John Brown (1819-1887)

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Biography

Pvt John Brown was born 24 August 1819 in Quebec, Canada to Francis Brown (1801-1838) and Abigail Edmunds (1800-1823) and died 11 June 1887 Leeds, Washington County, Utah, United States of unspecified causes. He married Eleanor Male (1828-1904) 3 April 1879 in St. George, Washington County, Utah, United States.

John Brown was born 24 August 1819, the oldest son of two. He was about four when his mother died. His father remarried Mary Quade, fathering seven more children. It is uncertain when the family joined the Church but likely in Canada before traveling to Missouri by 1838 where his father signed a petition for relief from the persecutions. His stepmother stated that a body of armed men came to their home and ordered the family to leave the next morning. She stated further that her husband was sick at the time and died in the fall of 1838 while traveling into the adjoining county to the east.

Mormon Battalion Veteran

Participant in the march of The Mormon Battalion. This unit of the US Army served in the Mexican-American War and was the only religiously based infantry unit ever created by Presidential order. It consisted of nearly 500 men recruited exclusively from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (commonly called the Mormons). They undertook the longest infantry march in U.S. military history (as of 1847) and in the process marked out and creating the first continuous wagon road to California which linked the future states of New Mexico, Arizona, and California to the United States. Most members served an initial 12 month term (Jul 1846- Jul 1847) with some members re-enlisting for an additional 12 months afterwards.

Eventually arriving in Nauvoo, the Brown Family was active in temple work. Leaving Nauvoo with the exiled Saints, some of his family traveled to Council Bluffs in 1846 where he enlisted in Company A. Although he was not married and does not list a specific number of family members left behind on the Brigham Young return (Church roster), it notes his family was in the care of Peter Haws, the father of another Battalion member in Company D, Alpheus Peter Haws. Several battalion members listed Peter as caring for their family. At Fort Leavenworth, John sent $10 back to his stepmother, Mary, stating her location as Iowa.

Two siblings also joined the Battalion. His brother Daniel was in Company E and half-brother Francis was in Company B. At Santa Fe on October 16, 1846, John wrote a letter to his step mother.

“Dear Mother, Sisters, and Brothers, It is with pleasure I take this opportunity to inform you that we are all well hoping these lines may find you the same. We arrived at Santifee the 12th of October and we have had a plesant time for traveling and have got along as well as could be expected. John and Harriet has been sick but they are well at present. Some of the Battalion that are not able to travel and carry their knapsacks and the women are going toPerbalow to stay til spring and then they are going to California in the spring. The place called Perbalow ( Pueblo) is north of Santifee ( Santa Fe) and them that are able to carry their knapsacks are going to California this fall and I expect to see a cold time before we get there. We left Fort Leavensworth August 12th and was then sick and had a pretty hard time for two or three weeks but since we have got well we have got along first rate to be apon the march everyday. We went to the Arcansas River and had wood to burn almost all the way and after we crossed it we had no more wood but buffalow chips to burn to cook with for two or three hundred miles. Our Colonels name is Cook who is in Allens plase. He was appointed by General Carney since we arrived at Santifee, we have drawed but ten dollars and a half and I owed some for a few things that I got along the road so that I have to pay. I expected to drew more than I did so I cannot send but eight dollars to you. I wish it was so that we could hear from you but I do not know as you can send any more.”

Mary drew $7.20 from the account on January 22 through Peter Haws again. The remaining .80 was likely paid for tithing or to John D. Lee as the courier. The three brothers continued past Santa Fe, while Daniel’s wife was sent to Pueblo with the Brown detachment. Daniel was then [sent to] Pueblo about three weeks later with the Willis sick detachment. John and Francis arrived in California with the main command in late January 1847, spent six weeks at San Luis Rey Mission, and from there, Francis was sent to San Diego with Company B. John spent the last four months in Los Angeles with Companies A, C, D, and E, noted as “on duty at work on the fortification” building Fort Moore in April.

California Miner

At discharge in July 1847, his brother Francis remained in San Diego, and it is possible that John did as well. In his pension, John indicated he lived in California for about 10 years after discharge. However, he may have traveled to Salt Lake in 1848 via the southern route with Hunt Lathrop Company or the Boyle Rockwell Company and returned to California with the Lyman Rockwell Company in 1849 since the name of John Brown appears on a company list. If that is true, he immediately headed east after arriving in California, possibly with his brother Francis, since they were both found in an 1850 Missouri census, meeting Daniel who had already arrived. Per emigration records, John’s sister, Eunice traveled to California in 1852 in a small company that likely included her family since they all are found in California shortly after. He applied for bounty land from Santa Cruz in 1854.

Utah Miner

In 1857, he likely traveled to southern Utah with his brother Francis and his family, possibly working in the silver mines discovered in 1866. He married a widow in 1879 and his wife’s pension indicated John was a farmer by trade. He died in Leeds, Utah in 1887 and was buried in the same cemetery where a new headstone for his sister-in-law, Magell Mancheeta was placed about 2020.

Siblings

Offspring of Francis Brown (1801-1838) and Abigail Edmunds (1800-1823)
Name	Birth	Death	Joined with
John Brown (1819-1887)	24 August 1819 Quebec, Canada	11 June 1887 Leeds, Washington County, Utah, United States	Eleanor Male (1828-1904)
Daniel Brown (1822-1899)	2 October 1822 Saltfleet Township, Wentworth County, Ontario, Canada	21 October 1899 Watsonville, Santa Cruz County, California, United States	Harriet St. John (1829-1920)

Offspring of Francis Brown (1801-1838) and Mary Ann Quade (1806-1882)
Name	Birth	Death	Joined with
Francis Brown (1827-1872)	2 November 1827 Ridgeway, Orleans County, New York, United States	26 December 1872 Cottonwood, Salt Lake County, Utah, United States	Magell Mancheeta (1835-1857) Elizabeth Ann Birch (1823-1899)
Mary Ann Brown (1829-)
Samuel Brown (1830-1831)
Eunice Brown (1832-1889)
Israel Brown (1833-1901)
Susan Brown (1835-)
Joseph Brown (1837-1873)

Residences

Footnotes (including sources)

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