USA > Pennsylvania > Colonial and revolutionary families of Pennsylvania; genealogical and personal memoirs, Volume IV > Part 47
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(G. W. Chamberlain: "The Spragues of Malden, Massachusets," p. 7. W. V. Sprague: "Sprague Families in America," p. 6. Bardsley: "Dictionary of English and Welsh Sur- names.")
(I) TRISTRAM SPRAGUE, a fuller of Fordington St. George, Dorchester, Eng- land, married, in the adjoining parish of Puddleton, June 26, 1575, Elizabeth Colt. They were the parents of :
I. Edward, of whom further.
2. William; married, at Owermoigne, Dorsetshire, June 15, 1607, Margaret Jaggard. (George Walter Chamberlain: "The Spragues of Malden, Massachusetts," p. 21.)
(II) EDWARD SPRAGUE, son of Tristram and Elizabeth (Colt) Sprague, was undoubtedly born about 1576, and died at Upway, Dorsetshire, England, near
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June 6, 1614. In his will he calls himself "Edward Sprague of Upway in the County of Dorset, fullere." The inventory of his estate, taken June 6, 1614, and proved June 13, 1614, included : one horse, seven kyne (cows) with three year- lings, fourscore sheep and forty-two lambs, one pig, "four acres and a half of corn," household utensils, fuller's shears, tools, etc.
Edward Sprague married Christian, who married (second), after his decease, John Corbin, of Upway. Their children were:
I. Alice, born about 1597; married, June 5, 1615, Richard Eames, whose brother, Captain Anthony, came to New England and resided at Charlestown, Hingham, and Marsh- field, Massachusetts.
2. Ralph, of whom further.
3. Edward, born about 1602; was residing in Upway, England, in 1641 and 1642.
4. Richard, born about 1604, died at Charlestown, Massachusetts, November 25, 1668; married (probably) Morton; was in Boston, Massachusetts, as early as 1630.
5. Christopher, buried at Fordington, March 31, 1625.
6. William, born in Dorsetshire, England, about 1610, died in Hingham, Massachusetts, October 26, 1675; married, in 1635, Millicent Eames.
(Ibid., pp. 36, 73-74, 81.)
(The Family in America).
(I) LIEUTENANT RALPH SPRAGUE, American progenitor of this branch of the Sprague family, and son of Edward and Christian Sprague, was born probably in Upway, County Dorset, England, about 1599 and died in Malden, Massachu- setts, in November, 1650. It is generally supposed that he came to America in company with his wife and children and his two brothers, Richard and William. He apparently came in the ship "Lion's Whelp." According to the journal of Francis Higginson, who came in the companion ship "Talbot," and kept a record of the voyage, these two vessels arrived at Naumkeag (Salem), on Monday, June 29, 1629, after a voyage of forty-five days. The journal further states: "Among others that arrived at Salem at their own cost were Ralph Sprague, with his brethren, Richard and William, who with three or four more, by joint consent and approbation of Mr. John Endicott, Governor, did, the same summer of 1629, undertake a journey from Salem and travelled the woods above twelve miles to the westward, and lighted off a place situated and lying on the north side of Charles River, full of Indians, called Aberginians." Ralph, Richard and William Sprague, together with seven others, were the first to settle this place, they jointly agreeing that the section north of the Charles River be called Charlestown. This was con- firmed by Governor Endicott.
Ralph Sprague began building his house as soon as the division of lots had been made. On October 13, 1634, the town of Charlestown appointed a committee to divide the common land in the territory known as Mystic Side, and in the great allotment of April 23, 1638, Ralph Sprague is granted twelve lots, five of which were on the Mystic Side. On January II, 1648-49, Lieutenant Ralph Sprague and nine other freemen "of Misticke Side" petitioned to the General Court of Massa- chusetts Bay Colony for a separation from Charlestown, and "Misticke Side" became a distinct town of the name "Maulden." Ralph Sprague was admitted a freeman of Charlestown, May 18, 1631, and on the same day the General Court chose him constable of the town. In 1636, he was for the first time chosen repre- sentative to the General Court, and he filled this important post seven different times, an indication that he was a man of sound judgment and remarkable ability. He also served as an officer in the Colonial Militia, being lieutenant most of the
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time in a Charlestown Company. He was a member of the Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts, soon after its organization in the year 1638, and in 1647 was lieutenant of the train band. The names of Ralph Sprague, his wife, and · brother, Richard, are listed as among the first members of the Charlestown Church (The First Church of Boston), which was organized in 1630.
