Digital images of the will books for Randolph County, North Carolina can be found online at FamilySearch.org. They are found under the database titled "North Carolina Probate Records, 1735-1970," which is then arranged by county. There is no search tool for this database and so individuals of interest must be searched for by browsing through each page. The links below lead to the page in the volume titled "Wills Cross Index, 1793-1902, vol. 1." The entries in the index are arranged alphabetically by only the first letter if the surname and then (for the most part) chronologically by year. The left side of each image is arranged by the name of the "Devisor" (testator) and the right side by the "Devisees".
Mary Brewer (Devisee), (John Coble, Devisor) 1801 vol.2, p.86 (image 10)
John Brower (Devisor) 1814 vol.4, p.79 (image 14)
Christian Brower (Devisor) 1819 vol.4, p.693 (image 15)
Margaret Brower (Devisor) 1857 vol.11, p.141 (image 19)
Eli Brower (Devisor) 1863 vol.12, p.414 (image 20)
Alfred Brower (Devisor) 1887 vol.16, p.46 (image 20 right side)
Sallie Brower (Devisee), (Thomas Golston, Devisor) 1840 vol.7, p.336 (image 21)
Elizabeth Brower (Devisee), (Andrew McMaster, Devisor) 1833 vol.6, p.307 (image 22)
Robert Brower, Olympia Brower (Devisees), (Wiley Staley, Devisor) 1885 vol.15, p.529 (image 22)
Alfred Brower (Devisor) 1887 vol.16, p.46 (image 24) same as above
Alfred M. Brower (Devisor) 1902 vol.17, p.225 (image 25) with Devisors Jno. F., Jas. S., and W. A. on the right side of the page
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Sunset at Gowanus Bay
Sunset at Gowanus Bay, Henry Gritten, 1851
Sunday, October 30, 2016
Saturday, October 29, 2016
Estate of Col. John Brower, Randolph County, North Carolina, 1815
The estate file of Col. John Brower of Randolph County, North Carolina can be viewed online at FamilySearch.org. It is found in their North Carolina Estate Files, 1663-1979 database. The file is 34 pages and an image by image overview follows.
Image 1 - File cover. Brower, Col. John 1815
Image 2- John Long, executor of the estate of Col. John Brower dec'd made oath that Rubin Wood, dec'd is charged in the books of John Brower dec'd... Dated 3 May 1815.
Image 3 - Cover page. Brower Bond
Image 4 - Bond of David Brower, Adam Brower and Jacob Brower. Dated 10 April 1817.
Image 5 - John Long, executor of John Brower, v. David Brower and Adam Brower. May 1817.
Image 6 - Order to the sheriff of Randolph County to deliver David Brower and Adam Brower to the Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions on 1 May next to answer to John Long. Dated 8 July 1817.
Image 7 - Cover page. David Brower.
Image 8 - Promissory Note dated 18 Apr 1814. Signed by David Brower and Adam Brower, promising to pay John Brower six hundred fifty nine dollars and twenty two cents.
Image 9 - Cover page. Writ to lay off one third of the land of John Brower to his widow.
Image 10 - Order to the sheriff of Randolph County to lay off and allot to Catharine Brower, widow of Col. John Brower, dec'd, one third of all land, etc. that John Brower was possessed of at his decease. August 1816.
Image 11 - Cover page. Jacob Brower.
Image 12 - By order of the August 1816 term, an account of the land of John Brower, dec'd. By the guardian of minors Sarah, Daniel and Betsey Brower - Jacob Brower gdn.
Image 13 - Inventory of the estate of Col. John Brower. Arranged by the name of the buyer of items from the estate. Includes "John Brower of Cris(tian)", "David Brower of Jacob," and others.
Image 14 - Second page of the inventory of the estate of Col. John Brower. Eli Brower and Adam Brower are listed.
Image 15 - Same as image 14. Another copy of the second page of the inventory of the estate of Col. John Brower.
Image 16 - Third page of the inventory of the estate of Col. John Brower. Sarah Brower, Nicholas Brower, and "John Brower of Nicholas," are listed.
Image 17 - Fourth page of the inventory.
Image 18 - Same as image 17, fourth page of inventory.
Image 19 - Fifth page of the inventory. "David Brower of Adam," Abraham Brower, Catharine Brower and Jacob Brower are listed.
Image 20 - Inventory totals.
Image 21 - List of notes and accounts due the estate of John Brower at time of his death. Includes notes upon Nicholas Brower (3), David and Adam Brower, Jacob Brower, and John Brower.
Image 22 - Continuation of list of notes. X'd out.
