Durham County, NC – Mat Barbee - Durham's Hero, 1898 ~~~~~~~~~~ DURHAM HERO LAID TO REST The funeral of Mat Barbee of Durham A Touching Occasion Honors and Loving Tributes Heaped Upon the Dead An Immense Funeral Procession All Durham turns out to do Honor to the dead Patriot who gave up his Life for the Cause of Human Liberty Durham, NC, May 24 - Capt. J. A. White, Maj. Leo D. Heartt, Capt. June Sneed and Chief J. A. Woodall went up to Greensboro last night and returned with the remains of Durham’s martyr soldier, W. M. Barbee. The train was an hour and a half late, reaching here a little before 2 o’clock this morning. At a point opposite Watts’ hospital, the train was stopped and J. M. Colelough, the wounded man, was taken off by a delegation of physicians, nurses and friends, who were in waiting for that purpose. He was taken to the hospital where every attention is being shown him. There is hope now of his recovery. At the depot a delegation of old members of the D. L. I. were in waiting and escorted the remains of Mat Barbee to the armory where everything had been made ready for the dead hero. The ladies of Savannah, Ga. had contributed a large quantity of beautiful flowers that accompanied the casket. All day long great crowds of people have thronged the armory to take one last look at all that was mortal of him they loved in life and now mourned in death. There are many sad hearts in Durham and but few dry eyes. A delegation composed of Corporal J. L. Melvin and Privates Redmond, Jenkins, Belvin, Hooper, Candle, Eubanks and Tingen, accompanied the remains and will remain in Durham till tomorrow. Durham and Durham people gave abundant evidence this afternoon of their patriotism. They honored the brave men who have given up all to do battle in defense of human rights and the funeral of W. Matt Barbee was one of the largest ever seen here. At an early hour this morning the people began to pour in from the country and when the hour for the funeral came, the streets were densely packed. The last sad rites were conducted from the First Baptist Church, of which he was a trusted and honored member. It was a sad and solemn occasion and deeply affecting to the immense concourse of people assembled to pay a touching tribute to this stricken hero. The procession was formed in front of the armory on Main Street, where the body had been looked upon by thousands of tear-dimmed eyes during the day. The following order was observed: 1. The entire police force, in handsome and bright new uniforms 2. The clergy 3. The military 4. The hearse 5. Thirty-four young men bearing beautiful flowers in varied and exquisite design 6. The family of the deceased 7. His Sunday school class 8. The city officials and fire department The pall-bearers were of his former comrades, in full dress uniforms, of the Durham Light Infantry. The procession was commanded by Capt. E. J. Parrish, the former gallant captain of the Durham Light Infantry. In the ranks I noticed Maj. B. F. Dixon and Capt. Percy Gray, of the Second regiment, North Carolina volunteers; Col. Julian S. Carr, Maj. Leo D. Heartt, Maj. Arch Cheatham, Maj. Thomas J. Winston and Capt. J. H. Sneed of the North Carolina State Guard. The line of march was down Main Street to Mangum, up Mangum to the church. At the church the services were most impressive. The choir sang "Safe in the arms of Jesus." Rev. J. W. Wellons then announced "My Country Tis of Thee." A scriptural lesson was read by Dr. L. B. Turnbull. Rev. G. A. Oglesby read an appropriate hymn. Prayer was then offered by Rev. John N. Cole, chaplain of the Durham Light Infantry before the company entered into the service of the United States. Rev. Mr. Barber, pastor of the Second Baptist Church, then read "Servant of God, Well Done." Rev. W. C. Tyree, Mat Barbee’s pastor, then pronounced a fitting eulogy upon this Christian soldier. The remains were then taken to the city cemetery where in the presence of a great throng of people they were laid to rest. The procession to the cemetery must have been not less than a mile long. At the grave prayer was offered by Rev. W. C. Tyree and the benediction was offered by Rev. J. T. McCracken. Of the many deeply touching scenes during this sad day in Durham, the most touching was when a beautiful bouquet of carnations, accompanied by a letter of deep sympathy from Mrs. W. H. Bagley, mother of Ensign Worth Bagley, was handed to Mat Barbee’s grief stricken father and sister. Mrs. Barbee, his mother, was too feeble to come to Durham and Mrs. Bagley’s sweet letter and beautiful carnations were taken to her country home from mother to mother. Strong men wept bitterly as they witnessed this affecting scene. A monument is already begun and will beautifully mark the spot in the cemetery where Durham’s hero is laid. Source: The North Carolinian Newspaper Thursday, May 26, 1898 NC Archives & History Microfilm Comments: Mat Barbee joined the service during the Spanish-American War. His regiment was one of many who boarded a train - destination was Jacksonville, Florida. About seven miles south of Savannah, Georgia, at 5:45 AM on the 23rd of May, 1898, the third section of the train collided with a freight train, and the result was one killed and seven injured. W. M. Barbee of Company K was crushed between the cars and instantly killed. Of the seven men injured, only one was seriously injured. ______________________________________________________________________ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by Guy Potts – gpotts1@nc.rr.com ______________________________________________________________________