Deciphering the "Extract From Census Forms" For Pensions Ireland

These forms provided me with the maiden names of two of my 2nd great-grandmothers and the marriage dates of two ancestral couples. Anyone 70 and older, who met the income requirements,  and wasn't recently released from prison, was entitled to a pension. They applied at the post office and their pension was paid to them at the post office. 

I've been taking a second look at the pension extract forms to try to figure out more precisely when my ancestors were born. My great-great grandparents' ages vary between 10 and 15 years in the various records I've collected. In one record my great-great grandmother was born before her parents' marriage. According to her death record she would have been a child when her daughter Ellen was born. 

Here is what I've gleaned through closer examination of these records. 

Information Provided by applicant (upper portion)

The information above the centered line, in the mid portion of the form, was mostly what was provided by the applicant. The notations above the line in code were of course made by the office staff. The applicant provided the information which included parents' names and the location of the family in either 1841 or 1851. 

Please state how old  you were and the names of your siblings

There are many common surnames and first names in certain locations in Ireland. The extractors sometimes asked applicants for the names of their siblings in order to locate the correct family. In the case below the extractor asked for the names of the siblings of this applicant in order of birth. 

Below is the applicant provided information for my great-great grandmother Mary Huane-Mullen. In order to qualify for the old age pension she applied for in 1920 she would have had to have been born in 1850, or before. The names of the children are in the birth order favorable to Mary's age claim. I believe she was born after the census year of 1851; she was not found on the census. It appears that the children who were found on the census had their ages added to the list given by Mary. Ages were likely added by  the extractor. It does appear the oldest children in the Huane family were 4 year old twins. The last child listed was Thomas who according to the records I've gathered was indeed the youngest. So it was common for the children to have been listed in birth order, but sometimes this order could have been changed in order to support the applicant's stated age for their pension claim. 

Two Pat Donnellan families so please provide more information

This extractor requested the mother's maiden name and list of siblings to separate two families with the same name. 

Ages added by extractor

Below you can see that the names are written in ink and the ages are later added in pencil from the census form. 

Information added by extractor regarding child's death

Here we see a child is noted as having died. The 1841 and 1851 censuses for Ireland included a table to list deaths of household members that occurred in the past 10 years. Catherine apparently wasn't found. Again the sibling names provided by the applicant were provided with the ages on the census form by the extractor. 

Extractor adds absent to Pats name

There was also a table on the 1841 and 1851 censuses for household members absent on census night. Below absent was added to Pat's name because he appeared listed in that table. The extractor doesn't add the ages of family members because he does that below the line, instead, as we will see. 

Step-sisters noted

Two of the household members below were step-sisters. These forms can provide additional information about relationships. 

Information extracted by pension officials (below mid portion of form)

Marriage date as recorded in the census

Adults were asked for their marriage year if married, they were asked  on the 1841 and 1851 censuses. The early 20th century pension applicants were generally living with their parents in those census years. It's also possible that a few of the applicants were themselves married during the census years. Below is the extracted information for my 2nd great-grandparents Patt & Nelly Mullen who were married in 1837, according to the census. I have found their marriage record and they were married in 1837. 

Lists of siblings of applicants names and ages extracted by officials

These lists appear below the midpoint line on the form. Here we see a list extracted from the actual census rather than provided by the applicant. The list includes ages and information from the death table on the census. Below we see a sibling of the applicant Pat died at age 5 in 1846, according to the census.

Sometimes the extractor went above and beyond

This extractor included a great deal of additional information from the census. This extract was made by the same person who added absent to Pat's name in the example from the applicants portion. This extractor noted they checked the absent table and death table of the census and reported what they found. I had wondered if all tables were checked. They also included the fact one household member was a nephew. 

Bap note what is that? 

I've seen "bap note" recorded on some of the pension forms. I have noticed pension payment amounts are recorded on forms even when the person wasn't found on the census. I wonder if a baptismal record was used instead of the census? 

