William Tancred Barbour was a Confederate States Army cavalry lieutenant during the American Civil War. In 1862, he was ordered to pillage Mississippi homesteads of crops and livestock for taxes, leaving the residents starving. In October, he was confronted by Newton Knight and three girls armed with rifles, and they intimidated Barbour and his men into leaving their homestead alone. In July 1863, his supply convoy was halted by Knight and his band of rebels in the woods, and they forced Barbour to leave the wagon behind. Barbour later reported this to his commander, Major Amos McLemore, who dismissed him. He later took part in efforts to crush the uprising, and he evaded death each time, even after losing the Battle of Ellisville in March 1864. Following the war, he became a judge, and he supported the Black Codes until he was stripped of power during Reconstruction.