Last updated September 10, 2023.
Brown family distinguished with “II” belongs to a different genetic sub-branch of the BY729 than Brown I, hence the numbering. Their most recent common ancestor (Y14070) lived in about 350BC, the shared surname is therefore purely due to coincidence. Presently Brown II family members are only known from the US. There is no doubt their ancestors came to America from England, we can even trace (some of) them to Suffolk with quite some confidence. However, much is uncertain and reliable information about their English roots is scarce so far.
The starting point of our research will be Thomas Browne who died in 1688 in Cambridge, Middlesex, Massachusetts Bay Colony. Several men have been yDNA tested who claim descent from Thomas through different sons of his. With all due reservations he may be considered to be proven to belong to BY729 line (at least until solid counter-argument is brought up). Thomas’ first documented appearence is in Sudbury, Massachusetts.
It is not stated anywhere in the original documents where Thomas came from, however Rev. Edmund Browne also of Sudbury, Mass., was probably his brother and provides more clues. It must be stressed that there is no actual proof Edmund, the first pastor of the newly founded Sudbury, was related but the assumption appears quite reasonable. Edmund himself claimed he had “kinsman in Bury St. Edmonds” and he was quite certainly Edmund Browne born in Lavenham near Sudbury, Suffolk, in 1606, a son of Edmund Browne of Somerton, Suffolk. Edmund his father had a son Thomas, born in 1605 in Lavenham, who thus appears to be our Thomas.
A digression is required at this point. In a number of sources, e.g. , it is claimed that Thomas Browne (d.1688) was not true brother of Edmund but was adopted by Edmund Sr. (1576) after premature deaths of his parents, allegedly Thomas and Sarah. We have found no primary document providing any information regarding Thomas’ parents and therefore assume such claim is based solely on the fact that a birth record exists for Thomas Browne born in 1601 in Lavenham, Suffolk, son of Thomas . From Boyd’s Marriage Index it can be inferred that his wife was Sarah Clark who he married in Lavenham year previously . In light of the facts we have at our disposal – birth records for Thomas son of Edmund vs. Thomas son of Thomas – there is simply no need for the adoption theory for which there is no hint in the primary sources.
Edmund Browne father to Browne brothers of Sudbury, Mass., was born in Somerton, Suffolk, in 1576, son to William, as attested by local birth records . His wife seems to had been Ann Woder, yet this is somewhat problematic. Marriage information is provided by Boyd’s Marriage Index, a compilation made from various marriage registers, which sets the bond to 1603 in Lavenham, Suffolk . However, available birth records only show one Ann Woder born within a reasonable time span in Suffolk, specifically in 1596 in Lavenham, daughter to Robert Woder . This date is clearly too late for her to be the bride of 1603. Some online genealogies resolve the issue by amending her birth year to 1576, which is purely arbitrary way of making the facts fit. Error, of course, cannot be ruled out, but it is just as possible there were two Ann Woders with birth record simply missing for the older one who became the wife of Edmund. In any case, it is interesting to note that certain Isaac Woder of Gray’s Inn Esquire briefly owned manors of Overhall, Netherhall, Lavenham and Lanam in between 1608 and 1611 . In 1611 he “conveyed the same to Paul D’Ewes for £2500“. A branch of Woder family therefore were Lords of the manor of Lavenham shortly before Thomas and Edmund were born there. “Articles of Agreement between Paul D’Ewes and Edmund Browne as to reparations, &c., at Lavenham in 1623” survived among the original documents . Edmund of the articles being certainly the one born in 1576, we can glimpse that our Brownes had dealings with the new proprietor of the manor as well. Their nature is somewhat clarified by the Settlement drafted in 1626 in connection to the intended marriage of Simonds D’Ewes of the Middle Temple, London, Esq., son and heir apparent of the said Paul. Quite extensive list of properties allows us to see Edmund Browne as the occupier of “Lavenham Hall and lands” .
