Levi Barber was a
surveyorSee Also: Public Land Survey SystemSurveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, and science of accurately determining the terrestrial or three-dimensional position of points and the distances and angles between them...
, court administrator, banker, and
legislatorA legislator is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are usually politicians and are often elected by the people...
.
Levi Barber was born in
Simsbury, ConnecticutSimsbury is a suburban town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 23,234 at the 2000 census. The town was incorporated as Connecticut's twenty-first town in May 1670.-Early history:...
, the son of David Barber and Sarah Lawrence. Levi moved to
OhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
where he was a surveyor in the employ of the federal government. His name appears on early survey records in what later became
Monroe County, OhioMonroe County is a county located in the state of Ohio. As of the 2010 census, the population was 14,642. Its county seat is Woodsfield and is named for James Monroe, Secretary of State when the county was formed and later President of the United States....
.
On February 15, 1803 in
Washington County, OhioWashington County is a county located in the state of Ohio. As of the 2010 census, the population was 61,778. Its county seat is Marietta. The county, the oldest in the state, is named for George Washington. Washington County is included in the Parkersburg-Marietta-Vienna, West Virginia-Ohio...
, Levi Barber married Elizabeth Rouse of
MassachusettsThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. They had at least four children: David, Elizabeth, Austin and Levi, Jr. (Levi Barber, Jr., was a presidential elector from Ohio in 1868, casting his ballot for
Ulysses S. GrantUlysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
.)
He was appointed Washington County surveyor in November 1805 and served until July 1816. He was commissioned receiver of the United States
land officePublic domain is a term used to describe lands that were not under private or state ownership during the 18th and 19th centuries in the United States, as the country was expanding. These lands were obtained from the 13 original colonies, from Native American tribes, or from purchase from other...
in
Marietta, OhioMarietta is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Ohio, United States. During 1788, pioneers to the Ohio Country established Marietta as the first permanent American settlement of the new United States in the Northwest Territory. Marietta is located in southeastern Ohio at the mouth...
, on April 1, 1807.
Levi Barber was elected from Washington County to the
Ohio House of RepresentativesThe Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate....
in 1806. He served as clerk of the
Court of Common PleasThe Ohio Courts of Common Pleas are the trial courts of the state court system of Ohio.The courts of common pleas are the trial courts of general jurisdiction in the state. They are the only trial courts created by the Ohio Constitution . The duties of the courts are outlined in Article IV, Section...
and the court of Washington County from 1809 until 1817, when he resigned to take his seat in Congress. He also served as a
Justice of the PeaceA justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
and performed civil marriages.
During the
War of 1812The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
, Levi Barber was an aide to Governor
Return J. Meigs, Jr.Return Jonathan Meigs, Jr. was a Democratic-Republican politician from Ohio. He served as the fourth Governor of Ohio, fifth United States Postmaster General, and as a U.S. Senator.-Biography:...
Levi Barber was elected in 1816 as a
Democratic-RepublicanThe Democratic-Republican Party or Republican Party was an American political party founded in the early 1790s by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. Political scientists use the former name, while historians prefer the latter one; contemporaries generally called the party the "Republicans", along...
from
Ohio's 3rd congressional districtOhio's 3rd congressional district includes most of the city of Dayton and its surrounding suburbs and exurbs. It is currently represented by Representative Mike Turner.-List of representatives:-Selected election results:...
to the Fifteenth United States Congress. He was unsuccessful in his 1818 bid for reelection. In 1819 Levi Barber was again elected from Washington and Athens counties to the Ohio legislature and held the certificate of election. However, the seat was contested by Sardina Stone, who was seated. In 1820, he again ran and was elected to the Seventeenth United States Congress. But after that term, he was unsuccessful in his run for reelection in 1822.
Levi Barber was appointed Trustee of
Ohio UniversityOhio University is a public university located in the Midwestern United States in Athens, Ohio, situated on an campus...
in
Athens, OhioAthens is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Athens County, Ohio, United States. It is located along the Hocking River in the southeastern part of Ohio. A historic college town, Athens is home to Ohio University and is the principal city of the Athens, Ohio Micropolitan Statistical Area. ...
in 1822 and served until his death. He was also the fourth president of the Bank of Marietta, the first bank chartered in Ohio.
Levi Barber died in Harmar, Ohio (now a part of Marietta) and was interred in Harmar Cemetery.