Did you know one of the most recognizable faces from the earliest days of movies was born in Little Falls?

Justus D. Barnes was born in Little Falls, New York, on October 2, 1862. His name might not be familiar today, but there’s a good chance you’ve seen his face.

Barnes was a stage actor before getting into the relatively new world of motion pictures. In 1903, he appeared in The Great Train Robbery, directed by Edwin S. Porter for Thomas Edison’s film company.

The movie is only about 12 minutes long, but it became one of the best-known films of the early silent era. It follows a group of outlaws who rob a train and make their getaway before being pursued by a posse.

Barnes played one of the outlaws, and he’s the actor in the film’s famous close-up. He looks directly into the camera, raises his revolver, points it at the audience and fires.

It’s an image that has been reproduced countless times over the years and has become one of the most recognizable shots from the early days of American movies.

Imagine seeing that in 1903, when movies themselves were still new to most people. Audiences weren’t used to close-ups like this, much less somebody pointing a gun straight at them from the screen.

Barnes went on to appear in many more silent films before eventually leaving the movie business. He returned to Central New York and settled in Weedsport, where he operated a cigar store.

He died there on February 6, 1946, at the age of 83, and is buried in Weedsport Rural Cemetery.

So the next time you come across that famous old image of an outlaw pointing a gun directly at the camera, remember—the man staring back at you was Justus D. Barnes, born right here in Little Falls in 1862.