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Chestertown in Kent County, Maryland — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
 

John Leeds Barroll

Publisher Accused of Treason and Exiled

 
 
John Leeds Barroll Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 28, 2012
1. John Leeds Barroll Marker
Inscription. John Leeds Barroll first walked these courthouse grounds as a prominent Kent County lawyer before becoming a newspaper publisher. He was admitted to the bar in 1852 and served as the county State’s Attorney, 1854–1856, then founded the Kent Conservator in 1859. Federal officials deemed treasonous an 1863 article reprinted in Barroll’s newspaper from the St. Mary’s Beacon, of Leonardtown, Md. Gen. Robert C. Schenck ordered a company of the 2nd Regiment Eastern Shore Volunteer Infantry to Chestertown, and Barroll was arrested on April 17. James L. Downs, the author of the original article, was arrested at the same time. In a May 5 letter to the Richmond Enquirer, Barroll and Downs described being held at Baltimore’s Fort McHenry and raged about their treatment. “We had not been allowed even a form of a trial, nor officially notified of the charges against us,” they wrote.

The pair were moved to Harpers Ferry and then marched to Winchester, Va., and finally to Newtown, Va. There they were released with a note that read “Guards pass James L. Downs and J. Leeds Barroll through the Federal lines, never again to return, under the penalty of being treated as spies.” Barroll eventually returned to Chestertown, however, and became involved in local politics, being elected to the Chestertown Town Commission in June 1866. He died
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an untimely death at age 36, on Aug. 6, 1866. His death notice reported that he went to bed that evening “in usual health,” and was found dead the next morning.
 
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Arts, Letters, MusicCommunicationsWar, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Maryland Civil War Trails series list. A significant historical month for this entry is April 1707.
 
Location. 39° 12.544′ N, 76° 3.921′ W. Marker is in Chestertown, Maryland, in Kent County. Marker can be reached from High Street, on the left when traveling south. Marker is on the Courthouse lawn. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Chestertown MD 21620, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. On This Site Stood the Courthouse (within shouting distance of this marker); Tercentenary Celebration (within shouting distance of this marker); A County Seat (within shouting distance of this marker); Common Cause (within shouting distance of this marker); Vietnam War 50th Anniversary Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); American Revolution Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); War of 1812 Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); Civil War Monument (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Chestertown.
 
John Leeds Barroll Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Adam Margolis, January 10, 2022
2. John Leeds Barroll Marker
John Leeds Barroll Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 28, 2012
3. John Leeds Barroll Marker
John Leeds Barroll Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Adam Margolis, January 10, 2022
4. John Leeds Barroll Marker
Eleanora Horsey Barroll as a Young Woman. image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Lawrence Barroll Christmas
5. Eleanora Horsey Barroll as a Young Woman.
John Leeds Barroll image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 28, 2012
6. John Leeds Barroll
John Leeds Barroll (1830-1866), a prominent Lawyer and publisher, is buried at Shrewsbury Cemetery, Kennedyville, Maryland.
Elleonora Keene Horsey Barroll image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 28, 2012
7. Elleonora Keene Horsey Barroll
Elleonora Keene Horsey Barroll (1835-1905) married John Leeds Barroll on December 5, 1854. They had five children, two of them dying before the age of five. She is buried beside him.
My darling wife, words are inadequate.... image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 28, 2012
8. My darling wife, words are inadequate....
While John Leeds Barroll was exiled to the confederacy, his 2-year old daughter, Elleonora Lennox, died on Christmas Eve 1864. After learning of her death months later, Barroll wrote this letter to his wife Elleonora.
Kent County Courthouse image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 28, 2012
9. Kent County Courthouse
The Kent County courthouse, legal arena for John Leeds Barroll, was completed in 1860.
Kent County Courthouse image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 28, 2012
10. Kent County Courthouse
Anno Domini, 1860 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, December 28, 2012
11. Anno Domini, 1860
Date on the Kent County Courthouse
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on January 19, 2022. It was originally submitted on October 20, 2007, by Bill Pfingsten of Bel Air, Maryland. This page has been viewed 3,103 times since then and 31 times this year. Last updated on November 24, 2021, by Carl Gordon Moore Jr. of North East, Maryland. Photos:   1. submitted on January 21, 2013, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland.   2. submitted on January 11, 2022, by Adam Margolis of Mission Viejo, California.   3. submitted on January 21, 2013, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland.   4. submitted on January 11, 2022, by Adam Margolis of Mission Viejo, California.   5. submitted on December 24, 2010, by Lawrence Barroll Christmas of Oak Park, Illlinois.   6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11. submitted on January 21, 2013, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland.

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Mar. 19, 2024