Image 23 - Blank page
Image 24 - Petition of Sally Brower, Daniel Brower and Betsey Brower, infant children of Col. John Brower dec'd. Jacob Brower, guardian of the petitioners, ordered to offer at public sale the remaining two thirds of the lands of John Brower, and the petitioner's interest in the remaining one third after the death of John Brower's widow.
Image 25 - Cover page of petition with date August 1816.
Image 26 - August term 1816. Petition of Sally Brower, Daniel Brower and Betsey Brower, children of John Brower late of Randolph County deceased, infants under the age of twenty one years...Jacob Brower, guardian. Mentions that John Brower died in 1814. Mentions a last will and testament naming John Long as executor.
Image 27 - Continuation of petition. Mentions that John Brower's lands adjoined those of Thomas Jones, Isaiah Pickett and Christian Kime. Signed by Jacob Brower, guardian.
Image 28 - Last page of the petition.
Image 29 - Cover page. Cathrine Brower's Dower.
Image 30 - Dated 31 October 1816. Order for the laying off of one third of the land of John Brower dec'd to his widow Catharine Brower. The land is described as 627 acres more or less on Sandy Creek in Randolph County.
Image 31 - Second page of order. Property bounds are described.
Image 32 - Third page of order. Signed by those instructed to lay out the land.
Image 33 - Account of John Long, administrator of John Brower, dec'd.
Image 34 - Order for the sheriff of Randolph County to collect from the estate of John Brower, twenty dollars for a debt from 2 January 1802. Issued 5 September 1816.
The property of Col. John Brower is mentioned on this web page, "Abram Brower House, Liberty."
Items from the sale of Col. John Brower's estate are mentioned in this post at Notes on the History of Randolph County, N. C. (tenth paragraph down).
More on Col. John Brower and the Browers of Randolph County, North Carolina to come in future posts.
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Image 1 - File cover. Brower, Col. John 1815
Image 2- John Long, executor of the estate of Col. John Brower dec'd made oath that Rubin Wood, dec'd is charged in the books of John Brower dec'd... Dated 3 May 1815.
Image 3 - Cover page. Brower Bond
Image 4 - Bond of David Brower, Adam Brower and Jacob Brower. Dated 10 April 1817.
Image 5 - John Long, executor of John Brower, v. David Brower and Adam Brower. May 1817.
Image 6 - Order to the sheriff of Randolph County to deliver David Brower and Adam Brower to the Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions on 1 May next to answer to John Long. Dated 8 July 1817.
Image 7 - Cover page. David Brower.
Image 8 - Promissory Note dated 18 Apr 1814. Signed by David Brower and Adam Brower, promising to pay John Brower six hundred fifty nine dollars and twenty two cents.
Image 9 - Cover page. Writ to lay off one third of the land of John Brower to his widow.
Image 10 - Order to the sheriff of Randolph County to lay off and allot to Catharine Brower, widow of Col. John Brower, dec'd, one third of all land, etc. that John Brower was possessed of at his decease. August 1816.
Image 11 - Cover page. Jacob Brower.
Image 12 - By order of the August 1816 term, an account of the land of John Brower, dec'd. By the guardian of minors Sarah, Daniel and Betsey Brower - Jacob Brower gdn.
Image 13 - Inventory of the estate of Col. John Brower. Arranged by the name of the buyer of items from the estate. Includes "John Brower of Cris(tian)", "David Brower of Jacob," and others.
Image 14 - Second page of the inventory of the estate of Col. John Brower. Eli Brower and Adam Brower are listed.
Image 15 - Same as image 14. Another copy of the second page of the inventory of the estate of Col. John Brower.
Image 16 - Third page of the inventory of the estate of Col. John Brower. Sarah Brower, Nicholas Brower, and "John Brower of Nicholas," are listed.
Image 17 - Fourth page of the inventory.
Image 18 - Same as image 17, fourth page of inventory.
Image 19 - Fifth page of the inventory. "David Brower of Adam," Abraham Brower, Catharine Brower and Jacob Brower are listed.
Image 20 - Inventory totals.
Image 21 - List of notes and accounts due the estate of John Brower at time of his death. Includes notes upon Nicholas Brower (3), David and Adam Brower, Jacob Brower, and John Brower.
Image 22 - Continuation of list of notes. X'd out.
Image 23 - Blank page
Image 24 - Petition of Sally Brower, Daniel Brower and Betsey Brower, infant children of Col. John Brower dec'd. Jacob Brower, guardian of the petitioners, ordered to offer at public sale the remaining two thirds of the lands of John Brower, and the petitioner's interest in the remaining one third after the death of John Brower's widow.
