Brig. Gen. Elias Barbee
Campbellsville, Taylor County, Kentucky
Marker Inscription
Brig. Gen. Elias Barbee. Born 1763. Died 1843. Served in Rev. War from Culpeper Co., Va. His five brothers, Daniel, John, Joshua, Thomas and William, also served in Revolution. Elias Barbee came early to what is now Taylor County. Lived eight miles N.W. of Campbellsville. He was appointed Major in 1792, Colonel in 1797, and Brig. General, in 1799, in Ky. Militia, 16th Regt., Green Co., Ky. (Reverse) Brig. Gen. Elias Barbee - Represented Green Co. in Kentucky Senate. In 1822, Senator Barbee introduced a bill in the Senate calling for establishment of the present Kentucky School for the Deaf at Danville, Ky. Bill drawn up by Judge John Rowan, passed by Legislature and signed by Gov. Adair, establishing on April 10, 1823, first state-supported school for the deaf in the United States.
Erected by Kentucky Historical Society
The Story
Elias Barbee (1763-1843) served in the Revolutionary War from Culpeper County, Virginia — as did all five of his brothers — before settling in what became Taylor County and rising through the Kentucky Militia to brigadier general. As a state senator he championed education for the disabled: in 1822 he introduced the bill, drafted by Judge John Rowan and signed by Gov. Adair, that on April 10, 1823, established the Kentucky School for the Deaf at Danville.
Why it matters
Barbee's bill created the first state-supported school for the deaf in the United States, a milestone in the nation's slow embrace of public responsibility for educating all its citizens.
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Related people
- · Elias Barbee
- · John Rowan
- · John Adair
Related events
- · Founding of the Kentucky School for the Deaf
Themes & tags
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