Henry George BROWN of Frome, Somerset, England

[zalib]

Henry George BROWN was baptized on the 23rd July, 1856 in Frome, Somerset, England. The census data shows he was born in Isleworth, Middlesex, like his sister Mary Jane, but his parents were from Frome, living for a few years in London, possibly doing building work.
Henry disappears from the records after 1871, when he was 15 years old, but reappears in the
will of Sophia, his step-mother, in 1914. The will says he is living in Auckland Park,
Johannesburg, South Africa.
There are very few South African records online, so no trace of him there. I have speculated
whether he may have gone there in the late 1870s with his cousin, William James Early
GOUGH (later known as Walter Percy GOUGH), who was about the same age. We know for certain that William/Walter went to South Africa in 1879 and fought in the Zulu wars, where he earned a medal. Could the two have gone off on an adventure together?
I have a lot of family history from England but would really like to fill the gap for Henry.

[crimea1854]

Hi

There is a Corporal Wm P Gough, who served with 1st Kings Dragoon Guards against the Zulu's, on the medal roll, but no H Brown in the same Regt.. However, on the pay-to-view website F**d my P**t there is a service record for a Henry Brown, born 1857, Frome, Somerset, might be your man?

Martin

[zalib]

Very interesting, thanks Martin.

There was a Henry BROWN, unrelated, bap in 1857 in Frome, so not absolutely positive about the link but well worth further research. Will look into it.

Walter Percy GOUGH became Governor of Natal, married Annie Harriet McGregor in 1881, and raised a family in SA. I have heard that relatives are still there. There's a reference in the 1913 Women in South Africa.

[zalib]

I've now found out what happened to HGB of Frome. He settled, married, and created a line of Brown's in South Africa. I've been in contact with a descendent.

[elrenedk]

Hi ,my name is Elrene Ann De Kock(nee Brown) looking for more info on Henry George Brown ,my Great Great Grandfather who was born in England in 1856 and then left sometime and is responsible for the Brown descendants,like me, who dwell in South Africa.He had a son William George Brown born in Beaconsfield,Kimberley ( my Great Grandfather and my father,William George Brown is named after him)..His son was Walter Philip Brown,my grandfather.

[zalib]

Hi Elrene, it's been a long time since I saw any activity on this thread, but it is a pleasant surprise to hear from you. I have William George BROWN married to Jane GRAHAM, but apart from his birth, I have no other data. I can see a death record on Ancestry World membership but I do not pay for that so have no idea of the contents and names it might expose.
I've been in contact with members of the South African branch who are descended through WGB's brother Henry Walter BROWN. Are you in contact with any of them?
Part of the history says that Henry George BROWN remarried after his first wife (Sarah Jane WILLIAMSON) died. Again, we have no further knowledge of that other than his death certificate showing his surviving spouse as E BROWN.
I have a lot of information on the UK family, HGBs family were significant builders, especially of churches, in the UK. My own line is from HGB's brother.
I can give you more information if you'd like to email me on ^(*)
My tree is on Ancestry.
David



(*) Moderator Comment: e-mail removed in accordance with RootsChat policy,
to avoid spamming and other abuses.
Please use the Personal Message (PM) system for exchanging personal data.

[elrenedk]

Hi David
Unfortunetly your email address was deleted.Safety and security reasons by Rootschat.Not sure how to private message you.Desperatly want the info on Henry George Brown and his siblings,parents etc.
So so glad to make contact with a distant Brown relative.
My uncle , Percival Terrance Brown started the research into our family tree and I have been assissting him to get more information.
We got stuck with Henry George Brown (my 2x Great Grandfather who is responsible for us living in South Africa).We know he was born in 1856(not sure where somewhere in the UK)and that he came to South Africa sometime (not sure when or why- perhaps the discovery of diamonds in Kimberley in 1871 as he seems to have settled around the area) and  married  Sarah Jane Williamson in Douglas,near Kimberley on 16 April 1883.Do not know when she died and that he remarried.
They had a son William George Brown ,my Great Grandfather)born in Beaconsfield ,Kimberley on 24 April 1886 and he died in Aliwal North,Eastern Cape on the 3 May 1939.He was married to my Great Granny Brown as we called her ,or Jane Mary (Graham).She died in Durban when I was about 11 years old.
They had several children,one was my grandfather ,Walter Philip Brown born in Johannesburg in 1918 but sadly passed away in 1992.
My father is William George Brown ,named after his grandfather.My father lives in Cape Town as does his brother ,Percival Terrance Brown.He has another brother and sister.all still living.
We desperatly would like the info you have .

[zalib]

Hi Elrene, I got your private message and will respond later. I've had a need for some time to put together the information on the South African family ... time being an issue!

For now I'll summarise some information that might help other researchers who come here.

Henry George BROWN
1856–1916
Birth 16 APR 1856 • Isleworth, Middlesex, England
Death 31 DEC 1916 • Kuruman, North Cape, South Africa

Henry was the first son of William George BROWN and Jane Clissold DANIELL of Frome in Somerset. Online searches will reveal this in his wedding announcement. William and Jane went to London between 1853 and 1856, returning to Frome to rejoin the family building firm. WGBs father was William BROWN (1795-1861) who was born in Somerton, Somerset. The BROWN name goes back to the beginning of church records (abt 1700) in Somerton. Wives families also lived around that area. The names PEDDLE, INDOE, FOSTER and more crop up regularly among family marriages.
We do not know why William BROWN moved to Frome as a young carpenter. He first appears there when he first married in 1815. He found work as a builder, and eventually included three sons in the building firm, including William George BROWN, the father of Henry George BROWN. They built many significant places around Frome, especially many churches. WGB focused mainly on being an architect, his brother Frederick seems to have run the building side. I do not know what Henry did, I suspect he had a role in assisting with the running of the business, because in 1879 he accepted a job as Clerk of Public Works in Grahamstown, South Africa. This role is very much a Project Manager role. He arrived in 1880.
Family tree information is on Ancestry. I did a quick search today to see if your branch had been entered by anyone else, as I do not have it. I found a tree by someone in the USA that shows your branch down to your father, but his Henry George was described as coming from Yorkshire, so I suspect they've gone astray somewhere in their research! It wouldn't be the first time I've found significant issues, but the message for you is to check that you and I are talking about the same people! I've written to a proven South African descendent to see if we can get more information on your branch.
I'll contact you again when I've put together a more detailed history.
David

[pampoen]

Hi elrenedk all you need to do is make one more post on Rootschat and then you can send zalib a personal message and share information.