Image 25 - Cover page of petition with date August 1816.
Image 26 - August term 1816. Petition of Sally Brower, Daniel Brower and Betsey Brower, children of John Brower late of Randolph County deceased, infants under the age of twenty one years...Jacob Brower, guardian. Mentions that John Brower died in 1814. Mentions a last will and testament naming John Long as executor.
Image 27 - Continuation of petition. Mentions that John Brower's lands adjoined those of Thomas Jones, Isaiah Pickett and Christian Kime. Signed by Jacob Brower, guardian.
Image 28 - Last page of the petition.
Image 29 - Cover page. Cathrine Brower's Dower.
Image 30 - Dated 31 October 1816. Order for the laying off of one third of the land of John Brower dec'd to his widow Catharine Brower. The land is described as 627 acres more or less on Sandy Creek in Randolph County.
Image 31 - Second page of order. Property bounds are described.
Image 32 - Third page of order. Signed by those instructed to lay out the land.
Image 33 - Account of John Long, administrator of John Brower, dec'd.
Image 34 - Order for the sheriff of Randolph County to collect from the estate of John Brower, twenty dollars for a debt from 2 January 1802. Issued 5 September 1816.
The property of Col. John Brower is mentioned on this web page, "Abram Brower House, Liberty."
Items from the sale of Col. John Brower's estate are mentioned in this post at Notes on the History of Randolph County, N. C. (tenth paragraph down).
More on Col. John Brower and the Browers of Randolph County, North Carolina to come in future posts.
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Sunday, October 9, 2016
Links to Brewer DNA Project Haplogroups on the YFull YTree
Links to individual pages on YFull's Y-Tree, leading to the haplogroup branches represented by participants in the Brewer DNA Project have been added in the column of links on the right of this page under the heading Brewer Y-DNA Project.
As of this date there are eight haplogroup branches on the Y-Tree that have been determined by members of the Project who have taken Family Tree DNA's Big-Y test and followed with analysis of the test results by YFull (a company not commercially affiliated with FTDNA).
To date the following subgroups of the Brewer DNA Project are represented:
Adam Brouwer, Gowanus, L. I. (three members)
Ambrose Brewer (two members)
Arthur Brewer (two members)
Brewer of Essex, England (one member)
Brewer of Gloucestershire, England (one member)
Brewer-Lanier (a.k.a. Lanier-Brewer, nine members)
Jan Brouwer/Hermans (four members)
John Brewer of Sudbury, Massachusetts (one member)
All subgroups of the Brewer DNA Project can be found on the Project's Y-DNA Results page. This page includes STR testing data for tests ranging from 12 markers to 111 markers. The subgroup headings are determined by the earliest known (or suspected to be earliest known) ancestor common to members of the group. "Brewer-Lanier" or "Lanier-Brewer" refers to those believed to be descendants of George Brewer of Brunswick Co., Virginia (whose first wife was Sarah Lanier). The sole members of the subgroups labeled "Brewer of Essex, England," and "Brewer of Gloucestershire, England" are currently found within the subgroup labeled "Ungouped" on the Y-DNA Results Page.
The links found on the right lead to the current haplogroup designations as determined by YFull. They may be changed and updated as more data is analyzed and as YFull updates their YTree. The version of the YTree as of this writing in v4.09. The "Brewer-Lanier" haplogroup branch is identified by I-Y15031, and includes two sub-branches identified by I-Y21524 and I-Y23708.
Members of the Brewer DNA Project interested in identifying their own branch on the YTree can do so by ordering the Big-Y test through their account at Family Tree DNA. The Big-Y test (a SNP test) is only available to those who have previously taken one of FTDNA's STR marker tests. Those new to Y-Chromosome testing will first have to take one of the available Y-DNA tests prior to ordering a Big-Y test. Questions should be addressed to the administrators of the Brewer DNA Project through e-mail links found on the Project's main page.
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As of this date there are eight haplogroup branches on the Y-Tree that have been determined by members of the Project who have taken Family Tree DNA's Big-Y test and followed with analysis of the test results by YFull (a company not commercially affiliated with FTDNA).