Ralph Sprague married Joanna (sometimes recorded Joan) Warren, who died in Charlestown, February 24, 1679, daughter of Richard Warren, of Fordington, Dorsetshire, England. After his death she married, in Malden, Massachusetts, September 9, 1662, Deacon Edward Converse, of Woburn, Massachusetts, who died August 10, 1663.
(NOTE-There appears to be a difference of opinion as to Ralph's wife, some believing her to have been Joan Corbin, and others, Joanna Warren. Careful research proves beyond question that her name was Joanna Warren. From a letter dated March 25, 1651, and printed in the "New England Historical and Genealogical Register," Vol. IV, p. 289, one gets the impression that her name was Corbin, for in it John Corbin is mentioned as Ralph's father-in- law. Various other records, however, state her name to have been Joanna Warren. In "Lochford's Note Book" are several legal papers and letters of 1638-39 from Ralph Sprague and Joan, his wife, wherein it is expressly stated that her father had died, and that his name was Richard Warren, so that instead of John Corbin being her father he had probably mar- ried her mother, the widow Warren, as previously stated.)
Ralph Sprague and his wife, Joanna, were the parents of :
1. John, baptized in May, 1624, at St. George Church, Fordington, England.
2. Jonathan, baptized at Fordington, England, November 27, 1625.
3. Richard, born supposedly in England, about 1628.
4. Samuel, of whom further.
5. Mary, baptized in Charlestown, in "First Church of Boston," September 14, 1634; married Daniel Edmonds, of Charlestown.
6. Phineas, baptized at Charlestown, July 31, 1637.
(G. W. Chamberlain: "The Spragues of Malden, Massachusetts," p. 61. W. R. Cutter : "Genealogical and Personal Memoirs, Middlesex County, Massachusetts," Vol. III, p. 861.)
(II) SAMUEL SPRAGUE, son of Ralph and Joanna (Warren) Sprague, was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts, his baptism taking place in the church there, the "First Church of Boston," June 3, 1631. He lived to be sixty-five years of age, and during his lifetime was a foremost figure in the affairs of Malden, Massa- chusetts, where his death occurred, October 3, 1696. In 1680, he was elected a selectman of Malden, and again in 1686. In 1682, he was chosen sergeant of the Malden Foot Company, and on August 28 of that year he was appointed one of a committee to repair the meetinghouse, also to be a tithingman in the meetinghouse on the Lord's Day. On March 22, 1689, he was made freeman of the Massachu- setts Bay Colony, and January 28, 1694, he was made moderator of Malden town meeting. He was appointed clerk of the writs to take account of all births and deaths and to "act in said office according to the order of the President of the Council," this clerkship covering the period of years between 1686-93. Samuel Sprague died intestate and the division of his estate was made October 3, 1696.
Samuel Sprague married, in Boston, Massachusetts, August 23, 1655, Rebecca Crawford, who was born about 1633, and died in Reading (now Wakefield), Mas- sachusetts, July 8, 1710, only daughter of John Crawford. She survived her hus- band and married (second), in Malden, Massachusetts, June 24, 1697, Captain John Brown, of Reading. Samuel Sprague and his wife, Rebecca, had the follow- ing children :
I. Rebecca, died August 15, 1658.
2. Samuel, born May 4, 1660, died young.
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3. Samuel, Jr., of whom further.
4. Rebecca, born in September, 1666, died young.
5. John, born about 1670.
6. Winifred, born December 3, 1672; married Deacon John Dexter, of Malden.
7. Rebecca, born in 1675.
(G. W. Chamberlain: "The Spragues of Malden, Massachusetts," pp. 103-05.)
(III) SAMUEL SPRAGUE, JR., son of Samuel and Rebecca (Crawford) Sprague, was born in Malden, Massachusetts, in May, 1662, and died December 27, 1738. By occupation he was a blacksmith. The Malden town records indicate that he was a man of ability, who took an active part in the town's affairs. On March 3, 1689-90, he was elected constable; March 13, 1698-99, a fence-viewer, and on subsequent dates was a member of various town committees. He was elected select- man, March 27, 1699, and served as such for a period of eight years ; also modera- tor of town meetings. The townsmen elected him to make a valuation of Malden estates, January 26, 1707, an assessor in March, 1709, and town clerk, March 3, 17II. He was among those who entered dissent against a vote to call Rev. Joseph Metcalf to be minister of the First Parish, May 24, 1706, and served on the jury, March 1, 1708. His will was made April 22, 1734.
