Siblings of David W. Brown: Joseph I. Brown (1868-1925), Daniel D. Brown (1871-1902) and John Wesley Brown (1877-1958)

This post completes my account of the siblings of my great-grandfather, David W. Brown.

Joseph I. Brown was born on May 2, 1868 in Oakwood, Mariposa Township, Victoria County, Ontario. He moved with the family to Listowel and to Baltimore, Dakota Territory. On October 18, 1890, at the age of 22 (the marriage record says 23) Joseph was married to Lulu M. Brebner in the Methodist Episcopal parsonage. Both Joseph and Lulu were residents of Port Austin, Michigan, at that time. Joe’s occupation was “railroad station agent.” (It seems that at one time or another all of the brothers Brown worked for the railroad.)

According to the census of 1900, Joe and Lulu were then living in Sault Ste. Marie, in Chippewa County, in the northern peninsula of Michigan. They had three children, Harriet J., 6, Sarah A., 2 and Donald, six months. Joe’s brother John was also living with them. Joe’s occupation was "railroad train master" (an employee in charge of a railroad yard); John’s was "railroad fireman."

Joe and Lulu's son Donald died in 1902. They had another son named Peter B, who was born in 1903 in Saginaw. The 1920 census has the family living in Saginaw. Peter was then 16. Their daughter Harriet and her husband Earl H. Kelsey were also living with Joe and Lulu. A second daughter, Sarah A., had married a chemist named Carl W. Blenkhorn in 1917.

I have two letters that Joe wrote to his brother David, one written in 1919, the other in 1923. The letterhead shows that Joe was the sales manager for The Wallace Stone Co., Bay Port Stone, Saginaw. This is the same company David W. had worked for. In the letter of 1919, Joe thanks David “for your kind and nicely placed congratulations.” No doubt David had congratulated Joe on the birth of his grandson, Carl W. Blenkhorn, Jr., who was born in 1919.

Joe’s wife Lulu died on March 21, 1922, at the age of 52. Joe himself died on August 13, 1925, at the age of 57. They are both buried in the Midland City Cemetery.

Daniel D. Brown was born on August 15, 1871 in Mariposa Township, Victoria County, Ontario. With the rest of the family he moved to Listowel and then to Baltimore, Dakota Territory. The 1900 census says he was born in September 1871 rather than August, but that appears to be a mistake.

 When the family moved to Michigan, Daniel began to study law. I have a “Certificate of Admission as an Attorney” for Daniel dated August 31, 1894. For a time he and Harmon Fairchild practiced law together, with Daniel serving as a justice of the peace. Daniel was also involved in the fraternal organization known as the Knights of the Maccabees. According Wikipedia, "The group's fraternal aspects took a backseat to providing low-cost insurance to members." The census of 1900 shows that at that time Daniel was working as a lawyer in the town of Onoway, in Presque Isle County, Michigan. 

Daniel died on July 2, 1902 at the early age of 30. Apparently he was visiting his brother Peter in Sumas, Washington, when he died. The funeral was held at the Presbyterian Church in Midland. A newspaper article gives the following account: "The ceremonies were in charge of the Maccabees, who with the Midland Band, more than a hundred in all, marched from the home [of Donald Brown, Daniel's father,] to the church and from the church to the cemetery." The article speaks of "the solemn strains of appropriate music floating upon the air." Daniel was buried in the Midland City Cemetery.

John Wesley Brown

John Wesley Brown was born on August 27, 1877 in the city of Listowel, Perth County, Ontario. He moved with the rest of the family to Baltimore, Dakota Territory in 1880. Two certificates of promotion show that he attended the Port Austin Graded School. As mentioned above, John was a railroad fireman in 1900. In 1902, at the time of Daniel's death, he was living in Akron, Michigan, which was on the Pere Marquette Railroad. By 1918, when his father Donald died, he was living in Midland, Michigan. At some point he started a furniture business in Midland, John Brown Furniture. He never married. According to the census of 1930, John's mother Sarah Brignall Brown was living with him in Midland at that time. In 1940 he was living in the same house, 606 E. Grove Street. His occupation: furniture dealer. 

John died on July 13, 1958 in Midland at the age of 80. He is buried in the Midland City Cemetery.

An ad from a 1942 telephone directory

Siblings of David W. Brown: Peter W. Brown (1864-1942)

I should soon add a post about Lizzie M. Whipple, my great-grandmother and the wife of my great-grandfather, David W. Brown. But before I do, I will finish my account of David’s siblings. My last post was about Harriet Brown, the oldest child of Donald and Sarah Brown. Donald and Sarah had three boys who died in childhood: Donald, John Melville and Alfred Hubert Elwood. Five boys lived to adulthood: Peter W., Joseph I., Daniel D., David Winter and John Wesley. This post summarizes what I know about Peter. The next one will focus on Joseph, Daniel and John.

Peter W. Brown

Peter W. Brown was born on October 21, 1864, in Mariposa Township, Victoria County, Ontario. With the rest of the family, he moved to Listowel, Ontario, in 1873-1874, and then to Baltimore, in the Dakota Territory in 1880. According to a story passed down in the Neil Brown family, the second year the family was in Baltimore, “an unseasonable cold spell froze most of the crops and the family was forced to subsist on potatoes. Tempers ran high: on one occasion Donald unjustly accused his son, Peter, of eating too many potatoes (the hired man had actually raided the stockpile), and Peter left home. He was then sixteen. He travelled west, not communicating until years later when he returned to tell of conversations with Sitting Bull and prospecting for gold in Alaska Territory” (taken from an account written by Neil Brown’s granddaughter).

According to the Canadian census of 1901, Peter was then living in Sumas Municipality between the villages of Abbotsford and Chilliwack, in the New Westminster district of British Columbia, Canada. He was 36 and married. His wife is listed as M. Myrtle. She was born in the United States on August 12, 1875, Her religion is listed as Methodist, while Peter’s is Presbyterian. The census says Peter was educated through grade 8, but did not attend high school. His occupation is listed as “railway agent.”

The next piece of information I have about Peter is a newspaper article describing the funeral of his brother Daniel. According to that article, Peter was then living in “Somas [Sumas], Washington.” Daniel died in Sumas, on July 2, 1902, apparently while visiting Peter. There was a delay in bringing Daniel’s body to Midland, Michigan. Peter traveled by train with the body and arrived in Midland on July 11, 1902.

In 1918, when his father Donald died, Peter was living in Bend, Oregon. I have a letter Peter wrote to his brother David in April of 1929. He was then living in Vancouver, Washington, just across the Columbia River from Portland, Oregon. He says he has heard from “Mother” (Sarah Brignall Brown) that David has been having a lot of expenses because of sickness. So he has sent “a little present although no [sic] much.” He adds that he has been wanting to come home “to see all the folks and mother particularly and Hattie,” but is unable to do so. It appears that he is divorced and complains about his ex-wife “that Mother wished on me” and “those dog eating lawers [lawyers].” “I think so much about Hattie and you and Mother,” he writes. “It seems awful for Hattie to be so sick after setting [sic] in that window all her life earning money and now cannot enjoy it for sickness.”

I have not been able to find Peter in the census records for 1910, 1920 or 1930. In the 1940 census he is listed as living in the State Hotel in Portland. At that time he was 75 years-old. An online index of Michigan death certificates has a record for Peter W. Brown and says he died on May 27, 1942 in Traverse City, Michigan. Strangely, his parents are listed as Joseph Brown and Sarah Brignall and his birth year is given as 1866. In fact Peter died at the age of 77. He is buried in the Midland City Cemetery.

Siblings of David W. Brown: Harriet Brown (1862-1936)

Hattie Brown

Harriet (Hattie) Brown, the oldest child of Donald Brown and Sarah Ann Brignall, was born on August 6, 1862, in Mariposa Township, Victoria County, Ontario. She moved with the rest of the family to Listowel, Ontario, sometime in 1873-1874, and then to Baltimore, in the Dakota Territory in 1880 or 1881. The U.S. census of 1900 says she immigrated to the United States in 1871, but also says she had been in the United States nineteen years. The census of 1930 gives the date of immigration as 1881. 

According to the Brown family Bible, on September 4, 1884, Harriet was married to Harmon Leroy Fairchild of Midland, Michigan, in the First Presbyterian Church of Chicago, Illinois. (Although the 1900 census says that she and Harmon had been married for fourteen years, which would put the year of their marriage at 1885 or 1886, an online transcription of the vital records of Cook County, Illinois, from the Chicago Tribune shows that a marriage license for Harmon and Harriet was issued on September 4, 1884.) The record of their marriage in the Brown family Bible and the one in the Chicago Tribune list Harriet’s residence at that time as Baltimore, Dakota Territory. 

Harmon Leroy Fairchild

Harmon Fairchild was born in Oswego, New York, on September 4, 1857. His father Duane, who originally came from Connecticut, was a farmer. In the New York State census of 1875, Harmon is listed as being 17; his occupation is “farmer.” Harmon’s sister Julia, who was fifteen years older than Harmon, had married a cooper named William H. Foster. The 1870 U.S. census shows William and Julia living in Midland, Michigan, at that time. An older brother of Harmon’s, James, is living with the Fosters. At some point after 1875 Harmon must have moved from Oswego to Midland, where he taught school before being admitted to the Michigan Bar in 1881, at the age of 24. How Harmon met Harriet Brown is a mystery I have not been able to solve.

As a lawyer, Harmon seems to have prospered. In the Legislative Manual of the State of Michigan for the years 1887-1888 he is listed as the circuit court commissioner for Midland County. At another time, he served as Justice of the Peace.

Fairchild home

Fairchild home (with Harmon?)

