b. 18/01/1841 Columbiana, Ohio. d. 03/11/1923 Pasco, Washington.
DATE OF MOH ACTION: 26/05 – 02/06/1863 Duck River, Tennessee.
Jesse T Barrick MOH
Jesse T Barrick was born in Columbiana, Ohio on January 18, 1841 to Isaac & Mary Barrick. Jesse’s father was a wheelwright according to the 1850 US Census. His two older brothers had already left the family home by the time Jesse was born, but he had 2 older sisters, Eliza and Nancy. His third sister, Rachel, was born five years later. In 1861, Jess married Sarah Ann Strang on August 24, in Faribault, Minnesota. When Jesse enlisted in
the US Army on October 2, 1861, only a couple of months later, Sarah also enlisted as an Army nurse.
The Third Regiment left Fort Snelling for Louisville, Kentucky in November of 1861, assigned to guard the Louisville and Nashville Railroads until March of 1862. After that they were assigned garrison duty at Murfreesboro until Forest’s attack there on July 13. The regiment surrendered, was paroled, and sent to Benton Barracks, Missouri. In late August, the Regiment was declared exchanged and moved to Minnesota to join Sibley’s campaign against hostile Sioux Indians. In January of 1863 it moved on to Cairo, Illinois, then on to Columbus, Kentucky. The Expedition to Fort Heiman, Tennessee and operations against area guerrillas began in early March. It was during this campaign that Jesse showed his outstanding bravery, winning him his Medal of Honor near the Duck River in Tennessee.
In his action report on June 4, 1863, Major Hanz Mattson wrote, “ The conduct of Corporal Jesse Barrick, Company H, Third Minnesota Infantry is particularly worthy of mention. He captured, single handed, the two desperate guerrilla officers, Major Algee and Captain Grizzel, both of whom were
together and well armed” Another report mentioned that Barrick had tracked the two officers from the main road and found them having lunch. Catching them off guard and aiming his gun as if to shoot, they shouted, “for God’s sake don’t shoot, we’ll surrender.” On July 10, 1864, Jesse mustered out of the Third Infantry and the following day reenlisted as Second Lieutenant Company G, US Colored Troops 57 Infantry. However, he mustered out a few months later due to an unknown injury, on October 15,1864.
Jesse and Sarah had a son, Harvey, born during the war in 1862. They returned to Rice County Minnesota after the war and continued to grow their family. Dorothy was born in 1866, son Lewis was born in 1869, and Alice was born in 1874. The family then moved to Unk, Minnesota where son
Jesse I was born in 1877, followed by Harry in 1884. The 1900 US census listed the family in Alexandria, Minnesota. After the war, Jesse was involved in the fur trade and eventually migrated further west to Suquamish, Kitsap County, Washington in 1909. He was finally awarded his Medal of Honor on March 3, 1912. Jesse Barrick died November 3, 1923, at the age of 82, in Pasco, Washington and was buried in an unmarked grave in the City View Cemetery in Pasco. It is unknown why he was buried in an unmarked grave.
In February 2000, mainly down to the efforts of Dwight Davison, a Navy Veteran and a Pasco Police Officer, and his “Barrick’s Brigade”, they were able to move and reinter Jesse’s remains to his final resting place in the Tahoma National Cemetery in Kent, Washington.
MOH CITATION:
While on a scout captured single-handed 2 desperate Confederate guerrilla officers who were together and well armed at the time.
BURIAL LOCATION: TAHOMA NATIONAL CEMETERY, KENT, WASHINGTON.
SECTION 8, SITE 108
LOCATION OF MEDAL: FAMILY.