In my great-great uncle's case it seems that a bap note informed them of the death of Michael's sibling, also named Michael, who died in 1848. I had assumed the death information came from the table in the 1851 census? There is an arrow pointing from the notation to this information. It was common for deaths to be recorded in the church books below a person's baptism. 

Michael Mullen isn't an uncommon name so that could be why he applied again giving his mother's maiden name. Another Michael Mullen could have died in 1848 from a family with the same parents' names. He apparently received his pension or at least a sum for a pension is recorded. His annual award would have been £16.14 annually. 

Certificate of Baptism as alternative

This note on a pension form implies that a baptism certificate could also serve as proof of birthdate. This applicant wanted the large town, near where my own ancestors lived, searched for the family. Without a street name the office wouldn't undertake such a large area search. It was suggested they get a copy of the baptismal certificate. I believe O.A.P means Old Age Pension. 

A side note

My great-great grandmother appears on two pension extraction forms. For some reason her name is crossed out and her brother John's name is added. Her address is given on both forms, and both forms state she was not found. John, however, was found and likely received a pension. Or was her name mistakenly written as John on the census? It's a mystery. 

I'm beginning to be able to decipher these forms after reviewing many of them. It's an interesting subject and not much has been written about these pension forms. 

If anyone has any corrections or additional information please let me know. 

 

The 1841 & 1851 Irish Census Death Information and absent household members

 

My 2nd great-grandfather Patrick Mullen's brother Michael Mullen applied for a pension in April of 1920. He applied before a majority of these census records were lost in the June 1922 fire at the public records office. Unfortunately he didn't get the pension because Pat and Ellen Mullen's children were not listed as living in their household on the 1851 Census. I surmised likely they were visiting local relatives (more on that later). I have seen children staying in the homes of aunts and uncles in the 1901 and 1910 Censuses. 

Something that puzzled me regarding Michael's 1851 census extract is the fact another child of Pat and Ellen is listed as Michael. This child died at age 1 according to this document. I didn't know where this information came from? He died in 1848 according to the extract. I didn't see deaths recorded on the 1851 census form I looked at? 

I emailed the Irish Family History Centre genealogist a question about where this information came from. You can email a question and tune in to their Friday Facebook live stream to get your answer. My question was answered during one of their streams and I found out that there was a separate part of the form that listed deaths that occurred in households over the past 10 years. 

Our family's forms were all lost in the 1922 fire. Forms for some places survived. It's interesting to look at the surviving forms recording deaths. You get an idea of age ranges of death and causes of death in that time period. 

One portion of the form lists members of the household who were alive and absent from the household on the night of the census day, and below that those who were dead. The cause of death was recorded along with the season the death occurred. 

Below you can see ages and causes of death listed. A 52 year old pensioner probably died of an infection that spread from his foot. A 17 year old died of decay? A 2 year old was said to have died of Colic. 

A problem I've run into with my theory that Pat and Ellen's children were staying with family members on census day is the fact they were supposed to be listed on the form as absent . Michael and his brother Patrick were supposed to have been alive in 1851 and should have been listed as absent. They apparently were not listed as absent on that form according the the 1920 census extract form. It's difficult to say exactly when these brothers were born; the surviving documents I've collected don't agree. It's possible they were born after 1851 and they lied about their ages for some reason? According to the records my ancestor Pat Mullen may have been born between 1837 and 1850. With such a wide range of years he could have been born in 1851 even; since the dates are all over the place anything is possible. When my ancestor Pat Mullen married in 1880 his age was given as 30 

According to Pat's death certificate he was 93 years old when he died in 1930.  Dying at an age that advanced would have been unusual for that time period in Ireland. There is longevity in our Mullen family however. His daughter Sr. Mary Kathleen died at age 103. If he were born the year his parents married in 1837 it's possible he was already living away from home in 1851 because child labor was not illegal at the time. That doesn't explain why Michael would have been missing. His tombstone states he was born in 1850. He was younger than Patrick and should have still lived at home. We know the Mullen's had another child named Michael who died in 1848. It would stand to reason that the second Michael would have been born after that. Many of these forms weren't fully filled in so it's possible the census taker failed to ask about absent family members? 