To date the following subgroups of the Brewer DNA Project are represented:
Adam Brouwer, Gowanus, L. I. (three members)
Ambrose Brewer (two members)
Arthur Brewer (two members)
Brewer of Essex, England (one member)
Brewer of Gloucestershire, England (one member)
Brewer-Lanier (a.k.a. Lanier-Brewer, nine members)
Jan Brouwer/Hermans (four members)
John Brewer of Sudbury, Massachusetts (one member)
All subgroups of the Brewer DNA Project can be found on the Project's Y-DNA Results page. This page includes STR testing data for tests ranging from 12 markers to 111 markers. The subgroup headings are determined by the earliest known (or suspected to be earliest known) ancestor common to members of the group. "Brewer-Lanier" or "Lanier-Brewer" refers to those believed to be descendants of George Brewer of Brunswick Co., Virginia (whose first wife was Sarah Lanier). The sole members of the subgroups labeled "Brewer of Essex, England," and "Brewer of Gloucestershire, England" are currently found within the subgroup labeled "Ungouped" on the Y-DNA Results Page.
The links found on the right lead to the current haplogroup designations as determined by YFull. They may be changed and updated as more data is analyzed and as YFull updates their YTree. The version of the YTree as of this writing in v4.09. The "Brewer-Lanier" haplogroup branch is identified by I-Y15031, and includes two sub-branches identified by I-Y21524 and I-Y23708.
Members of the Brewer DNA Project interested in identifying their own branch on the YTree can do so by ordering the Big-Y test through their account at Family Tree DNA. The Big-Y test (a SNP test) is only available to those who have previously taken one of FTDNA's STR marker tests. Those new to Y-Chromosome testing will first have to take one of the available Y-DNA tests prior to ordering a Big-Y test. Questions should be addressed to the administrators of the Brewer DNA Project through e-mail links found on the Project's main page.
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Wednesday, September 14, 2016
Update for George Brewer Descendants on YTree v4.08
YFull has updated their YTree. Current version is now v4.08. This new update brings changes to the branch of the YTree represented by descendants of George Brewer of Brunswick County, Virginia. The branch is identified by SNP I-Y15031, and there are now two sub-branches identified by SNP I-Y21524 and SNP I-Y23708. View the current branch here.
Earliest known ancestors for this new configuration is as follows:
I-Y15031
id:YF03764 - George Brewer through his son William Brewer
id:YF03577 - George Brewer through his son Henry Brewer
id:YF03395 - George Brewer through his son William Brewer
id:YF03277 - Wilson Brewer (1801 Chatham Co. NC - 1883 Rome Co.TN)
I-Y21524
id:YF05626 - William Brewer (ca.1780 NC - 1853 Fayette Co. AL)
id:YF04443 - Briant Brewer (1799 VA, probable son of Thomas Brewer)
I-Y23708
id:YF06846 - Jacob White (ca.1772 NC - ca.1861 GA)
id:YF06678 - Nimrod Brewer (1793-1875, suspected son of Howell Brewer)
id:YF05926 - Samuel Brewer (b.1770)
Names of the earliest known ancestors (EKAs) provided by the tested descendants. Although not all can complete their paternal ancestry back to George Brewer using traditional research methods, genetic testing demonstrates that all are most likely descended from George Brewer.
Y-DNA testing is through Family Tree DNA (FTDNA) using their Big-Y test, with advanced analysis by YFull. Also see The Brewer DNA Project main page.
There have no changes made to any of our other Brewer sub-groups on the new YTree.
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Earliest known ancestors for this new configuration is as follows:
I-Y15031
id:YF03764 - George Brewer through his son William Brewer
id:YF03577 - George Brewer through his son Henry Brewer
id:YF03395 - George Brewer through his son William Brewer
id:YF03277 - Wilson Brewer (1801 Chatham Co. NC - 1883 Rome Co.TN)
I-Y21524
id:YF05626 - William Brewer (ca.1780 NC - 1853 Fayette Co. AL)
id:YF04443 - Briant Brewer (1799 VA, probable son of Thomas Brewer)
I-Y23708
id:YF06846 - Jacob White (ca.1772 NC - ca.1861 GA)
id:YF06678 - Nimrod Brewer (1793-1875, suspected son of Howell Brewer)
id:YF05926 - Samuel Brewer (b.1770)
Names of the earliest known ancestors (EKAs) provided by the tested descendants. Although not all can complete their paternal ancestry back to George Brewer using traditional research methods, genetic testing demonstrates that all are most likely descended from George Brewer.
Y-DNA testing is through Family Tree DNA (FTDNA) using their Big-Y test, with advanced analysis by YFull. Also see The Brewer DNA Project main page.
There have no changes made to any of our other Brewer sub-groups on the new YTree.
