Correcting Two Men Named Gilbert Brewer, Both of Monmouth County, New Jersey

The Brouwer Genealogy Database (BGD) last revised in early 2016, includes two men named Gilbert Brewer, both of whom lived in Monmouth County, New Jersey during the first half of the 1800s. The two are currently shown as Gilbert Brewer, born 11 September 1801, son of Cornelius Brewer and Jane Williamson, married to Hannah Voorhees, and Gilbert Brewer, born 1799, died 12 May 1847, parents unknown, and married to Deborah Morris. A deed involving the heirs of William Williamson shows that the two Gilbert Brewers need to be switched. That is to say, Cornelius Brewer's son Gilbert Brewer married Deborah Morris, while the parents of the Gilbert Brewer who married Hannah Voorhees are now unknown.

The deed that helps to clarify the two Gilbert Brewers is found in Monmouth Co., New Jersey Deeds V3:33-35.

This indenture dated 20 March 1838 between Cornelius Brewer David Brewer & Caroline his wife Gilbert Brewer & Deborah his wife Johnston Brewer & Louisa his wife and Elizabeth Brewer all of the Township of Shrewsbury County of Monmouth State of New Jersey party of the first part and Garret W. Wycoff of the same place party of the second part...in consideration of the sum of two hundred and forty dollars lawful money of the United States to them in hand well and paid by the said party of the second part...the equal undivided four fifths of those certain tracts or lots of land and premises situate lying and being in the Township Freehold County and State aforesaid and are numbered lots No. 4 and No. 10 on the map and division of the Real Estate of William Williamson Dec'd made by the Commissioners appointed to divide the same among the heirs of said dec'd under which were set off in said division to the said David Gilbert Johnston and Elizabeth together with William Brewer who is now deceased children and heirs at law of Jane Brewer dec'd late Jane Williamson the wife of said Cornelius Brewer above named Lot No. 4 butted and bounded as follows...

Anyone interested in the full description of the property can access the original document via the link above. I'm not going to transcribe it all out here, the important genealogical information is spelled out in the first portion of the deed (although there is one point of confusion which will need clarifying and will be addressed in a separate post). The deed is signed on page 35 by Cornelius Brower, David Brower, Gilbert Brower, Deborah T. Brower, Johnson Brower, Louisa Brower and Elizabeth Brower (the signatures all use the spelling BROWER while the deed uses the spelling BREWER).

In addition to correcting the placement of the two Gilbert Brewers, further research has yielded additional details and corrections regarding the family of Cornelius Brewer/Brower of Shrewsbury, New Jersey. They will be addressed in a separate post, for now we will just mention that the profile of Cornelius Brewer on the BGD is incomplete. Regarding the two Gilbert Brewers...

Cornelius Brewer and Jane Williamson's son, Gilbert, was born 11 September 1801 (presumably in Monmouth County) and was baptized by the Dutch Reformed Congregation of Freehold and Middletown on 18 November 1802. He married, prior to 8 September 1825 when their first child was born, Deborah T. Morris, who is called Deborah Tabor Morris in a Bible Record of her son Gilbert H. Brower. This couple had nine children (according to the Bible record). Gilbert died 12 May 1847 and is buried in the Old First Methodist Churchyard in West Long Branch, New Jersey (Find-A-Grave memorial #5011237 which includes a photo). His gravestone gives his age as 48, implying that he was born in 1799, but when compared with the Reformed Dutch Church's record of his birth is apparently overstated. Deborah T. (Morris) Brower remarried Francis Whitmill (who also is found as Thomas Whitnell, 1850 US census at Brooklyn, New York) and died 29 October 1857. She is also buried in the Old First Methodist Cemetery. Francis Whitmill lived until 1892 and is buried in Brooklyn's Green-Wood Cemetery.

The Gilbert Brewer, currently shown on the BGD as a son of Cornelius, but is not, died 1 January 1858 and is buried in Adelphia Cemetery, Monmouth Co., New Jersey (Find-A-Grave memorial #11481077, which includes a photo). His date of birth is given as 10 February 1799 by Florence A. Cristoph, The Van Voorhees Family in America: The Seventh and Eighth Generations, Vol. 1. n.p.: Van Vorhees Association, 2003, p. 62. The 1888 Genealogy of the Van Voorhees Family does not include Gilbert Brewer. He married Hannah Voorhees on 20 April 1823 in Monmouth County. This Gilbert Brewer can be found on the 1830, 1840 and 1850 U.S. census in Howell, Monmouth County, New Jersey. The 1850 census gives his place of birth as New York. Gilbert left a will dated 26 November 1857, proved 9 January 1858, which names his wife Hannah, daughter Deborah Jackson wife of Thomas Jackson, grandchildren Hannah Ann and Charles H. Brewer, children of deceased son Hendrick G. Brewer. His son John is to receive the real estate given to his wife Hannah, after her decease (Monmouth Co. Wills G:86). Gilbert and Hannah had six children. In addition to Hendrick, their children Kisia, Aaron and Ellen/Elenor predeceased their father. All are buried in the Adelphia cemetery. Only two children were living at the time of his will, daughter Deborah Jackson and son John G. Brewer who died on 25 December 1858 and is also buried at Adelphia. Deborah, the eldest child, born in 1824, died in 1889 and his buried in the Adelphia Cemetery (the Find-A-Grave memorial incorrectly gives her maiden name as Bowen). Also note that the Adelphia Cemetery is the Bethesda Methodist Episcopal Church Cemetery. The son Hendrick G. Brower/Brewer died 11 June 1857 and is buried in the Adelphia Cemetery. He was married to Catherine Clayton, who according to her obituary in the Monmouth Democrat, July 31, 1913, married secondly, William T. Taylor. Hendrick's daughter Hannah Ann, died in 1860. Son, Charles H. Brower, according to his mother's obituary, was living in Pasadena, California in 1913. He was married twice, has descendants, died in 1938 and is also buried in the Adelphia cemetery (Find-A-Grave memorial #44530694).

Monmouth Democrat, July 31, 1913 (download from Newspapers.com)

The parents and ancestry of Gilbert Brewer (1799-1858), married Hannah Voorhees, are yet to be determined.

BGB 673