Elizabeth Brewer (1809-1854)

Elizabeth Brewer, daughter of Isaac Brewer (1763-1852) and his second wife, Sarah (1774-after 1855), was born in about 1809 in Georgia. A more specific location was likely Warren County, although her family roamed about a fair bit and records are scarce, so it is difficult to pin down with certainty. In her earliest years, she had her family around her. Her father, at that time, was a carpenter and millwright, as well as a farmer. I can well imagine her toddling along beside him, her little hand in his rough and calloused one, as he showed her the horses or some other intrigue that caught her eye. An old friend of Isaac’s once said that he enjoyed the company of young people, so I am sure that he loved to spend time with his children.

Elizabeth’s family did not remain under one roof for long, however. Her oldest brother, Jacob Fletcher Brewer, was about 15 years her senior, and she did not have time to get to know him well. He left home when she was about 6, if not before, bound for new land and opportunities up north in Illinois. As was the way of things, Jacob moved on again some years later. He ended up in Missouri, and it is unlikely that Elizabeth ever saw him again after he left Georgia.

Her dear father would soon leave as well, though only temporarily. The War of 1812 had broke out, and he was not one to sit back and let the younger men have all the action. He was expert with a gun, and soldiering was what he knew best, having served in the Revolutionary War in his boyhood and the Oconee Indian Wars as a young man.

Isaac first joined the Silver Grays, a band of grey-haired men who still felt a strong loyalty to their country. They were intend on showing that if their country needed them, they were ready. One of their main purposes was also to stir up excitement in the younger men of the area. I’m sure that Isaac was quite successful at this. He certainly had the ability to do so with his son, Joseph. Years later, he recalled that just listening to Isaac talk of the wars stoked the patriotism fires within him.

The Silver Grays did not see any action and Isaac itched to play a more active roll. Early in 1814, he hired on to drive a team to Fort Hawkins and then served under the captain of the wagon yard, who sent him to various forts in Indian country – areas that are now in present day Georgia and Alabama. Years later Elizabeth, as a middle aged woman, still remembered her father leaving on this excursion. It must have had quite an effect on her.

Though his patriotism pulled at him enough to cause him to volunteer, it must have been difficult for him to leave his family behind. That same year, his youngest child was born. We know only that he or she was born in about 1814, but not the time of year. It is possible that Isaac had to leave his wife behind when she was pregnant or had recently given birth to their new baby. One can only imagine the family discussions around the table, or the private, quieter ones between husband and wife, prior to his departure. It was a big decision to make. I can also easily envision young Elizabeth, then about 6 or 7 years old, giving her father a hug goodbye and watching him wave one last time just before disappearing from view to do what needed doing. How hard it must have been for this young family, not knowing if Isaac would ever return.

Elizabeth had 6 siblings, though the names of some are not known. We do know that her oldest brother had already left home. There was also a Nathan Brewer that left to fight in the war, who I suspect to be her second oldest brother. Perhaps there was another male sibling left behind that was old enough to care for them in Isaac’s absence, or a trusted neighbor that he had asked to look in on them. Isaac was gone for about a year in total, though each enlistment only lasted a few months, and he returned at the end of each to check on his family. One can not help but wonder how they managed on the farm without him, and I’m sure he worried for them a great deal while he was away.

I doubt that Sarah and her children got any regular word, for long stretches at a time, of whether Isaac lived or died. Not only would the mail service have been limited at that time, and worse still with the war going on, but the family was illiterate. The only way he could have sent a message to them was if he had someone else write it for him. The only way his wife could have known what such a letter said, was if she had someone come and read it to her. Perhaps she heard people talk from time to time, if any news reached the area, but that would have been about it. I can scarcely imagine the worry they must have endured all those months, and how relieved they must have been each time he returned to them.

Yet I’m sure that they were proud of him as well, at least those of the family that were old enough to understand what was happening. It seemed that, through the years, he instilled a love of country in his children. I’ve never read anything in Elizabeth’s account that indicated any resentment about him being gone. Many did, however, make reference to his steady dedication and willingness to do whatever he needed to do. And he always found a way to take care of his family along the way.

By the time the war of over, Elizabeth’s father had gone on three different tours in service of his country. On one particular instance, Elizabeth recalled her father leaving home with his knapsack and supplies. Perhaps he set out on foot that time, since no horse or wagon were mentioned. He was hired as a substitute soldier and then soon returned to service again until peace was restored in the area in 1815. Despite past battle injuries that still plagued him from time to time, he remained willing to fight whenever needed and was a very brave and patriotic man.