PDF version of this post
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Sunday, September 11, 2016
Seeking Descendants of Hubert Brower, Immigrant to Pennsylvania in 1726
The Brewer DNA Project is seeking direct male descendants of Hubert Brower who would be interested in participating in the Brewer DNA Project by taking a Y-DNA test. The Project currently has 268 members, and although we suspect that as many as five of those members may be descendants of Hubert Brower, none of them can yet prove this ancestry through traditional genealogical research. This is an example of how genetic genealogy has the potential to fill in or at least augment the gaps left open by the lack of documents, records and surviving family history. It is hoped that in this case, Y-DNA test results from male descendants of Hubert Brower who can prove their lineage, will tell those who cannot, whether or not they in fact are descendants of Hubert Brower.
All that is known about Hubert Brower is that he came to America by virtue of a "pass" dated May 1, 1726. In this document his name is rendered as "Hubert Brauer." Information on "The Pass" can be found online at the website of the Church of the Brethren on their Historical Library and Archives page. Although there is a small photo of the "Pass," there is no complete transcription and a high quality downloadable image of the document is not provided. I have not seen the "pass" myself and am not aware of what exactly is stated in it regarding Hubert and his family. The explanation on the page pretty much follows what has been known, or more accurately, what is believed to be known, regarding Hubert Brower's family. What if any of this information can be found specifically on the "pass" is not known (I have not seen the original myself). As stated on the web page, Hubert Brower had three sons, John, Christian and Henry, who initially settled in Chester County, Pennsylvania. However, although records can be found of all three either in Chester County or the immediate surrounding area from the mid to late 1700s, to my knowledge, there is no surviving record that actually names Hubert Brower as the father of any one of them. In fact, there is no record of Hubert Brower himself in America. And it is a bit unusual that despite the fact that all three (believed to be) brothers had children, none of the three gave the name Hubert to any of their sons.* Does the pass specifically record his three sons by name?
We do not know when Hubert Brower was born. Since it never has been reported, I take it that his age is not given on "The Pass." We also do not know when Hubert died, or where he was buried. Did he actually make it to America? Or did he die during the voyage? The general belief is that Hubert died shortly after his arrival and that his widow, Ann, son remarried a man named Johannes Roth who himself died in 1740. A Find-A-Grave page for "Anna Brauer Roth," mentions "recent research reveals..." but does not point to specifics and does not provide a photo of Anna's grave marker. The bottom line however, is that none of what has been stated regarding Hubert and his sons has been proved through the use of modern accepted genealogical research methods. Perhaps Y-DNA testing can provide supporting evidence.
What is known about the three sons, John, Christian and Henry, is that they left numerous descendants. The current edition of the Brouwer Genealogy Database has information on some who can be accessed individually through this chart. Be forewarned that this chart and the descendant included on the database website is very much incomplete, and contains errors. I have in the past few months created a "tree" on Ancestry.com titled "Hubert Brower, Immigrant to Pennsylvania, 1726," which currently includes 5544 reviewed records for 2976 individuals with another 9785 record hints still to be reviewed. If you have an active subscription to Ancestry.com you can view this database. If you are a direct male descendant of Hubert Brower who joins the Brewer DNA Project and takes a Y-DNA test (or a female who can recruit a close male Brower relation to do so) I will send you an "invitation" to this database which will allow you access it without a subscription. There is much more information, and far more records on the Ancestry.com database than are found on the current Brouwer Genealogy Database website, and I do not plan to update the BGD website anytime soon.
As mentioned above, the Brewer DNA Project currently has (possibly) five participants who may be descended from Hubert Brower, or are somehow closely related to the three claimed sons, John, Christian and Henry. The five can be found on the Brewer DNA Project's DNA Results page under the sub-group titled "Under Consideration A" (color coded green).** Three of the participants are descendants of men named BROWER who were initially found in Randolph County, North Carolina during the early 1800s. The earliest known ancestors of the three are Jacob Brower (1812-1881), Leander Brower (b. 1808, died in Henderson Co., TN) and Leander Brower (b. mid 1850s, died in Henderson Co., TN). It is strongly suspected that the older Leander and Jacob are brothers and the younger Leander is a son of the older of the same name. What is also known, is that sons of John Brower (the believed son of Hubert) migrated to Randolph County, NC in the late 1700s. And although many of John Brower's descendants in Randolph County can be traced, the three mentioned above have not been. We would like to find direct male descendants of John Brower who would be interested in joining the Brewer DNA Project by taking a Y-DNA test. We would like to see whether provable descendants of John Brower genetically match the three who have already tested (and who match each other).