Fairchild parlor

As mentioned in David W. Brown’s life summary, it seems likely that David lived with Harmon and Harriet before he graduated from eighth grade in Midland in 1891. Twenty years later, David’s son Harmon would live with Harmon and Harriet while attending high school. My father recalls sitting in Harmon Fairchild’s law office and that Harmon bought him a pair of high-topped shoes. 

According to the 1940 census, Harmon and Harriet lived at 502 Rodd Road in Midland, in a house that apparently no longer exists. The 1920 census lists them as having four lodgers living with them.

Harriet painted china and sold it to the wealthy families of Midland. She and Harmon had a kiln in their backyard. Our family has several examples of her work. Harriet was wealthy enough to lend money to other members of the family.

Sometime in the future I hope to visit Midland and look up the obituaries of Harriet and Harmon. Then perhaps I will be able to add more details about their lives to this account. 

Harriet died on October 30, 1936, at the age of 74. Harmon lived until May 22, 1941, when he died at the age of 83. Harmon and Harriet are buried in the Midland City Cemetery.

Life Summary: David Winter Brown (1874-1953)

Davd W. Brown - 1895

David Winter Brown was born on October 26, 1874, in Listowel, Perth County, Ontario, Canada. He was the sixth of nine children born to Donald Brown and Sarah Ann Brignall. His sister Harriet, the oldest of the children, was twelve years older than David. The other eight children were all boys, three of whom died when quite young. Five brothers--Peter W., Joseph I., Daniel D., David Winter and John Wesley-- lived to adulthood. 

Why was David named “David Winter”? According to the 1871 Canadian census, a Methodist minister named David Winter, who was 23 years old and of Scottish ancestry, was living in Ops Township of Victoria County, Ontario. Since Donald and Sarah were Methodists, it seems likely that they named David after the local Methodist minister. The Brown family Bible was presented to Donald Brown by “the friends of the Wesleyan Methodist Sabbath School, Oakwood, October 30th, 1873,” a year before David’s birth in Listowel.

At some point after February of 1880, when a son named Alfred was born in Listowel,  the Donald Brown family moved from there to the town of Baltimore in the Dakota Territory. David became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1882. Apparently the family lived in the Dakota Territory until at least 1884. After that, they moved to Cass City, Michigan. A certificate of promotion from Midland Public Schools shows that David completed the eighth grade in Midland in 1891. Probably he lived in Midland with his Uncle Harmon and Aunt Harriet Fairchild while at school. 

In 1892 or 1893, David began working for the Saginaw, Tuscola and Huron Railroad. Originally a narrow gauge railroad, the ST&H ran from Saginaw to Sebewaing and Bay Port on Lake Huron and from Bay Port Junction to Bad Axe. During the period 1892-1900 David was employed as a station agent and telegraph operator, and as a clerk in the audit department. He was the station agent in Fairgrove, in Tuscola County, in 1894-1896. 

On June 24, 1896 David married Lizzie Margaret Whipple in Fairgrove. A newspaper account of the wedding says that the ceremony took place at the home of the bride’s parents. “The rooms were beautifully decorated for the occasion. After the ceremony, sumptious [sic] refreshments were served, to which the assembled guests did ample justice. During the evening the newly wedded pair were serenaded by the Fairgrove band.” The account continues: “Mr. Brown has been the S., T. & H R’y agent at this place for the past two years, and during that time his close attention to business and pleasant manners have gained him many friends.”

On February 10, 1897 David and Lizzie’s first child was born. They named him Harmon Leroy after his uncle, Harmon Leroy Fairchild. David and Lizzie had seven more children: Fred H., born January 8, 1899, Lynn (Lyndon) Joseph, born May 22, 1900, Myrtle Electa, born October 22, 1902, Neil David, born August 27, 1905, Kenneth M., born December 18, 1910, Walter B., born November 27, 1912 and Herbert Henry, born May 19, 1917. Herbert was born when Lizzie was almost 42 years old.

Perhaps because of David’s employment with the ST&H, he and Lizzie moved fairly frequently. The newspaper account of Lizzie’s death says that they lived in Sebewaing and Saginaw before moving to Huron County in 1900. Harmon was born in Sebewaing in 1897. Fred apparently was born in Fairgrove in 1899.

The Wallace Stone Company

Stone train, about 1908

The move to Huron County had to do with changes in the railroad. The ST&H served the Bayport Quarries, which were located near the town of Bay Port, about three miles inland from the shore of Lake Huron’s Wild Fowl Bay. Trains transported crushed rock (limestone) from the quarry to Saginaw. The ST&H was leased to the larger Pere Marquette Railroad on February 1, 1900. David saved a letter dated January 31, 1900, from W. H. Wallace, Superintendent of the ST&H, commending him for giving “thorough and efficient service in all the duties he has been called upon to perform” and recommending him as “competent and reliable.” In May 1900 Lynn was born in Colfax Township, near Bad Axe. In 1900 the Bayport Quarries were incorporated at the Wallace Stone Company with W. H. Wallace as president. Apparently David was hired by Wallace soon thereafter. The 1900 census, recorded on June 24, shows David and his family living in a rented home in Winsor Township, alongside other quarry workers. David’s occupation is listed as “bookkeeper at the quarry.” When Myrtle was born in 1902 the family was still in Winsor Township. The 1925 record of Neil’s marriage says he was born in Manistee, Michigan. So apparently, the family was living there in August of 1905. The Pere Marquette did have a station in Manistee. Pictures from 1907 show the family living in the “Quarry Home” near Bay Port. Both Kenneth and Walter were born in Bay Port. 

