Who is Barney Wheeler?

I’ve researched the Wheeler side of my family­ for the past ten years.  I began tracing their lineage systematically one generation at a time beginning with my father James Browder Starks, his mother Gladys Wheeler Starks, her father David Isaac Wheeler, and his father Barney Wheeler.  The trail of information that I uncovered was interesting and exciting, and led to a wonderful discovery of family history.  Although I know there is more to learn, I have paused for an instant to write their story and to gain momentum for the next leg of the journey.

Barney Wheeler is my paternal 2 x’s great-grandfather, and he is the oldest ancestor I have on the Wheeler branch of the family tree.  At times, Barney was difficult to locate in the records until I stumbled upon the name “Bonny” Wheeler.  I'm not sure if Bonny was his nickname or a spelling variation based on how the name was pronounced.  Either way, Bonny was used more often than not in the records.  Although I don’t know his parent’s names, I do know they were from Virginia.  Barney was born circa 1850 in Georgia when Millard Fillmore was President and Georgia was a slave state.  Approximately 90% of Blacks were enslaved in the United States just prior to the Civil War, and even more were enslaved in the southern states.  Since I haven't found a record that shows Barney was a free man of color, more than likely he was born a slave.

The search for Barney’s slave owner was also difficult, but it is critical in breaking through that 1860 brick wall that many African Americans face when researching their family history.  I made three assumptions in tackling the research.  First, when Barney’s family was freed they took on the surname of their slave owner.    Second, there is a slave listed on the schedules whose description matches Barney's.  Third, Barney was living near the slave owner after Emancipation.

Charles A. Wheeler was a slave owner in 1850 in Floyd County, Georgia.  He owned 11 slaves and had $10,000 in real estate.  By 1860, his assets had increased.  He owned 40 slaves , and moved to Chattooga County, Georgia.  His real estate increased to $18,000, and his personal estate increased to $39,425.  He was the only Wheeler in both counties who owned slaves, and he was one of the largest slave owners.  If my assumptions hold true, Charles Augusta Wheeler was Barney’s slave holder and he was the reason for our family surname Wheeler.  On, January 19, 1861, Georgia seceded from the Union and everything changed for both the slave and slave owner.

1879 Map of Chattooga County, Georgia

Like my Wheeler ancestors, Chattooga County has its own history prior to the Civil War.  It is located in the northwest corner of Georgia on the Alabama border, and is 40 miles south of the Tennessee state line.  It was named after the Chattooga River, and the land was originally settled by the “Mound Builders” a culture of nomadic indigenous people from North America.  Later, the land was settled by the Creek Nation and then the Cherokee Nation.  The Cherokee lived near Broomtown in the Shinbone Valley until the Native Americans were removed from the land through the “Trail of Tears” in 1829.  The land was then divided and given to the Europeans through the Cherokee Land Lottery of 1832.  The Lottery transformed the land into a thriving agricultural community that brought new settlers to the area, and impelled the local Legislature to establish Chattooga County in 1838.  One year later, Summerville was incorporated the county seat, and by 1840 the population was 3,438.

After Georgia was readmitted to the Union in June 1868, Barney married Adelia “Delia” Merrill on Christmas Day that same year in Chattooga County, Georgia.  Barney was 18 and Delia was a sweet 16 years old bride.  They had only been freed five years earlier in 1863 as children, and they didn’t travel very far from their meager beginnings.  In 1870, they lived in District 968 near Broomtown with their two children Arthur and Catherine.  Barney earned wages as a farmer and Delia took care of the home.  They were both illiterate because Georgia’s slave codes of 1848 prohibited a slave from being taught how to read or write.

Barney and Adelia's marriage record 1868

There were other Wheeler families in the community. Next door to Barney lived Zack and Ann Wheeler, and their four children including a son named Barney who was 11 years old and Agustas (named similar to slave owner) 6 years old. Zack was born in Virginia and was 45 years old.  The probability of kinship between these neighbors is high.  During that period, family ties kept relatives living in close proximity to one another.  In 1880, the population in Chattooga had grown to 10,021. Barney and Delia were still living in District 968 but now in Alpine with their seven children and a cousin named Harry Mitchell.  This was my first siting of my great-grandfather David Isaac Wheeler who was one of the children living in the household.  He was 6 years old. Several houses away were two more Wheeler families.  One family was David and Jane Wheeler and their daughter Irene.  The other family was Irene Wheeler and her four sons.  These families could also be related to Barney.

By 1880, Barney worked as a sharecropper in an agricultural labor system set-up during Reconstruction.  Since Barney didn’t own land of his own, he worked the land owned by someone else, and at the end of the season he was paid a small “share” of the profit for the crop he labored.  Reconstruction also established the poll tax.  In 1871, Georgia was one of the first states to initiate a poll tax.  The tax had to be paid in order for the individual to cast their vote.  The poll tax under Jim Crow only disenfranchised Blacks because they could not afford to pay the tax, and as a result were not allowed to vote in the elections.  The Chattooga County Property Tax Digest shows that Barney paid each and every poll tax from 1871-1891.  I would like to believe that he was able to use his right to vote, but have not found proof that he voted.

1870 US population census

During Reconstruction the economy slowed in Chattooga.  The crops changed to meet demand, but eventually the cash crops dwindled causing many people to leave the south and travel north to a stronger economic industrial community.  In 1891, Barney moved to La Fayette, Georgia about 24 miles north of Alpine.  During this time frame, Barney and Delia were living separately.  Delia and the children resided in Summerville, and their son Bass was the head of household.  Barney moved further north to Chattanooga, Tennessee in 1900.  He was a boarder at the home of Aaron Sylar and he worked as a farm laborer.  In a changing world he learned how to read and write and got a job with The Chattanooga Plow Company in 1901.  The Chattanooga Plow Company was established in 1878 and was once one of the largest factories in the city.  They hired many Black employees that had previously been sharecroppers.  By 1901, they had a substantial growth in sales and had expanded into the Asian markets.

Chattanooga Plow Company

The rest of the family followed Barney to Chattanooga in 1903, but he and Delia continued to live separately.  After 1903, the next record found for Barney was the 1910 census in Chattanooga.  He was living in the household of E.H. Byrd as a servant.  Barney and his wife Delia were still living separate. He was listed as widowed and she was listed as divorced on the 1910 census.  She lived at 908 Fort Street. By 1911, he had moved to 1203 Walker Avenue in the Centerville neighborhood of Chattanooga.  His son David my great-grandfather owned a home right next door at 1205 Walker.  Both my father and grandmother grew up in this home.  I remember it well.   It was the Wheeler homestead and the address later changed to 2105 Walker Street.

19 11 Chattanooga City Directory

In 1911, Barney was about 61 years old.  I continued to look for more records but did not find any.  I searched the city directories from 1912 through 1922 and did not find a listing for Barney “Bonny” Wheeler.  He was also not located on the 1920 census record. Delia was on the 1920 census listed as widowed.  According to state law, Tennessee began keeping death records in 1914 (some counties like Chattanooga began earlier in 1908).  The state of Georgia began keeping death records in 1919.  I searched for a death certificate, but did not find one in Tennessee or Georgia for Barney.   

Information contained in this story can be proven through a source citation.  Please feel free to contact the author if you have questions 0411tmstarks@gmail.com.