The other two participants in this sub-group are both known and provable descendants of Henry Brewer (a.k.a. Henrich Brauer) of Bedford County, Pennsylvania. Some (now partially outdated) background on Henry Brewer can be found on the Brouwer Genealogy Database site. Hank Graham, the administrator of the Project, gets credit for pointing out the closeness of the match between the descendants of Henry Brewer and those descended from the North Carolina Browers. There is no doubt that the Browers of Randolph County and the Brewers originally of Bedford County, PA are closely related, having a common ancestor within the past few hundred years. Whether or not that ancestor is Hubert Brower is not certain. Henry Brewer of Bedford County was born circa 1735, and he is not the Henry Brower who has long believed to have been Hubert's son and is mentioned on the Church of the Brethren webpage. Is Henry Brewer of Bedford County then a grandson of Hubert Brower? Or is he a nephew of Hubert Brower (a first cousin of the trio of John, Christian and Henry)? Or, is the current picture of the Hubert Brower family incorrect? We would like to find descendants of both Christian Brower and Henry Brower (the claimed sons of Hubert) who would like to join the Brewer DNA Project by taking a Y-DNA test. Ideally we would like to have two descendants of each (John, Christian and Henry) from different sons of each (so six different grandsons of Hubert). The comparison of Y-DNA tests from such a group would help confirm (or refute) the current ideas of how Hubert Brower's family is constructed and help us place the five current closely related participants who are in the Project's sub-group "Under Consideration A."
Interested participants can contact us through the Brewer DNA Project e-mail links found on the Project's main page. The project is hosted by Family Tree DNA, and more information on genetic testing can be found on the Family Tree DNA website. Information on Y-DNA tests is found here. Please note that Family Finder (autosomal testing) and mtDNA (maternal ancestry testing) is of no help to our efforts. We need direct male descendants of John, Christian and Henry Brower.
I also hope to follow up with future posts on each of the three believed brothers, John, Christian and Henry.
*John did have sons named John and Christian. Christian had sons named John, Christian and Henry. Henry had a son named John, but none named Christian or Henry. John and Henry both had sons named Daniel and Abraham, but Christian did not give either of those names to any of his sons.
**Presently only results for four of the participants are view-able online to non-members of the Project. Members of the Project who are logged in can view all five test results.
PDF version of this post
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All that is known about Hubert Brower is that he came to America by virtue of a "pass" dated May 1, 1726. In this document his name is rendered as "Hubert Brauer." Information on "The Pass" can be found online at the website of the Church of the Brethren on their Historical Library and Archives page. Although there is a small photo of the "Pass," there is no complete transcription and a high quality downloadable image of the document is not provided. I have not seen the "pass" myself and am not aware of what exactly is stated in it regarding Hubert and his family. The explanation on the page pretty much follows what has been known, or more accurately, what is believed to be known, regarding Hubert Brower's family. What if any of this information can be found specifically on the "pass" is not known (I have not seen the original myself). As stated on the web page, Hubert Brower had three sons, John, Christian and Henry, who initially settled in Chester County, Pennsylvania. However, although records can be found of all three either in Chester County or the immediate surrounding area from the mid to late 1700s, to my knowledge, there is no surviving record that actually names Hubert Brower as the father of any one of them. In fact, there is no record of Hubert Brower himself in America. And it is a bit unusual that despite the fact that all three (believed to be) brothers had children, none of the three gave the name Hubert to any of their sons.* Does the pass specifically record his three sons by name?
We do not know when Hubert Brower was born. Since it never has been reported, I take it that his age is not given on "The Pass." We also do not know when Hubert died, or where he was buried. Did he actually make it to America? Or did he die during the voyage? The general belief is that Hubert died shortly after his arrival and that his widow, Ann, son remarried a man named Johannes Roth who himself died in 1740. A Find-A-Grave page for "Anna Brauer Roth," mentions "recent research reveals..." but does not point to specifics and does not provide a photo of Anna's grave marker. The bottom line however, is that none of what has been stated regarding Hubert and his sons has been proved through the use of modern accepted genealogical research methods. Perhaps Y-DNA testing can provide supporting evidence.
What is known about the three sons, John, Christian and Henry, is that they left numerous descendants. The current edition of the Brouwer Genealogy Database has information on some who can be accessed individually through this chart. Be forewarned that this chart and the descendant included on the database website is very much incomplete, and contains errors. I have in the past few months created a "tree" on Ancestry.com titled "Hubert Brower, Immigrant to Pennsylvania, 1726," which currently includes 5544 reviewed records for 2976 individuals with another 9785 record hints still to be reviewed. If you have an active subscription to Ancestry.com you can view this database. If you are a direct male descendant of Hubert Brower who joins the Brewer DNA Project and takes a Y-DNA test (or a female who can recruit a close male Brower relation to do so) I will send you an "invitation" to this database which will allow you access it without a subscription. There is much more information, and far more records on the Ancestry.com database than are found on the current Brouwer Genealogy Database website, and I do not plan to update the BGD website anytime soon.