Correspondence from 1912 between David and Harmon Fairchild indicates that at that time David and LIzzie were trying purchase a home, apparently in Midland, where Harmon lived. In 1916, when David was 42, the family moved to Midland, Michigan, where David worked as an accountant for Dow Chemical Company until his retirement. (According to the 1930 census, he was on the unemployment schedule at that time.) The 1920  census shows the family living at 608 Carpenter Street West. In 1930 and 1940 the address was 1316 West Carpenter Street. 

David W. Brown, 1950

Old photos show that there were family vacations at Indian Lake in 1931 and at Lake Huron, in 1938. By 1939 several members of the Brown family, including David and Lizzie, had purchased cottages on Lake Huron.

David died on October 6, 1953, in Midland, Michigan. He is buried in the Midland City Cemetery.

New Information from an Old Bible

I have recently been in contact with members of the family of my great-uncle, Neil D. Brown. They are in possession of the Brown family Bible and several documents that were stored in it. They have been kind enough to make photocopies of this material available to me, as well as some other family history.

Probably the most important of the materials I have received are photocopies of several pages of lined paper with penciled notes on them. Since these notes refer to “Hattie’s father” and “Hattie’s mother," they were probably written by the husband of “Hattie” (Harriet) Brown, Harmon Leroy Fairchild. It appears that the notes were written in 1888, since that date appears in them and Sarah (Brignall) Brown’s weight at age 43 is noted. Sarah would have been 43 in 1888.

Harmon Fairchild's notes

Some of the information in the material I have received corroborates what I have learned from other sources. Some of it adds to or corrects what I have written earlier. Some of it appears to be mistaken. I will be editing previous posts to include some of the things I have learned. So far, I have edited the post “The Brignall Family in England and Canada” to include new information about Joseph and Harriet Brignall, the parents of Sarah Ann Brignall.

Baltimore, Pembina Co. Dakota Territory

A significant new piece of information about the family of Donald Brown (1840 - 1918) has to do with their movements from one place to another. I had thought that the family moved directly from Listowel, Ontario, to Cass City, Michigan. But in fact, after living in Listowel, the family first moved to the Dakota Territory. There they lived in or near the town of Baltimore. At first I was unable to locate Baltimore or find any reference to it. However I found an 1886 map of Dakota Territory online. On that map, in the extreme northeast corner of what is now North Dakota, I found Baltimore. The tiny town is now called Glasston, North Dakota, and is located in Pembina County. The dates that the family was there are a bit uncertain. Alfred Hubert Elwood Brown, the youngest of the children of Donald and Sarah Brown, was born in Listowel, Perth County, Ontario on February 26, 1880. (Alfred died on September 6, 1886.) The record of the marriage of Harriet Brown to Harmon Fairchild says that she is a resident of Baltimore, Dakota Territory. Harmon and Harriet were married in Chicago, Illinois, on September 4, 1884. Harmon was from Midland, Michigan, and that is where the couple settled. Apparently the Donald Brown family moved to Michigan soon thereafter. Thus they probably were in the Dakota Territory between 1880 and 1884.

The new information I have received will enrich past posts about the Browns (when I am able to modify them) and future posts as well. My sincere thanks to my relatives in the Neil Brown family!

The Brignall Family in England and Canada

Bringhenale - Domesday Book

What can we learn about the ancestors and family of Sarah Ann Brignall, who married Donald Brown (1840-1918)?

According to the Internet Surname Database, the surname Brignall has its origin in the village of Brignall, located in the North Riding of Yorkshire, England. “The place name is first recorded in the famous Domesday Book of 1086 in the spelling of 'Bringenhale',” a name which may mean “bright place.” According to the same website, Thomas de Briggenhale appeared in the Poll Tax rolls for the county of Yorkshire in 1379.

According to the parish records of Settrington, Yorkshire, England, John Bignal (Brignall) and Isabel Dale were married there on November 29, 1759. Among their children was John, who was born on October 18, 1774 in Settrington. The parish records of Terrington, Yorkshire, show that John married Sarah Pickering on April 16, 1798 in Terrington. They resided in the ancient village of Scagglethorpe in the parish of Settrington and had five children, including Thomas, born on July 7, 1803, and Joseph, born on June 3, 1811. Harmon Fairchild's notes say that Joseph was born in Wintringham, but this appears to be a mistake. The Brignall family moved to Wintringham, but the Settrington parish records show that both Thomas and Joseph were born in Settrington parish.

