Several years ago, shortly after the new public library in English Indiana
was opened, we visited the facility and were impressed with the kindness of the
staff and their eagerness to help us, despite the fact that they weren’t
settled into place, yet. We were allowed to look through boxes of miscellaneous
items, and, at the bottom of a cardboard box was a manila envelope
containing several handwritten sheets of legal-sized paper (as I recall). The
information purported to note the relationships of the Browns of Crawford County
Indiana. Since most of our concerns are with the Browns of Harrison County, we
transcribed the document, put it back into place, and went about our
business. To the best of our knowledge, it might still be in a manila envelope in a
vertical file. We now realize that not a lot of information exists about
some of the Browns in Crawford County; if the information is correct, it could
provide leads to assembling one of the several Brown families which have
existed in Harrison and Crawford counties since the earliest days of the
territory. We're always happy to correspond with researcher interested in the Brown
families of Harrison and Crawford Counties. The paper did not identify either
the narrator or the writer. Further, it was not dated, although a couple of
clues in the text might provide a date. I note a full copy below, and I don’
t know anything more about it. – Jim Patrick
TRANSCRIPTION OF A HANDWRITTEN DOCUMENT
IN THE CRAWFORD COUNTY, INDIANA, LIBRARY
Transcribed by James W. Patrick
------------------------------------------------------------------------
RELATION-SHIP-OF
(CRAWFORD-CO.)
(BROWNS)
The Browns came from Tennessee. Jehu Brown was the first of the Browns to
settle in what is to-day Crawford County. He had several children among whom
were Jackson (Jackie) Brown, Ellick Brown, Jimmie Brown, Bennie Brown. Old
Jehu Brown settled in Crawford County in Eighteen and Twenty, close to
Brownstown, named after him. Jackson Brown was the Father of Uncle Bert Brown,
Ellick Brown was the father of Calla, George, Zouve, and Jim Ellick Brown.
Bennie Brown was the father of John Brown, Frank Brown, and Jimmie Brown was the
father of Harris Brown, Shelva Brown, Rhoda [?] Mathers, and Mag Brown.
Ellick Brown married a Highfield who was the mother of George, Calla, Millie
[crossed out] May, & Jim Ellick Brown, Jackie Brown married a Snowden, who
was the mother of Bert Brown and she was also a sister to Harris Brown, Shelva
Brown, and Rhode Mathers mother also was a Snowden, who married Jimmie Brown
brother of Jackie, making Bert Brown and Harris Brown and Rhode Mathers
double cousins. Bennie Brown who was killed several years ago at English was the
son of old Bennie Brown who was Jehu's son. Frank Brown, son of old Bennie
Brown had one son, Arrie Brown, who is a preacher.
Mint Brown, brother to Bert Brown, married a Highfield the first time, and
some of his children were; John Will Brown, Ide Brown, and Moll Brown. Mint
Browns first wife died, and his last wife was a Pierson. She had Lee Brown,
Oral Brown, Ebbie Brown, Rosie [Resie?] Brown. Mint Brown was Jackie Browns
son, brother to John and Frank Brown. Mint Brown died in nineteen and
eighteen
John will Brown married Uncle Benton Cummins daughter who is a sister to
(Big Bill) William Cummins. Ide Brown married Claud Roberts, and Moll Brown
married (Big Bill) Cummins. And the last set who are half brothers and sisters
to the first set were Lee Brown married a Engle Dotly. Oral Brown married
Cleo Downey. Ebbie Brown married Bud Allens daughter, and Resie Brown married
Lee Starriet.
Frank & John Browns sons of Bennie Brown.
John Brown married Yoe Neck Daddy Bennet’s daughter (Duck) and they had
three sons, Omar (Muck) Brown, Berley Brown, and Clyde Brown who was killed a few
years ago. John Brown and his wife parted and she married Bog Bill Cummins
who had parted from his first wife, Moll Brown.
Omar Brown married Pearl Stroud and they had two children Nellie (Shug)
Brown, and Bus Brown. They separated and Pearl married Luther Turner and they
live at Indianapolis. Jim Bert Brown & Andy Brown were also sons of Mint Brown
by his first wife.
Clyde Brown was married and lived at Louisville before he was killed while
working as a steel hand. And Berley Brown married Al Bennett’s step-daughter
and lives in Illinois at Long Point, I believe. Al Bennet was the son of
Daddy Bennett.