Samuel Sprague, Jr., married (first) Sarah Crawford. He married (second), in 1693, Sarah Greene, who was born in Malden, January 14, 1676, and died there, February 2, 1743, daughter of Deacon John and Sarah (Wheeler) Greene, of Malden. Children of the first marriage were:
1. Sarah, born September 16, 1685, died the same day.
2. Sarah, born September 26, 1686; married William Greene. (Greene III, child 1.)
3. Samuel, born February 2, 1688.
4. Elizabeth, of whom further.
5. Richard, born about 1692, died in Medford, Massachusetts, December 9, 1766; mar- ried (first), December 25, 1722, Abigail Whittemore; (second), August 24, 1758, Joanna Oakes.
Children of second marriage :
6. Mehitable, born June 31, 1694, died in 1721 ; married, January 22, 1712, James Hay, of Charlestown.
7. Rebecca, born May 8, 1696, died July 20, 1772; married Edward Burknam.
8. Mercy, born February 26, 1697-98, died August 8, 1709.
9. Winifred, born December 30, 1699, died May 21, 1739; married, May 20, 1720, Michael Bridgen, of Charlestown.
10. Abigail, born November 15, 1702; married (first) Samnel Call, of Charlestown, Malden and Oxford; married (second), about 1748, John Hamen.
II. Mary (perhaps not in order of birth), died in Malden, October 26, 1708.
12. John, born September 15, 1708.
(G. W. Chamberlain: "The Spragues of Malden, Massachusetts," pp. 139-43.)
(IV) ELIZABETH SPRAGUE, daughter of Samuel. Jr., and Sarah (Craw- ford) Sprague, was born about 1690. She married Captain Nathaniel Greene. (Greene IV.)
(Ibid: Samuel S. Greene: "A Genealogical Sketch of the Descendants of Thomas Greene, of Malden, Massachusetts," pp. 25, 37.)
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A most interesting Colonial and Revolutionary ancestry is that of the late John Coats (3) Browne, who was a noted Philadelphia pioneer of photography, a scien- tist and philanthropist.
(I) PETER BROWNE, great-grandfather of John Coats (3) Browne, was born September 18, 1751, in Northern Liberties, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, a son of Nathaniel and Mary Browne. Peter Browne accumulated a large fortune by furnishing the iron work for the ships built in the neighborhood. He was not, strictly speaking, a blacksmith or horseshoer, the word blacksmith being used gen- erally in his day to distinguish workers in iron on a large scale from the white- smiths, who worked in silver and other precious metals. Peter Browne built, free of charge, the machinery for the first steam propelled vessel in the world, the craft built by and for John Fitch, the real inventor of steamboat navigation. Mr. Browne, unlike his father, who was a member of the Society of Friends, gave ener- getic support to the cause of the Colonists during the War of the Revolution, serving as a captain of artillery, and after the return of peace he continued his patriotic activities, being recognized as one of the most public-spirited men of the day. He was county commissioner of Philadelphia County, and eight years after- wards was appointed a justice of the peace. He joined the famous State in Schuylkill, March 29, 1786, and at one time was a coroner and again a counsellor. He belonged to the Schuylkill Fishing Company, and was chosen, January 23, 1801, a member of the Society of the Sons of St. George. He was a manager of the Pennsylvania Hospital, and was active in religious and philanthropic move- ments. In 1783 he became a pew-holder in Christ Protestant Episcopal Church, and was a vestryman from 1806 until he died. He was an intimate friend of Dr. Benjamin Rush, who wrote Mr. Browne in the midst of the yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia in 1798, saying: "Be assured my good friend that even a dog belonging to Peter Browne should not be neglected by me."
Mr. Browne married, April 20, 1773, Sarah Dutton. She was born May 29, 1753, and was the daughter of Isaac and Mary (Coats) Dutton, the latter the daughter of John Coats, member of a widely-known family of North Liberties. The Shield of the Coats arms is black (prudence and honesty), gold (generosity and elevation of character), and blue (loyalty). The chief shows the man to have been a leader in battle; the cut on the shield shows he pledged the King his sup- port. The crest of a hand with baton shows one high in authority. These are war arms. The Dutton family was entitled to bear arms. The shield is silver and red, the former meaning sincerity and the latter military bravery. The golden fret was a mark of distinction; the five ostrich plumes signify the titled person, as do the supporters. Mr. Browne's shop was at Kensington, but his house was located at No. 141, North Front Street, an exceedingly fashionable neighborhood at the time. Mrs. Browne passed away November 3, 1809, and her husband survived her lit- tle more than a year, the date of his death being December 11, 1810. Peter Browne's independence of character stood out in many ways, notably when at one
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time he refused to use the Browne arms to which he was entitled, by right of descent, and devised an escutcheon all his own. This consisted of a large anvil with two pairs of naked arms in the act of striking, the motto being: "By this I got ye," meaning that by the trade of iron monger he acquired his fortune.