As mentioned above, the Brewer DNA Project currently has (possibly) five participants who may be descended from Hubert Brower, or are somehow closely related to the three claimed sons, John, Christian and Henry. The five can be found on the Brewer DNA Project's DNA Results page under the sub-group titled "Under Consideration A" (color coded green).** Three of the participants are descendants of men named BROWER who were initially found in Randolph County, North Carolina during the early 1800s. The earliest known ancestors of the three are Jacob Brower (1812-1881), Leander Brower (b. 1808, died in Henderson Co., TN) and Leander Brower (b. mid 1850s, died in Henderson Co., TN). It is strongly suspected that the older Leander and Jacob are brothers and the younger Leander is a son of the older of the same name. What is also known, is that sons of John Brower (the believed son of Hubert) migrated to Randolph County, NC in the late 1700s. And although many of John Brower's descendants in Randolph County can be traced, the three mentioned above have not been. We would like to find direct male descendants of John Brower who would be interested in joining the Brewer DNA Project by taking a Y-DNA test. We would like to see whether provable descendants of John Brower genetically match the three who have already tested (and who match each other).
The other two participants in this sub-group are both known and provable descendants of Henry Brewer (a.k.a. Henrich Brauer) of Bedford County, Pennsylvania. Some (now partially outdated) background on Henry Brewer can be found on the Brouwer Genealogy Database site. Hank Graham, the administrator of the Project, gets credit for pointing out the closeness of the match between the descendants of Henry Brewer and those descended from the North Carolina Browers. There is no doubt that the Browers of Randolph County and the Brewers originally of Bedford County, PA are closely related, having a common ancestor within the past few hundred years. Whether or not that ancestor is Hubert Brower is not certain. Henry Brewer of Bedford County was born circa 1735, and he is not the Henry Brower who has long believed to have been Hubert's son and is mentioned on the Church of the Brethren webpage. Is Henry Brewer of Bedford County then a grandson of Hubert Brower? Or is he a nephew of Hubert Brower (a first cousin of the trio of John, Christian and Henry)? Or, is the current picture of the Hubert Brower family incorrect? We would like to find descendants of both Christian Brower and Henry Brower (the claimed sons of Hubert) who would like to join the Brewer DNA Project by taking a Y-DNA test. Ideally we would like to have two descendants of each (John, Christian and Henry) from different sons of each (so six different grandsons of Hubert). The comparison of Y-DNA tests from such a group would help confirm (or refute) the current ideas of how Hubert Brower's family is constructed and help us place the five current closely related participants who are in the Project's sub-group "Under Consideration A."
Interested participants can contact us through the Brewer DNA Project e-mail links found on the Project's main page. The project is hosted by Family Tree DNA, and more information on genetic testing can be found on the Family Tree DNA website. Information on Y-DNA tests is found here. Please note that Family Finder (autosomal testing) and mtDNA (maternal ancestry testing) is of no help to our efforts. We need direct male descendants of John, Christian and Henry Brower.
I also hope to follow up with future posts on each of the three believed brothers, John, Christian and Henry.
*John did have sons named John and Christian. Christian had sons named John, Christian and Henry. Henry had a son named John, but none named Christian or Henry. John and Henry both had sons named Daniel and Abraham, but Christian did not give either of those names to any of his sons.
**Presently only results for four of the participants are view-able online to non-members of the Project. Members of the Project who are logged in can view all five test results.
PDF version of this post
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Saturday, August 13, 2016
John Brewer, Died April 18, 1821
The image below is of the grave marker of John Brewer buried in Riverside Cemetery, Chemung, New York. It was taken from Find-A-Grave memorial #99523161, created on October 24, 2012 by RobMinteer27. The photo is credited to "whitepaper." This is an important photograph in that it clears up a long standing mystery regarding just who the John Brewer buried in Riverside Cemetery was.
