Barber (1748-1843) of York District, SC purchased 267 acres from Daniel Cain of Lincoln County, NC for the sum of $450.00.  The property is located near the 74 Bypass and Countryside Road.  John maintained his York District residence but continued to acquire property around his original acreage.  In 1842, John sold 564 acres of land, located in what now is Cleveland County, to his son Robert for $787.00.  On August 25, 1846, Robert sold 102 acres of that land to his brother Samuel.

Robert married Sarah Stroud about 1839 and moved to Cleveland County in the early 1840s.  Robert and Sarah had one child, Mary, born in 1841. Through research and family history we believe that Robert and his family were the original Barbers to live in the house. Robert died in 1856.  Sarah and Mary are listed on the 1860 census where Mary is listed as attending school that year.  Mary married Robert N. Crawford of York, SC, in 1861 who received a large portion of land as Mary’s dowry. Crawford died in battle during the Civil War sometime around 1865.  Robert and Mary Crawford had one child, John.  Mary and John lived with Sarah until she re-married in 1868 to Rev. Philip R. Elam, a Baptist minister.  Mary and Philip had five children.   Rev. Elam died in 1901 and Mary’s death date is being researched. 

In 1881, Sarah widow of Robert Barber died in-testate.  George Washington Ware, a carpenter and farmer, who lived near the Barber property, bought the land at auction in 1885. According to Ware family information the property included this log-framed house.   Tenants who worked on the Ware family farm lived in the house until the 1950s.  H. O. “Toby” Williams, grandson of George W. Ware, donated the house to the KM Historical Museum Foundation in 2002. 

Dating The House
This log-framed house was photographed, each log numbered and disassembled for moving to its new location.  Many volunteers and craftsmen have worked hard to reconstruct this structure as authentically as possible.  During the process of reassembling the house, the Museum enlisted the advice of knowledgeable architectural historians, archaeologist, preservationist, and conducted many hours of research.           

At this time it is believed that the house was built after 1810 and before 1845.  The late Federal architectural style and the hall and parlor floor plan and two chimneys were commonly used during this time.  The construction techniques and nails used in the original house are also from this same time period. 

Building Techniques
The two rooms on the first floor had horizontal pine paneling on the walls. The ceilings were also covered with boards with a small crown molding around the rooms.  Also, a six inch beaded baseboard was in both rooms. Much of the original wall covering is being used but many pieces were damaged beyond use. The boards from the walls in the garret or loft have been recycled to the first floor to complete one room. The dividing wall between the two rooms on the first floor has tongue and groove vertical boards. At sometime in the future the interior walls will be white washed. The smaller room or parlor will be exposed to show the chinking. The notched out areas for furring strips that were used to hold the interior paneling and exterior clapboard, are very early, if not original to the house.  The Board of Directors agreed to chink the log house at this time but further research will be conducted on this issue of exterior clapboard. The enclosed box stairs to the garret or loft and the closet are original to the house. The second floor was normally used as sleeping quarters for children and storage areas.  Shutters have been installed temporarily over the window openings.  Later the windows will be replaced with sashes and probably four over four glass panes.  The two stone chimneys, with brick tops, have been reconstructed with the original materials.  There was a detached kitchen for cooking and at a future date this will be constructed.

Some of the logs used in reconstructing the house are from the Robert Patterson log house built around 1800-1810.  The Patterson log house was located on Dixon School Road and King’s Creek. The Board approached Mrs. Mae Humphries, owner, for permission to remove some of the logs from the collapsed original structure.  You can recognize these logs by their larger size, being oak instead of pine and no furring strip marks. Ongoing research will continue to uncover new information on the Barber House and construction techniques of the period.

The Barber House Hall was recently white washed as it would have been in the 1840s.

The soup course is being served at the
Barber House.