Jimmie Brown's children, Harris Brown married Em Thornbury daughter of
William Thornbury and sister to Jess Thornbury and Lou Thornbury. Harris brown
had two children, Earnest Brown and Lois Brown. Earnest Brown married Hazel
Gaither of Alton, and they have two children, Jimmie is the oldest. This
writer does not know the other child’s name.
Shelva Brown married a sister to Tom Ashby’s wife, and she was a daughter
of Woodson Cummins. Shelva Brown had several children, Hummer Brown, Charles
(Pekey) Brown, Oddie Coleman, and Carrie Conn. Hummer Brown married Aunt
Linda Dooley’s daughter, Mary Dooley and they had three children, Hazel, Russell…
Russell married a girl from Milltown, and they live in Charleston South
Carolina. Hazel’s first man, who was in the army, died with the flu during the
war. And she married again. The other girl married Ed Swank, who was
formerly operator at Tasewell [Lasewell?], They have two girls and also live in
South Carolina.
Charles (Pekey) Brown is practicing law at English, Indiana. He first
married Lone Sloan, mother of Sherrill Sloan. They separated and he married a
Taylor woman from Marengo. They have two children, and boy and a girl, and
they live in English.
Oddie Coleman, who was a sister to Pekey, Hummer, and Carrie Conn lives at
English. Her man was killed by the train several years ago, and she drew
several thousand dollars damages from the railroad. She has three children –
Audie Coleman, Benson Coleman, who are brothers, and one girl who is in South
Carolina.
Carrie Brown married Prodge Conn of Leavenworth [Indiana] – and they had
two sons, Carl & Hokey Conn. Carl Conn was shot to death last summer. He
married the grand daughter of Volley Stars mother and they have one daughter.
Naomi. Harold (Hokey) Conn is single. He was across during the last war.
Ellick Brown's children; George Brown married a Gillett, who is a sister to
Charlie Hammond’s wife, who lives at Brownstown. They had two children,
Claud and Lois Brown. Lois died with the typhoid fever during the war and Claud
married William Jones girl of Riddle and they have two small children; Claud
Brown was stationed in Texas during the war.
Calla Brown lives with his sister Mag at English, both are single. Zouve
Brown died two years ago. He was married, Jim Elliott Brown Junior – married
a sister to Henry Mock of English. He died several years ago and left two
daughters. Effa Brown who taught music in the English School one term, she is
single, and Audrey Brown who is married and lives at Bedford.
(NOTES)
Old Jehu Brown was Omar (Muck) Brown’s great-grandfather. His Father, John
Brown, was Bennie Brown’s son, and Bennie Brown was Omar Brown’s
grandfather. Jehu Brown was Bennie Brown’s father, making old Jehu Muck’s Great Grand
Father.
What relation were Harris Brown and (Muck) Omar Brown?
Answer: Harris Brown’s father was Jimmie Brown. Jimmie Brown was a brother
to Bennie Brown, Muck’s Grand Dad. So – Jimmie Brown was John Brown’s
Uncle, making Harris Brown and John Brown cousins, because there [sic] fathers
were brothers and Muck Brown and Harris Brown are second cousins. Earnest
Brown and Muck Brown and third Cousins,
What relation were Carl Conn and Muck Brown?
Carl Conn’s grandfather, Shelva Brown, was a cousin to John Brown, because
Shelva’s father Jimmie Brown was a brother to Bennie Brown, father of Muck’s
Dad John Brown. That makes Carrie Conn a second cousin to Muck Brown and
Carl Conn is a third cousin to Muck Brown.
What relation is Lee Brown and Charles (Pekey) Brown?
Answer: Lee Brown’s father was Mint Brown, and Mint Brown’s father was –
Jackie Brown. Pekey’s grandfather was Jimmie Brown who was a brother to Jackie
Brown. That would make Shelva Brown, Pekey’s father, a first-cousin to Mint
Brown, and Pekey and Lee Brown are third cousins, Shelva Brown being a
second cousin to Lee Brown.
What relation are Moll Brown who first married Bill Cummings and Pekey
Brown?
Same as Lee Brown, third cousins. Moll Brown was the mother of Carl Cummins
– Mint Brown is Carl Cummins’ grandfather. Jackie Brown is Carl’s great
grandfather, and Jehu Brown, father of Jackie, is Carl’s
great-great-grandfather.
Bert Brown’s Father, Jackie Brown, was the son of Jehu Brown, and Jehu
Brown is Uncle Bert Brown’s grand dad. Jim Mint Brown, road contractor, is Uncle
Bert Brown’s son, and Jim Mint was Jehu Brown’s great-grandson because Bert
Brown was Jackie Brown’s boy and Jackie was Jehu’s boy.
END