Lieutenant Thomas C. Barnard

Thomas C. Barnard

Lieutenant Thomas Barnard was shot and killed at Morgantown and Kingwood Junction (Rowlesburg), West Virginia while attempting to arrest several men who were trespassing on a train.

He was climbing onto the train car when one of the men shot him in the head without warning. His body was found a short time later by a brakeman. A posse intercepted the train in Terra Alta, West Virginia, and two of the men were wounded in a shootout with a Preston County constable.

The man who shot Lieutenant Barnard was a U.S. Army deserter who had spent several years in prison. He was arrested and charged with murder.

Lieutenant Barnard was assigned to the Cumberland Division. He was buried in Saint Marys Cemetery in Petersville, Maryland.