Not long after the war concluded, Isaac moved his wife and children to eastern Tennessee. By this time, his family also included two orphaned children that he’d taken in. This boy and girl, Littlebury and Elizabeth Whitecotton, were from Georgia and had become acquainted with him in about 1818. I had first thought that perhaps their father had perished in the war, but their parents must have died a bit later than that. At any rate, these two youngsters lived with him in Tennessee, if not before that in Georgia, and they spoke very highly of him. When the Brewer family first settled in Tennessee, they made their home in Blount County. They later moved to McMinn County and then Bradley County.

They remained in Tennessee for a number of years. By about 1834, when Elizabeth was in her mid-twenties, her brother Joseph had moved to Talladega County, Alabama. A few years later, in 1841 or 1842, Isaac brought Sarah and Elizabeth there as well. They settled on government land up in the spurs of the mountains near Silver Run. Here, Isaac again engaged in farming as much as his health would allow. They also attended a local Baptist church while they lived there. It is likely that they attended elsewhere before they came to Alabama as well, but I don’t have any church records from that time period.

By 1851, Elizabeth still remained unmarried and was about 42 years old. She was later described as sickly. I would assume from this that some ailment plagued her during her life, that prevented her from getting married. Perhaps she had epilepsy or some other condition that caused her to remain with her parents even through middle age. Isaac was also getting old and feeble enough that he couldn’t do very much physical labor, and he became concerned for the welfare of his wife and daughter. It is clear that Isaac loved them dearly and took his responsibilities very seriously. He had a will drawn up and renewed his desire from five years before, of obtaining a pension for his military service. It seemed that he did not worry much when his application was not readily approved in 1846, but after an act was passed allowing widows of Revolutionary War veterans to receive a lifelong pension, it became vastly more important to him. It seems that perhaps he knew death would come knocking soon and he was quite concerned with what would happen to his dependents after he was gone.

Elizabeth gave a beautiful account of things she remembered, about growing up under her father’s roof. She obviously had a good relationship with him. Isaac died about a year later. I can well imagine Elizabeth and her mother by his bedside as he passed, mourning the loss of a truly great man.

Elizabeth and her mother were left to get along as best they could. Sarah tried several times to find out what was delaying the approval of her husband’s Revolutionary War pension from Washington DC, explaining that she was in dire need of assistance. Elizabeth’s brother, Joseph, tried as well. Sadly, the application that Isaac had submitted, as well as Sarah’s widow’s pension, were rejected on the grounds that no Revolutionary War applications could ever be accepted unless first-hand accounts could be given by someone who served with the veteran. Of course, after so many decades had passed, there were no surviving individuals that they knew of who could provide this.

There was, however, enough evidence given of Isaac’s service in the War of 1812, that 80 acres of land was finally granted as payment in 1854. Application must have been made by Isaac before he died, or by Sarah shortly thereafter, for rights to the land they already lived on. I am glad that they no longer had to worry about someone else claiming their farm and leaving them homeless. I don’t know what they did to get by without a sufficient income. My guess it that life was pretty rough over the next few years. Surely, neighbors and friends kept a close eye on them and did their best to see to their welfare.

Elizabeth was an honest, God-fearing woman who was treasured by her dear parents. A justice of the peace that was acquainted with her, described her as a credible individual. Illness undoubtedly held its own set of trials, but she endured and did not appear to be bitter. Perhaps it bothered her some that she remained unmarried for so long, although I’ve never seen anything to indicate this. It would be natural to feel some disappointment and to long for children of her own, but she must have been glad to have loving parents that took care of her all those years.

I don’t know much else about her except that her parents were said to have raised their children to be industrious individuals. She came from a very patriotic family, so she probably held to these ideals as well. She fondly recalled hearing her father speak with old war buddies about their experiences in the Revolutionary War, of “their hardships and ups and downs in the war” and being taken prisoner and “their many near escapes”.

Many other relatives served in various wars, over the years. By the time the Civil War broke out, strong feelings toward land and country still burned brightly. Some of her family that had moved to Missouri served for the Union side, and her brother Joseph’s sons in Alabama fought for the Confederacy. I’ve no notion of what Elizabeth would have felt about such matters as succession and slavery. Her father evidently never owned any slaves, but some her ancestors had. Since she’d lived in the South all of her life, it is likely that she shared the Confederate sympathies of her nephews and neighbors, if she was still alive during the War Between the States.