Here is another example of a form with absent household members and deceased household members listed. It was not uncommon for someone to be away from home on census day. 

Correction: I jumped to the wrong conclusion as someone pointed out

I assumed that every person who extracted information from these censuses extracted every name. My Huvane family extract included all of the children not just the applicant. 

Michael Mullen's application says "no return of applicant". So most likely this extractor didn't extract every name. 

The census extract has left me with more questions about when the Mullen children were born and where they were during the census? (Although now we might assume only Michael is missing) With few records surviving the fire and missing church records for the family parish we may never know exactly when the children were born or where they were living on census day 1851. 

The Mystery of Hugh Forgey's land

 Land records in Knox County, Tennessee had been key to establishing possible relationships in Lucille Wallace's book A genealogical history of the Forgy, Forgey and Forgie families in America. She located a land grant for a James Forgey which was for 500 acres on Flat Creek in Knox County, TN.

She assumed that this 500 acres was sold and split between Alexander Forgey, Andrew Forgey, and Hugh Forgey. Below is a snip from the book. 

Actually the land was split between Alexander and Andrew Forgey. Hugh did witness one of the deeds which may have led to the misunderstanding. 

Adding even more confusion was the fact Hugh Forgey sold 250 acres of land on Flat Creek also. 

All of this led Lucille Wallace to assume James Forgey was the father of Alexander, Andrew, and Hugh. It would have been unusual for a father to sell land to his sons. It's most likely this James was the son of Andrew Forgey and Margaret Reynolds. He appears to have bought land as a speculator in several areas. His Reynolds cousins owned land on Flat Creek so he had family ties there. 

Alexander and Andrew were likely brothers. Alexander Forgey, James Forgey's uncle, could have been their father. 

Examining land records we discover Hugh Forgey owned 400 acres on Flat Creek well before the sale of  the 250 acres by James. He was living on Flat Creek in the 1780s. He was definitely much older than Alexander Forgey who was said to have been born in 1780. Hugh Forgey was likely born in the 1760s. 

Hugh Forgey was a chain bearer in Knox County, Tennessee in 1786, again pointing to the fact he was much older than Andrew and Alexander. Both of those men didn't own any land until they bought the land from James in 1802. 

Hugh Forgey actually owned 400 acres on Flat Creek. Hugh Forgey shared a property line with Robert Reynolds. Likely his cousin. He sold off 150 acres in 1798. By coincidence leaving 250 acres. He sold off the remaining 250 acres, on Flat Creek, in 1806.

I have not been able to find a grant or purchase deed for the land Hugh Forgey sold off? The lack of a deed misled Lucille Wallace. 

Recently I have found references to this land in other grants at the NORTH CAROLINA LAND GRANT IMAGES AND DATA website. It appears he likely purchased this grant from William McBroom. or survey. 

Here Hugh Forgey is described as living on William McBroom's survey on Flat Creek in 1793. 

It states Hugh Forgey lives on McBroom's survey. There was a 400 acre grant to McBroom on Flat Creek in 1789. 

I would like to find out when Hugh purchased the 400 acres. I have an index with page numbers for additional deeds but have not located the books these page numbers refer to?

We do know Hugh was living on 400 acres on the west fork of Flat Creek in 1791, according to Robert Reynolds land patent. This entry below, from 1791, refers to Hugh Forgey's 400 acre survey. I have not found a 400 acre survey for Hugh, however. 

As the old deed books began to fade and fall apart deeds were copied into new books. It's possible Hugh Forgey's purchase deed never made it into the newer books? Notations for book and page numbers of other books are often recorded in the margins of the deeds. Below is an example. 

Some of the page numbers I found might refer to an older volume that no longer exists or isn't at the McClung library in Knoxville? 