All Saints Parish Church, Settrington

Thomas Brignall was married to Mary Mook in 1824. They emigrated to Canada in about 1836 and were living there in Pickering Township of Ontario County, Ontario in 1851. Interestingly, the oldest child of Thomas and Mary was Sarah Ann Brignall, born in 1825. The Sarah Ann Brignall (1845-1933) who married Donald Brown (1840-1918) may have been named after her older cousin or after her mother's sister, whose name was also Sarah Ann.

Haigh Clapham and Ann Goodare were married in Mirfield, West Yorkshire, in August of 1800. Haigh is said to have been a merchant. Haigh and Ann had several children including Harriet, who was born in 1818 in Wakefield. On December 28, 1836 in the village of Sherriff Hutton, Joseph Brignall married Harriet Clapham. They may have been servants who worked for the Ingram family there. Harmon Fairchild's notes say that Joseph and Harriet had three sons before having a daughter, Sarah Ann. One of the sons, named Haigh after his grandfather, was christened in Sherriff Hutton on July 22, 1838. Another son, John, was christened on August 1, 1841. All three boys died before 1851. According to the British census of 1851, Joseph Brignell, 39, his wife Harriet, 33, and their daughter Sarah, 6, were living at that time in the village of Earswick in the parish of Huntington, Yorkshire, close to the city of York. (Sarah was born in Earswick.)

As mentioned in an earlier post, Joseph Brignall and his family sailed from Liverpool to New York in the John Bright in May of 1855. According to the ship’s manifest, Joseph and Harriet were both 40 years of age and Sarah A., was 9. The 1861 census for Mariposa Township in Victoria County, Ontario, has Harriet Brignal, 45, who is married and living with Sarah A., who is 16. Also living them is a girl named Ellen Much, who is four years old. (Was Ellen an orphan Harriet took in?) All are listed as belonging to the Church of England. On a separate page of the census there is a Joseph Brignal, 45, a farmer who is married but apparently living by himself. His religion is listed as B. Christian, which stands for “Bible Christian.” The Bible Christian denomination began in England and spread to Canada. It was later absorbed into the Methodist Church of Canada. 

In the 1871 census Joseph, 60, and Harriet, 55, Brignal are listed as living in Fenelon Township, Victoria County. Ellen is now 13. Joseph is a farmer and their religion is “B. Christian.” In the 1881 census Joseph, 67, and Harriet, 65, Brignell are living in the city of Listowel, in Perth County, Ontario. (The Donald Brown family moved to Listowel sometime between 1871 and 1874.) Joseph and Harriet’s religion is “E. Meth.”-- apparently Episcopal Methodist. Joseph’s occupation is “Dealer in s___” (indeciperable). That brings us to the census of 1891. Joseph, 81, and Harriet, 75, now have a 17 year-old adopted daughter named Elizabeth. They are living in Listowel. Their religion is “United Brethren” and Elizabeth’s is “S. Army” (Salvation Army).

The following description of Joseph and Harriet is in Harmon Fairchild's notes of 1888 and probably comes from Sarah (Brignall) Brown: Joseph is "a small man" with a "light complexion" and "blue eyes." His wife is "large weight, 230 pounds."

Harriet Brignall died in Listowel on Monday morning, March 28, 1892. The funeral notice says she was 76, but if the record of her christening and the 1851 census are correct, she was actually three years younger than that. According to the funeral notice, the funeral was to "take place from her late residence, corner of Alma and Reserve Streets." She was to be buried in the New Cemetery. I have not yet learned the details of Joseph's death and burial.

The Browns in Canada

When did Donald and Ann Brown, the parents of Donald Brown (1840-1918), come to Canada? The Isle of Islay website has a helpful page that describes the various waves of emigration from Islay. According to this page, “Many of the Islay emigrants came to Ontario, where surveyors were busy mapping the townships into organized concessions and then rectangular lots to accommodate the new settlers. … [In the 1830s] Islay emigrants made their way to Eldon and Fenelon townships near Lindsay….” Both of these townships are in Victoria County and border on Mariposa Township, where Ann Brown was living with her sons in 1861.

Since Donald and Ann’s oldest son Neil was born in Canada, they probably arrived before 1837. A brig called the Stirling Castle sailed from Islay in 1834. It left Greenock, Scotland, on June 10, and arrived in Quebec on August 8. It was carrying 358 passengers. The next year the brig Hector left Islay on July 17 with 49 passengers. It arrived in Quebec on August 24. It is possible that the Browns were passengers on one of these two ships. As far as I know, no passenger lists for these voyages have survived.

