Sarah M. Barnard (maiden name: Clemons) was born on November 15, 1828, in Jasper County, Indiana. She married Osborn Barnard on December 29, 1855, and their daughter Cora was born around 1872. They also adopted a son named Will, who was born around 1864. They lived in Dale, Illinois, and her husband worked as a farmer. By 1860, they owned $7,000 of real estate and $20,000 of personal property. A decade later, their wealth had grown to $25,000 of real estate and $18,000 of personal property. Her husband died on June 23, 1901. She applied for a widow’s pension in August 1901, but she apparently never received one.
By 1910, she was living in her daughter Cora’s household in Normal, Illinois. A local writer described her as a “woman of lovable personality and strong character.” She was a charter member of the local Unitarian church, and she was “associated with the Woman’s Relief Corps.” She fell ill in the summer of 1913, and she was confined to bed for the next several months. She died in Bloomington on November 4, 1913.