Download the image, expand it on your computer, and you will see that the inscription states that John Brewer died April 18, 1821, age 21 yrs. Also inscribed on the stone is the name of Elijah Brewer who died "in the State of Ohio," June 20, 1821, age 44 yrs. The inscription on this stone contradicts previously published transcriptions of this stone which had given John Brewer's death as April 18, 1821, age 91 yrs. These previously published accounts were "Revolutionary Soldiers B-G, Chemung County, N. Y.," Gemini, vol. 8 (Apr 1979), p. 31, and typed index cards found at the Chemung County Historical Society, Elmira, New York, "Chemung County, New York Cemetery Records." The current edition of the Brouwer Genealogy Database (online 6 April 2016), at the profile of John Brewer, cites these two sources and suggests a date of birth as "1730." It is also stated that John Brewer was a Revolutionary War soldier. Based upon this new information he clearly was not.
The original incorrect transcription has suggested to some researchers of Abraham Brewer of Chemung, New York, that John Brewer (assuming he was born in 1730) was Abraham's father. Abraham Brewer was born in 1744 and died in 1814 and is buried in the same cemetery. This image of John's grave marker makes the suggestion that John was Abraham's father impossible. In fact, it appears that it most likely that John Brewer (d.1821) was a grandson of Abraham Brewer (1744-1814). Elijah Brewer (ca.1777-1821) was a son of Abraham Brewer, and since he does appear on the same grave marker as John Brewer, it is probably safe to conclude that Elijah was John Brewer's father.
There is a memorial at Riverside Cemetery that honors men buried there who served during the Revolutionary War. This image is also from the Find-A-Grave website and was attached to Abraham Brewer's page, memorial #65163747. Paul R. is credited with the photo.
The monument, which was erected in 1941, lists Pvt. Abraham Brewer and Pvt. John Brewer. It also includes Pvt. Elijah Griswold who was Abraham's father-in-law. The question now is whether this monument is accurate with regards to Pvt. John Brewer. We now know that the John Brewer who died in 1821, age 21, could not have served in the Revolutionary War. When this monument was created was it done so with the incorrect belief that John Brewer died in 1821 aged 91? Or, is there a second man named John Brewer, born early enough to have served during the Revolutionary War, buried there as well?
Thanks to Nancy Martin who first brought to my attention the fact that the earlier transcription of John Brewer's grave marker was incorrect.
I have recently created an Abraham Brewer, Chemung, New York "tree" at Ancestry.com with the purpose of locating direct male descendants who would be interested in taking a Y-DNA test with the Brewer DNA Project. The tree is not complete, it is a work in progress, but it the information found here is more complete than that what is found on the Brouwer Genealogy Database website. We currently have two descendants of Abraham who have tested, but we would like one or two more descendants with verifiable lineages back to Abraham to test so that we may better verify the genetic signature for this group. Please note that a subscription to Ancestry.com is needed to view the tree (sorry this is beyond my control). If you are a descendant of Abraham Brewer who would like to join the Brewer DNA Project, please contact us via the e-mail links on the Project's main page.
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| John Brewer, d.1821, Riverside Cemetery, Chemung, NY |
The original incorrect transcription has suggested to some researchers of Abraham Brewer of Chemung, New York, that John Brewer (assuming he was born in 1730) was Abraham's father. Abraham Brewer was born in 1744 and died in 1814 and is buried in the same cemetery. This image of John's grave marker makes the suggestion that John was Abraham's father impossible. In fact, it appears that it most likely that John Brewer (d.1821) was a grandson of Abraham Brewer (1744-1814). Elijah Brewer (ca.1777-1821) was a son of Abraham Brewer, and since he does appear on the same grave marker as John Brewer, it is probably safe to conclude that Elijah was John Brewer's father.
There is a memorial at Riverside Cemetery that honors men buried there who served during the Revolutionary War. This image is also from the Find-A-Grave website and was attached to Abraham Brewer's page, memorial #65163747. Paul R. is credited with the photo.
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| Revolutionary War Memorial, Riverside Cemetery, Chemung, NY |
Thanks to Nancy Martin who first brought to my attention the fact that the earlier transcription of John Brewer's grave marker was incorrect.
I have recently created an Abraham Brewer, Chemung, New York "tree" at Ancestry.com with the purpose of locating direct male descendants who would be interested in taking a Y-DNA test with the Brewer DNA Project. The tree is not complete, it is a work in progress, but it the information found here is more complete than that what is found on the Brouwer Genealogy Database website. We currently have two descendants of Abraham who have tested, but we would like one or two more descendants with verifiable lineages back to Abraham to test so that we may better verify the genetic signature for this group. Please note that a subscription to Ancestry.com is needed to view the tree (sorry this is beyond my control). If you are a descendant of Abraham Brewer who would like to join the Brewer DNA Project, please contact us via the e-mail links on the Project's main page.
BGB 522
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