Hugh and John Forgey were chainbearers for James Reynolds in 1788. We know the Reynolds family is related through Andrew Forgey's wife Margaret Reynolds. 

John is kind of a mystery because he was said to have died in 1793 and James Forgey of Hawkins County, Tennessee was the administrator of his estate. According to Andrew Forgey's, husband of Margaret Reynolds, will John was still alive when Andrew Forgey wrote his will leaving John land in 1809. 

According to Andrew's will Hugh Forgey was living on some of John's land in 1809. There appeared to be a close relationship between Hugh and John. I surmise they were together in Knox County in the 1780s. I see no sign of another John in the records. Maybe John didn't really die in 1793? Hugh was accused of perjury for his testimony in the case regarding the estate of John Forgey. Another John Forgey could also have joined the family, coming out from Ireland. or he could have been Andrew and Alexander's brother? 

Hugh Crawford, son of Nancy Forgey, did mention John and Hugh Forgey in his journal. He remembered seeing John and the fact he lived in Middle Tennessee. His uncle Hugh Forgey died when he was very young and he didn't know much about him. Below is a passage from his journal stating his uncle Hugh Forgey lived in Knox County, Tennessee at one time not far from where he was then living.

 We can with reasonable certainty surmise John and Hugh Forgey were sons of Andrew Forgey and Margaret Reynolds. Andrew and Alexander might be sons of Alexander Forgey, brother of Andrew, who lived in Washington County, Virginia. 

More deed books will eventually come online for Knox County, Tennessee. I might be able to find the deed of sale for Hugh's 400 acres when more books come online? 

Knox County, Tennessee Researchers

The McClung library sent me this list of researchers who specialize in research in Knox County, Tennessee. Personally I'm not interested in hiring a professional, but this might be of help to someone else. 

Native American DNA/Tall Tale or True?

 Many Americans claim Native American ancestry who aren't tribal members. Stories are often passed down in families about Native American ancestors. In some cases the stories are true. Many Americans have turned to DNA to verify these stories. Few people who have tested actually find any traces of Native American DNA in their results. 

When these testers are so confident they have Native American ancestry why isn't it showing up in their results? Here are a few possibilities:

1. The Native American ancestor is too many generations removed from the test taker. It's always best to have someone test who is closer generation wise because we lose portions of our distant ancestors DNA with every generation. 
2. We share a very small trace amount that the companies aren't picking up. If you test with multiple companies there is a chance one will detect this small percentage, which could be less than 1%.
3. Your Native American ancestor was mixed and not 100% Native American leading you to inherit only a trace amount. 

My impression, after many years of genealogy research, is Americans, those living in today's United States, didn't marry Native Americans very often. This is because the European population of Colonial America was large, with a larger population of women than in Central America, South America, and Canada. Most DNA testers in the United States do not have substantial amounts of Native American DNA, most actually don't have any Native American results. 

Fewer women came to the new world from Spain and Portugal. This led to more mixing between Iberian males and  Native Americans. 

There likely would have been more mixing between the  British colonists and Native Americans in the early 17th century, when the population was small, when there were fewer European women in the colonies.

If a person has family from Oklahoma, where eastern tribes were resettled, the chances of having Native American ancestry would be greater.  

The DNA companies get many questions and angry comments from people who are certain they have Native American ancestry which didn't show up in their DNA results. When they tell people it's possible the ancestor lived too far back for this to show up they are being truthful. Another explanation thrown out is the companies don't have good reference populations for Eastern North American Native Americans. This is because the tribal leadership is often against DNA testing. Is this true? Is that why this DNA admixture isn't showing up?

Let's look at my French Canadian DNA matches. Many of these matches still live in Canada and are French speaking even today. If it isn't possible to identify Eastern North American Native in the DNA samples then this admixture wouldn't show up in those living in Eastern Canada either. There was migration and mixing between the Canadian tribes and those south of them. 

