Entering politics as a Whig, Barringer represented Cabarrus County in the North Carolina House of Commons from 1848 until 1850.

Their son Warren Clay Coleman, born into slavery in 1849, after the war became a successful businessman in Cabarrus County, in part aided by his father's influence and expertise as a lawyer.

Two of her sisters also married men who became generals during the Civil War, Stonewall Jackson and Daniel Harvey Hill.

Barringer led his company during the 1863 Gettysburg campaign, where he was severely wounded in the face at the Battle of Brandy Station, an injury that took five months for his recovery.

During the winter, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and assigned temporary command of the 4th North Carolina Cavalry Regiment.

[1] Barringer was promoted to brigadier general on June 6, 1864, and assigned command of North Carolina's cavalry brigade until his capture during the Battle of Namozine Church on April 3, 1865.

After a brief interview with President Abraham Lincoln behind Union lines at City Point, Virginia, he was sent to Fort Delaware as a prisoner of war.

While he mostly did not live in Concord, he is believed to have advised his son Warren Clay Coleman on his businesses and investments.