Unfortunately, the 1851 Canadian census records for Mariposa Township, Victoria County, are lost. The 1851 records for Eldon Township list Peter Brown, 76, and Effie Brown, 60, and their children Duncan, 25, Effie, 21, Neal, 15, and Peter, 13. The birthplace of Neil and Peter is listed as Ontario and they are said to be living in Mariposa. (Could they actually be Donald and Ann's children? One wonders.) According to the Kilarrow parish records in Islay, the Peter and Effie Brown listed there had children named Duncan and Effie, who were born in 1825 and 1830. Thus it appears that this is the same family and that they moved to Victoria County sometime after 1830. Was Peter an uncle of the Donald Brown who married Ann Brown? Was he Ann Brown’s father? It is not possible to be sure. An online genealogy lists Peter and Effie Brown as Ann Brown’s parents, but I have not been able to track down the source of that information. A picture of Peter and Effie’s son Duncan can be seen here.

The document summarizing information from the Brown family Bible says that the parents of Donald Brown (1840-1918) were Donald and Anna and that they had two older sons, Neil and Peter. It says that Donald was 21 years old when he married in 1861.

In the 1861 census there is a listing for an Ann Brown, age 46, who is a member of the Free Church of Scotland. She is a widow and has two sons living with her who were born in Ontario. They are Neil, 24, and Daniel, 21. No son named Donald is listed. This makes me wonder if the census taker wrote down “Daniel” when he should have written down “Donald”, since Donald was 21 in 1861. Ann and her sons are living in a log house. An example of this type of house can be seen here. (Note that the Donald Brown referred to on the page is not one of our ancestors, although he may be a relative.)

1861 Canadian census

A couple named Peter Brown, 90, and Emma Brown, 68, are listed right after Ann and her family on the 1861 census sheet. They too are living in a log house. Their ages only roughly correspond to the ages of Peter and Effie listed in the 1851 census, but it is possible that they are the same couple. “Emma” could be a mistake for “Euphemia”, which was often shortened to “Effie.”  In the 1861 census, under the names of Peter and Emma, Flora Brown, 42, is listed. The Islay records say that Peter and Effie Brown had a daughter Flora who was born in October of 1816. So Flora's actual age early in 1861 would be 44. But since people in the 1800s were not always sure of their birth dates, it seems at least possible that Peter and Emma are the same as Peter and Effie listed in the 1851 census and that Flora and Ann are their daughters.

What can we learn about Neil and Peter, the brothers of Donald Brown (1840-1918)? 

The Canadian censuses of 1871, 1881 and 1891 list a couple named Neil and Ann Brown, who are Presbyterians and are living in Mariposa Township. Their recorded ages indicate that Neil was born in 1836 or 1837, while Ann was born in 1842. So Neil is the right age to have been the brother of Donald. Five sons were born to Neil and Ann: Donald, John, Peter, Archibald and William. Occupations listed for Neil are "teamster," "labourer," and "farmer."

The census of 1861 shows a Peter Brown, age 23, who was born in Ontario and is listed as being a merchant. He is living by himself in Mariposa Township. (So this explains why he is not listed as living with Ann in the 1861 census.) He is a member of the Church of Scotland and apparently is living in a store built of stone. Ontario marriage records tell us that Peter Brown, 31, married Jemima Jane Kennedy, 30, on January 5, 1871, at Whitchurch, York, Ontario. Peter Brown’s parents are listed as Donald Brown and Ann Brown. In 1871 census, Peter and Jemima are living in Mariposa Township. The census says they’ve been married within the last year, but strangely says the month was October. Ann Brown, age 55, is a widow and is living with them. Peter and Jemima are members of the Wesleyan Methodist Church, while Ann is listed as being Presbyterian. Peter’s occupation is listed as “merchant.” It seems almost certain that this Peter is the older brother of Donald Brown (1840-1918) and that Ann is Donald’s mother. (The summary from the Brown family Bible says that Donald also  was a merchant and a Methodist. So in his occupation and denomination he was like his brother Peter.)

According to the 1881 census, Peter Brown, 42, and Jemima Brown, 41, are living in Whitchurch, North York, Ontario. Apparently Ann, Peter’s mother, is no longer living with them. Peter’s occupation is listed as “gentleman.” In the censuses of 1891 and 1901 Peter and Jemima are listed as living in Toronto. They are still Methodists. In the 1901 census Peter's occupation is listed as “Merchant R.” I assume the “R” stands for “Retired.” Peter’s birth date is given as July 13, 1839. Jemima’s is March 31, 1840. The 1901 census also has a column for “mother tongue.” Peter’s mother tongue is “Gaelic”, which indicates that his parents Donald and Ann spoke Gaelic in the home.

On the “Find a Grave” website, there is a page for Peter Brown which includes a picture of a memorial in the Newmarket Cemetery (here). The large stone has the name “BROWN” on it. Underneath the following names are listed: “Peter Brown, born 1839-died 1912,” “Jemima J., his wife, born 1840-died 1927,” “Mary Kennedy, born 1802-died 1887,” (Mary was Jemima’s mother), “Ann Brown, 1890” Ann must be the mother of Neil, Peter and Donald. Evidently Peter, and perhaps Ann herself, did not know Ann’s date of birth.

