Biography
Ruth was born into a Quaker family in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, around 1702. Her parents were Deborah Dungan and Joseph Large, Jr. On December 3, 1723, she was married to Thomas Brown, as recorded in the Buckingham Monthly Meeting of Friends in Bucks County. Thomas was of Scottish ancestry and had immigrated to Pennsylvania from northern England in 1706.
Ruth and her family lived in Buckingham Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, not far from Ruth’s relatives, and they belonged to Buckingham Monthly Meeting of the Society of Friends. They were blessed with eight children, whose names are below.
In 1734, the Quakers were allowed to settle on land in the Shenandoah Valley of northwestern Virginia, in what is now the border of Frederick and Berkeley Counties, and they formed the Hopewell community. This provided new farming opportunities for growing families, and in 1741 the Browns decided to move there, except for their oldest daughter, Sarah, who was engaged to be married and wanted to stay in Pennsylvania. Ruth requested from the Women of Buckingham Monthly Meeting a certificate of removal to Hopewell Monthly Meeting, and this was granted on May 3, 1741. Afterwards the family moved to Virginia. They would have traveled the Great Wagon Road that ran from Philadelphia to Frederick County.
The family developed a farm along the Mill Creek, developed a nursery that introduced orchardry to the region, and built a fine log house that is on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1743 they had one more child, Samuel. In 1748, their daughter Sarah (Brown) McIntire moved there as well, in time to attend the wedding of her brother Thomas Brown to Margaret Moon.
Ruth and Thomas had at least ten children:
Sarah Brown, 1724 – 1758,
m. Andrew McIntire 1742
William Brown, 1726 – 1800,
m. Hannah Moon 1748
Susannah Brown, 1727 – 1819,
m. Richard Moon 1746
Thomas Brown, Jr., 1728 – 1796,
m. Margaret Moon 1748
Samuel Brown, 1730 – 1798,
m. Elizabeth Edwards
Deborah Brown, 1732 –
Frances Brown, Abt. 1734 – 1799?,
m. Richard Sidwell 1755
Ruth Brown, Abt. 1736 –
Elizabeth Brown, Abt. 1738 – 1768?
Joseph Brown, 1738 – 1814,
m. Ann (Jones) Morgan 1763
It might be noted that three of their children were married to children of Simon and Lowry Moon, who lived on a neighboring plantation. After her son William was married to Hannah Moon, the new couple moved to the Cane Creek Quaker settlement in Orange County, North Carolina, where their first child Thomas Hood Brown was born in 1749. In 1750, Ruth’s husband Thomas died but bequeathed to her a sizeable estate. This differed from the prevailing custom of the time, at least among non-Quakers, of leaving property to sons, who were then obliged to care for their widowed mother.
On August 6, 1753, Ruth obtained a certificate of removal (transfer) for herself and her son Samuel from Hopewell MM to Cane Creek MM in Orange County, North Carolina, and her son Thomas did the same. They were received into Cane Creek on November 4, 1753. So the journey to NC seems to have taken a long time. Her son Thomas and his family settled in New Garden, Guildford County, NC, where he and his wife were witnesses to a wedding in May, 1754, so Ruth probably stayed with her son William in Cane Creek until joining Thomas in New Garden, along with her son Samuel.
In 1758, the Women’s Meeting of New Garden Friends assigned a committee to resolve a dispute between Ruth and a woman named Eleanor Edwards. The nature of the dispute was not disclosed, but the committee eventually reported that it was resolved. In March of 1763 Ruth passed away. Her death is noted in the New Garden Monthly Meeting minutes as follows: “Ruth Brown Mother of Samuel and Thomas Brown deceased 22nd of 3th month 1763, aged upward of 60.” She is buried in the New Garden Friends Cemetery, but the location of the grave is unknown, since Quaker graves of that time were generally marked with uninscribed fieldstones.
After Ruth’s death her son Samuel married Elizabeth Edwards, the daughter of Eleanor Edwards, and one wonders whether that relationship was the matter on which the mothers had differed.
Note from Spotts at New Garden Friends
[An identifiable] grave marker does not exist. The cemetery is very old and early records are sketchy or non-existent. However she is listed as being buried here in Guilford County Marriage And Death Records, 1771-1899, which is a compilation of several different 3-by-5-inch index card files in the Greensboro library. There are more than 10,000 records, with information on perhaps as many as 20,000 individuals. The cards were created by different people at different times in the early 20th Century. The cards still exist and are available in the library.
