History of Saint James': The Barrys

Originally posted 02/11/2016

Seated in the nave, the focus of our worship is the Altar, the Altar Cross, and the great east window depicting the Ascension of Christ.  At the base of the Ascension Window is this inscription:

In memory of my dear Wife, Julia K. Barry

The Ascension Window Donated by The Barry Family

The Barrys

Major and Mrs. Barry were parishioners of Saint James’ Church soon after they came to Fauquier County in 1879 and purchased “Clifton,” a large farm near Warrenton, later renamed “Dunnottar” after the ancient family seat in Scotland.

Mrs. Barry, in whose memory the window was given, was from New York City.  Born Julia Kean Neilson in 1843, she was descended from prominent figures in early American history, including Governor Peter Stuyvesant and Robert Livingston, a Founding Father.  She was the great grand-daughter of General John Neilson and granddaughter of Colonel Nicholas Fish, both officers in the Revolutionary War.

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Robert Peabody Barry, also of New York City, was a Fourth Generation member of the Barry family of New York and New England.  He attended Columbia College and on the outbreak of the Civil War enlisted in New York’s Seventh Regiment which took part in defensive operations at the City of Washington.  He was commissioned Captain in the regular Army and served in the 16th U.S. Infantry 1861-65, with rank of Brevet Major on retirement.

Soon after the Civil War – on April 19, 1866, Julia Kean Neilson and Robert Peabody Barry were married.  That same year, they moved to Wilmington, N. C., where Robert and his brother formed a successful business, and dealt in cotton.  Later, Robert moved his business to Norfolk, Va., where they lived until retiring to Fauquier County.  The Barrys had seven children, five of whom survived, including Margaret Neilson Barry, grandmother of R. Barry Hamilton, who with his wife Elizabeth (Liz), are fellow parishioners of Saint James’ Church.  Members of the Barry family have been parishioners for 137 years!

Robert Barry

The Window

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Julia K. Barry died on November 27, 1910, one month following the disastrous fire of October 29 that destroyed Saint James’ Church, the parish church she knew so well.  Very soon thereafter, the Vestry and congregation decided to rebuild the church and Major Barry, now the widowed husband, wished to beautify the new edifice with a memorial to his beloved wife.  In 1911, at his request, the Lamb Studio designed the great east window we see today.

The first service at the reconstructed church was held on Sunday, June 23, 1912. Sadly, Major Barry died only a few months after the church was completed – on October 9, 1912.  We hope that he had the pleasure and reward of seeing the window in place that “resonates the force of Christ’s Glory” and is a perpetual memorial to his dear Wife, Julia.  Burial services for Robert and Julia were held at Saint James’ Church with interment in nearby Warrenton Cemetery.

(to be continued – the Barrys and Saint James’ Church)

Compiled: History Committee – Richard Gookin

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Having lived in New York City, Wilmington, N.C. and Norfolk, Va. and by then with substantial means, Major Robert Peabody Barry, his wife Julia and children, settled at “Clifton,” the large farm they acquired in Fauquier County in 1879 from the Payne family – landowners who were also members of Saint James’.  Later, renamed “Dunnottar,” the Barrys operated a successful working farm.  Tragedy befell, however, in the great blizzard of 1899 when their house burned to the ground.  Undaunted, they moved to another house on the farm, raised their children, and lived there the rest of their lives.

The Barrys were a well-educated cosmopolitan couple and were among those Americans and British who, in the 19th and early 20th centuries, traveled to Europe on the Grand Tour and often acquired works of art.  During one such tour, the Barrys purchased copies of several masterpieces by great artists in the collection of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence.  The paintings were brought to Clifton farm and some years later two of the works were given by the family to Saint James’ Church, where they are treasured today.

In the Parish House above the main stairway hangs a painting which reads:

The Adoration of the Shepherds – after the original by Honthorst – Given to the Glory of God and in memory of Major Robert P. Barry.

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This copy of the 1620 original takes on added significance because it was reported that the Uffizi Gallery’s original was destroyed by the Mafia in the Via dei Georgofili Massacre of 1993.

The other, originally painted c. 1506, hangs in the Parish House reception room above the case containing the 1611 Bible; it is a memorial to two daughters of the Barrys. The dedication plaque reads as follows:

The Madonna Cardellino – after the original by Raphael – To the Glory of God – In Loving Memory of Margaret Barry Keith and Julia Barry Horner

Note:  In 1913, soon after the demise of the senior Barrys, the Barry family gave the Town of Warrenton the Barry Fountain, a popular gathering place built in the intersection at Courthouse Square.  Surrounded by circular benches and plantings, and with water flowing from four outlets resembling lions’ heads, it provided water troughs for horses and dogs.  It remained in place until 1928 when it was removed on account of age and damage from the growing prevalence of automobiles.

Compiled: History Committee – Richard Gookin – February 2016

Sources: Family records; Warrenton, Virginia, A Unique History of 200 Years

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