Multnomah County OR Archives Biographies.....Barrett, J. F. December 11, 1867 - October 13, 1926
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File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Ila L. Wakley iwakley@msn.com April 21, 2008, 3:34 pm

Author: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company

     J. F. BARRETT, a lifelong resident of Portland who for many years was 
actively and successfully identified with the business interests of the city 
as a dealer in electric fixtures, passed away October 13, 1926, at the age of 
fifty-nine, having been here born on the 11th of December, 1867. His father, 
John Barrett, who arrived in Portland in the early ‘60s, first turned his 
attention to the retail plumbing business and subsequently began operations on 
a wholesale scale, conducting the only concern of the kind in the city and 
becoming notably successful therein. When in 1896 he disposed of his interests 
to the Crane Company he was the foremost representative of the plumbing 
business in the Pacific northwest. He had attained the age of seventy-nine 
years when he passed away September 12, 1910, his remains being interred in 
Riverview cemetery, He left considerable real estate, for as the years passed 
and his financial resources increased he had made judicious investments in 
property. On the 1st of January, 1865, in old St. Mary’s Catholic church of 
Portland, he was married to Miss Margaret O’Connor, a daughter of Thomas G. 
and Alice (Slattery) O’Connor, both of whom were of Irish lineage. She was 
born at Lebanon Springs, New York, and on the 12th of March, 1863, arrived in 
Portland in company with her father and two brothers, Michael and John. Her 
father served as deputy under Marshal Hoyt and was killed while on duty. 
Michael O’Connor, one of the best known of Portland’s pioneer citizens, was 
proprietor of the What Cheer Hotel, a famous hostelry of the early days. John 
and Margaret (O’Connor). Barrett became the parents of seven children: J. F., 
Katherine A., Thomas W., Joseph M., Edward D., Inez and Rodney G. The mother 
of the above named is still living.
     J. F. Barrett, whose name introduces this review, pursued his education 
in Portland’s public schools and in St. Michael’s College. He joined his 
father in the plumbing business while still a student and remained with him 
until the wholesale department was sold to the Crane Company, when the elder 
Barrett retired and the younger continued in the retail trade. Soon thereafter 
J. F. Barrett began dealing in electric fixtures and for a number of years 
conducted his interests at the corner of Morrison and Eleventh streets in 
Portland under the name of the Barrett Electric Company. Eventually he 
disposed of this business and became associated with the firm of Kingery & 
Mars in the manufacture of electric fixtures but after a time again turned his 
attention to the retail electric business, in which he was engaged until his 
death.
     On the 9th of February, 1893, Mr. Barrett was united in marriage to Julia 
Beeson, daughter of John J. and Julia de Neveu Beeson, both of whom are 
deceased. Her father, who in 1877 came to the Pacific coast from Wisconsin, in 
which state he had been identified with journalistic interests, located in 
Vancouver, Washington where on the 1st of January, 1878, he purchased the 
Vancouver Independent, which he published very successfully for two decades, 
when he sold his interests. He developed the Independent from a comparatively 
small and unimportant sheet into a paper of large circulation, great influence 
and enviable prestige.  Mr. and Mrs. Barrett have two sons and two daughters, 
as follows:  John F., who married Sada Rhoades and has one child, Frances; 
Gerald Joseph, who was accidentally killed in France while serving under 
Captain Hauser in Company F of the Eighteenth Engineering Corps; and Elizabeth 
and Catherine, twins, who are both at home and are trained nurses.
	The military record of Mr. Barrett shows service as one of the old 
members of the famous Company K of the Oregon National Guard.  He became the 
fifty-second member of the Multnomah Club, also belonged to the Lang Syne 
Society and fraternally was affiliated with the Benevolent and Protective 
Order of Elks and the Knights of Columbus.  He is a member of the Apollo Club 
and is well known in musical circles.  His memory formed a connecting link 
between the primitive past and the progressive present and his efforts were a 
contributing element in Portland’s up-building and development.  His widow, 
who resides at 1465 East Taylor street, has an extensive circle of warm 
friends in the city.


Additional Comments:
History of the Columbia River Valley From The Dalles to the Sea, Vol. II, 
Pages 500-503

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