Ruth was born into a Quaker family in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, around 1702. Her parents were Deborah Dungan and Joseph Large, Jr. On December 3, 1723, she was married to Thomas Brown, as recorded in the Buckingham Monthly Meeting of Friends in Bucks County. Thomas was of Scottish ancestry and had immigrated to Pennsylvania from northern England in 1706.
Ruth and her family lived in Buckingham Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, not far from Ruth’s relatives, and they belonged to Buckingham Monthly Meeting of the Society of Friends. They were blessed with eight children, whose names are below.
In 1734, the Quakers were allowed to settle on land in the Shenandoah Valley of northwestern Virginia, in what is now the border of Frederick and Berkeley Counties, and they formed the Hopewell community. This provided new farming opportunities for growing families, and in 1741 the Browns decided to move there, except for their oldest daughter, Sarah, who was engaged to be married and wanted to stay in Pennsylvania. Ruth requested from the Women of Buckingham Monthly Meeting a certificate of removal to Hopewell Monthly Meeting, and this was granted on May 3, 1741. Afterwards the family moved to Virginia. They would have traveled the Great Wagon Road that ran from Philadelphia to Frederick County.
The family developed a farm along the Mill Creek, developed a nursery that introduced orchardry to the region, and built a fine log house that is on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1743 they had one more child, Samuel. In 1748, their daughter Sarah (Brown) McIntire moved there as well, in time to attend the wedding of her brother Thomas Brown to Margaret Moon.
Ruth and Thomas had at least ten children:
Sarah Brown, 1724 – 1758,
m. Andrew McIntire 1742
William Brown, 1726 – 1800,
m. Hannah Moon 1748
Susannah Brown, 1727 – 1819,
m. Richard Moon 1746
Thomas Brown, Jr., 1728 – 1796,
m. Margaret Moon 1748
Samuel Brown, 1730 – 1798,
m. Elizabeth Edwards
Deborah Brown, 1732 –
Frances Brown, Abt. 1734 – 1799?,
m. Richard Sidwell 1755
Ruth Brown, Abt. 1736 –
Elizabeth Brown, Abt. 1738 – 1768?
Joseph Brown, 1738 – 1814,
m. Ann (Jones) Morgan 1763
It might be noted that three of their children were married to children of Simon and Lowry Moon, who lived on a neighboring plantation. After her son William was married to Hannah Moon, the new couple moved to the Cane Creek Quaker settlement in Orange County, North Carolina, where their first child Thomas Hood Brown was born in 1749. In 1750, Ruth’s husband Thomas died but bequeathed to her a sizeable estate. This differed from the prevailing custom of the time, at least among non-Quakers, of leaving property to sons, who were then obliged to care for their widowed mother.
On August 6, 1753, Ruth obtained a certificate of removal (transfer) for herself and her son Samuel from Hopewell MM to Cane Creek MM in Orange County, North Carolina, and her son Thomas did the same. They were received into Cane Creek on November 4, 1753. So the journey to NC seems to have taken a long time. Her son Thomas and his family settled in New Garden, Guildford County, NC, where he and his wife were witnesses to a wedding in May, 1754, so Ruth probably stayed with her son William in Cane Creek until joining Thomas in New Garden, along with her son Samuel.
In 1758, the Women’s Meeting of New Garden Friends assigned a committee to resolve a dispute between Ruth and a woman named Eleanor Edwards. The nature of the dispute was not disclosed, but the committee eventually reported that it was resolved. In March of 1763 Ruth passed away. Her death is noted in the New Garden Monthly Meeting minutes as follows: “Ruth Brown Mother of Samuel and Thomas Brown deceased 22nd of 3th month 1763, aged upward of 60.” She is buried in the New Garden Friends Cemetery, but the location of the grave is unknown, since Quaker graves of that time were generally marked with uninscribed fieldstones.
After Ruth’s death her son Samuel married Elizabeth Edwards, the daughter of Eleanor Edwards, and one wonders whether that relationship was the matter on which the mothers had differed.
Note from Spotts at New Garden Friends
[An identifiable] grave marker does not exist. The cemetery is very old and early records are sketchy or non-existent. However she is listed as being buried here in Guilford County Marriage And Death Records, 1771-1899, which is a compilation of several different 3-by-5-inch index card files in the Greensboro library. There are more than 10,000 records, with information on perhaps as many as 20,000 individuals. The cards were created by different people at different times in the early 20th Century. The cards still exist and are available in the library.
