The early life of John is unknown. He married Eliza Cranage on July 1, 1839 in Aston Juxta Birmingham, England.1 For work, John was a puddler. The Barnett family joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1850, moving to America in 1854. However, they did not move closer to the Saints in Nauvoo, Illinois, or out west to Utah until 1860. The Barnett family moved to Richmond in 1863.