Richard Barnes Mason
Brigadier General, U.S. Army

Richard Barnes Mason was born on 16 January 1797 in Fairfax County, VA.

Barnes was commissioned an officer in the 1st U.S. Infantry in 1817 and served in the Black Hawk War. He was promoted to Colonel during the Mexican-American War and served in New Mexico Territory. Following the war, he was promoted to Brigadier General.

He was the sixth Military Governor of California, serving from 1847 to 1849.

Death and Burial

Brigadier General Richard Barnes Mason died on 25 July 1850. He is buried at Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis, MO.