Their ties to the D’Ewes family must had been rather strong since Rev. Edmund Browne addressed a letter in 1639, shortly upon his arrival in America, to Simonds D’Ewes describing the opportunities presented by the Massachusetts Bay Colony . Sir Simonds D’Ewes, Baronet, (1602-1650) was of Stow Langtoft Hall, Suffolk, which also further corroborates connections of the Brownes to the county of Suffolk. Rev. Edmund suggested in his letter to Sir Simonds investing in cattle breeding as a profitable means of exploiting the land. He threw in an idea that his own father might take care of such cattle business on Simonds’ behalf should he decide to take it on: “If you shall please to adventure such a sum, I intend to send for my father over the next yeere if wee live, but if you shall venter this yeere then he would come over this yeere, & soe both my selfe and hee shall be obliged to you (for by that meanes he shall have some thing to imply him in).” Rev. Edmund’s father Edmund was 63 at the time of writing of the letter and, apparently, in his ripe age a little bored. Unfortunately, he died the next year without ever seeing the New World.
Also is Sudbury, Mass., since its inception was William Browne who is in some sources and many online genealogies considered brother of Thomas and Edmund. Arguments for some kind of blood relation between him and Thomas are rather convincing. Firstly, William was given care of Thomas’ property after the latter moved from Sudbury: “[William] shall quietly enjoy the land which he hath now fenced in, which is the second division of upland formerly granted to Thomas Brown.” Secondly, certain Anne Harvey invested a decent sums of money on behalf of both William and Thomas to support their positions in the Colony. Records attest that in 1640 “Thom : Browne, of Sudberry, is graunted 200 acres of land for the 25£ adventure of Mrs Anne Harvyes.” while in 1649 “Upon the petition of Willi : Browne, for the 200 acres (due for the sum of 25£, put into the ioynt stock by Mrs Ann Harvye) to be granted him without the west line of Sudbury, to be layd out by Capt Willard & Serieant Wheeler, to him being approved to have sufficient deputation from his aunt.” and still later, in 1672 “In ansr to the petition of Willjam Broune in relation to sattisfaction for moneys lajd out by Mrs Ann Harvey for the incouragment &promoting of this gouerment, the Court judgeth it meet to grant the peticoner, Willjam Broune, three hundred acres of land where it is to be found, not hindering a plantation, as full sattisfaction to his demands.” . Although the relation is only stated explicitely between Anne and William, it is safe to assume that Thomas was also her blood relation. This logically makes William and Thomas related, though not necessarilly brothers. On the other hand, no birth record for William son of Edmund (1576) of Somerton/Lavenham can be found which goes against the assumption of him being a brother of Thomas and Edmund. However, a son named William was christened in 1610 in Somerton, Suffolk, to William Browne and his wife Mary (Griggs). This William sr. unfortunately we don’t know who his father was neither his relation, if any, to Edmund (1576). However, since both some may be deduced from their living in the same place. A theory therefore can be put forward that Thomas and William Brownes of Sudbury, Mass., were cousins in some degree.
Origins in England
As stated above, Edmund Sr. (1576) was son of William Browne which is attested by his birth record. This William must had been born about 1550 but that is as much as we can tell. All claims concerning place of William’s birth etc. are but surmissions unsubstantiated by any primary sources. The same goes for all pedigrees of this family prior to 1550 of which several can be found, mainly on various websites. Basically all conclusions we can come to exploring sources available to us are negative.
There are two quite informative documents for years 1522/1524 – military survey for Babergh Hundred (in Suffolk) and [1524] – both of which agree a Christopher Browne held land in Somerton1Editor’s error. Without any doubt he was Christopher of Swan Hall, Hawkedon (d.1538). Hawkedon Brownes are a kind of celebrities in genealogy. On the one hand they are believed to be a branch of Brownes of Stamford/Tolethorpe in Lincolnshire who were wealthy merchants and armigers. On the other hand, several families of American Brownes claim their descent from them. Actually, none of this seems to be true. In a wide range of published genealogies Richard Browne (b.1585) and Abraham Browne (b.1588) of Watertown, Mass., are presented as scions of the Hawkedon family. This has been disproved by new research which shows Abraham in fact came from Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire while Richard’s origin is unknown. Their alleged Hawkedon connection is one of the fraudulent pedigrees introduced by Horatio Gates Somerby, a 19th-century American genealogist who often made unsubstantiated claims of this type to please his clients seeking their English roots. Others concluded (e.g. ) that our Brownes of Sudbury, Mass., were related (nephews or other) to the said Richard and Abraham Browne, all of them belonging to the Hawkedon line.
