page 1 - Mature Living in the Southeast

THE LEGENDARY STORY OFObediah’sOkefenokBy Helen GardnerImagine what your lifewould be like without technology.Nothing powered by electricity.Go around your houseand look at all the electricaldevices, and think of what youwould do if these things weregone. What would yourkitchen be like without a refrigeratorand running water? Supposeyou didn’t have an autoand horses, boats, or walkingwere your only means of traveling.Back during the early1800’s looking after a housewas hard work, because therewere no labor saving devices,and water often had to bebrought in from a well afterbeing drawn by hand or froma nearby stream. Fires had tobe laid and lit and lighting wasby candles or oil lamps.On small family farms, allmembers had to take part in thework, which would begin earlyin the morning and continueuntil sundown.These were the signs of thetime when Henry Obediah Barbermoved his family to theouter edge of the greatOkefenokee Swamp.A towering 6’6" figure, hewas perhaps as unique as theplace he called home. He wasmarried the first time to NancyStephens who died in 1874. Hethen married Matilda Tatum in1875. She died in early part of1898. They had nine children.Then in the later months of1898 he married for the thirdtime to 26 year old Martha AnnKnight. They divorced in 1907.He was the father of twentychildren.Obediah was born in BryanCounty on July 25, 1825, sonof Isaac and Frances Barberand the grandson of MosesBarber. He and his first wifestarted their life on the northeastedge of the Okefenokee ona 490-acre farm that theybought. They had 11 children.From 1857 to 1870 heserved as a Justice of Peace, thefirst in Ware County, and thenin Pierce County when his districtwas made a part of Pierce.He also served as a Privatein the 24th Battalion, GeorgiaCalvary during the Civil War.In 1870, he sold his farm,resigned his public office, andmoved his family six milesacross the prairies of the northernOkefenokee to a new farmon the northwestern edge of theswamp located in Ware. Herehe built a log home, and soonhad a large herd of cattle andhogs, and a reputation as abrave bear hunter. There aremany stories about Obediahbut the most famous was thetale of his battle with a bear.Obediah, like most swampersin his era, had cows and hogsthat ran free in the pineywoods. His hogs mostly rangedalong the edge of the swampin an area known as the FiveMile “P’int”. He kept a closeMature Living Winter Edition 19