Here we see one of my French Canadian matches has 0.80% Native American DNA. Because this is less than 1% I wouldn't look at this as strong proof of Native American ancestry. He does, however, have a Native American mtDNA haplogroup, A2i, proving his direct maternal line is in fact Native American. So the trace amount of Native American DNA is in fact correct. (The haplogroup A2i is found in the following groups:"USA (Hispanic, etc.), Canada (Ojibwa, Prince Edward Island, Pabos in Quebec)".  According to the Wikipedia article "Haplogroup A (mtDNA)" )

Looking at more French Canadian matches I find many with traces of Native American DNA. Here is another case. This match currently lives in Canada and has over 1% Native American DNA. He doesn't however have Native American ancestry in his direct male of female lines, because he has European haplogroups, unlike the previous example. 

Yes, in most cases North Eastern Native American DNA can be detected if present. 

The colonial population of Quebec was very small. They had difficulty attracting French women to settle in Quebec. Also many of the Quebecois were fur traders who would have had close contact with Native Americans. There is definitely more detectable Native American in the French Canadian population than those who settled the United States. 

Basically if your ancestors were from south of the United States border it's nearly certain you have Native American ancestry. If you have French Canadian ancestry you might find traces of Native American admixture. If you have American, United States, ancestry your chances of having Native American ancestry are much lower, unless you are a tribal member. 

 If you're positive the stories in your family are true and would like to prove that with DNA, but you don't have any trace in your results, I would suggest testing at more of the major testing companies or testing more relatives. Check the Y and mtDNA haplogroups of your matches at 23andMe and Family Tree DNA. It's possible, if your ancestors were among the earliest arriving in Virginia, for instance. that you might indeed have Native American ancestry. However, that far back any trace of these ancestors' DNA is probably no longer discernible. If your Native American ancestor was said to have been born in the 19th or 20th centuries you should find traces of their DNA in your results. In a case of a supposed closer ancestor not showing up then the story you were told is just another tall tale. 

Problems With The Browning Lineage/New Information has Surfaced

 My research on my great-grandmother Isis Browning-Forgey's line began in May of 1999 when FamilySearch.org first went online. When that site first went online I tried searching all of my family names but the only line I got a hit on was for Isis Browning's family. I didn't know at the time this information wasn't verified and there weren't any source citations. It didn't occur to me that someone would post information that hadn't been thoroughly researched with documented sources. I had just begun researching my family in 1998 and didn't know that some people drew conclusions without proof. 

Actually the Browning lineage I found posted turned out to be mostly correct. I copied the family group sheets for the Browning family as far back as the links would take me. Below is the group sheet for Edward Browning's family. I copied this sheet on June 8th, 1999. 

The information on the sheets turned out to be very good going back to Edward Browning. When we go back a generation to his parents that's where we run into problems. According to this sheet Francis Browning and Rachel Marriot were the parents of Edward Browning. 

In 1999 there weren't many original documents online. If I wanted to verify the Browning lineage myself I would have to travel to Maryland to view the original documents or write the repositories asking for them to mail me copies, or order microfilms from the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. 

Doing some research online I was able to eventually find the reasoning and sources behind the information provided in the group sheets.. Someone had written a book about the Browning family and this information was copied from the book. Wills, land records, and census records were the bulk of the sources used. Looking at the sources used I felt confident the Browning researchers had done a good job and I didn't need to do anything else except collect the original sources either online or by ordering microfilms from my local Family History Center.

The reasoning behind the parentage attribution for Edward Browning was based on the fact Francis Browning, of Virginia, named an Edmund in his will. The names look similar when handwritten; it was thought someone mistook the name Edward for Edmund. I thought that could be a possibility and found no proof it wasn't. On the other hand Edward doesn't appear to have any sons named Francis or daughter's named Rachel. He lived in Maryland and Francis lived in Virginia. 