While any relation to Abraham and Richard must be refuted, connection of Sudbury Brownes to the family of Swan Hall, Hawkedon, would still appear reasonable given the fact of Somerton and Hawkedon villages laying literally next to each other, not more than a mile apart in Suffolk countryside. Further, (at the least) Ambrose son of Thomas Browne (b.1533) of the Swan Hall line was born in Somerton in 1580 and this family is known to had owned land in both parishes. And as has already been said, Christopher of Swan Hall was the only Browne to be shown by documents as owning land in Somerton in 1522/1524. However, no matter how logical connecting the Somerton/Sudbury, Mass., and Hawkedon Brownes may seem, no actual link has been uncovered. Christopher (d.1538), the first documented member of the Swall Hall family, had three sons – Robert, Christopher and Thomas. Thomas’ progeny is not known , about Robert we know he died without heir, Christoper had sons Thomas (b.1533) and Robert (b.1549). Thomas (b.1533) had five sons named John, Richard, Thomas, Ambrose and Abraham. There is no William born about 1550 who could be equated with the progenitor of the Somerton/Sudbury, Mass., Brownes. In theory he could had been son of Thomas, the youngest of the sons of the elder Christopher of Swan Hall, but at the moment this can be nothing more than a mere possibility.
Yet another issue concerns the Swan Hall family itself. In virtually all sources, both published and online, it is presented as stemming from the Browne family of Stamford/Tolethorpe in Lincolnshire. Namely, Christopher of Swan Hall (d.1538) is claimed to be son of Christopher of Tolethorpe (d.1518), himself son of John Browne of Stamford, Lincolnshire (d.1462). Careful study of available sources reveals that this is most probably yet another of Somerby’s inventions. The only published pedigree of Stamford Brownes pre-dating Somerby has Christopher among the sons of Christopher of Tolethorpe (d.1518), yet it provides no details concerning his life data . Even more importantly, Will of the said Christopher (probate 1518/1519) mentions no son named Christopher (while it explicitely speaks of other sons usually not given in the published pedigrees) . Also of importance is the fact that there exists no actual record of Hawkedon Brownes bearing the arms of Brownes of Stamford contrary to frequent claims attributing such arms to them. All in all, there is no trace of any link between the two Browne families apart the publications influenced by Somerby’s “findings”.
An alternative claim of Somerton/Sudbury, Mass., Brownes origins comes from Burke whose entry for Thomas Browne of Sudbury reads: “Thomas Browne, of Lavenham, Suffolk, and afterwards of Sudbury, Massachusetts, whiter he went with his brother, Edmund, bapt. at the Church of St. Peter and Paul, Lavenham, 10 Jan 1605. Father – Edmund Browne, of Lavenham, Suffolk, probably of the same family as Thomas Browne of that place, who entered his pedigree at the visitation of 1664…” . This particular connection is even more hypothetical than the one to Hawkedon. Thomas granted arms in 1664 was son of Robert Browne originally of Finningham, Suffolk . As there were rather numerous Brownes in Lavenham and Sudbury at the time (not to say in Suffolk in general), it is impossible to tell what their mutual relations were and there is, again, no trace of actual link between our Brownes and the armigers transplanted to Lavenham from Finnigham.
Since all these options are at best inconclusive and available genetic data limited, a possible way of finding where Somerton Brownes belonged would seem to open by identifying their relative Anne Harvey, the generous donator mentioned above. Unfortunately, though quite predictably, this turns out to be no less a daunting task than tracing the Brownes themselves. Yet, a good candidate has been discovered, namely Ann wife of Oliver Harvey (Harvy, Hervey) of Thurleigh, Bedfordshire . She was daughter of “Browne of London merchant“, some sources have the first name of her father as Humfrey . It is stated that she was widow of Robert Clarke, also merchant of London (some sources say John ) when she married Oliver. We don’t know her date of birth/death but we can roughly judge those from Oliver’s, who was born ca. 1558 and died in 1627. Their son John was born in 1609, therefore she she must still had been in her fertile age. Thus, her birth can be put to ca. 1560 – 1580. She would had been in her 60-70’s by the time the Brownes settled in Sudbury, Mass., and definitely in a position allowing her to support them financially being a daughter of London merchant and married into a distinguished family of Harveys. She is a very good candidate for Ann Harvey the generous aunt of William Browne, unfortunately so far we have been unable to find further information concerning her Browne ancestry and links.
- 1Editor’s error