Biography
Ruth was born into a Quaker family in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, around 1702. Her parents were Deborah Dungan and Joseph Large, Jr. On December 3, 1723, she was married to Thomas Brown, as recorded in the Buckingham Monthly Meeting of Friends in Bucks County. Thomas was of Scottish ancestry and had immigrated to Pennsylvania from northern England in 1706.
Ruth and her family lived in Buckingham Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, not far from Ruth’s relatives, and they belonged to Buckingham Monthly Meeting of the Society of Friends. They were blessed with eight children, whose names are below.
In 1734, the Quakers were allowed to settle on land in the Shenandoah Valley of northwestern Virginia, in what is now the border of Frederick and Berkeley Counties, and they formed the Hopewell community. This provided new farming opportunities for growing families, and in 1741 the Browns decided to move there, except for their oldest daughter, Sarah, who was engaged to be married and wanted to stay in Pennsylvania. Ruth requested from the Women of Buckingham Monthly Meeting a certificate of removal to Hopewell Monthly Meeting, and this was granted on May 3, 1741. Afterwards the family moved to Virginia. They would have traveled the Great Wagon Road that ran from Philadelphia to Frederick County.
The family developed a farm along the Mill Creek, developed a nursery that introduced orchardry to the region, and built a fine log house that is on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1743 they had one more child, Samuel. In 1748, their daughter Sarah (Brown) McIntire moved there as well, in time to attend the wedding of her brother Thomas Brown to Margaret Moon.
Ruth and Thomas had at least ten children:
Sarah Brown, 1724 – 1758,
m. Andrew McIntire 1742
William Brown, 1726 – 1800,
m. Hannah Moon 1748
Susannah Brown, 1727 – 1819,
m. Richard Moon 1746
Thomas Brown, Jr., 1728 – 1796,
m. Margaret Moon 1748
Samuel Brown, 1730 – 1798,
m. Elizabeth Edwards
Deborah Brown, 1732 –
Frances Brown, Abt. 1734 – 1799?,
m. Richard Sidwell 1755
Ruth Brown, Abt. 1736 –
Elizabeth Brown, Abt. 1738 – 1768?
Joseph Brown, 1738 – 1814,
m. Ann (Jones) Morgan 1763
It might be noted that three of their children were married to children of Simon and Lowry Moon, who lived on a neighboring plantation. After her son William was married to Hannah Moon, the new couple moved to the Cane Creek Quaker settlement in Orange County, North Carolina, where their first child Thomas Hood Brown was born in 1749. In 1750, Ruth’s husband Thomas died but bequeathed to her a sizeable estate. This differed from the prevailing custom of the time, at least among non-Quakers, of leaving property to sons, who were then obliged to care for their widowed mother.
On August 6, 1753, Ruth obtained a certificate of removal (transfer) for herself and her son Samuel from Hopewell MM to Cane Creek MM in Orange County, North Carolina, and her son Thomas did the same. They were received into Cane Creek on November 4, 1753. So the journey to NC seems to have taken a long time. Her son Thomas and his family settled in New Garden, Guildford County, NC, where he and his wife were witnesses to a wedding in May, 1754, so Ruth probably stayed with her son William in Cane Creek until joining Thomas in New Garden, along with her son Samuel.
In 1758, the Women’s Meeting of New Garden Friends assigned a committee to resolve a dispute between Ruth and a woman named Eleanor Edwards. The nature of the dispute was not disclosed, but the committee eventually reported that it was resolved. In March of 1763 Ruth passed away. Her death is noted in the New Garden Monthly Meeting minutes as follows: “Ruth Brown Mother of Samuel and Thomas Brown deceased 22nd of 3th month 1763, aged upward of 60.” She is buried in the New Garden Friends Cemetery, but the location of the grave is unknown, since Quaker graves of that time were generally marked with uninscribed fieldstones.
After Ruth’s death her son Samuel married Elizabeth Edwards, the daughter of Eleanor Edwards, and one wonders whether that relationship was the matter on which the mothers had differed.
Note from Spotts at New Garden Friends
[An identifiable] grave marker does not exist. The cemetery is very old and early records are sketchy or non-existent. However she is listed as being buried here in Guilford County Marriage And Death Records, 1771-1899, which is a compilation of several different 3-by-5-inch index card files in the Greensboro library. There are more than 10,000 records, with information on perhaps as many as 20,000 individuals. The cards were created by different people at different times in the early 20th Century. The cards still exist and are available in the library.