Where Edward is the man mistakenly identified as Edmund completely falls apart is there was a man named Edmund who was the son of Francis and Rachel. Edmund Browning can be found in several 18th Century records for Culpeper County, Virginia, the same area Francis and Rachel settled. Below is a power of attorney given to Edmund in 1770 from his brother John witnessed by brother Caleb Browning. These are all children of Francis and Rachel Browning. 

I had thought that atDNA test results at Ancestry supported a link between the Browning family of Culpeper County, Virginia and our Maryland Browning family. Looking at Ancestry's Thrulines a Nicholas Browning is shown as a son of Edward. He didn't have a son named Nicholas, but Francis Browning and Rachel Marriot did. 

I assumed this was pointing to a relationship with the Virginia family even though someone had an error in their tree. Doing some more research I discovered this family didn't descend from Nicholas or the Virginia Brownings, They also descended from the Maryland Brownings. 

It appears that as in the case of Edmund becoming Edward, Edward's son Nathan became Nicholas. Maybe because they both start with N? Looking at the names in the tree of the supposed Nicholas I spotted the name Verlinda. That was the name of Nathan's wife. Also this Nicholas was said to have died and been married in Maryland. 

Doing more research on the ancestors of these matches I discovered not only was the name Verlinda passed down in the family Elias was the son of Nathan Browning and Verlinda. My DNA connection to the Culpeper County, Virginia Browning family had now disappeared. 

Edward Browning origins mystery

The Edward Browning, of Maryland, origins mystery continued until someone commented on a blog post with information from a book he wrote.

George Arthur Trail IV, author of the book "David's Industry" discovered some new information about Edward Browning while researching original documents at the Maryland State Archives. He found Edward Browning named in a court case. He had been convicted for stealing a cow. The court case occurred in 1722, in Prince George's County, Maryland. Edward Browning is described as a former servant of John Rothery in the entry below from the book K page 484 of Prince George's County, Maryland court records. 

It's a little difficult to read the old faded record but we can make out that Edward Browning was sold by the court to Richard Isaac for a term of 3 and a half years. 

I believe this Edward Browning is more likely than not our Edward Browning. Part of Prince George's County, Maryland later became Montgomery County, Maryland where Edward's will was filed. He was also the right age to have been the father of children born in the 1720s when many of our Edward's children were born. 

Maryland was settled by many indentured servants who couldn't afford the cost of transporting themselves to America. They instead entered into service contracts with masters for a certain number of years to pay for their passage to this country. I believe Edward Browning could have been serving a set number of years as an indentured servant. Apparently John Rothery no longer wanted his service or the court thought that arrangement wasn't in the best interest of the parties because he was sold to someone else by the court. Three and a half years could be the remainder of his contract with Rothery? 

Another scenario that George Trail believes is the case is a ship captain named William Browning is the father of Edward Browning. This man was captain of the "Chester Merchant". Naval logs name a Potomac River captain by the name of William Browning. The entries in the logs were in 1689 and 1690. Our Edward Browning's eldest son's name was William. It's also likely that Edward Browning was born in the 1690s. Edward could have been a free man sold by the court for stealing the cow? Instead of a newly arrived indentured servant. 

There was an Edward Browning who is listed as living in Baltimore's Spes Utiz Hundred in 1706. This could point to our Edward's family being in Maryland well before the 1720s. Edward could haven been a name passed down in the family. 

Maybe more information will surface to establish whether Edward came to America as an indentured servant or he was born in America? 

Roger Browning of Tennessee loose ends

My line goes back to Isis Browning-Forgey of Indiana. Her father Richard Washington Browning was the son of another Nathan Browning and Obedience McPike of Greene County, Tennessee. Our connection to the Browning family of Maryland hinges on a deed naming a Roger Browning as the son of Benjamin Browning who in turn was the son of Edward Browning whose story I presented above. 

Benjamin was named in Edward's Montgomery County, Maryland will. Roger was named in a deed after Benjamin's death as the eldest son of Benjamin in a Frederick County, Maryland deed. The Brownings lived in both Montgomery County, Maryland and neighboring Frederick County. 