During the years that I’ve spent researching this family, I have always assumed that Elizabeth never married.  However, I recently stumbled onto a marriage record dated 15 Nov 1854 in Talladega County, Alabama for an Elizabeth Brewer and Henry H Sutton.  It appears that she married her father’s lawyer and trusted friend when both were middle aged!  He had begun overseeing Isaac’s pension application some years before and Isaac also had appointed him executor of his will.  Henry fought long and hard to secure a pension for Isaac and later for Isaac’s widow and daughter but, unfortunately, was unsuccessful.

It is extremely difficult to find much of anything on Henry Sutton in census records, but in 1860 Census there was an H H Sutton in jail in Jacksonville, Alabama.  How sad it would be if this was Elizabeth’s new husband.  I can’t prove it for sure at this time, and have not figured out what he might have done to get into such trouble, or how long he remained imprisoned.  Nor can I find Elizabeth or her mother in this census year at all.

At this time, I cannot determine whether Elizabeth had already died of whatever illness plagued her, or if her mother had yet passed on of old age. I have been unable to even find out where either of them or Henry were buried, although I assume it would have been in the Silver Run, Alabama area.

Hopefully, someday we will learn what became of dear Elizabeth and the man who took such an interest in the welfare of her and her widowed mother after Isaac passed away.

By Mary Andersen

If anyone knows any additional information about Elizabeth or her family, or has any photographs they would be willing to share, please let me know by using the Contact Me tab.

Sources~

1 – Affidavit of Eliza Whitecotton – 29 April 1850 – McMinn Co, TN

2 – Affidavit of John F Lawson – 24 May 1850 – Bradley Co, TN

3 – Affidavit of Littlebury Whitecotton – 28 May 1850 – McMinn Co, TN

4 – Affidavits of Elizabeth & Joseph Brewer – 4 April 1851 – Talladega Co, AL

5 – Declaration of Isaac Brewer – 4 April 1851 – Talladega Co, AL

6 – Petition of Isaac’s Neighbors – 7 March 1851 – Talladega Co, AL

7 – Affidavit of Simon Brewer – 15 January 1853 – Coosa Co, AL

8 – Inquiries of Sarah Brewer – 20 June & 30 July 1853 – Silver Run, Talladega Co, AL

9 – Alabama County Marriages, 1809-1950 as found on FamilySearch

1 JUNE 2015 UPDATE: 
I have discovered documentation indicating that Dyer T Blythe, who was listed as the city marshal in the 1850 census (I can't find him on the 1860 census), submitted a petition in 1860 to JLM Curry seeking compensation for arresting Henry H Sutton for a felony charge. The petition was brought before congress. The date and details of the arrest itself are not given.  A felony charge might have indicated assault causing bodily harm, assault with a weapon, significant theft, or some other such crime. The Journal of the House of Representatives states the following under the heading "Tuesday, June 19, 1860"on page 1140: "By Mr. Curry: The petition of Dyer T. Blythe, of Alabama, asking remuneration for arresting Henry H. Sutton, charged with felony; which was referred to the Committee of Claims."   

I presume Mr. Curry to be Jabez Lamar Monroe Curry (see photo and article), who was listed as a member of congress in the 1860 census, then residing in the Northern District of Talladega County, Alabama. The Library of Congress holds an 1859 photo of him, taken while he was in office.  JLM Curry was a very wealthy 35 year old man in 1860,  born in Georgia, and owning $10,000 in real estate and $37,335 in personal assets.  His physical appearance is described on his 1867 passport application.  Ten years earlier, he and Joseph Brewer, Elizabeth's brother, were close neighbors, living about a mile apart, Jabez being just north of Munford, and Joseph living southeast.  Both were farmers at that time, but Jabez already had significant wealth and owned 19 slaves by the tender age of 25 (see 1850 census).  Interestingly, a man with the surname of Curry is one of the men that Sarah Brewer (Elizabeth's and Joseph's mother, and the widow of their father, Isaac Brewer), suspected in the mid 1850's of aiding Joseph in trying to rob Sarah and Elizabeth of their meager property, as willed to them by Isaac before his death.