James Barnett Gibson Hardin (1874 - 1918)

Born 15 Aug 1874 in Mount Calm, Hill, Texas, United States

Ancestors

Died 5 Mar 1918 at age 43 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Scott Fair [send private message]

Biography

Research Notes

The eighth child born to James and Mary was Barnett G. Hardin "Gip" born in 1874. After his father's death, he took his father's name James Gibson Hardin. He married to Pearl Turner on Jan. 17, 1898 in Menard, Texas, some thirty miles away. He grew up in Ennis, Texas, finished school there, and was a first lieutenant in the Texas Army. He traveled with Jeff to Perry, and back to Texas where he settled at Cedar Creek, about 3 miles from town, neighbors with Joe Clements. This was Gip Hardin, not Gip Clements. Barnett, or "Little J. G." or "Gip" taught school in Junction for at least a year, and lived at the Turman Hotel across from the courthouse during 1897.

When Jeff was shot, Gip helped take care of him until he was better. Gip gave him a hard time for not killing the man who had shot him. After getting married, they returned to Juction and lived only 300 yards away from the Turman Hotel during 1897 where Gip returns to teaching. On Mar. 28, 1898, he shot and killed deputy Sheriff John Turman, his best friend. Gip went to dinner one night with a new acquaintance at the Turman Hotel. During their conversation, a murder case comes up, and after giving his opinion on the case, the new acquaintance calls him a liar. Gip then forgot that the ladies were present, and used some words he probaly shouldn't have. He turned and walked out. Outside, Deputy Sheriff Turman grabs Gip outside the gate, and jerked him back. It was nearly dark, and the new acquaintance asked him something, and Turman says, "Grab him." Gip saw Turman drawing his pistol and heard it discharge. He returned fire and fled. Gip was convicted of second degree murder and sentenced to 35 years in prison at Huntsville. Gip somehow gets a new trial and a change in venue to Fredericksburg, Texas, where he was given a much lighter sentence, and served only a few years at Huntsville. Gip and Pearl had two little girls: Clarice Hardin called "Tass" born on Sep. 6, 1900, and died in El Paso in 1938, and Varda Hardin born Aug. 1, 1903. After his release from prison, he and Pearl met and lived together for a short time, but separated, and Pearl and the girls went to El Paso and Marfa, Texas. Gip left Juction, and worked for a time at the stockyards in Ft. Worth. During World War I he had a job transporting horses to Europe for the United States Goverment. In 1918 he was crushed by two box cars while working in Florida. Pearl Turner Hardin died in 1951 and was buried at the Turner family plot in Junction Cemetery, Junction, Texas. Varda Hardin married Mr. Clack and they lived in El Paso, Texas. Varda and Mr. Clack had a daughter named Lavonne who married Col. Franklin LaHatte and they had a son born on Aug. 15, 1958.^[1]

Sources

1. ↑ http://thejournalnorthtexas.com/book/JohnWesleyHardin.html

• Find A Grave: Memorial #143937569