We don't have anything specifically stating that Roger Browning of Greene County, Tennessee and Roger of Maryland are the same person. We don't have any documents stating where he was born. We do have census records for a couple of his children. One child states his father was born in Virginia, while another states he was born in Maryland. Roger had a son named Benjamin who may have been named after his father. Nathan could have been named after an uncle? 

How common was the first name Roger in 18th Century America? Comparing the incidence of Roger to John in the 1810 US Census we see Roger is much less common than the name John. There were 87,284 Johns and 484 Rogers. This would support the fact the name Roger Browning wouldn't be very common. I have not found any other Roger Brownings on census records contemporary with our Roger. Doing a general search on Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org I haven't found any either. 

Looking at Thrulines, at AncestryDNA we do have matches with descendants of confirmed children of both Edward Browning and his son Benjamin. 

One of these lines had to be dismissed, however, because we also share another German related line with this family. Nancy Browning descendants are disregarded because of our relationship on two different lines. If I could see the segments in a chromosome browser I might be able to determine which side they came from? Since only one segment is shared with Nancy's matches, looking at common matches it looks like this segment comes from our shared Zirkle Roller line. 

This leaves us with 3 matches related to the possible brother of our Roger. We have 3 matches with descendants of Benjamin Sr.'s son Benjamin. We have 36 matches with descendants of our ancestor Roger. Our connection to Roger is firmly established, not only with all of these DNA matches, but also with Roger's will and census records. 

Where we run into some conflicting information trying to prove our ties to the Maryland family has to do with a Roger Browning that is listed with a Maryland Browning family member named Basil in Pennsylvania. Basil is listed on records with the family in Maryland and then relocates to Pennsylvania. There is disagreement regarding who his father was. 

We first find Roger Browning on a muster roll in 1781 in Bedford County, Pennsylvania. 

Since the name Roger is generally uncommon this Pennsylvania man may be Roger Browning from Pennsylvania? A William Browning and an Ephraim Browning are also named as living in Bedford County, Pennsylvania around the time Roger lived there. 

There is other evidence, however. There may have been more than one man named Roger Browning living in Pennsylvania. Descendants of the other Browning lines in Pennsylvania believe that their ancestors were originally from Maryland. The name Roger looks to be more common in the area of Maryland where the Brownings lived than in other areas. The name Basil, who Roger is associated with, is also used in that area. So there could have been more Roger Browning cousins living in Pennsylvania. 

In 1783 Roger Brownen was listed on a Bedford County, Pennsylvania tax list. There are 6 people in his household. He has one cabin. 

 

In 1785 we see a Roger Brownen listed as a single freeman non-resident runaway. Sounds like a different man than the one named above. The name Roger may have been used by other branches of the Maryland Browning family? 

If this Pennsylvania Roger is the son of Benjamin Browning he makes a trip back to Frederick County, Maryland after the death of his father in 1787. His father died intestate and the only child mentioned was Roger who inherited the land because he was the eldest son. A likely brother did appear on Benjamin's inventory. Roger sold the land he inherited to Jeremiah Browning. He could have been a brother, a cousin. or his uncle. 

After selling the land he apparently would have returned to Pennsylvania joining Basil in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. 

In 1788 we find Basil and Roger on a militia list for Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. 

They both appear on a 1788 tax list for Huntingdon, PA. Roger drops off the Pennsylvania tax lists in 1789 when he either dies or most likely moved to Tennessee. 

In 1789 our Roger Browning bought land in Sullivan County, Tennessee.. An Amsy Browning was serving in the militia in Tennessee in the 1790s, and is believed to be related to Roger due to the fact the name Amzi was used by Roger's descendants. It's possible he was another brother of Roger or his son?

There is a Browning DNA project with two descendants of the Maryland Brownings in it. The best way for our family to confirm our relationship with the Maryland Brownings would be for a male descendant of Roger Browning to take a Y-DNA test to compare with the Maryland Brownings. More research in Pennsylvania and Maryland court records would also help.