The Browns in Scotland

Islay, by Jens Mayer Creative Commons license

In previous posts I have mentioned the document I have that summarizes material from the Brown family Bible. The document states that the Browns in Victoria County, Ontario, came to Canada from the island of Islay, in Scotland. 

Islay is the southernmost island of the Inner Hebrides, to the west of the Scottish mainland. An article from an 1830 Scottish encyclopedia notes that the island at its greatest length is about 31 miles long, and its breadth from east to west is about 24 miles. Some of the mountains in the east and north are nearly 1,800 feet high. Islay has a river and a number of freshwater lakes. Various kinds of crops were grown on the island in the 19th century. The main export was “black cattle.” In the course of the 1800s, a number of distilleries were established on the island. 

Dr. David Caldwell writes the following about the people of Islay: “The people of Islay in the Middle Ages were Gaelic speakers. The English language probably only started to make real inroads in the eighteenth century. They were of mixed ethnic origin, mostly with Celtic and Scandinavian blood. Unlike many parts of Scotland there was no admixture of Anglo-Norman or Flemish stock.” One of the lesser Islay clans, according to Caldwell, was the MacBraynes. A charter of 1408, written in Gaelic, was signed by Patrick McAbriuin, “who was probably an ancestor of the MacBraynes, a name sometimes later Anglified as Brown. It also appears early on without the `Mac’, as Brihoune in the case of Donald, one of the `sheriffs in that part’ (substitute for a sheriff)....” Caldwell continues, “The family, as indicated by their name, were the hereditary judges or Brehons of Islay, with their judgement mound, the Torr a’ Bhreitheimh, a natural hillock now largely quarried away, beside the road from Port Ellen to Bowmore.” 

Cottage on Islay, 18th century

Islay was divided into three parishes: Killarow (or Kilarrow), Kilchoman, and Kildalton. The population of Islay in 1811 was 10,035. According to Wikipedia, in the mid-nineteenth century, large landowners on Islay evicted smaller farmers and forced many to emigrate. But by 1850, our Brown ancestors had already been in Canada for some time. 

According to the family Bible information, the parents of Donald Brown (III) (1840 - 1918) were Donald Brown (II) and Ann (or Anna) Brown, who are said to be cousins. According to one online genealogy, the parents of Donald (II) were (again!) Donald Brown (I) and Marion Campbell. The parents of Ann were Peter Brown and Effie ______. 

Some parish records and cemetery records for the parishes of Islay are available online. Kilarrow includes the ancestral lands of the MacBraynes, so it is not surprising that especially in the Kilarrow records a number of Browns are listed. From these records, however, I have not been able to learn anything definite about Donald Brown (II) or Ann Brown.

I do find parish records for the family of Peter Brown and Euphemia (Effie) Currie Brown. If they are Ann Brown’s parents, her birth does not appear in the records. Peter and Euphemia lived in Talant in the parish of Kilarrow. Also living in Talant were a Neil Brown, married to Catherine Currie, and a Duncan Brown, married to Mary McErrol. The parents of Neil and Peter may be John Brown and Flora McAlpin. They lived in Talant and had children John, born 1771, Neil, born 1774, and Peter, born 1777. Angus Campbell and Marrion Brown also lived in Talant and had a daughter named Marrion who was born on February 17, 1793. Possibly this is the Marion Campbell who became the wife of Donald Brown (I) and the grandmother of Donald Brown (1840-1918). 

In my next post I hope to show that Peter and Effie Brown and their family emigrated from Islay to Victoria County, Ontario, sometime after 1830. If they were relatives of Donald (II) and Ann Brown, it seems likely that Donald and Ann would have emigrated at the same time.

Life Summary: Sarah Ann Brignall (1845 - 1930)

Sarah Ann Brignall was born on February 2, 1845 in the village of Earswick, in the parish of Huntington, near York, in Yorkshire, England. It appears that she was christened in the nearby parish of Haxby on April 20 of that year. As with Sarah’s husband, Donald Brown (1840 - 1918), there is some disagreement in the sources as to the date of her birth. The notes of Harmon Fairchild say she was born in 1845. This is corroborated by English records of her birth and christening, the British census of 1851, which gives her age as 6, the Canadian census of 1861, which gives her age as 16 and the census of 1871, which gives her age as 26. The online record of the Midland City Cemetery gives her birth date as 1843, as does the online transcript of Sarah’s Michigan death certificate. To complicate things further, Harmon Fairchild's notes say that she came to North America when she was 11. The manifest (passenger list) of the ship on which she and her parents came in May of 1855 lists her age as 9. In fact she would have been 10 in May of 1855. Perhaps her father forgot that she had had her tenth birthday? Even more puzzling is the fact that the US census for 1900 gives her date of birth as February 1847. I think the birth and christening records as well as the early census information must be correct and that she was born in 1845.

