| Notes |
- John Brown was born in 1846 in Derryagh, Milltown parish, Armagh, Ireland on the shore of Lough Neagh, Ireland's largest inland lake. However, he was not baptised until 1852 at age 8. The reason for the delay is unknown, however the fact that he was baptized in the Anglican Church, rather than the Presbyterian Church, at a time when the government was not recognizing Presbyterian baptisms as legitimate may have been the reason.
Sometime in the late 1850s or early 1860s, when John was still a child, his parents and family moved to the village of Tandragee, County Armagh, in Ulster, Ireland. John, like his father, became a baker by trade. He presumably worked in his father's bakery on Church Street in Tandragee.
In 1867, at age 21, in Milton, Lurgan, Armagh, Ireland, just northeast of Tandragee, John Brown married Sarah Cooke. Various conflicting sources indicate she was somewhere between 13-18 years old (most likely 13-15) at the time of their marriage. Given the uncertain date of birth of their first daughter, Ruth, Sarah may have been pregnant at the time of their marriage.
It is worth noting that John and Sarah, like the previous generation, maintained the traditional Scottish naming pattern for their children. It appears that this tradition was preserved in Northern Ireland.
In 1888, at age 42, John Brown immigrated to Canada with his family. They settled in Hamilton, Ontario. He was preceded by nearly 20 years by William James Brown, who would later become his brother-in-law. William James Brown immigrated from Tandragee to Hamilton in 1866 at age 16. William later returned to Ireland in 1873 to marry John's little sister, Rachel Brown. It is not known why they moved from Ireland to Canada, although with the level of poverty in Ireland at the time and the increasing tension between Irish patriots and British loyalists, they most likely emigrated in hopes of a more prosperous and more peaceful life.
John Brown's family sailed on the ship Sarmatian from Londonderry, Ireland and landed in Quebec on 7 MAY 1888. Listed on the manifest on ticket 14148 are:
John Brown, 36, farm labourer
Minnie Brown, 17, spinster
William J Brown, 15, farm labourer
Robert Brown, 11, child
They are recorded as being bound for Quebec.
And on ticket 23676 are:
Sarah Brown, 39, matron
James Brown, 7, child
They are recorded as being bound for Hamilton.
Conspicuously absent are Anne and Tom Brown. I would read into this that Anne and Tom remained back in Ireland and followed later.
John is recorded as a baker in an early Hamilton Directory and in census records. As his father was also a baker, it is strange that we find John and his son listed as "farm labourers" above. This may suggest that they had connections to a family farm in Tandragee as well as the bakery.
John and his sons were staunch Presbyterians and members of the (anti-Catholic) Irish Protestant Benevolent Society. John was a member of the Orange Order and attended Victoria Lodge in Hamilton.
In 1891, at age 42 (sic), John Brown was residing in Ward 7, Hamilton, Wentworth, Ontario, Canada with his family. He was employed as a baker. They were living next door to Edward W Hyde and family. (Edward Hyde is found elsewhere in this database. Edward's daughter, Mabel, later married Archibald Stewart, first cousin of Jane Ord Stewart who married John Brown's son, Tom Brown.)
In 1901, at age 46, John Brown was residing at 175 Wilson Street in Ward 3 in Hamilton, Wentworth, Ontario, Canada with his wife and children. John was employed as a baker.
In 1911 at age 58, John Brown was residing at 323 (or 325) Main Street in Hamilton in Hamilton, Wentworth, Ontario, Canada.
On 1 Jun 1914, at age 60, John Brown died in Hamilton, Wentworth, Ontario, Canada of pernicious aneamia. He is buried in Hamilton Cemetery on York Street in Hamilton. The informant at his death is "Mr Brown", presumably Tom. John's parents' names are left blank on his death registration.
An old photo, dated 1916, shows Sarah living at 175 Wilson Street, Hamilton, Wentworth, Ontario, Canada after the death of John.
It seems the Browns were neither a close nor a healthy family. Two of John's sons, Tom and William, were described as overly strict disciplinarians. John's son Tom is known to have been violent. John's son Jim, "Col. William", was outcast by his brother Tom. And son Robert left the country never to be heard from again. Only William, Tom, and Annie remained in contact with each other as the children grew up and had families.
It's likely John was as violent as his son Tom as the story of "The Strap" may indicate:
On the occasion of his marriage, John Brown's eldest (Canadian) grandson, Kenneth Brown, inherited a leather disciplinary "strap" from his father, Stewart Brown. This strap had been handed from father to son for an unknown number of generations at least as far back as John. "The Strap" was much more gruesome than simply a father's leather belt. It had a heavy wooden handle and was made of heavy 1/4-inch thick leather, much like a barber's sharpening strap. The leather was cut into three tongues. It was used by the fathers in the family to discipline their children. When John's great-grandson, Kenneth Brown, inherited it, he described it as "well worn from generations of use". John passed the strap to his son Tom, who is believed to have used it on his son Stewart to excess. Stewart thankfully never used it on his children, Ken or Beverly, but it always hung on their kitchen wall as an ever-present threat and reminder of paternal authority. Stewart gave it to Ken who disposed of it permanently.
Subsequent research has identified the strap as a "Tawse" -- a device used in the British school system, especially in Scotland and Northern Ireland, until as late as the 1980s when it was finally outlawed.
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1846 - 1914 (67 years)
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