(II) JOHN COATS BROWNE, son of Peter and Sarah (Dutton) Browne, was born October 23, 1774, and received his early education at the Episcopal Academy. He entered the University of Pennsylvania, and was graduated in 1793, after which he engaged in business with his father, his specialty being the iron work for ships. He was the Kensington bank's first president, and he became president of the board of commissioners of the district of Kensington, North Liberties, in 1831, a post he filled to the close of his life. He was elected a member of the famous First Troop, Philadelphia City Cavalry, on June 2, 1798, holding the rank of fourth corporal from 1803 to 1807. He was connected with various other organi- zations and in some of them acted as president. Mr. Browne married, April 27, 1800, Hannah Lloyd, daughter of Hugh and Susannah (Pearson) Lloyd, of Phila- delphia. The shield of the Lloyd arms is blue and black, black signifying prudence and honesty and blue loyalty. The goat denotes sagacity and agility, the cocks watchfulness. These are battle arms. The shield of the Pearson arms is blue, denoting loyalty; the three suns signifying brilliancy and genius; the wavy lines with the fur ermine on them show that the warrior so pleased his sovereign that he permitted him to carry the King's fur (ermine) on his shield as a sign of royal favor. The Lloyds were Friends of the stricter sort, as the Brownes had been before the Revolution ; but Peter Browne ceased to belong to the society after he had borne arms in defense of American liberty. Mr. and Mrs. Browne were the parents of six children, one of them, John Coats (2), who died in infancy. Mr. Browne resigned as corporal on May 7, 1810, but maintained his other activities for years longer, and he was still in the prime of life at the time he passed away on August 8, 1832. His widow survived him until August 7, 1868, having attained the great age of eighty-nine years.
(III) PETER BROWNE, son of John Coats and Hannah (Lloyd) Browne, was born February 8, 1803, and engaged in the lumber business in Philadelphia until impaired health forced him to retire, after which he lived part of the time abroad. Mr. Browne married, on October 15, 1836, Anne Taylor Strawbridge, daughter of John and Frances (Taylor) Strawbridge, born on April 6, 1811. The arms of the Taylor family have a shield of silver, meaning sincerity and truth; the chief of the shield is black, showing prudence and honesty of the arms bearer, also that in battle he was a chief, or general; the boar's head denotes a man of great strength, as in early times England was infested with wild boars, and the man who slew one in hand-to-hand combat had to be a man of great strength, as he broke the jaws of the boar in killing it. The mailed arm with javelin shows the warrior prepared for instant action. These are war arms. Her father was a representative of the old Philadelphia family of Strawbridge. Mr. and Mrs. Browne were the parents of John Coats (3), and Fanny Strawbridge, who died in infancy. The husband died March 25, 1840, and in 1850 Mrs. Browne became the wife of Wil- liam C. Kent, passing away on January 1, 1880.
