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.