"Adjutant General and State Senator"
"Charles Franklin Barrett"
Oklahoma

    The following information was obtained on January 19, 1998, from the Oklahoma Heritage Association.  This information was photocopied from the listing of inductees in the Oklahoma Hall of Fame.

    A native of Southern Ohio, he was born at Galion on January 1, 1861.   In 1869 the family moved out to Kansas, and thus Senator Barrett grew up practically on the frontier of the Middle West and as a boy imbibed the atmosphere of a new and progressive country.    His early education was acquired in the country schools of Washington County, Kansas, and in 1880-1881 he took a special course at the Kansas State Agricultural College at Manhatten, and while there learned the printer's trade.  After leaving the college, he taught one year in Washington County, and then entered upon his real life work as a journalist.

    In 1882, he became editor of the Journal at Greenleaf, Kansas, remained in charge for about two years, then for a year he turned his attention to farming and the raising of blooded stock in Washington County.  In the fall of 1884 he acquired a half interest in the Post at Washington and was sole editor and publisher of that newspaper for four years.  His newspaper work was always characterized by an aggressive forcefulness, a command of ideas and language in which to express them, and his editorial pen had always been resepcted and sometimes feared.  He was always on the democratic side whether in politics or in newspaper work.

    While running a newspaper at Washington he also read law, and in 1888 retired temporarily from newspaper work and engaged in the National Building Loan business as a state agent for an investment company of Lincoln, Nebraska.  In 1889, he visited a number of the cities in the South, but upon returning to Kansas City took up metropolitan newspaper work.

    Also in 1889 he went to Denver, Colorado and combined newspaper correspondence and political activities, and in 1891 participated in the great rush and early events at Creede and other mining camps in Colorado.  In 1892 he became the editor of the Star in Leadville, and during the same year, the State of Colorado went over to the populist party, and he then sold his newspaper interests and for a time was employed on the daily papers of Salt Lake City, Utah.  He then went to Helena, Montana, but on account of hard times resulting from the panic remained only a short time.  He also went to Evanston, Wyoming for a short period.  In 1893, he returned to Denver where he resumed newspaper work.

    On July 4, 1893, Mr. Barrett arrived in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and at once formed a connection with the Daily Press-Gazette, at that time the leading democratic paper in the territory.  He was editor until its consolidation with the Daily Oklahoma, which occurred after a bitter newspaper war between the two journals.  He then became managing editor of the consolidated paper and remained in charge until just prior to the election of 1894.

    In the spring of 1895, Mr. Barrett was admitted to the Oklahoma Bar and at the opening of the Kickapoo country and the establishment of Shawnee, Oklahoma, he moved to Pottawatomie County, locating first at Earlboro, where he practiced law until 1896 and then established his home at Shawnee.

    In the long fight for statehood and for the twin territories, Senator Barrett was an active factor and frequently represented his city and territory on committees chosen to appear before Congress to present the cause of Single Statehood.

    At the outbreak of the Spanish-American War, Mr. Barrett was Captain in a Shawnee company of the National Guard but owing to the fact that only volunteers were accepted, resigned his commission and enlisted as a Private in Company K of the First Territorial Regiment.  He became First Sergeant, and while the regiment was encamped at Albany, Georgia, he had his right leg broken while in the line of duty at the rifle range.  He was mustered out with his regiment February 13, 1899, and on returning to Oklahoma, after a long period of convalescence, he located at Perry.  For one year, he was associated in the practice of law with Hon. Thomas H. Doyle, later presiding Judge of the Criminal Court of Appeals.

    On September 26, 1900, he married Miss Capitola E. Millard, daughter of Captain Reece J. and Jane (Fowler) Millard, both natives of Pennsylvania.  Mrs. Barrett was born on May 15, 1881 at Dunlap, Kansas.  To their marriage were born three children:  Charles Franklin Barrett, Jr., Helen Jane and Wanda Charlotte, twins.

    In 1901, Senator Barrett established the Shawnee Herald, first as a weekly and later as a daily, and continued as its editor and manager until 1906.  During the Constitutional Convention he served as a clerk, and in the campaign of 1907 for the adoption of the constitution he was manager of the Democratic State Press Bureau.  In March, 1908, he was chosen Secretary of the State Board of Agriculture, and in organizing and perfecting the service of that state department he deserves the greatest credit.  On June 1, 1910, he resigned from his office as Secretary of the State Board of Agriculture to become publicity agent for a Shawnee development company.  It was in 1900 that he made his first campaign and was elected a member of the State Legislature from Pottawatomie County, and in 1912 he was elected to the State Senate from the 13th District.  In both houses he was easily recognizable as a leader, not only on the floor but in committee work.  His long and varied acquaintance with men and affairs in Oklahoma gave him more than individual influence, and his impress is on many department of the state's life.  (At the time of the writing of this listing, Senator Barrett was manager of the Democratic State Press Bureau, with headquarters at Oklahoma City).

    After recovering from the injury sustained in the Spanish-American War, he reinvested in the Oklahoma National Guard, and was advanced through the various grades until in 1907 he was commissioned Major, but in 1914 was relieved from active duty in the field and became Judge Advocate of the department.  For 20 years or more, he has shown a commendable zeal and activity on behalf of Oklahoma, is [was] loyal to every enterprise for the public good, and his activities deserve permanent record in the annals of the new state (Oklahoma)