Jacob Barrett

JACOB “JAKIE” BARRETT WAS BORN ABOUT 1825 in New York. Little is known of his early life. He was of the proper age to have served in the Civil War, but multiple men of the same name appear in military records, making any definite identification impossible.

By the early 1870s, Barrett was living in Pioche, Nevada, where he worked as a cook for Frank Schoonmaker at the Cosmopolitan Restaurant. By the end of 1872, he had gone into business for himself, operating a small establishment at the foot of Pioche Street, advertising cakes and confectioneries “made to order on short notice.”
What brought Barrett to Tonopah—and when—remains unknown. It was there, however, that he died of heart failure on October 26, 1905. His brief obituary stated that he had come to Nevada in 1858 and was well known in Candelaria, Bodie, and other early mining camps. At the time of his death, he was peddling peanuts and candy on the streets of Tonopah.

He left behind no known family, no detailed record, and little more than a name and a passing notice in the paper. Like many who followed the mining frontier from camp to camp, Jacob “Jakie” Barrett lived by small trades and constant motion—and when his heart finally failed him, Old Tonopah Cemetery became his last stopping place. Save & Exit