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Engraved by J.J. Cad
John Goats Browne (AGED FOUR YEARS) FROM PAINTING BY THOMAS SULLY
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John Bouts Browne, 1
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(IV) JOHN COATS (3) BROWNE, son of Peter and Anne Taylor (Straw- bridge) Browne, was born February 13, 1838, in Philadelphia, and studied at the Episcopal Academy and other schools of his native city. His early recollections included several summers passed with his mother at Ropp's boarding house in Ger- mantown. The railroad at the time consisted of a single track, and the station in Philadelphia was on the west side of Ninth Street, north of Green Street. In 1853, he joined the Delphian Circumferaneous Association, composed largely of boys connected with the Rev. Dr. Hare's School, several of whom became con- spicuous as clergymen of the Protestant Episcopal Church. They used to meet in a field beyond the Wire Bridge, which in after years became the Spring Garden Street Bridge, in West Philadelphia. They played ball and cricket, and alternated the exercises by racing around the reservoir basin of the Fairmount Water Works, on which site now stands the Municipal Art Gallery. John Coats Browne, at fif- teen, entered the old wholesale dry goods house of James, Kent, Santee & Com- pany, to which his stepfather belonged, and remained three years. For the first two years his annual salary was fifty dollars and for the third year it was seventy- five dollars. In the last year of his tenure almost all the money that came in and went out of the counting room passed through his hands. The confidence of the firm in the boy of seventeen may be understood better when it is added that the amount he handled in a year was about $3,000,000. Mr. Browne carried to the bank large sums in notes and checks, and "took up" all of the firm's notes, which often amounted to $20,000 in a day. The notes were not made payable to any par- ticular bank, and Mr. Browne was obliged to hunt them up throughout the city, thus often being obliged to carry in his pockets $10,000 or $15,000 in cash to take up the notes and cancel them. During this period he took up and completed a course in chemistry, and devoted much attention to mineralogy at a later time. In after years his collection of minerals was considered one of the finest in the possession of an amateur collector, and Mr. Browne became a member of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. As a business career did not appeal to his tastes and inclinations, he devoted the greater part of his life to conserving and enlarging the family estate. He was deeply interested in amateur photography and was the first person in Philadelphia to make instantaneous pictures of moving objects, thus photo- graphing ships in motion on the Delaware River as early as 1867. Recognition of this achievement came in his election as a member of the Philosophical Society, for which he was proposed by Pliny E. Chase, but he declined the honor. For half a century few professionals excelled the work he did as an amateur photographer. He was a founder and one of the most active members of the Photographic Society of Philadelphia, and was elected its president for several successive terms, from 1871 to 1878. His artistic photographs of country scenery won several gold medals in open competition, and he left an invaluable collection of his own photographs of vanished and vanishing scenes in Philadelphia. Philanthropy was ever the interest nearest to Mr. Browne's heart, and he filled his days with many kindnesses and charities which never can be known fully to the world. In 1872, he was elected a manager of the Episcopal Hospital at Front Street and Lehigh Avenue, and he gave it a larger share of attention than any other manager in its history. He retained this office for forty-five years and served also on the board of trustees. Almost ten years before his death, Mr. Browne resigned, and the board created the office of
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honorary vice-president as a mark of its appreciation, which Mr. Browne filled as long as he lived. He was a director also at the time of his death. His devotion to this institution was such that he often gave up his vacation out of town to remain in the city in order to make sure that the affairs of the hospital were carried on in the best manner possible. This was only one of the many incidents of a similar char- acter which marked his entire life. Francis Lewis, and W. W. Frazier, in the minutes they prepared on his life, remark: "These facts are noted because they show remarkable and unusual fidelity to a great trust." From 1868 until 1883 he was manager of the Philadelphia Dispensary. Mr. Browne accompanied a party of United States Government scientists to Ottumwa for the purpose of assisting in the observations of a total eclipse of the sun in the summer of 1869. This was done by making photographs of the phenomena. The weather was cloudy for days prior to the eclipse so that the sun could not be seen; the night before the day of the great event a heavy rain passed over Ottumwa, continuing till early morning and ending with a severe electrical storm, the most tremendous Mr. Browne ever had seen. The sun appeared after the storm, dimmed by a single cloud, and the photography was highly successful.
Mr. Browne was a Republican in his political affiliations, but office-seeking and office-holding alike were repugnant to his taste and temperament, and he preferred to discharge his duties to the community as a private citizen. At one time he was chairman of the council of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania ; he was almost a lifelong member of St. James' Protestant Episcopal Church, but in his later years he joined in the worship at St. Stephen's Church.
Mr. Browne's wide culture was revealed in his collections, one of which consisted of views of old Philadelphia, including rare and costly engravings, and others made indelible in the rarest China and Delft porcelains, models of the decorative art of the eighteenth century. These pictures of old Philadelphia include the Birch series, the most valuable of all, and it is included in the Browne collection in complete form. Mr. Browne also had gathered a remarkable collection of buttons, chevrons and insignia, which included those of every regiment that served in the Civil War. He possessed specimens of the campaign badges used in every political struggle from the time of Lincoln to the day of his death, with a sheaf of Civil War envelopes. His own photographs of historic places in and around Philadelphia and the natural beauty spots of that attractive country form an interesting department of his treas- ures, not the least valuable by any means.
Mr. Browne was a man of attractive personality, ready wit, good humor, and profound learning in a wide variety of subjects, with a store of general informa- tion, all of which assured him a welcome in any company, whether mirthful or seriously inclined. He could entertain readily, and had a pleasing gift of versifying which enlivened many of the gatherings where he was seen. When an aged lady accused him of being only a butterfly, he responded with these lines :
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