Barber – Mizell Feud

The Barber – Mizell Feud was a Reconstruction Era feud between the Barber Family, a cattle herding family and the Mizell Family, two of whom were appointed to local government. The formal reason for the feud can be stated simply as disagreements over cattle taxes, but tensions were high between the two families. The feud left seven dead, many of whom died in the first few months of the feud. Though the feud started in 1870, it did not formally end until the 1940s, when members of the Barber and Mizell families were married. 

Orange Avenue, circa 1879. Courtesy of Florida Memory.

Moses Barber and the Barber Family 

Moses Barber was born in Georgia in 1808 and by 1833, he moved his family to Columbia County, Florida. He was a cattle herder by trade and had cattle interests ranging from the Carolinas to the upper Saint Johns River.  

His home, called Barber Station, was along the route between Jacksonville and Tallahassee and was used as a headquarters for the Confederate Army during the Civil War. It was ransacked by the Union Army before the war ended, leaving very little of it left.  

Cattle in a pen, circa 1890. Courtesy of Florida Memory.

Because of the destruction of Barber Station, Moses moved his family further south to a settlement that was known as Shake Rag, then part of Orange County, now part of Osceola County near Lake Tohopekalinga. He eventually settled at Canoe Creek Island. 

David and John R. Mizell

Both David Mizell and his brother, John Randolph Mizell, were also born in Columbia County, Florida around the same time that the Barber family had moved there.  

They lived there until around 1852, when the family decided to move to Gainesville. David Mizell would meet his wife, Angeline May, there before they decided to move further south to Orange County.  

David Mizell and his brother had both served in the military; David in both the Seminole and Civil War, and John R. in the Civil War.  

Reconstruction Era Florida 

After the Civil War, Florida was under military rule and martial law until July 4, 1868. Money was hard to come by in those times and cattle was worth more than money.

In 1868, David Mizell was appointed Sheriff of Orange County by Florida governor Harrison Reed. His brother John was appointed to Judge.

Many of the cattle ranchers in Orange County were unhappy about the appointments to government, and often felt like the taxes that the government were enacting were too far reaching. In October 1868, the Orange County Courthouse burned down on its first day in session; though many tried to save it, it could not be saved and records from the time were also lost to the fire. It is perhaps mistakenly believed that Moses Barber was responsible for the burning of the Orange County Courthouse, but Barber was never charged with arson.

That week, Moses Barber and his son, Moses B. F. Barber and another man, Thomas Johnson, were charged with forcibly confining George Bass on August 18, 1868. In May of the following year, Moses is charged with polygamy, ordered to pay $500, and charged with forcibly confining another man, William Smith, on August 19, 1868. He is later found guilty of charges relating to George Bass and sentenced to one year in the state penitentiary at Leon County.

Somewhere around the same time, David Mizell drives cattle off of land belonging to Moses Barber for non-payment of taxes. Barber responds to this offense by telling Mizell that the next time that he sets foot on Barber land, he will leave “feet first”.

The Feud

Likely between July 1869 and before February 1870, according to the Barber family, a cow that belonged to Jack Barber was found in the Mizell herd with an altered brand. Jack Barber, intent to keep his family’s property, stole the animal back and later butchered him. Because of this, Jack was charged with larceny and sentenced to state prison.

Moses Barber, apparently attempting to protect his nephew, insists on riding down with his nephew to prevent any “foul play”. During the trip down the Saint Johns River to Palatka, Jack asked David Mizell for some chewing tobacco. Supposedly, David shoved the chewing tobacco in his mouth, which cut his lip. Seeing all of this, Moses Barber says “This day, Dave Mizell, you’ve started on the road to Hell!”

David Mizell, courtesy of Florida Memory

In February 1870, David Mizell, his son, William, and his brother Morgan Mizell, head into the Barber cattle ranges to either collect a debt for Robert Bullock, or to return cattle that he had sold to Moses Barber. While crossing in to Bull Creek, a single shot rang out and hit David Mizell, mortally wounding him. Morgan Mizell leaves to find help, William stays behind with his father, and recalled that before he died, David Mizell wished for no one to act in revenge.

However, when news of David’s demise reached John Mizell’s ears, he gathered a group together, which included Sheriff Jack Evans, to go after the man who he believed responsible for his brother’s death. Moses and some of the Barber family head north; while heading north, Moses tells his wives to take whatever they wish from his estate.

John Mizell and the group that he rounded up capture Needham Yates, who they think is the gunman who killed David Mizell. He is shot and killed in their custody. Around March 20, Isaac Barber was captured and taken to the home of Sheriff Evans where he is supposedly killed in an escape attempt.

On November 11, 1870, Moses Barber is indicted for the murder of David Mizell. He does not stand trial for this. According to Columbia County records, Barber died on November 27, 1870 without a will. Overall, the feud left at least eight people dead, mostly from gunshot wounds. Moses B. F. Barber’s death is recorded in the Florida Mortality Schedules as a drowning, although he was captured, weighed down with a plowshare in Lake Conway and shot when it looked like he would make it to shore. Formally, the feud is not considered ended until the 1940s when members of the Mizell and Barber families married.