author
Ella K. (Ella Kent) Barnard
1853–1932
A Quaker family historian with a gift for turning genealogy into readable narrative, she wrote about early Pennsylvania families and the roots of Dolley Madison. Her books draw on deep family connections and a strong sense of local history.
1 Audiobook
Dorothy Payne, Quakeress: A Side-Light Upon the Career of 'Dolly' Madison
by Ella K. (Ella Kent) Barnard
About the author
Born in 1853, Ella Kent Barnard was the only daughter of Mary Anna Kent and John Barnard. Archival records describe her as a Quaker, and they connect her closely to the Kent family of Pennsylvania, including her ancestor Daniel Kent.
Barnard is known for three books centered on family and regional history: Daniel Kent, Emigrant, Early Maltby: With Some Roades History and That of the Maulsby Family in America, and Dorothy Payne, Quakeress: A Side-Light Upon the Career of 'Dolly' Madison. Her work focused on genealogy, early American families, and the Quaker world that shaped many of their lives.
She died in 1932. Although she is not widely known today, surviving archives show a writer deeply engaged with preserving family memory and the historical record of her community.