The Barber-Mizell Feud

 

 

Aftermath

 

          The hasty departure of the barbers did not bring peace to the area.  A flood saturated the region’s farmland and destroyed the farmers’ crops.  They turned to cattle as the only viable source of income, which resulted in even more rustling, murder, and lawlessness.

 

       In the single year of 1871, there were forty-one reported murders in Orange County.  The fact that only ten cases were ever brought to court and NO guilty verdicts returned speaks for the ineffectiveness of the Reconstruction Era justice system in dealing with crime.  Peace was finally achieved when private citizens like Philip Leonardy of St. Augustine realized the lawlessness was cutting into the industry’s profitability and worked tirelessly to mediate disputes.

 

          Feelings between the feuding families continued to simmer below the surface for many years.  In fact, the feud did not really come to an end for at least three generations when William J. Barber—a grandson of the murdered Isaac Barber—and Mary Ida Mizell—a descendant of Judge John Mizell—were married.  Today, though verbal barbs might still be tossed about, they are generally good-humored in nature.   

 

 

More:

1.              Back to Introduction

2.              The Barber Family

3.              The Mizell Family

4.              The Law Clamps Down

5.              Orlando Burns

6.              Ambush at Bull Creek

7.              The Judge’s Fury

8.            A Drowning in Lake Conway

9.            Additional sources and links