 In mid-1873, Barrow's health declined, and though he went to the intercolonial conference at Sydney as one of the South Australian delegates in the hope that change of scene might lead to its improvement, it continued to deteriorate; he died in Adelaide on 22 August 1874 of an effusion on the brain.He was married twice and left a widow, three sons and three daughters.Barrow left behind him a reputation in his own time as a speaker and journalist.