Barlow-Herget Family of Greene Co Arkansas

Barlow and Herget

Extraction from: Fathers of the Ridge, Volume IV , Genealogical Sketches of Greene Co Arkansas by George W. Rowland, M.S., Ed.D.

The 1916 City Directory shows that the Herget family lived at 707 West Emerson and the Jackson family, at 113 South Fourth in Paragould.

Emilie Herget, sister of Alfred, married Louis Moschel. Walter, Alfred's brother, married and remained in Pekin. Ernest Herget married Eleanor Reichel. Otto, the oldest brother, was never married. Albert died as an infant and Dorothy died without having married. Harry Herget married but no children were born of this union. He died in Paragould in 1982 at the age of ninety-two years.

Alfred Herget died in 1947 and his obituary appeared on the front page of the June 20 issue of the Daily Press. He was survived by his wife, Mabel, and two daughters, Mrs. Willard W. Cochrane then of Arlington, Virginia and Miss Ann Hergat then at tome. Two sons also survived: Philip and Alfred Herget Jr., both of Paragould. Others surviving were: Mrs. Emilie Moschel, a sister; Walter, Ernest L., and Harry Herget (brothers), residents of Pekin, Chicago and Paragould respectively. Alfred G. Herget was buried at the Linwood Cemetery.

Richard Philip Herget, son of Alfred, married Mary Esther Barlow in Maryland in 1938. Their children are Richard Philip, Joseph Barlow, Nancy Jackson, Harry Alfred, and Rebecca Ann.

Mary Herget, daughter of Alfred, married Willard W. Cochrane in 1942. Their children are Willard W., Stephen A., James M., and Timothy Alfred George Herget, son of Alfred, married Virginia Wood in 1948. Their children are Janet, Susan and Sarah.

Ann Herget, daughter of Alfred, married Pruett A. Kelly in 1948. Their children are Pruett A., Karen and Robert Jackson.

For more about the Herget family, see: Greene Co Genealogy

Mary Esther 'BARLOW' Herget, Born Philanthropist

Talking to Mary Esther Herget is like reading a good history book. Not only can she tell you the history of her well-known family, she can also tell about Paragould and her family's place in it. When sitting donw with Herget, one gets the sense of knowing her for years. While telling her story, she is likely to call you darlin' and then kiss you on the cheeck when your leave.

Herget tells her histroy in a deep Southern accent. Born in Helena, Herget is often asked her background, which may have begun in the Delta, but is now firmly rooted in Paragould. Herget's father died when she was 11, and when she was just 14 her mother went to Washington, D.C. to work for Franklin Delano Roosevelt in the 30's. It was there she did most of her growing up. She would later marry Phil Herget-a lawyer, engineer and colonel-and with him travel to Hawaii and Germany while he was in the service.

But it was Paragould that was always her home. Raised just 150 miles away, Herget said she never heard of Paragould until she was 17, but now she is as firmly planted both in Paragould and its history as much as any native Herget. Her four children feel the same way. "My children have been really raised in the service. Paragould was their home," she said.

Herget is as well known as the 1890 Jackson-Herget House in which she lives. Built by "Grandfather Jackson," the history of the two-story home is as vaired as its current occupant. The house has been home to four generations of Hergets, including some who have been born and others who have died within its walls. The home, placed on the National Register of Historic Places, has been an outlet for Herget's generosity, begun even before her time by the home's first owner. Grandfather Richard, Herget calls him, gave land to Griffin Memorial Church in Paragould. "I heard he did a lot of good people didn't know about," she said. "Some people remember their fathers. He wanted no recognition." This giving attitude would continue through the generations.

"No one ever left our home hungry," Herget said of her earliest experineces with philanthropy. "I was raised like that. Share and take, my Lord of mercy."

The Hergets seemed to get back a little of what they gave, too. Herget recalled a time a young military wife with three children and another on the way was invited to stay in the Jackson-Herget House. "We didn't make much money," Herget says fo the time. "People were so wonderful to us. We had the best time...All the time somebody was bringing us things."

And the Hergets have spent a lifetime giving right back. Her son, Richard Phillip Herget Jr. set up a scholarship endowment in honor of his parents' 50th wedding anniversary more than 14 years ago. Her other children, Joseph "Barlow" Herget, Nancy Jackson-Herget, Alfred Harry, and Rebecca Anne, are all philanthropists in their own rights and carry on a family tradition begun generations before them. "Every one of my children is all very giving," she said.

Herget herself is currently involved in the newest endowment of the Endowment Foundation of Greene County, the Greene County 21st Century Women's Charitable Endowment and also gives to the Greene County Scholarship Fund. She recently gave a gift of property, appraised at $167,000 to the Arkansas Methodist Medical Center in memory of her husband and in honor of herself. Herget serves on the AMMC Foundation Board of Directors. Besides giving of her money, she is also generous with her time. Herget is involved with the 1888 Greene County Courthouse restoration effort and has logged 6,000 hours as a volunteer with the Arkansas Methodist Medical Center Auxiliary. "That's my love because that really saves me being there," she said of voluneering.

To Herget, philanthropy is more than about balancing accounts and drawing interest.

"It makes you feel good," she said. "I had lots rather give than receive. It gives me pleasure to see people happy."

Can anyone identify Mary's Barlow family?

From: Endowment Foundation of Greene Co, Arkansas