b. March 4, 1818, in Greensburg, Kentucky; d. January 18, 1895, in Warfield, Kentucky. Barret came to Sangamon County, Illinois in 1835, and farmed with his father near Island Grove. He later purchased a farm southwest of Springfield. Barret served as a deputy clerk of the Sangamon County Circuit Court during the 1840s. He was a soldier in the Mexican War and served under Colonel Edward D. Baker in the Fourth Illinois Regiment. Barret was wounded at Cerro Gordo, Mexico on April 18, 1847. He married Eliza B. Anderson of Greensburgh, Kentucky, on June 1, 1848. They had two sons, Anderson Lee and James Douglas. Barret was elected as a director of the Sangamo Insurance Company in May 1857, and was elected to the board of directors of the Pana and Springfield Railroad in October 1859. In 1850, Barret was a farmer with real estate valued at $30,000. By 1860, his real estate was worth $180,000 and he possessed personal property valued at $8,000. During the Civil War, Barret organized the Tenth Illinois Cavalry to replace regiments being withdrawn from their regular duty among the Indians on the plains. After the war he became interested in coal and salt manufacturing along the Big Sandy River in Eastern Kentucky.