Sextus Barbour

Dr. Sextus Barbour was a prominent American physician and planter. He was a son of Philip P. Barbour, making him a scion of the Barbour political family.

Early life and education

Barbour was born on July 26, 1813, in Orange County, Virginia. He was the sixth child of Philip P. Barbour and his wife Frances Todd Johnson.
Barbour was a matriculant at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in 1834.

Writings

Sometime between 1839 and '43, Barbour wrote "Directions for Writing" which is widely cited in literature on writing and grammar:
A hiring agreement in 1846 between Barbour and his eldest brother Edmund Pendleton Barbour serves as a historically significant source for the safety of, hiring of, and caring for slaves. The agreement did not list a price for a slave's services but included the standard food and clothing clause along with an additional clause stating that "the boy Edwin not be allowed to cross the Libertyville millpond or the watercourse when it is high."

Death

Both Barbour and his brother Thomas Barbour, also a physician, died of cholera during the 1848–49 St. Louis cholera epidemic. The epidemic killed 4,500 people, one-tenth of the population of St. Louis. Barbour died on December 20, 1848, and his brother Thomas died the following year in June 1849.