Erastus R BROWN

PRIVATE CSA
Co A 9 Missouri Infantry
Civil War Confederate
September 1833 - September 30, 1900


Erastus R Brown

Erastus R Brown was born on 14 Sep 1833. He died after 1900 in prob Carroll County, Ark.

the following letter was sent by Erastus R. Brown to his sister, Mary Francis Brown Harris after 1860

Fairview Jan 17, __

Dear Sister

I shall not apologise for my procrastination but promise to try and do better in the future in letter writing. I have no special news to write you of interest from Montgomery. We have had and are still having a long cold spell-it commenced in Christmas week and now is very cold and dry. I have to drive all my stock to the creek to water-the ponds are all frozen to the bottom. I was in St. Louis last week and they were getting ice on the River which was about foot thick and had been crossing stock on the ice for two days. I am very much afraid that it well kill the wheat. If it does it will be as very hard on me as I made a total failure last year and had my seed wheat to buy owing to the chinch bugs and late sewing. I hope you are more lucky in that respect than we are and have a fine prospect for a good crop of all kinds. I am getting very tired of the very rigorous climate of Mo and would like to be in a more temperate climate so as not to be exposed to such severe winters as we have to pass through here. I have to work hard and expose myself winter and summer and do not hardly make a living-and I feel that is telling on me very fast and I will soon be an old man in felling while I ought to be only in the prime of life-but enough of this. All your relatives are well as far as I know, but are not getting on as well as we could wish. Those in Calloway did not raise much of a crop and have nothing to sell-which with teir heavy taxation makes it peculiarly heavy on them. It was reported that Harry Brown and Jimmie Bishop (Lyre's daughter) were to have been married last Thursday-but I have not heard whether they were or not. Harry is inclined to be wild and reckless and it is to be hoped if they do marry, that it will have a salutary effect and sober him down. Frank is going to the University at Columbia and is making good progress in his studies and will make a mark in the world if he is not too visionary in his views. I have not heard from Va for several weeks. They were all well then except George's oldest daughter who it was feared was going into consumption. Give my Love to Oscar and family and all your family D Price & family Mrs. Harris family and accept our best love for self. Write soon to your affectionate brother.

E.R. Brown

The year this letter was written by Erastus R. Brown to his sister, Mary Francis Brown Harris, is not legible. Since he did not mention Waller Harris, it was probably written after Waller Harris died in 1866. The 1860 U.S. Census reveals that Erastus R. Brown and Waller and Mary Harris lived in Montgomery City, Missouri at that time. It appears from the letter that some of the family lived in Calloway County, Missouri, east of Columbia, Missouri, in 1860. Erastus Brown and his wife, I. Jane lived in dwelling number 719 in Montgomery City, Missouri with Charles B Harper age 58, Ann S Harper age 54 and Charles D Harper, age 19. This author concludes that his wife was I Jane Harper, daughter of Charles B Harper and his wife, Ann S. Harper. Waller Harris and his wife, Mary Elizabeth, lived in dwelling number 720. In the 1850 Census, Montgomery Co, Missouri, Charles B Harper, age 48, his wife Ann age 44 lived in dwelling 488. Their children are listed as Sarah age 21, Jane, age 12, and Charles age 8. A physician named Thomas Perry, age 28 also lived in the Harper Household. The Harrises were not listed as living next to the Harpers.

In the 1900 US Census, Erastus R Brown is listed in the Carroll County, Arkansas, born Sept 1833 living with a daughter, Sabrina, who was born Feb 1885.

Oscar Brown, brother of Mary Francis Brown Harris, settled from Missouri to Texas by 1859 and made his home in Georgetown, Texas.

A large migration of the Brown and related families of Albemarle County, Va was made to Missouri in the mid-1800s. As discussed in the Lewis chapter, Meriwether Lewis, who was chosen by Thomas Jefferson in 1804 to lead the Lewis and Clarke Expedition to explore the Northwest Territories, including the upper tributaries of the Missouri and Columbia rivers, was part of the family connection of Albemarle County. It is probable that Meriwether Lewis' exploration of the Missouri and Columbia river areas led to the migration of a number of our Albemarle County, Va ancestors.
Glenn Tucker
Plano, Texas

Contributed on 11/14/11 by tslundberg
Email This Contributor

Suggest a Correction

Record #: 613903

Don't Follow