As I mentioned in my previous post about Barrington, the borough’s historical society has kept extremely detailed records. I was going through the History of Barrington by members of the Historical Society once again and came across some interesting little details.
The book had the home defense survey of adult males from 1917-1918.
“The incorporation of Barrington occurred the same time as the United States entered World War I, the Spring of 1917,” this section began. It continued, “Many communities felt the need to protect themselves from plots to overthrow the government. The munitions plant at Eddystone, Pennsylvania was blown up killing and injuring hundreds. The Frankford Arsenal had an explosion. Although these may not have been the work of saboteurs, many Americans were worried about such activities. Public Safety Committees were appointed in each state with sub-committees in each municipality. Home Guards were organized in the spring of 1917, subject to the call of the mayor of each community.”
The following are some pieces of information I pulled out from the adult male census that followed as a result of these events. I thought a few of them were interesting examples of what was important in that day. I am taking the following from the book, though many, many names are obviously excluded, and they are not in any particular order here. They are merely numbered to make the beginning and end of each entry clearer.
1. NAME: ADAMS, Frank
AGE – BORN: 41 – Harrisonville, NJ
OCCUPATION: Timekeeper
FATHER – BORN: Mahlon – Trenton, NJ
MOTHER – BORN: Martha – Woodstown, NJ
REMARKS: Private, NJ Volunteers, Spanish-American War
2. NAME: CULBERTSON, George W. Jr.
AGE – BORN: 27 – Philadelphia, Pa.
OCCUPATION: Printer
FATHER – BORN: George – Philadelphia, Pa.
MOTHER- BORN: Mary McKegge – Philadelphia, Pa.
REMARKS: Has motorcycle
3. NAME: FAHRBACK, Charles
AGE – BORN: 50- Philadelphia, Pa.
OCCUPATION: Carpenter
FATHER – BORN: John – Germany
MOTHER – BORN: Anna – Germany
REMARKS: Olive & Baptiste Aves. Speaks German. FATHER was vet of Civil War
4. NAME: GILLMAN, Sam
AGE – BORN: 53 – Fulstock, Russia
OCCUPATION: Foreman
FATHER – BORN: Harry – Bulstock Russia
MOTHER – BORN: Ida – Bulstock, Russia
REMARKS: Spoke Jewish, Polish, German & Russian
5. NAME: HUDSON, Benjamin
AGE – BORN: 45 – Yorkshire County, Bengley, England
OCCUPATION: Blacksmith
FATHER – BORN: Charles – England
MOTHER – BORN: Mary Ann – England
REMARKS: Naturalized 21st Jan. 1901. Owned automobile
6. NAME: JOHNSON, Fleming L.
AGE – BORN: 34 – York Pa.
OCCUPATION: Supervising Clerk
FATHER – BORN: Fleming L. – York Pa.
MOTHER – BORN: Annie E. – York Pa.
REMARKS: Kingston Avenue – Can operate telegraph
7. NAME: MAURER, Alexander
AGE – BORN: 36 – Philadelphia, Pa.
OCCUPATION: Painter
FATHER – BORN: Harry – Philadelphia, Pa.
MOTHER – BORN: Kathryn – Philadelphia, Pa.
REMARKS: Reading Avenue. Seaman experience
8. NAME: SMITH, Guy S.
AGE – BORN: 29 – Philadelphia, Pa.
OCCUPATION: In the Army
FATHER – BORN: James S. – Willimantic, Conn.
MOTHER – BORN: Nettie D. – Brewsters, New York
REMARKS: Cabinet Maker
9. NAME: WATSON, E. M.
AGE – BORN: 39 – Muncie, IN.
OCCUPATION: Office Mgr.
FATHER – BORN: Frank W. – Muncie, IN.
MOTHER – BORN: Cordelia – Muncie, IN.
REMARKS: Can operate auto
When I went for my tour of the historical sites of 
