I might suggest you look at the 1850 Census Index for NY. There are probably a lot of BARNES, so work through them. Keep working through them till you find a child about 18'ish. Also keep your eye open for an Edwin Barnes, he could be out on his own and you might find him immediately. The next step, if you find him, is to see if there is a NY State Census for 1855. Edwin might still be in the same place, and there is a question on that census: 'if born in NY, what county." With this information you could them go back to 1850 and see what BARNES families were living there. Going back to 1840 would then be the next step back. Check your local library, to see if they have Ancestry PLUS on their computers. If so, you will have access to most census records online. Good luck