George Owen Barnes (1827-1908) was a Presbyterian minister born in Paint Lick Kentucky and was a famous Kentucky evangelist during the 1800s. He was known for traveling although out Kentucky towns preaching the gospel, but a large portion of his ministry was focused in the mountains of Eastern Kentucky while in the state. He spent some time in the US army during the Mexican War, and then went to seminary at Princeton University. After marrying Marie Cowan in 1854, they sailed to India as a missionary for the Presbyterian church. They stayed there until 1860 when they returned to Kentucky and spent most of his life preaching in the state, along with making short trips to Europe. Along with many other books, in 1906 published the book A Lost People and Vanished Scepter advocating the Anglo-Israel message. This book was formed by a series of lectures he had preached over several years.