Ruth was born into a Quaker family in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, around 1702. Her parents were Deborah Dungan and Joseph Large, Jr. On December 3, 1723, she was married to Thomas Brown, as recorded in the Buckingham Monthly Meeting of Friends in Bucks County. Thomas was of Scottish ancestry and had immigrated to Pennsylvania from northern England in 1706.
Ruth and her family lived in Buckingham Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, not far from Ruth’s relatives, and they belonged to Buckingham Monthly Meeting of the Society of Friends. They were blessed with eight children, whose names are below.
In 1734, the Quakers were allowed to settle on land in the Shenandoah Valley of northwestern Virginia, in what is now the border of Frederick and Berkeley Counties, and they formed the Hopewell community. This provided new farming opportunities for growing families, and in 1741 the Browns decided to move there, except for their oldest daughter, Sarah, who was engaged to be married and wanted to stay in Pennsylvania. Ruth requested from the Women of Buckingham Monthly Meeting a certificate of removal to Hopewell Monthly Meeting, and this was granted on May 3, 1741. Afterwards the family moved to Virginia. They would have traveled the Great Wagon Road that ran from Philadelphia to Frederick County.
The family developed a farm along the Mill Creek, developed a nursery that introduced orchardry to the region, and built a fine log house that is on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1743 they had one more child, Samuel. In 1748, their daughter Sarah (Brown) McIntire moved there as well, in time to attend the wedding of her brother Thomas Brown to Margaret Moon.
Ruth and Thomas had at least ten children:
Sarah Brown, 1724 – 1758,
m. Andrew McIntire 1742
William Brown, 1726 – 1800,
m. Hannah Moon 1748
Susannah Brown, 1727 – 1819,
m. Richard Moon 1746
Thomas Brown, Jr., 1728 – 1796,
m. Margaret Moon 1748
Samuel Brown, 1730 – 1798,
m. Elizabeth Edwards
Deborah Brown, 1732 –
Frances Brown, Abt. 1734 – 1799?,
m. Richard Sidwell 1755
Ruth Brown, Abt. 1736 –
Elizabeth Brown, Abt. 1738 – 1768?
Joseph Brown, 1738 – 1814,
m. Ann (Jones) Morgan 1763
It might be noted that three of their children were married to children of Simon and Lowry Moon, who lived on a neighboring plantation. After her son William was married to Hannah Moon, the new couple moved to the Cane Creek Quaker settlement in Orange County, North Carolina, where their first child Thomas Hood Brown was born in 1749. In 1750, Ruth’s husband Thomas died but bequeathed to her a sizeable estate. This differed from the prevailing custom of the time, at least among non-Quakers, of leaving property to sons, who were then obliged to care for their widowed mother.
On August 6, 1753, Ruth obtained a certificate of removal (transfer) for herself and her son Samuel from Hopewell MM to Cane Creek MM in Orange County, North Carolina, and her son Thomas did the same. They were received into Cane Creek on November 4, 1753. So the journey to NC seems to have taken a long time. Her son Thomas and his family settled in New Garden, Guildford County, NC, where he and his wife were witnesses to a wedding in May, 1754, so Ruth probably stayed with her son William in Cane Creek until joining Thomas in New Garden, along with her son Samuel.
In 1758, the Women’s Meeting of New Garden Friends assigned a committee to resolve a dispute between Ruth and a woman named Eleanor Edwards. The nature of the dispute was not disclosed, but the committee eventually reported that it was resolved. In March of 1763 Ruth passed away. Her death is noted in the New Garden Monthly Meeting minutes as follows: “Ruth Brown Mother of Samuel and Thomas Brown deceased 22nd of 3th month 1763, aged upward of 60.” She is buried in the New Garden Friends Cemetery, but the location of the grave is unknown, since Quaker graves of that time were generally marked with uninscribed fieldstones.
After Ruth’s death her son Samuel married Elizabeth Edwards, the daughter of Eleanor Edwards, and one wonders whether that relationship was the matter on which the mothers had differed.
Note from Spotts at New Garden Friends
[An identifiable] grave marker does not exist. The cemetery is very old and early records are sketchy or non-existent. However she is listed as being buried here in Guilford County Marriage And Death Records, 1771-1899, which is a compilation of several different 3-by-5-inch index card files in the Greensboro library. There are more than 10,000 records, with information on perhaps as many as 20,000 individuals. The cards were created by different people at different times in the early 20th Century. The cards still exist and are available in the library.
Inscription
no inscription
