Born in Cabarrus County, North Carolina, Barringer studied law and practiced in the state capital of Raleigh.
In 1826, he was chosen in a special election to fill the U.S. House seat left vacant by the resignation of Willie P. Mangum.
He ran unsuccessfully for a fourth term in 1834, after which he settled in Shelbyville, Tennessee.
After leaving Congress, Barringer became a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives, where he was Speaker from 1843 to 1845; he was a presidential elector for Whig ticket of Henry Clay and Theodore Frelinghuysen.
This article about a North Carolina politician is a stub.