Sarah’s parents were Joseph and Harriet Brignall. Both were born in Yorkshire, England. In May of 1855 they sailed with Sarah from Liverpool to New York City on the ship, John Bright. Both are listed in the ship’s manifest as being 40 years of age. Joseph is listed as a farmer and the manifest says their ultimate destination is Canada. According to Harmon Fairchild's notes, they settled in “Whitby, Victoria County, Ontario.”  However the city of Whitby at that time was located in the county of Ontario (now replaced by the regional municipality of Durham). According to the Canadian censuses, there were Brignalls or Brignals living near Whitby, in Pickering Township. Thomas Brignall was in Canada already in 1851, and appears to have been Joseph’s brother. Probably the Joseph Brignall family came first to Whitby and then moved to Mariposa Township in Victoria County.

According to the Canadian census of 1861, Sarah A. Brignal, age 16, was living with her mother, Harriet Brignal, age 45, in Mariposa Township, Victoria County, Ontario. No husband for Harriet is listed, but Harriet is listed as married, not widowed. Joseph Brignal is listed on a separate page of the census. Sarah married Donald Brown later in that same year, on November 26. Since the names of her parents were “Joseph” and “Harriet”, one can see why her only daughter was named Harriet and her second-born son was named Joseph. For more information about the children of Donald and Sarah, see Donald Brown’s life summary.

Harmon Fairchild's notes say that when she was young, Sarah had dark hair and eyes. At the time that she was married she weighed 90 pounds. She weighed 170 pounds when she was 43. My dad adds the rather surprising information that Sarah smoked a pipe! In the picture above I think she and her daughter Harriet Brown Fairchild look formidable.

According to the 1930 census, at that time Sarah was living in Midland with her son John. She died on April 10, 1933 at the age of 88 and is buried in the Michigan City Cemetery.

Life Summary: Donald Brown (1840 - 1918)

Donald Brown was born on May 12, 1840, in Oakwood, in Mariposa Township, Victoria County, Ontario, Canada. This is the date given in a handwritten obituary in my possession. I also have a copy of some notes that were probably written by Donald's son-in-law, Harmon Fairchild, in 1888. The notes list his birth year as 1842. 1842 also appears in the online transcript of the Midland City Cemetery records, but I think this date is incorrect. In the 1871 Canadian census, which was to reflect the population as of April 2, 1871, Donald is listed as being 30 years old, which would have been the case if he was born in 1840. Also, according to the Brown family Bible, when Donald was married in 1861, he was 21 years of age. Donald's parents were Donald Brown and Ann Brown (one source says "Anna"). Ann's maiden name was also Brown. Donald and Ann were cousins. 

Harmon Fairchild's notes also say that Donald (born in 1840) had two older brothers, Neil and Peter. The Canadian census records confirm this. Neil was born about 1836 and Peter was born on July 13, 1839. According to the Fairchild notes, Donald's father (also named Donald) was killed by a falling tree three months before Donald's birth.

Donald married Sarah Ann Brignall on November 26, 1861. In the 1871 Canadian census Donald Brown is listed as a peddler living in Mariposa, Victoria South, Ontario. At that time they had four children: Harriet, 8, Peter, 6, Joseph, 4, and Donald, 1. Harriet was born August 6, 1862. Peter W. on October 21, 1864. Joseph I. on May 2, 1868. A child named Donald was born in August of 1870. He must have died in 1871 soon after the census was taken. More children were born later: Daniel D. on August 15, 1871, David Winter on October 26, 1874, John Melville on July 22, 1876 (and died in March 1877), John Wesley on August 26, 1877, and Alfred Hubert Elwood on February 26, 1880 (and died in 1886).

Both the 1871 census and notes mentioned above say Donald was a Methodist. The notes add that he was "very religious." His physical appearance is described as follows: "In his youth he had blue eyes, light brown hair, and heavy auburn whiskers." The notes report that Donald was a merchant at Listowel, Ontario, and at Cass City, Michigan (in the Thumb area). In a 1921 souvenir booklet entitled "Listowel: Past and Present" a Donald Brown is mentioned as being a grocer in Listowel during the period 1878-1881. Donald and Sarah are not listed in the 1881 Canadian census. It appears that in 1880, soon after the birth of their youngest child Alfred, they moved to the town of Baltimore, in the Dakota Territory of the United States. The family became naturalized citizens in 1882. In about 1884 they moved to the Michigan Thumb area and began a business in Cass City. According to the 1900 United States census, Donald and Sarah were living in Midland, Michigan, at the turn of the century. The handwritten obituary mentioned above says that in 1918 he had lived in Midland for twenty-one years, which would mean that they moved to Midland in 1897. The picture above was probably taken in Midland. Donald died in Midland on February 20, 1918, at the age of 77. The obituary says the cause of death was heart disease. He is buried in the Midland City Cemetery.