Harshbarger line: David Brown 1783-1834

David Brown is another mystery.  He may have started life off as David Braun. His father was Henry Matthias Braun and his mother, Maria Salome Hoerner.  He was born about 1783, or possibly January 1, 1785, perhaps in Lancaster County, Pa.  We know that his family moved soon after that to Bedford County, so if he was born on January 1, 1785, then he was a twin to his brother Daniel, and may have been born in Bedford County.  On-line information seems to mix the two people up so I'm not sure which birth date is correct. 

We know that he married Barbara Brothers or Bruder, but we're not sure where or when. On line trees show the marriage as taking place in Poland, Trumbull County, Ohio in 1806 but I haven't found a source for this information.  Other trees show that the marriage took place in Lancaster County, Pa. Neither location makes a lot of sense but I am hoping to find a source someday so I can evaluate this information for myself. 

It appears that he and Barbara had at least 11 children, most if not all of them in Stark County, Ohio.  David had entered land there with a sale date of September 13, 1812.  It's possible that the family was already settled on the land when it was entered, or perhaps the family came after that date.  He owned 158 acres of land, which would have needed to be cleared before it could be planted.  This was not an auspicious time for starting out in Ohio, because the war of 1812 was in full swing and there was always the possibility of raids from Native Americans.  David's land was in Marlboro Township and soon after his brother Daniel had purchased land nearby, in Nimishillen Twp.   A Henry Brown purchased other land in 1824 and it's possible this was the brother of David and Daniel. 

The 1820 census for David shows that there were 4 males under the age of 10, 2 between the age of 10 and 15, and David between the age of 26 and 44.  David was engaged in agriculture.  There were also 2 females under the age of 10, and one aged 10-15, plus Barbara aged 26-44, for a total of 11 persons..  A family in the 1830 census in Harrisburg, Stark County, may be this same family. David was 50-59, which is a little off in age, we think. Barbara was 40-49, and there were more children.  By now, the male side had grown. There was one male under the age of 5, one between 5-9, two between 10 and 14, two 15-19, and two 20-29.  With the addition of the two youngest boys, this is compatible with the 1820 census.  There are still three females in the household besides Barbara-one is 10-14, one is 15-19, and one is 20-29.  This would easily fit the framework of the 1820 census, also, and with the information that the couple had 11 children. 

David is believed to have died in late 1834 or early 1835. Again, the same dates have been assigned for both David and Daniel and it's hard to determine which is which, from the sources I've found on line. Regardless, he was a reasonably young man in his early 50's, and he left a large family behind. Barbara lived another 19 years and died in Williams County, Ohio, on January 30, 1855.

I hope there are other researchers of this family who will see this and contact me. I'd love to know so much more about him.

The line of descent is:

David Brown-Barbara Brothers
Elizabeth Brown-William Cook
Barbara Cook-William Withers
William Withers-Della Kemery
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Harshbarger children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren