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OrFICIAL  REPORT 

Of  the  First  Six  Meetings  of  tKe 

American  Brigham  Family 
Association. 


According  to  Burke.  >fie  abure  coal  has  been  borne  by  the  Brighams  of  Torkshire,, 

CuviberlaiidSjff ire  and  Oxfordshire:  thus  showing  a  wider  ancient  dis- 

trij/ution  than  any  other  of  our  srreral  family  arms. 


^S\ 


HEl-]>    AT 

Chica.go,  Illinois. 

Marlboro,  Boston  and  Worcester,  Massachusetts* 

1893.  '94,  '95.  '96.  '98.  1900. 


EDITION    LIMITED.     '5     ^     PRICE    $1.00. 


COv^. 


7 


Knarnv/zd far  Tfie  S r/gfijym  nninj/y HrsJaty. 


OrPICIAL  REPORT 


OV  THB 


PIR5T  SIX  iWEETIINGS 


OP  THB 


Amcpican  Brigham  Family 

Association 

Chiccigo,  Illinois* 
Marlboro,  Boston  and  Worcester,  Mass. 


IN 


1893.  '94.  '95.  '96.  '98,  1900 


"Hereditary  rank  may  be  an  illusion t  but  hereditary  virtue  gives 

a  patent  of  innate  nobleness,  beyond  all  the  blazonry 

of  the  Heralds'  College." 


BT 


WILLARD  I.  TYLER  BRIGHA/VV.  ESQ.. 

Member   of   the   New   Eng-land    Historic   Genealog-ic    Society, 
The    Southern    History    Association,    British    Record 
Society,  Sons  ot  the.  American  Revolution, 
■     ;    Governor /.^h()iiiiasl)ad1ey  Associ- 
ation, (fee,  &C. 


(HtlJCACiC.  ILLINOIS.  1900. 


Copyright  by 

WiLLARD  I.  Tyler  Briohah, 

1900. 


CONTENTS. 

Portrait,  on  Steel,  of  Hon.  C.  O.  Brigham,  President  B.  F.  A Frontispiece 

Resume  of  the  Social  Side  of  Our  Reunions,  by  William  E.  Brigham..  Page     i 
Historical  Articles  : — 


"Lineage  of  Brigham" 

"Anglian   Brighamea"    

"My  English  Trip" 

"Thomas  Brigham,  the  Puritan" 

"Marlborough  and  the  Second  Generation  of  American  Brig- 
hams"  

Obituaries  

Personals   

Constitution 

Officers  

Members 

English  Notes   

Up  in  the  North  Country 

Wells  Cathedral   


6 

10 
22 
31 

35 
41 
49 

52 

53 
53 
58 
62 

64 


INTRODUCTORY. 

This  is  our  first  bow  before  a  Brigham  reading  audience.  If 
you  shall  be  pleased  to  like  what  we  say  herein,  probably  we  will 
call  again  after  our  Family  Reunion  of  two  years  hence. 

To  most  of  you,  this  will  be  an  initial  pamphlet;  but  there  has 
been  one  previous  efifort  of  this  sort  in  our  family.  After  the 
first  Brigham  Reunion,  which  was  held  in  Chicago  during  the 
World's  Fair,  Dr.  B.  A.  R.  Brigham  (who  was  then  the  Historian 
of  our  clan)  issued  a  published  account  of  that  gathering,  which 
met  with  hearty  approval  and  appreciation  from  all  who  were 
privileged  to  receive  a  copy.  (It  was  the  proposition,  that  all  who 
should  join  the  Association  then  being  formed  would  receive  a 
copy  of  the  proceedings  gratis.  For  my  own  poor  part,  to  help 
along  what  seemed  to  be-  a  very  deserving  labor  of  love,  I  paid 
$5.00  for  five  memberships.  I  am  sorry  to  say,  that  I  was  the  only 
one  of  five,  who  thus  became  members,  who  ever  received  a  copy 
of  the  Report,  which  was  trul}'^  enough  thereafter  printed.  I 
remark  this  with  something  of  reluctance,  in  a  spirit  neither  of 
boast  nor  animosity ;   simply  as  a  matter  of  fact.) 

Judging  from  the  foregoing,  the  circulation  of  the  former 
pamphlet  must  have  been  very  circumscribed.  Indeed,  so  thor- 
oughly are  we  convinced  of  this,  that  we  are  herein  setting  out  in 
full  the  Historical  Article  delivered  at  that  first  meeting;  in  the 
belief  that  this  Report  would  not  be  all  that  it  should  be,  were  such 
article  omitted. 

We  hope  you  may  find  these  coming  pages  both  inviting  and 
readable.  Some  parts  will  surely  appeal  to  the  hearts  of  all  who 
have  ever  identified  themselves  in  any  way  with  the  dear  old 
B.  F.  A.  Is  it  not  a  joy  to  look  upon  the  genial  features  of  our 
veteran  Family  President?  And  the  straightforward  narrative  of 
his  life  and  attainments  is  filled  with  hope  for  the  younger  members 
of  our  great  family.  Then,  too,  the  able  resume  of  the  social 
side  of  our  meetings,  the  work  of  our  gifted  "quill  pusher,"  our 
retiring  President,  William  E.  Brigham,  Esq.,  of  the  Boston 
Transcript,  will  add  its  peculiar  pleasures  to  all ;  reawakening 
tender  thoughts  of  happy  hours  spent  with  our  kindred,  as  well  as 
memories  of  those  dear  ones  who  will  never  meet  with  us  so  again. 
Obituaries  of  some  of  the  last  to  leave  us  will  be  found ;  would  that 
such  narratives  might  appear  at  greater  length,  but  the  limited 
purview  of  this  publication  forbids  anything  like  discursive  biog- 
raphies. A  few  personals  of  the  living,  some  notes  on  English 
rambles,  with  the  several  historical  articles,  completes  the  sum 
of  our  modest  offering. 

Blandishment  aside,  these  records  are  sufficient  to  conclusivelv 
prove  our  clan  has  produced  numbers  of  exceptional  men  and 
women  in  divers  and  snndrv  worthv  walks  of  life.  It  is  the  sincere 
nope  of  the  writer,  that  this  poor  effort  mav  lead  in  the  near  future 
up  to  something  complete  and  enduring,  touching  those  who  have 
ever  borne  the  patronymic  Brigham.  The  Editok. 


BRIGHAM    FAMILY   ASSOCIATION. 


A  Sketch  and  a  Few  Suggestions. 


By   William  E.  Brigham,  President,  1896-1900. 

No  adequate  history  of  the  Brigham  Family  Association  ever  has  been 
written,  and  such  will  hardly  be  attempted  here.  Nevertheless,  this  pamphlet 
is  (with  the  exception  of  the  report  of  the  first  meeting,  in  1893),  the  first 
pretentious  document  published  "ofiicially"  under  the  auspices  of  the  Asso- 
ciation ;  and  it  seems  proper  that,  in  addition  to  the  valuable  papers  of  our 
Historian  which  follow,  there  should  be  included,  at  least,  an  outline  of  the 
social  history  of  the  B.  F.  A.,  with  such  suggestions  for  the  welfare  of  the 
Association,  as  may  have  developed  from  the  experience  of  the  past. 

FIRST   MEETING,   CHICAGO,   OCTOBER    l8,    I893. 

The  Brigham  Family  Association  owes  its  origin  to  Dr.  B.  A.  R.  Brigham 
of  Chicago,  who,  on  August  lo,  1893,  issued  a  call  to  the  other  Brighams  of 
Chicago,  to  meet  in  his  office  August  15,  to  consider  "the  question  of  hold- 
ing a  reunion  of  the  Brigham  Family  in  Chicago,  sometime  during  the 
Columbian  Exposition."  Besides  Dr.  Brigham,  Rev.  L.  W.  and  Messrs.  E. 
D.  and  G.  B.  Brigham  attended,  and  took  action  which  led  eventually  to  a 
gathering  of  107  persons,  representing  the  Brigham  name,  held  in  the  Illinois 
State  Building  of  the  Columbian  Exposition,  October  18,  1893.  The  states 
of  Illinois,  Massachusetts,  Kansas,  Michigan.  Minnesota,  Missouri,  Ne- 
braska, New  Hampshire,  New  York,  Ohio,  Pennsylvania  and  Wisconsin 
were  represented. 

The  Brigliain  Family  Association  ivas  organised,  with  these  officers : 
President,  C.  O.  Brigham  of  Toledo ;  vice-presidents.  Captain  H.  G.  Brig- 
ham of  Chicago,  O.  A.  Brigham  of  Lowell,  Hon.  Johnson  Brigham  of  Des 
Moines,  Thomas  Brigham  Rice  of  Barre,  Mass.,  James  R.  Brigham  of  Corry, 
Pa. ;  secretary,  B.  A.  R.  Brigham,  M.  D..  of  Chicago ;  treasurer,  E.  D. 
Brigham  of  Chicago ;  historian,  W.  I.  Tyler  Brigham  of  Minneapolis ; 
librarian,  Emma,  E.  Brigham  of  Boston  ;  orator.  Rev.  George  F.  Brigham  of 
Sharon,  Wis.;  and  a  board  of  trustees  consisting  of  these  and  Charles  W. 
Brigham  of  Lowell,  Gus.  B.  Brigham  of  Chicago,  H.  C.  Brigham,  M.  D.,  of 
Grand  Rapids,  Mich.,  Colonel  J.  H.  Brigham  of  Delta,  Ohio,  and  Jerome  R. 
Brigham  of  Milwaukee. 

The  features  of  the  meeting  were  an  address  by  Hon.  Johnson  Brigham 
(just  returned  from  a  consular  residence  in  Aix-la-Chapelle,  Germany), 
descriptive  of  a  visit  to  the  old  town  of  Brigham,  near  Cockermouth,  Eng- 
land :  an  address,  "The  Lineage  of  Brigham,"  treating  of  the  English  origin 
and  the  heraldry  of  the  Brigham  family  by  the  Historian,  W.  I.  T.  Brigham; 
an  address  by  Rev.  George  F.  Brigham  of  Sharon,  Wis.,  which  included  a 
re-statement  of  the  known  fact,  that  the  notorious  "Brigham  Young"  had  not 
a  drop  of  Brigham  blood  in  his  veins  ;  an  exhibition  of  relics,  deeds  and  other 
precious  heirlooms,  collected  by  Dr.  B.  A.  R.  Brigham ;  and  the  singing  of  a 
quartet,  "Brigham,"  the  words  and  music  composed  by  the  venerable  Mavor 
Brigham  (since  deceased),  father  of  the  first  President  of  the  Association. 
A  Constitution  was  adopted  (under  which  the  Association  acted,  vmtil  it  was 
superseded  in  1898)  ;  and  a  coat  of  arms  received  tentative  individual  ap- 
proval, although  it  was  not  formally  adopted.  The  valuable  pamphlet,  ex- 
haustively descriptive  of  this  meeting,  issued  by  the  Secretary,  and  which 
includes  a  colored  plate  showing  the  coat  of  arms,  with  crest  and  motto,  is 
now  out  of  print.     The  original  membership  of  the  association  was  iii. 

SECOND  MEETING,  MARLBORO,   SEPTEMBER   12,   1894. 

Pursuant  to  a  vote  of  the  first  meeting,  the  second  meeting  was  held  at 
Marlboro  (tlic  family  seat),  September  12,  1894,  with  Lorimon  S.  Brigham 
as  chairman  of  the  Local  Committee.  The  Baptist  Church  was  utilized  for 
the  business  meeting ;  at  which  an  amendment  to  the  constitution,  providing 
for  annual  meetings,  was  proposed  ;  and  it  was  voted,  to  adopt  the  boar's 
head  crest,  and  the  motto,  "In  Cruce  Salus,"  as  the  emblem  of  the  Associa- 
tion.    Dr.  B.  A.  R.  Brigham  read  the  Secretary's  report,  which  showed  satis- 

I 


factory  progress  ;  and  it  was  voted,  to  continue  to  enroll  charter  members,  as 
long  as  applications  were  received.  A  call  for  records,  for  use  in  completing 
a  "Lineage  of  Brigham,"  was  made. 

City  Hall  had  been  elaborately  decorated  for  the  dinner ;  at  which  450 
covers  were  laid.  An  enlarged  copy  of  the  coat-of-arms,  in  colors,  adorned 
the  platform,  and  at  each  plate  was  a  souvenir  and  picture  of  Brigham  Church 
in  Brigham,  England,*  presented  by  the  late  D.  H.  Brigham  of  Springfield, 
Mass.  Hon.  William  M.  Davenport,  Mayor  of  Marlboro,  welcomed  the  As- 
sociation to  the  city.  The  address  of  President  C.  O.  Brigham  was  the 
most  memorable  which  has  been  delivered  before  the  Association.  Rev. 
George  F.  Brigham  of  Sharon,  Wis.,  the  official  Orator  of  the  day,  read  a 
scholarly  paper,  in  which  much  of  historical  interest  was  incorporated,  and 
W.  I.  Tyler  Brigham,  the  family  Historian,  contributed  the  second  ("Anglian 
Brigha>nca")  of  the  series  of  fascinating  essays,  of  which  the  present  publi- 
cation is  chifly  composed.  A  poem  by  Mrs.  Laura  Brigham  Boyce  of  Mont- 
pelier,  Vt.,  read  by  the  author,  completed  a  literary  and  historical  program 
of  rare  interest  and  value.  Carriage  drives  to  the  Thomas  Brigham  home- 
stead and  other  places,  were  followed,  in  the  evening,  by  an  informal  sociable 
and  dance  in  the  City  Hall. 

The  Marlboro  newspapers,  of  this  and  approximate  dates,  contain  ab- 
stracts of  the  addresses,  and  other  matter  of  value  to  the  writer  of  Brigham 
family  history. 

THIRD    MEETING^    BOSTON,    OCTOBER    9,    1895. 

The  most  elaborate  and  expensive  of  all  the  meetings  of  the  B.  F.  A.  was 
the  third,  held  in  Boston,  October  9,  1895,  William  E.  Brigham,  Local  Chair- 
man. Preparations  for  it.  involving  the  selection  of  a  large  and  able  com- 
mittee, were  begun  in  May  and  continued,  almost  unremittingly,  through- 
out the  summer.  All  Odd  Fellows'  Building  was  utilized,  where  a  business 
meeting  was  held  in  the  morning,  a  dinner  in  the  afternoon,  and  a  grand 
ball  in  the  evening,  zvifh  music — as  at  the  preceding  and  the  succeeding  meet- 
ings— by  the  famous  "Brigham  Orchestr.\"  of  Marlboro.  The  day's  pro- 
gram included  an  electric  car  excursion  to  the  second  home  of  Thomas 
Brigham,  the  Puritan,  on  "The  Rocks,"  at  Clarendon  Hill,  Somerville. 

Not  less  than  500  persons  attended  this  meeting,  at  one  time  or  another. 
The  literary  features  included  an  address  by  President  C.  O.  Brigham  (whose 
delightful  humor  remains  one  of  the  happiest  of  memories),  a  singularly 
graceful  and  scholarly  oration  by  Hon.  Johnson  Brigham  of  Des  Moines 
(the  speaker  officially  appointed  at  the  previous  meeting),  and  an  ex- 
haustive historical  paper,  "Marlboro  and  the  Second  American  Brigham 
Generation,"  by  Historian  Willard  I.  T.  Brigham.  An  amendment  to  the 
constitution,  providing  for  annual,  instead  of  triennial,  meetings  was  adopted; 
and  the  Committee  on  Family  Badge  made  report  (showing  a  pin  of  design, 
picked  out  from  the  coat-of-arms),  which  was  formally  adopted.  (This  pin 
is  manufactured  in  quantities,  and  is  worn,  with  increasing  frequency,  at  the 
Reunions.) 

FOURTH    MEETING,    WORCESTER,    OCTOBER    I4,    1896. 

The  fourth  meeting  of  the  Association  was  held  in  Worcester,  Mass., 
October  14,  1896,  Mr.  L.  L.  Brigham,  Local  Chairman.  Bad  weather  (for  the 
first  time)  interfered  with  the  attendance ;  but  100  persons  attended  the 
business  meeting  in  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  Building  (nearly  all  of  which  was  utilized 
by  the  Association)  and  many  more  than  that  number  sat  down  to  dinner. 
At  each  plate  was  a  Souz'cnir  Poem,  written  by  Rev.  Dwight  Williams  of 
Cazenovia,  New  York.  The  "Harry  Brigham  Orcliestra"  of  Marlboro  was 
seated  on  the  platform ;  the  Apollo  Quartet  of  Boston,  supplied  without  ex- 
pense to  the  Association  (by  T.  Brigham  Bishop  of  Boston),  gave  humorous 
and  artistic  selections,  which  were  richly  enjoyed;  the  superb  basso  pro- 
funda of  Edward  Franklin  Brigham,  of  New  York  City,  delighted  the  kins- 
men, as  it  often  had  metropolitan  audiences ;  and  entertaining  songs  were 
contributed,  also,  by  the  Misses  Goddard.  of  Westboro  and  Morse  of  Oxford. 

The  new  rule,  of  "five-minute  speeches,"  was  productive  of  a  rapid-fire 

^Entered  upon  the  records  of  this  meeting  is  a  letter  from  the  vicar  of 
this  parish. 

2 


discharge  of  grave,  gay,  and  witty  utterances ;  and  the  afternoon  was 
(socially)  a  continuous  intellectual  feast.  An  elaborate  excursion  to  Lake 
Quinsigamond  had  to  be  abandoned,  because  of  the  rain ;  but,  in  the  evening, 
music  and  dancing  (in  Salisbury  Hall)  brought  to  close  a  series  of  festivi- 
ties which  made  the  weather  an  indifferent  matter.  The  Worcester  meeting 
was  exceptionally  iinportant,  from  several  points  of  view.  The  election  of 
oiJicers,  included,  among  other  changes,  a  new  President  and  a  new  Secretary ; 
the  Local  Committee  instituted  a  (ivelcome)  departure,  in  the  social  pro- 
gram of  the  meeting  by  the  elimination  of  formal  oratory,  and  the  substitu- 
tion of  entertainment.  The  Worcester  Reunion  was,  moreover,  the  last  to  be 
conducted  at  tlie  personal  expense  of  kind  friends,  resident  in  the  cities  to 
which  the  Association  had  been  invited. 

FIFTH    MEETING,    MARLBORO,    SEPTEMBER    I4,    1898. 

The  nczv  administration  entered  upon  its  duties  with  a  well-defined  policy, 
prominent  in  which  was  the  desire  to  relieve  individual  members  of  the 
Association  of  all  extraordinary  expense  in  connection  with  future  re- 
unions. The  Boston  meeting  had  cost  local  friends  more  than  $600;  and  our 
entertainers  at  Marlboro  and  Worcester  had  personally  footed  most,  if  not  all, 
the  bills  incident  to  the  reunions  held  there,  in  1894  ^ind  1896,  respectively. 
Until  the  Worcester  meeting,  the  Annual  Dues  had  been  collected  by  the  first 
Secretary  of  the  Association;  and,  however  worthy  of  reimbursement  (for 
large  personal  outlay  upon  a  promised  "Lineage  of  Brigham")  he  may  have 
been,  there  is  no  doubt,  a  continuance  of  the  original  financial  policy  of  the 
Association  would  have  resulted,  inevitably,  in  a  suspension  of  the  reunions. 
It  was  with  great  satisfaction,  therefore,  that  the  Treasurer  was  able  to 
report  of  the  fifth  meeting,  held  in  Marlboro,  September  14,  1898  (Lorimon  S. 
Brigham,  Local  Chairman),  that  all  bills  had  been  paid  from  the  funds  of 
the  .-issociation,  and  nearly  $100  remained  to  deposit  in  the  bank. 

About  300  persons  attended  this  meeting,  and  there  was  not  a  break  in  the 
success  of  the  delightful  program  which  had  been  arranged.  As  in  1894, 
the  business  meeting  was  held  in  the  Baptist  Church,  and  the  dinner  took 
place  in  City  Hall.  A  much  simplified  Constitution,  providing  for  biennial 
instead  of  annual  reunions,  was  adopted;  the  President  outlined  plans,  look- 
ing to  the  ultimate  publication  of  a  "Lineage  of  Brigham,"  under  the 
auspices  of  the  Association — npw  rapidly  taking  form — and  also  urged  the 
publication  (in  pamphlet  form)  of  the  admirable  historical  papers  prepared 
by  the  Historian,  which  official  made  a  further  contribution  to  the  literature  of 
the  Brigham  Family  in  his  fine  essay,  "Thomas  Brigham,  'the  Puritan,' " 
which  was  read  by  him  in  the  business  meeting :  the  necrology  was  sub- 
mitted, and  suitable  resolutions  were  adopted.  Election  of  officers  resulted 
in  comparatively  little  change,  from  the  organization  of  1896. 

The  after-dinner  exercises  were  informal.  The  "Brigham  Orchestra" 
played,  there  were  short  speeches,  and  entertainment  was  furnished  by 
Edward  Franklin  Brigham,  basso  profundo.  Miss  Ada  Goddard,  of  Westboro 
(who  sang  "The  Lost  Chord"),  Miss  Ellen  Packard  Nichols  (reader),  and 
the  "Alabama  Troubadours."  One  of  the  most  delightful  episodes  in  the 
history  of  all  the  reunions  was  the  trip  to  the  farm  of  the  Second  Thomas 
Brigham,  a  beautiful  spot,  rich  in  historical  tradition,  and  particularly  mem- 
orable in  its  relation  to  the  closing  years  of  local  Indian  history.  Here  (as  at 
Worcester)  a  successful  group  picture  was  taken,  which,  to  many,  has  since  be- 
come priceless,  including,  as  it  does,  the  features  of  some  dear  ones  who 
were  destined  not  again  to  attend  below  a  Brigham  Family  Reunion. 

SIXTH     MEETING,    BOSTON,     OCTOBER     10,     I9OO. 

As  a  successful  experiment  in  the  direction  of  economy  and  convenience 
the  last  reunion  was  held  in  a  hotel;  in  the  American  House,  Boston,  October 
10,  1900.  Rain  reduced  the  attendance  to  about  150,  but  the  meeting  was 
of  the  same  enjoyable  character  as  its  predecessors.  It  was  especially  at- 
tractive because  of  the  presence  of  our  faithful  Family  Historian,  fresh  from 
a  visit  to  the  towns  of  Brigham  in  England,  and  whose  researches  (it  was 
hoped)  would  identify  the  birthplace  of  Thomas  Brigham,  "the  Puritan." 
The  meeting  was  noteworthy,  besides,  for  the  re-election  to  the  head  of  the 
Association  of  its  beloved  first   President,   C.   O.   Brigham  of  Toledo,   who 


had  made  the  Brigham  Famliy  Reunions  the  Mecca  of  his  vacation-trips  ever 
since  the  Association  was  organized.  At  the  business  meeting,  the  retiring 
President  again  emphasized  the  desirabihty  of  beginning  the  publication  of 
something  in  the  way  of  family  history,  with  the  result  that  the  Association 
authorized  the  issue  of  the  present  pamphlet. 

The  dinner  was,  as  usual,  informal ;  and  the  speaking  included  chiefly  a 
few  words  from  President  C.  O.  Brigham ;  the  interesting  paper,  descriptive 
of  his  trip  in  England,  by  the  Historian ;  a  short  address  by  Hon.  William 
T.  Forbes,  Judge  of  Probate  and  Insolvency,  of  Worcester  County ;  and  the 
very  valuable  suggestion  of  the  faithful  Librarian-Curator,  Addington  M. 
Brigham,  of  Marlboro,  that  he  be  supplied  with  photographs  of  Brigham 
homesteads,  old  and  new,  wherever  situated,  and  with  portraits  of  deceased 
and  living  Brighams.  Printed  upon  the  menu  was  a  poetic  illumination  of 
the  family  motto,  "In  Cruce  Salus,"  by  Hon.  Johnson  Brigham  of  Des  Moines, 
State  Librarian  of  Iowa.  The  Historian  exhibited  photographs  of  the  vari- 
ous Brigham  places  in  England,  which  were  of  fascinating  interest.  The 
Apollo  male  quartet  sang  delightfully  at  the  dinner,  and  a  ladies'  orchestra 
enlivened  the  "sociable,"  which  constituted  the  attraction  of  the  evening. 

ANCESTRAL    MEMENTOES. 

Lack  of  space  precludes  more  than  bare  mention  of  a  feature  of  all  the 
reunions,  which  has  been  a  perennial  source  of  pleasure — the  exhibition  of 
relics,  documents,  pictures  and  other  articles  intimately  related  to  our 
ancestors.  This  was  begun  by  Dr.  Brigham  at  Chicago  in  1893,  and  a  list 
of  the  articles  and  papers  displayed  appears  in  the  exhaustive  report  of  the 
meeting  issued  by  him.  Thanks  to  Miss  Emma  E.  Brigham  (the  first)  and 
Addington  M.  Brigham  (the  present),  Librarian-Curator  of  the  Association, 
the  general  display  at  Marlboro  in  1894,  and  the  portrait  show  in  Boston 
in  1895,  constituted  two  of  the  most  noteworthy  exhibitions  of  the  kind  ever 
made  under  the  auspices  of  a  family  association  in  this  country ;  and  at 
subsequent  reunions  our  scholarly  Librarian-Curator  has  always  exhibited  an 
interesting  collection.  Among  these  family  treasures,  for  example,  are  the 
oak  box  in  which  Mercy  Hurd,  wife  of  Thomas  Brigham,  the  Puritan — 
married  to  him  about  1637 — brought  her  caps  from  England  ;  the  original 
deed,  on  parchment,  by  Benjamin  Rice  to  Thomas  Brigham,  the  2d,  of  the 
Thomas  Brigham  farm  in  Marlboro ;  a  silver  salt  cup,  which  belonged  to  a 
daughter  of  Mary  Chilton,  the  first  woman  to  land  on  Plymouth  Rock  in 
1620  (it  having  come  into  the  Brigham  Family  Association  through  several 
generations  in  the  Brigham  line)  ;  the  chair  in  which  Thomas  Brigham,  2d, 
died ;  old  deeds,  old  commissions,  old  books,  old  household  utensils— scores 
of  priceless  antiquities  which  are  among  their  owners'  choicest  possessions. 

Of  the  portrait  show,  which  was  the  feature  of  the  Boston  exhibit,  in 
1895,  one  writer  says  :  "The  opportunity  to  trace  the  Brigham  characteristics, 
in  the  faces  of  those  old  portraits,  was  improved  with  eagerness,  and  it  was 
clearly  shown,  that  two  or  three  types  have  come  down  to  the  present  day 
with  great  persistence.  The  peculiar  droop  of  the  eyelids,  noticed  in  many 
of  the  visitors,  was  seen  also  in  a  large  number  of  the  portraits."  Such 
precious  heirlooms  have  been  guarded  with  jealous  care  by  the  officers  when- 
ever they  were  entrusted  to  them,  although  some  yet  remain  in  custody  of  the 
first  Secretary  of  the  Association ;  but  it  must  be  one  of  the  functions  of  the 
Association  to  see  that,  in  due  time,  all  find  their  way  back  to  their  owners. 
The  unremitting  care  and  pains  with  which  our  Librarian-Curator  has  per- 
formed the  duties  of  his  office  are  worthy  the  highest  praise. 

BY   WAY   OF   SUGGESTION. 

The  past  of  the  Brigham  Family  Association  has  been  such  that  we  review 
it  with  inexpressible  pride.  Our  greatest  successes,  however,  must  be  of 
the  future.  For  a  year  or  two  after  its  organization  the  B.  F.  A.  held  hope- 
fully to  its  original  plan  of  making  itself  the  means  of  the  publication  of  a 
"Lineage  of  Brigham,"  which  should  complete  the  honorable  work  so  well 
begun  by  Rev.  Abner  Morse,  A.  M.,  in  1859;  but  an  unexpected  change  of 
circumstances  rendered  the  immediate  consummation  of  this  project  imprac- 
ticable, and  the  officers,  abandoning  with  regret  the  earlier  proposition,  con- 
centrated   their    efiforts    upon    a    development    of    the    social    features    of    the 


organization ;    depending  upon  time  and  strength  gained  from  social  contact 
to  indicate  the  way  towards  a  fresh  start. 

This  poHcy  has  proved  its  own  wisdom.  The  Association  owes  nothing; 
it  has  a  modest  working  capital  in  its  treasury ;  its  affairs  are  administered 
with  system  and  intelligence ;  in  a  nutshell,  its  whole  machinery  has  been 
overhauled  and  put  in  good  working  order,  and  is  ready  for  such  service 
as  may  be  required  of  it.  In  other  words,  the  Brigham  Family  Association, 
as  such,  is  in  a  position  to  authorize  the  preparation  of  a  "Lineage  of 
Brigham,"  under  its  own  auspices.  It  is  for  the  Association  to  decide,  how 
and  by  whom  this  work  shall  be  done ;  and  it  is  the  first  duty  of  the  officers 
to  devise  a  comprehensive  plan  of  action,  particularly,  with  respect  to 
financial  details.  Our  Historian  has  made  a  start  in  this  direction  which 
cannot,  and  should  not,  be  ignored.  He,  or  some  other  suitable  person,  should 
be  designated,  to  begin  upon  the  work  of  authorship,  and  the  Association 
should  assume  custody  of  the  family  records  and  other  documents  necessary 
to  the  task. 

The  Department  of  Necrology  has  been  neglected,  not  through  individual 
dereliction  of  duty,  but  because  friends  have  failed  to  notify  the  Secretary 
of  deaths,  and  to  provide  him  with  appropriate  obituary  notices.  We 
recommend  that  the  immediate  relatives  and  friends  send  to  him,  forthwith, 
complete  details  of  deaths  occurring  in  the  Brigham  family  since  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  B.  F.  A.,  and  that  it  become  a  custom  for  the  future.  This  de- 
partment should  constitute  an  important  feature  of  our  next  publication  (as 
we  are  recently  informed  it  will  be  herein). 

■For  various  reasons  (chiefly  because  the  Secretary  has  been  loaded  with 
too  many  other  cares  incident  to  the  duties  of  the  day)  the  records  of  our 
reunions  have  not  been  adequately  written.  The  Constitution  provides  for 
the  appointment  of  an  Assistant  Secretary,  and  this  assistant  should  render 
such  service  at  reunions  as  to  make  a  comprehensive  record  of  the  day's  pro- 
ceedings possible.  As  far  as  practicable,  the  records  should  be  "written  back" 
to  cover  the  full  period  of  our  existence,  and  to  include  orations,  poems  and 
other  contributions.  In  this  connection,  it  would  be  well  to  republish,  in  some 
future  book  or  pamphlet,  the  report  of  the  first  meeting  of  the  Association — 
of  which  my  present  article  is  a  skeletonized  supplement. 

As  its  story  slowly  unfolds,  we  grow  prouder  and  prouder  of  the  noble 
family  which  bears  the  stainless  name,  Brigham.  It  is  the  imperative  duty 
of  each  and  all  of  us  to  aid,  by  whatever  means  we  can,  in  the  writing  of  its 
record  in  letters,  which  shall  be  imperishable. 

Boston,  January,  igoi. 


HISTORICAL  ARTICLES. 

The  following  papers  were  prepared,  year  by  year,  as  the  spirit 
took  us,  without  any  regard  to  logical  sequence ;  so  we  have  taken 
the  liberty  of  rearranging  them  in  this  place,  that  they  may  have 
a  more  orderly  following.  The  first  paper,  "The  Lineage  of 
Brigham,"  delivered  at  the  Chicago  organizing  meeting,  I  have 
retained  as  the  opening  article  in  this  series,  as  it  is  a  general  and 
introductory  effort.  Also  the  second,  "Anglian  Brighamea,"  de- 
livered at  the  second  (Marlboro)  reunion,  I  leave  in  the  chrono- 
logical order  it  happened  originally  to  follow.  For  my  third  paper, 
however,  I  place  "My  English  Trip,"  being  but  recently  delivered 
at  our  sixth  (2d  Boston)  meeting;  thus  rounding  out  the  trans- 
atlantic theme.  Next  follows  "Thomas  Brigham,  the  Puritan," 
which  was  given  at  our  fifth  (2d  Marlboro)  meeting;  and,  finally, 
"Marlborough  and  the  Second  Generation  of  American  Brighams," 
which  was  offered  at  the  third  (ist  Boston)  meeting. 

These  now  appear,  substantially,  as  they  were  read  at  the  Re- 
unions, having  undergone  a  little  judicious  re-editing  (such,  for 
instance,  as  the  cutting  out  of  repetitions,  with  a  few  notes  made  or 
corrections  indicated,  such  as  later  researches  had  made  neces- 
sary). The  reader  will  not  do  the  injustice  to  think  that  the  writer 
has  here  poured  out  all  the  richness  of  his  historical  cornucopia ; 
for  he  has  more,  much  more,  which  it  is  hoped  your  interest  will 
not  allow  always  to  rest  dormant  in  its  present  "note  book" 
condition.  At  our"Reunions,"too  great  amount  of  detail,  or  length 
of  discourse,  would  be  impatiently  entertained,  if  not  absolutely 
unbearable.  But  here  you  find  it,  for  leisure  hour,  so  set  down 
that  "He  who  runs  mav  read !" 


THE  LINEAGE  OF  BRIGHAM. 


According  to  Biblical  ethnology,  all  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth  are  of 
the  house  of  Adam  and  Eve.  Laying  aside  the  matter  of  the  putative  common 
ancestor,  it  is  an  undoubted  fact,  that  there  came  into  being  during  creation's 
evolution  a  first  human  male  and  female,  from  whom  are  descended  the 
countless  living  and  dead.  With  the  development  of  civilization,  grew  the 
necessity  for  designating  individuals  and  families  by  certain  fixed  names.  We 
can  readily  fancy  how,  as  actually  occurred,  circumstances  of  isolation, 
remarkable  achievement  bodily  and  mental  peculiarity,  etc..  etc,  gave  the 
rational  cue  to  an  inception  and  the  progress  of  such  nomenclature.  And  we 
gathered  here  today,  are  a  small  representative  body  of  these  myriads  living 
and  dead,  who  bear  or  have  borne  the  patronymic,  Brigham. 

It  may  not  be  ill-timed,  to  consider  briefly  the  etymology  of  the  tap  root  of 
our  family  tree.    This  we  must  needs  do  under  two  heads :  Brig  and  Ham. 

The  Romans  were  proud  of  their  system  of  family  names,  and  so  tenacious 
of  its  use,  that  they  made  us  indebted  not  only  for  such  of  their  own  gens  as 
have  survived  the  shocks  of  time,  but  also  for  many  a  barbarous  tribal  name, 
with  not  a  few  valiant  leaders,  whose  sagacity  reinforced  by  savage  numbers 
made  it  hard  fighting  or  an  impossibility  for  Roman  cohorts  and  triremes  to 
subjugate.  During  their  alleged  conquest  of  Briton,  when  their  armies  came 
to  that  region  now  known  as  North  England,  they  encountered  a  warHke 
people  whom  they  mercilessly  fell  upon — beat,  killed,  routed,  would  have 
exterminated,  could  they  have  done  so,  for  they  never  conquered  them — whom 


they  called  the  5r/^'antes  (vide  Camden's  Brittania  by  Gough,  Vol.  III.). 
They  founded  a  military  fortress  which,  according  to  the  historian  Ptolemy, 
they  named  i?;'jgantium — now  recognized  as  the  City  of  York.  The  root  of 
this  name  Brigantes,  given  to  a  tribe  of  warlike  Britons,  as  inhospitable  as 
was  ever  encountered  by  the  standards  of  Rome — and  of  Brigantium,  one  of 
the  first  civilized  posts  in  that  savage  north — is  the  same  first  root  seen  in 
our  forefathers  name  Brigham.  We  hail  from  Yorkshire,  by  the  "Grace  of 
God"  (and,  were  we  still  English,  might  add,  the  "Queen"),  where  our 
anterior  authentic  record  is  to  be  found  as  remote  as  the  antique  period  of 
Henry  I. 

But  what  of  the  Ham  end  ?  Let  us  see.  In  Germany  there  lived  a  restless 
tribe  called  Saxons.  Once  upon  a  time,  "looking  for  more  worlds  to  conquer," 
they  landed  hardy  men  from  rough  but  staunch  vessels  upon  the  east  coast  of 
England,  the  home  of  the  Angles.  More  potent  than  the  eagles  of  Rome, 
their  conquests  were  lasting.  They  made  their  influence  felt  far  and  wide ; 
changed  customs  and  labeled  with  new  names ;  settled  down  many  of  them, 
and,  yes,  intermarried,  after  times  had  grown  to  be  pacific.  Yorkshire  saw 
the  worst  effects  of  this  Saxon  invasion.  They  killed,  pillaged  and  burned. 
Whole  families  (gens)  were  wiped  out,  without  a  survivor,  as  the  historians 
allege.  Now,  our  Ham  is  Saxon.  And  to  make  a  long  tale  short,  I  can  but 
say,  imagine  an  Angle  youth,  by  the  name  of  "Brig."  wedded  to  a  Saxon  maid, 
by  the  name  of  "Ham,"  and  to  the  uniting  of  their  hearts,  joining  the  union  of 
their  names.  And  so  we  have  the  Angle  and  the  Saxon,  of  the  Anglo-Saxon, 
in  our  patronymic  Brigham.  Brig  means  a  bridge:  and  Ham,  a  house.  (For 
those  wishing  to  go  a  little  deeper  into  the  mysteries  of  christening,  I  refer  to 
an  erudite  work  prepared  by  Prof.  Leo,  of  Halle,  Germany,  entitled  "Nomen- 
clature of  the  Anglo-Saxons."  It  has  oeen  faithfully  translated  into  English 
for  English  readers.) 

And  now  for  a  glance  at  the  locus  in  quo  (as  the  lawyers  say),  or  the 
place  in  which,  the  foreign  (that  is,  English),  Brigham  worked  out  his 
destiny. 

First.  There  is  the  Town  of  Brigham,  Driffield,  in  Dickering  Wapentake, 
East  Riding,  Yorkshire.  And  it  is  p-ermain  to  say,  that  a  large  per  cent  of  the 
population  of  this  neighborhood  are  known  by  the  sir-name  of  Brigham. 

Second.  There  is  a  Brigham  Parish  in  Allerdale  Ward,  above  Derwent, 
Cumberlandshire.  To  this  locality,  tradition  assigns  the  vague  (because 
ancient)  allusions  to  the  Manor  of  Brigham  and  Lords  of  Allerdale.  The 
poet  Wordsworth  penned  a  sonnet,  in  his  ever  graceful  style,  to  the  "Nun's 
Well"  of  this  place. 

Third.  From  the  Acts  of  the  Parliament  of  Scotland,  we  learn  how  that 
assembly  convened  at  Brigham  near  Berwick  on  Tweed  on  two  occasions, 
during  the  period  while  it  was  peripatetic,  namely,  in  1188  and  1289.  You  will 
also  recall  that  there  was  a  "Treaty  of  Brigham,"  so  called  from  this  place  of 
assemblage  at  the  time  of  signing. 

Turning  to  Burke,  the  authority  upon  family  coats  of  arms,  we  find  the 
descriptions  of  eight  different  armorial  bearings  by  Brighams,  viz. : 

I — Az,  a  chevron  between  three  lions  rampant  or. 

This  coat  is  not  assigned  by  the  learned  author  to  any  specific  locality; 
though  we  notice  (not  without  a  certain  wonder)  that  the  Rev.  Morse  in  his 
Brigham  (Genealogy  claims  it  for  "Thomas,  the  Puritan."  From  the  bearings, 
if  authentic  (and  we  know  of  no  evidence  upon  which  to  base  a  doubt ;  au 
contrairc,  as  per  the  authority  of  Burke),  it  is  unquestionably  of  very  ancient 
and  honorable  origin.  Perhaps,  in  consideration  of  the  "three  lions  rampant," 
it  may  be  suggestive  to  remark  that  in  the  Acts  of  the  Parliament  of  Scotland, 
Vol;  I.,  it  is  recorded  how  in  1188,  William  the  Lion  held  an  assembly  at 
"Brigham  in  Leonis." 

2 — Brigham,  Yorkshire.  Ar.  a  fesse  sa.  between  three  trefoils  slipped 
gules.  (Another  of  the  second.)  Crest,  on  a  cloud,  a  crescent  between  two 
branches  of  palm  in  orle. 

3 — Brigham,  Yorkshire.    Ar.  a  fesse  between  three  trefoils  slipped  gules. 

(These  two  last,  it  will  be  seen,  are  very  similar.) 

4 — Brigham,  Yorkshire.    Ar.  a  saltire  engr.  vert.     (Another  sable.) 

5— Brigham,  Foxley  House,  Co.  Chester,  formerly  of  Brigham,  Yorkshire. 


Ar.  a  saltire  engr.  vert.     Crest,  out  of  a  ducal  coronet,  gules  a  plume  of 
feathers  argent.     Motto,  i)i  cruce  sains. 

(These  last  two  again  are  essentially  the  same.) 

6 — Brigham,  Cannon  End,  or  Cane  End,  Co.  Oxford.  Ar,  a  Heur  de  lis 
within  an  orle  (that  is  8)  of  martlets  sa. 

7 — Brigham,  Cumberland.     Same  arms. 

8 — Brigham  (or  Briggam),  Yorkshire.  Same  arms.  Crest,  a  boar's  head 
bendways  couped  sa. 

And  here,  we  gladly  note,  are  lastly  three  families  in  as  many  shires 
bearing  the  same  blacojis  upon  their  escutcheons. 

Now,  what  is  the  evidence  of  the  place  of  family  origin?  There  are  four 
coats  of  Yorkshire  families,  and  a  fifth  of  Yorkshire  descent.  Is  not  that  of 
sufficient  suggestiveness  to  overthrow  an  assumption  of  the  said  Rev.  Morse, 
the  honored,  A.  D.  1859,  genealogian  of  our  family,  that  Brigham  parish, 
Cumberlandshire,  was  the  only  region  bearing  our  patronymic  of  sufficient 
extent  to  warrant  the  presumption  of  being  the  cradle  of  our  race  ?  And  does 
not  this  suggestion  grow  very  tentative  upon  reflection,  that  of  the  other  two 
•definitely  assigned  coats  both  are  the  same  as  one  of  the  Yorkshire  arms? 
Again,  considering  that  the  Norman  Conquest  fell  heavily  indeed  upon  York- 
shire— especially  the  East  Riding,  wherein  is  situated  the  Town  of  Brigham, 
whence,  after  annihilating  many,  it  drove  forth  myriads  to  seek  strange  homes 
— does  not  the  conviction  grow  upon  one,  that  at  that  remote  age,  some  exiled 
Brighams  were  fated  to  become  the  original  ancestry  in  neighboring  shires 
(ay,  and  across  the  line  in  Scotland)  of  lines  descended  from  Yorkshire,  and 
bearing  the  Yorkshire  arms?    Stat  Veritas! 

Concerning  the  patent  query,  which  of  these  arms  is  probably  most  ancient, 
we  would  answer,  in  our  humble  opinion,  the  one  which  is  claimed  by  farnilies 
in  York,  Cumberland  and  Oxford  shires.  The  fact  of  zuider  dissemination— 
a  result  which  in  itself,  other  things  being  equal,  must  argue  both  a  common 
anterior  nursing  ground,  and  also  some  remote  expatriating  event,  or  a 
succession  of  accidents  and  volitions — is  a  very  salient  point.  In  this  connec- 
tion, we  are  warranted  in  observing,  that  the  oldest  stock  was  probably  most 
vital  and  productive.  Had  more  scions  with  which  to  colonize,  and  actually 
would  scatter  farther  than  others  of  later  ages ;  especially,  by  reason  of  the 
unsettled  conditions,  the  restlessness,  of  those  early  times. 

Further,  we  would  naturally  expect  to  find  more  distinguished  members 
springing  from  the  oldest  house.  To  put  it  epigrammatically,  "Blood  will  tell." 
That  is,  a  longer  line  of  gentle  descent,  with  its  intellectual  accretion — its 
cumulative  aggregate  of  heredity — ought  reasonably  enough  to  bear  fruit. 
Now,  if  I  am  rightly  informed,  Sir  Nicholas  Brigham,  graduate  of  Oxford, 
poet,  barrister  and  jurist,  who  raised  the  tablet  to  Chaucer  in  Westminster, 
where  he  himself,  with  his  daughter  Rebecca  (according  to  the  authority  of 
Dean  Stanley),  now  lies  buried  in  Poet's  Corner — this  man,  I  say,  bore  the 
arms  the  writer  has  opined  to  be  the  most  ancient. 

Multiplying  example,  let  us  consult  one  of  the  reliable  volumes  published 
from  Manuscripts  of  Visitations,  caused  to  be  made  by  the  Harleian  Society 
of  London,  entitled  "Visitation  of  County  of  Oxford,  1634,  by  Jno.  Philpot  & 
Wm.  Ryley,"  wherein  we  find  record  of  the  following  most  important  data : 

"Brigham  of  Cannon  End.  Arms,  argent,  a  Henr  de  lis  within  an  orle  of 
martlets  sable. 

Anthony  Brigham,  Cofferer  of  the  household  to [Q.  Eliz.  (  ?),  (.)] 

Thomas,  patentee  for  the  stanneries  in 

Cornwall  under  Q.  Eliz.,  Ob.  s.  p. 
Xtofer       X       X       brother  and  heire  to 
Thomas.     Mar.daur-of.  .Weldon,  cof- 
ferer to  K.  H.  8." 

The  manuscript,  either  carelessly  written,  or  become  illegible  by  lying  in 
custody  and  being  handled  through  two  centuries  and  a  half,  does  not  express 
in  the  published  volume  the  person  to  whom  Anthony  was  "cofferer"  (that  is, 
exchequer,  treasurer),  but,  from  the  context,  it  was  undoubtedly  Q.  Eliz.,  the 
predecessor  of  K.  H.  8,  the  daughter  of  whose  cofferer,  Anthony's  son,  Xtofer, 
afterwards  wed.  The  fact  of  the  heir  Thomas,  whose  fortune,  under  the 
laws  of  primogeniture,  had  most  to  be  considered,  receiving  the  patent  to  most 
valuable  tin  mines  in  Cornwall,  famous  the  world  over  for  many  centuries,  is 

8 


■sufficient  proof  of  how  dear  pater  familias  stood  in  the  good  graces  of  his 
sovereign.  The  position  of  treasurer  of  the  privy  purse  has  always  been 
regarded  as  highly  honorable.  But  we  will  not  weary  by  further  citations. 
Always  standing  ready  to  be  persuaded  from  erroneous  conviction,  it  certainly 
strongly  appears  that  the  coat  of  combined  Oxford,  Cumberland  and  York 
shires  is  most  ancient;  therefore,  in  heraldric  sense,  most  honorable. 

Lastly,  what  arms  are  zvc,  as  matter  of  heredity  (not  law)  entitled  to 
assume?  To  decide  that,  first  must  we  decide  the  antecedents  of  our  Ameri- 
•can  first  ancestor,  Thomas,  called  "the  Puritan."  Now,  this  point,  the  said 
Mr.  Morse,  in  his  conscientious,  but  not  exhaustive,  work  of  1859,  does  not 
assume  to  settle.  He  speaks  of  his  fruitless  efforts  made  to  determine. 
Among  others,  in  a  foot  note,  attention  being  called  to  a  visit  having  been 
made  to  Cannon  End,  Oxford,  and  the  conclusion  reached,  from  lack  of  evi- 
dence, that  this  could  not  have  been  the  home  of  Thomas,  the  emigrant.  Now, 
I  for  one,  contest,  in  the  light  of  present  knozvledge,  that  our  first  Thomas 
was  of  Oxfordshire,  and  is  recorded  on  the  same  page  with  the  foregoing  data 
already  cited.  According  to  the  report  of  that  visitation,  Xtofer  named  his 
eldest  son  and  heir,  "Thomas"  (doubtless  out  of  affection  towards  his  elder 
brother  Thomas,  of  whom  he  was  the  heir)  ;  and  Thomas,  Jr.,  in  turn  named 
his  eldest  son  and  heir,  "Thomas."  This  visitation  was  in  1634.  On  April 
i8th,  1635,  according  to  records  collated  from  London  Admiralty  and  pub- 
lished by  Jno.  Camden  Hotten,  Thos.  Brig (g) ham  set  sail  from  London  on 
the  "Suzan  &  Ellin,  Edward  Payne,  Mr.",  for  New  England.  And  this 
Thomas  Brigham,  we  opine  to  be,  the  last  Thomas  of  Cannon  End  mentioned 
in  the  visitation  of  1634.  Mere  conjecture,  you  may  say,  and  yet  not  without 
some  smacking  of  reason.*  We  have  just  seen,  that  for  two  generations, 
previous  to  the  last  Thomas  of  Cannon  End,  the  eldest  son  was  called 
Thomas,  and  he  himself  the  third  successive  eldest  son  by  the  name  of 
Thomas.  Now,  come  to  New  England  and  we  see  history  repeat  itself  in 
this  form :  Thomas,  the  Puritan,  eldest  son  and  eldest  grandson,  were,  as  of 
old,  still  "Thomas."  Suggestive,  is  it  not?  Very  much  so,  as  it  appears  to 
the  (perhaps  prejudiced)  eyes  of  the  writer. 

If  our  evidence  is  correct,  and  sufficient  in  quality  and  quantity  upon 
which  to  base  reasonable  judgment,  then  by  descent  we  are  entitled  to  claim 
for  our  escutcheon  "argent,  a  ileur  de  lis  within  an  orle  of  martlets  sable."  So 
THUch  for  the  field. 

How  as  to  the  crest  and  motto?  It  is  a  heraldic  fact,  that  crests  and 
mottoes  are  less  tenaciously  clung  to,  than  the  bearings  upon  fields  of  arms. 

Three  crests  have  been  already  given,  viz.:  (i)  Out  of  a  ducal  coronet,  a 
plume  of  feathers.  (2)  On  a  cloud,  a  crescent  between  two  branches  of  palm 
in  orle,  and  (3),  a  boar's  head  bendways  couped  sable. 

To  the  writer,  it  seems  more  wise  to  adopt  the  last,  inasmuch  as  it  is  the 
crest  used  by  the  Yorkshire  family,  tvhich  claims  the  coat  of  arms  opined  to 
be  those  to  ivhich  ive  are  heirs  by  descent. 

Concerning  the  motto,  we  find  but  one,  "in  cruce  salus."  This,  it  seems, 
should  be  adopted  (as  in  sooth,  we  must  adopt  it,  if  any),  because  of  two 
reasons.  First,  the  family  who  bear  it,  being  now  of  Chestershire,  are 
descended  of  Yorkshire,  which  carries  it  well  towards  the  beginning  when 
our  Oxford  branch  and  it  were  anciently  one.  Second,  it  is  undoubtedly  of 
long  standing — in  support  of  which  assertion,  I  adduce  the  fact,  that  a  family 
of  Burgh  in  Ireland  (a  name  very  suggestive  of  primal  relationship)  bears  an 
almost  verbatim  motto — A  cnice  salus.  Furthermore,  our  relative.  Dr.  B.  A. 
R.  Brigham,  has  in  his  possession  a  letter,  elicited  from  an  English-American 
Brigham,  who  can  trace  his  descent  through  very  many  generations,  which 
speaks  of  this  motto  as  being  one  zvon  in  Palestine,  in  the  time  of  the  Crusades, 
for  acts  of  bravery  on  the  part  of  an  ancestor. 

And  thus  the  full  coat  of  arms  (in  truest  sense  attainable  from  present 
knowledge),  is  before  us:t  "Ar,  a  Aeur  de  lis  within  an  orle  of  martlets  sable. 
Crest,  a  boar's  head  bendways  couped  sa.  Motto,  in  criice  salus."  If  error,  let 
it  be  disproven,  and  the  truth  prevail ! 

*In  a  later  article,  it  will  be  seen  that  this  theory  is  no  longer  tenable. 
tThis  "coat"  is  used  on  the  cover  of  this  pamphlet. 


ANGLIAN   BRIGHAMEA. 


The  present  is  before  us ;  the  past,  distant  and  constantly  receding 
from  memory.  Only  the  fittest  survives.  By  reason  of  the  carelessness 
and  accidents  of  time  much  valuable  matter  is  forever  gone  beyond  pos- 
sibility of  record.  Therefore  let  us  hasten  to  preserve  whatever  is  left 
of  historical  and  legendary  lore  of  the  race  of  Brigham.  Here  are  begin- 
nings of  what  we  trust  shall  become  a  long-existing  valuable  family  society ; 
founded,  to  be  sure,  in  these  United  States  of  America,  but  gladly  open  to 
any  of  the  lineage  wherever  in  the  wide  world  circumstance  finds  him 
resident.  May  we  have  a  just  pride  to  keep  alive  and  briskly  glowing 
this  worthy  fire  of  family  convention  and  association,  with  its  forthcoming 
memorials  of  the  past,  the  present  and  the  time  to  come. 

Within  the  limits  of  this  paper  it  is  our  endeavor  to  give  a  few  facts 
of  the  British  Brighams — impossible  to  find  in  satisfactory  details  and 
enumerations  this  side  the  Atlantic  ocean.  It  is  hoped  (aye,  and  believed) 
that  in  the  near  future  some  enthusiastic  pilgrim  will  from  the  depositories 
of  Great  Britain  collate  and  furnish  us  abundant  information.  Another 
year  we  promise  ourselves  great  pleasure  in  preparing  a  paper  entirely 
American  in  character ;  the  writer  feeling  that  this  meeting,  with  its  first 
journey  (for  him)  to  our  American  Mecca,  will  be  most  inspiring  towards 
a  wish  to  say  something  really  worthy  of  ourselves  and  the  theme,  as 
already  worked  out  in  our  own  dearest  of  all  countries. 

The  authorities  consulted  in  preparing  for  this  article  are  for  the  greater 
part  found  in  the  various  libraries  of  Chicago  ;  which  from  lack  of  time,  are 
not  exhaustively  considered.  Let  it  be  encouragement  to  endeavor  that 
there  is  more,  surely  very  much  more,  awaiting  researches  of  the  future — 
you  will  therefore  kindly  believe  that  the  "Historians"  of  this  society  will 
not  have  sinecures  for  a  long  time  to  come ;  on  the  contrary,  will  be  able 
to  occupy  with  profit  all  seasons  which  they  can  conscientiously  spare 
to  this  function. 

For  convenience  sake  we  have  chosen  to  write  under  the  following 
heads:  (i)  Orthography,  (2)  Etymology,  (3)  Places,  (4)  Residences  of 
Brighams,  (5)  Titles  and  Professions,  (6)  New  Arms  and  Crests,  (7) 
Miscellanea — i.  e.,   Marriages,   Burials,   Wills,   Epitaphs   and   Discoveries. 

First,  the  Spellings.  These  forms  have  been  noticed  by  the  writer — 
Bringeham,  Briccham,  Bricgham,  Brycgham,  Brygham,  Brigholm,  Briggeholm, 
Briggham,  Briggeham,  Briggam,  Brigeam,  Brigeame,  Brighame,  Brigh'm, 
Brigeham,  Birgeame,  Birgham  and  (as  we  all  spell  it  today,  so  far  as  the  writer 
knows),  Brigham — 18  ways  in  all.  The  tireless  researcher  will  even  find 
a  few  more,  we  venture  to  admit ;  especially  of  the  earlier  periods,  when 
uniformity  of  orthography  was  unknown.  Then,  too,  the  Latin  of  anterior 
records  varies  in  forms,  especially  in  the  endings  of  the  word,  as  they 
declined  their  nouns  into  six  cases,  in  both  singular  and  plural  numbers. 
Nor  should  this  astonish  us,  upon  reflection  that  these  spellings  embrace 
the  custom  from  the  time  of  the  famous  DOMESDAY  BOOK  of  titles 
to  English  soil  (compiled  by  order  of  William  the  Conqueror,  after  his 
conquest  of  A.  D.  1066)  down  to  the  present  writing — i.  e.,  more  than  800 
years. 

These  discrepancies  will  largely  disappear  if  we  recall  a  few  points,  viz. : 
(i).     The  Welsh,   Cimbric  or  original  Anglian  language  has  four   forms 
for  the  equivalent  of  our  English  word  bridge.     They  are  brygc,  brycg,  bricg 
and  brig,  the  last  being  the  shortest,  most  anglicized  form,  the  one  at  present 
alone  used  in  our  patronymic. 

(2).  For  the  latter  part  of  the  (compound)  root  we  have  observed 
(besides  the  ham  in  present  use),  hame,  an  antique  old  English  "North- 
countrie"  form — and  holm,  a  form  interchangeable  with  ham  (e.  g.  The 
town  anciently  called  Letham,  near  Brigham,  Scotland,  is  today  styled 
Leitholm.  Yes,  and  thereabouts  this  very  Brigham  has  been  called  Brigholm.) 
(3).  The  letter  h,  as  you  well  know,  is  purely  an  aspiration  (not  truly 
vocal),  so  that  it  being  gone  from  several  of  the  foregoing  spellings,  in 
vogue  at  different  times,  is  not  to  be  wondered  at.  In  fact,  although  we 
now  always  us  the  /;  in  spelling  our  name,  in  speech  it  is  silent,  the  word 
being  pronounced  Brig'ani,  as  if  the  h  were  omitted. 


10 


(4).  You  notice  still  other  variations.  For  example,  the  insertion  of  an 
e,  the  elision  of  an  a,  or  the  doubling  of  g.  The  g,  we  recall  is  doubled  in  the 
record  of  our  ancestor,  "Thomas  Brig(g)  ham,  the  Puritan,"  as  printed  in 
Camden  Hotten's  List  of  Emigrants  from  London  to  America,  between 
1600  and  1700.  His  book  was  collated  from  London  Admiralty  records;  and 
Hotten  puts  the  second  g  in  brackets,  to  indicate  his  idea  that  it  was  sur- 
plusage. 

(5).  The  form  B-;'-r-gham,  we  tind  interchangeably  used  with  Bn'gham 
of  the  town  in  Scotland  only.  It  is  anomalous,  and  to  us,  at  the  time  of  this 
writing,  ine.xplicable. 

Second  Etymology.  From  an  English  work  edited  by  T.  Northcote  Tel- 
ler, based  on  manuscripts  of  Joseph  Bosworth,  entitled  "An  Anglo-Saxon  Dic- 
tionary," we  find  that  brycp.  hricg,  brygc.  as  well  as  brig,  indiscriminately 
mean  a  bridge.  Bridge,  then,  is  the  English  of  our  fore-name ;  so  we  are 
not  disappointed  in  finding  "Bridgc\vAm'  used  frequently  in  modern  times 
for  both  men  and  places.  Wherefore,  may  we  not  truly  infer  that  some,  if 
not  all,  of  these  have  been  Brighams  of  olden  days?  Whether  or  no,  we  do 
opine  that  those  of  us  still  bearing  the  brig  are  warranted  in  believing  in  a 
great  antiquity  of  the  name,  as  well  also  as  in  pointing  with  indubitable  cer- 
tainty to  its  linguistic  source. 

To  continue.  Usage  in  certain  parts  of  England  has  stretched  the  applica- 
tion of  this  word  to  objects  bridge-like,  (a)  In  Lancashire,  "briggs"  is  the 
name  of  certain  irons  going  over  fires,  (b)  In  north  England  "brig"  is  a 
bridge-shaped  utensil,  used  in  dairies  and  breweries  to  set  the  strainers  upon, 
(c)  In  east  Yorkshire,  at  Flamliorough  Head,  the  cliffs  have  been  washed 
into  bold  outlines,  some  resembling  rude  natural  bridges;  whence,  unques- 
tionably, their  name,  which  is  "The  Brigs." 

We  continue  quoting  from  Mr.  Teller's  work  from  another  page  concern- 
ing the  word  ham.  "Ham"  (short  a).  The  Latin  word  which  appears  most 
nearly  to  translate  it  is  vicus ;  and  it  seems  to  be  identified  in  form  with  the 
Greek  Koine  (pronounced  koh-may).  In  this  sense,  it  is  the  general  assem- 
blage of  the  divellings  in  eaeh  particular  district  to  which  the  arable  land  and 
pasture  of  the  community  were  appurtenant:  the  home  of  all  the  settlers  in  a 
separate  and  zvell-detincd  locality:  the  collection  of  the  houses  of  the  freemen. 
Whenever  we  can  assure  ourselves  that  the  vowel  is  long,  we  may  be  certain 
that  the  name  implies  such  a  village  or  community."  The  writer  afterwards 
remarks,  "The  distinction  between  the  long  and  the  short  sound  of  the  a  in 
ham  seems  to  have  been  lost  before  the  Norman  conquest." 

To  verify  this,  let  us  refer  to  R.  S.  Ferguson's  book,  "Popular  County  His- 
tories— Cumberland,"  where  he  says  :  "The  Saxon  equivalent  of  ton  or  tun 
(which  mean,  we  need  hardly  remind,  a  tozim)  is  heim  and  ham."  The 
diminutive  form,  hamlet,  is  still  occasionally  employed  to  designate  a  small 
village. 

•  From  the  location  of  the  places  in  Great  Britain  called  "Brigham"  (which 
are  without  exception*  situated  upon  bridgcable  rivers),  we  can  safely  rest 
on  the  belief  that  our  family  name  originally  signified  a  village  of  freemen 
situated  by  a  bridge;  always,  therefore,  located  upon  streams  of  water.  "A 
village  of  freemen  !"  What  a  glorious  thought  for  contemplation  to  us  in  this 
free  and  enlightened  country !  In  that  age  and  country  of  slavery !  Is  this 
not  enough  to  account  for  the  independent  manly  bearing  of  all  citizens 
known  by  the  name  of  Brigham?  One-half  of  our  name  means  "a  village  of 
freemen."  Bear  it  in  mind,  you  schoolboy,  and  you  gray-haired  man.  Think 
of  it,  you  smiling  maiden,  and  mother  training  up  her  flock.  Let  none  of  us 
forget  the  duties,  while  we  exercise  the  privileges  of  freemen.  Let  it  be  a 
"bridge"  to  bear  all  safely  over  every  difficulty. 

Third.     Places  by  the  name  of  Brigham. 

In  an  article  delivered  at  the  meeting  of  a  year  ago,  we  spoke  briefly  of 
three   Brighams :     A   town   in   the   East  Riding  of   Yorkshire,   England ;    a 

*Brigham,  Yorkshire,  is  not  on  a  "river,"  but  on  a  modern  canal,  which 
has  a  recent  turn-bridge.  Either  the  location  of  this  place  has  altered  (doubt- 
ful), for  there  is  a  river  within  distance,  or  we  may  have  to  look  to  the  root 
of  the  word  (from  Latin)  "briga"  (strife),  for  its  etymology.  In  that  case,  the 
sense  would  mean,  the  home  of  warriors.  When  we  recall  the  probable  deriva- 
tion of  "Brigantes,"  the  unconquerable  foe  whom  the  Romans  found  here  in 
Yorkshire,   this  solution  is  certainly  suggestive  and  tenable. 

II 


parish  and  town  in  Cumberland,  and  a  town  near  Berwick-upon-Tweed,  Scot- 
land. To  these,  we  now  desire  to  add:  (4)  Bricgham,  Norfolk  Co.,  Eng- 
land, which  is  mentioned  in  the  Calendar  Close  Rolls  (King  Edward  II.,  1313- 
1318,  p.  373).  We  take  this  to  be  the  same  locality  as  spoken  of  in  the  report 
of  the  "Historical  Manuscript  Commission"  (London,  Eng.,  Vol.  X.,  prt.  3, 
pp.  81,  199),  among  the  Gowdy  Mss.  (Norfolk  Co.),  as  the  "Royal  Manor 
of  Bridgeham."  We  thus  have  an  illustration  how  other  Brigham  towns  may 
have  been  metamorphosed  out  of  ready  recognition,  by  changing  the  ancient 
spellings:  for  we  have  already  seen  that  "bricg"  is  a  contemporaneous  form 
with  brig;    while  "bridge"  is  an  out  and  out  modern  spelling.) 

(5)  Brigam,  Dorsetshire.  Eng.,  as  mentioned  in  Domesday  Book  (p.  83b)  ; 
(6)  Briciam.  Laxendena  Hundred.  Essexshire,  Eng.,  from  the  same  book 
(p.  66a),  where  also  appear  (7)  Bricceiam,  and  (8)  Bricceiam  Parva  (that 
is,  Little  Brigham). 

We  look  upon  these  last  four  as  real  BrigJiam  towns,  being  vouched  by 
the  best  written  authority  of  Norman  land  records  of  England.  (N.  B. — 
Brige,  Brigge  and  Bricge  also  appear  in  Domesday  Book ;  but  we  do  not 
think  that  they  embody  anything  of  the  ham  of  our  name.) 

(9)  Brigholm  (or  Briggeholm),  Giggleswick.  Durham,  Eng.,  is  spoken  of 
in  the  printed  reports  of  the  Surtees  Society  (1837-2,  pp.  67,  68,  69) — four 
instruments  concerning  the  Priory  of  Finchale,  Charters  of  Endowment,  etc., 
in  Latin,  touching  landed  interests  at  said  Brigholm.  (10)  Brigham  Waste 
(i.  e.,  desolate  country),  Lochbrigeam  (i.  e.,  Lake  Brigham),  Mekilbrygheame 
(i.  e.,  great  Brigham)  and  Brygheamscheils  are  all  mentioned  in  the  Exche- 
quer Rolls  of  Scotland  (Vol.  VI.,  pp.  540,  626,  and  Vol.  IX.,  pp.  423,  430), 
and  are  at  this  time  inferred  by  the  writer  to  be  in  the  neighborhood,  and 
perhaps  parts,  of  the  Brigham,  near  Berwick-upon-Tweed,  already  alluded 
to  in  my  foreeoing  article. 

As  for  America,  I  know  only  of  "Brigham  Hill,"  near  Burlington,  Vt., 
from  whose  top  an  extensive  picturesque  landscape  may  be  viewed ;  Brigham, 
Utah  and  Brigham.  Quebec,  Canada,  on  the  Canadian  Pacific  Railway. 

We  will  take  time  for  further  reference  to  the  three  Brigham  localities 
identified  by  researches  of  a  year  ago,  which  time  and  leisure  have  allowed 
us  more  thoroughly  to   investigate. 

(l)  Brigham,  Cumberland.  "William  the  Conqueror"  gave  to  William 
de  Meschines  the  land  of  Copland,  between  the  Duden  and  Derwent.  Wil- 
liam de  Meschines  enfoefifed  Waldeve.  son  of  Cospatrick,  of  all  land  between 
the  Cocker  and  Derwent.  together  with  five  vills.  among  them  being  Brigham. 
Waldeve  gave  to  Dolphin,  son  of  Alward.  in  marriage  with  Maud,  his  sister, 
{inter  alia)  Brigham.  with  the  advowson  of  the  church  of  the  same.  (From 
"Annals  of  the  Caledonians,  Picts  and  Scots."  by  J.  Ritson,  Edbg.  1828.  in 
Vol.  II.,  p.  228.  Based  on  the  authority  of  "Cronicon  Cumbriac,  ex  registro 
de  Wederhale,  apud  monasticon  Anglicanum,  I.,  p.  400"). 

After  a  few  descents.  Brigham  was  divided  into  moieties  between  co-heirs. 
One  moiety,  after  remaining  some  time  in  the  family  of  Twinham,  and  there- 
after in  the  family  of  Heela,  was  forfeited  by  the  attainder  of  Andrew  de 
Heela,  Earl  of  Carlisle,  and  given  to  a  chapelry  in  the  Church  of  Brigham. 
After  the  dissolution  of  the  Chapel,  it  was  granted  to  the  Fletchers  of  Mores- 
by, who  sold  it  to  tenants.  The  other  moiety  was  successively  in  the  families 
of  Huthwaite  and  Swineburn,  by  which  latter  it  was  sold  in  1699  to  Hon. 
Godwin  Wharton.  The  trustees  of  the  Duke  of  Wharton  in  1727  sold  it  to 
Mr.  Wefifred  Grisdale,  under  whose  will  (after  the  death  of  his  daughter, 
Mrs.  Lucock,  and  her  onlv  daughter)  it  passed  to  Mr.  Wm.  Singleton  ;  on 
whose  death  in  1767.  by  the  terms  of  said  Mr.  Grisdale's  will,  this  and  other 
property  became  vested  jointly  in  several  persons,  which,  being  divided  by 
virtue  of  a  Commission  of  Partition,  was  allotted  to  Joshua  Lucock.  Esq., 
so  that  in  1849  this  moiety  of  the  Manor  of  Brigham  was  the  property  of  said 
Lucock's  grandson,  Roisbeck  Lucock  Bragg.  Esq.  The  Earl  of  Egremont  is 
Lord  Paramount.      (From  "Magna  Britania"). 

The  Domesday  Book  records  did  not  reach  to  the  very  north  of  England ; 
but  in  the  work  entitled  "Inquisitio  Eliensis,"  executed  by  the  Clergy  of  Ely, 
(in  order  to  collate  those  paying  tribute  to  that  corporation,  and  which  in  a 
large  part  supplies  what  of  north  England  is  lacking  from  Domesday  Book), 
we  find  (p.  515a)  there  was  a  church  in  Brigham  of  twelve  acres  of  free  land, 
rated  at  the  time,  at  2  shillings. 

12 


In  1330,  Sir  Henry  de  Lucy,  Lord  of  Cockermouth,  granted  by  letters 
patent  to  Thomas  de  Burg  the  advowson  of  the  chapel  of  the  Blessed  Virgin 
at  Brigham  for  life,  upon  condition  that  it  should  revert  to  him  and  his  heirs 
upon  the  decease  of  said  de  Burg.  This  was  worth  at  the  time  yi,  6s.,  8d. 
per  annum,  as  lately  before  held  by  Richard  Richardson.  Thomas  Wilson, 
chaplain,  in  1499  received  of  the  lord  one  parcel  of  arable  land  in  Brigham, 
by  estimation  one  acre  and  a  rood,  called  King's  Land,  valued  at  2od.  (From 
"Historical  Mss.  Commission,"  London  Eng.,  Vol.  HL,  p.  47a.  Mss.  Duke 
Northumberland,  at  Alnwick  Castle.) 

The  said  Thomas  de  Burg  was  granted  license  for  alienation  in  mort- 
main of  a  moiety  of  the  Manor  of  Brigham  (one  acre  excepted)  and  the 
advowson  of  the  church  of  the  same  to  a  chaplain,  to  celebrate  divine  ser- 
vices daily  in  the  chapel  built  by  the  said  Thomas  in  the  cemetery  of  the 
church,  in  honor  of  the  Virgin  Mary,  St.  Michael  and  St.  Thomas  the 
Martyr,  for  the  souls  of  K.  Ed.  H.,  the  said  Thomas,  et  cetera — by  a  fine  of 
6  marks.  (Calendar  of  Patent  Rolls,  Ed.  HI.,  1327-30,  p.  376.)  In  Queen 
Elizabeth's  time,  1560,  Edward  Freers  was  presented  to  the  vicarage  of 
Brigham,  vice  Richard  Parr,  resigned.  (Syllabus  of  "Rymer's  Foedera,"  p. 
803.)  In  1607,  the  Parsonage  of  Brigham  was  granted  in  fee-farm  to  Richard 
Lidall  and  Edward  Bostock.  (Ind.  Wt.  Bk.,  p.  66.)  (Calendar  of  State 
Papers — Domestic  Series — 1598-1601,  Vol.  CLI.,  p.  366.) 

In  a  suit  of  presentation  to  the  Church  of  Brigha^i  brought  by  Hugh  de 
Courtenay  vs.  Thos.  de  Hothewayt,  the  pleadings  give  this  ancient  pedigree : 
Waldeve  de   Brigham,   temp.   K.   Hen.   HI.    (1216-72) 

/ 

John 

/ 


/  / 

Alice Robert  de  Yaverwyth.  Joan — —Thos.  de  Hothewayt. 

Tempus  K.  Hen.  HI. 

(From  "The  Reliquary."  London,  New  Series,  Vol.  II.,  p.  133.  Pedigrees 
from  the  Plea  Rolls. — De  Banco  Roll.,  Mich..  2  Ed.,  II.,  m.  220.) 

The  modern  church  of  Brigham  lies  in  the  diocese  of  Chester,  the  arch- 
deanery  of  Richmond,  and  the  deanery  of  Copeland.  The  Parish  of  Brigham 
is  in  Allerdale  Ward,  below  Derwent,  and  somewhat  extensive,  including, 
as  it  does,  ten  townships,  besides  those  of  the  parochial  chapelry  of  Lorton, 
viz :  Brigham,  Blindbothel,  Buttermere,  Cockermouth,  Eaglesfield,  Emble- 
ton,  Grey  Southern,  Masser,  Setmurtly  and  Whinfell.  The  whole  parish,  ex- 
clusive of  Lorton.  contained  (in  181 1)  1,008  houses  and  4,918  inhabitants. 
The  town  of  Brigham,  with  several  others,  was  inclosed  under  three  acts  of 
Parliament,  passed  in  1813.     (Magna  Britania.) 

(2)  Brigham,  Yorkshire.  In  Domesday  Book  (p.  307a),  a  person  ,by  the 
name  of  "Gunennare"  is  mentioned  as  holding  land  in  "Bringeham,  Hunton 
Hundred,  Yorkshire."  "Kirkby's  Inquest"  gives,  among  the  names  of  the 
towns  in  Yorkshire  in  1315,  in  Dickering  Wapentake  (p.  312),  "Brigham," 
whose  lord  was  "Theobaldus  de  Brigham" ;  wherein  the  previous  year  one 
Robert  de  Sywardby  had  obtained  a  charter  of  free  warren  (that  is,  rabbit 
hunting)  (p.  313).  Also  (p.  57  ibid),  "Brygham,"  in  which  town  are  six 
carucates  (about  720  modern  acres)  of  land,  of  which  three  carucates  and  a 
half  are  held  in  fee  by  Menill :  Menill  holding  of  the  Archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury, and  the  Archbishop  holding  of  the  King ;  and  two  and  a  half  carucates 
are  held  directly  from  the  King,  of  which  Gilbert  de  Gaunt  holds  one  caru- 
cate  and  Dervorgilla  de  Ballialo  holds  one  and  a  half  carucates  in  soccage 
in  "Dryfifeld ;"  for  ten  carucates  held  in  military  tenure,  there  is  returned, 
in  fine  for  the  same,  3s.  The  same  authority  (p.  195),  under  Knight's  Fees 
in  Yorkshire  (31st  Ed.  I.,  1303),  vouches  that,  in  the  Wapentake  of  Stain- 
clifife,  one  Willelmus  de  Brigham  held  in  chief  of  the  Lord  of  Skipton  a  half 
a  carucate  of  land ;  who  also  in  another  place  is  credited  (o.  312)  with  land 
holdings  in  the  town  of  Flixton,  Dickering  Wapentake.  "Chronica  Monasterii 
de  Melsa,"  an  ancient  work,  has  an  account  of  William  of  Driffield,  9th  abbot, 
1242-69,  of  an  inquisition  held  at  the  "Hermitage  of  Brygham"  concerning 
tithes  of  land  in  Skyrne. 

(Note. — By  reason  of  the  number  of  various  coats  of  Brigham  arms 
borne  in  Yorkshire,  as  well  as  from  the  abundance  of  allusions  to  this  locality 

13 


met  with  in  the  records,  we  are  indined  to  impute  to  this  locaHty  the  cradle 
of  our  family  race.) 

(3)    Brigham,*  Scotland.     Now  "BiVgham"   (pronounced  Bur-jam). 

This  town  is  situated  on  the  Tweed  River,  near  Norham,  and  a  quarter 
of  a  mile  from  Carham,  across  fiver.  The  lower  course  of  the  Tweed  is  a 
rich  agricultural  district.  The  river  is  remarkably  clear  and  pure,  abounding 
in  fish.  As  a  salmon  river,  it  is  second  only  to  the  Tay.  (From  a  "Geog- 
raphy of  the  British  Empire,  by  Wm.  Lawson.") 

The  salmon  fishing  is  dealt  with  in  the  Exchequer  Rolls  of  Scotland 
(Vol.  9,  pp.  423,  430).  From  the  Chronicle  of  Roger  de  Hovenden,  we  learn 
that  this  Brigham  was  the  property  of  St.  Cuthbert  (i.  e.,  church  property) 
in  A.  D.  883  ;    it  is  herein  spelled  "Bricgham." 

In  the  acts  of  the  parliaments  of  Scotland,  we  find  some  data :  William 
the  Lion,  King  of  Scots,  held  an  assembly  at  this  place  in  1188  (it  being  called 
at  the  time  "Brigeam  in  Leonis"),  where  he  met  Hugh  de  Puiset,  Bishop 
of  Durham,  (p.  66)  (citing  "Benedictus  Abbas,"  p.  514.)  Queen  Margaret 
held  a  parliament  there  on  March  17,  1289  (pp.  441-2),  at  which  time  and 
place  letters  were  drafted  by  the  magnates  of  Scotland  regarding  the  rnar- 
riage  of  the  Queen  with  the  son  of  Edward  I..  John  de  Brigham  forfeited 
his  property  for  holding  the  Gastle' of  Dunbar  against  King  James  III.,  by 
an  act,  dated  at  Edinburg,  Oct.  4,  1479.     (Ibid,  Vol.  II.,  pp.  124,  125.) 

The  first  published  volume  of  the  Surtees  Society  (p.  CXV.),  speaking 
of  the  "Papal  Taxation  of  Churches  and  Monasteries  in  Scotland,"  includes 
the  chapel  of  "Briggeham."  In  the  "National  Mss.  of  Scotland,"  by  Craig, 
1867  (prt.  I.,  facs.  7),  one  may  see  a  facsimile  copy  of  a  charter  of  King 
William  II.  of  England  to  Durham  church  of  lands  in  Lothian,  1097-1100,  in- 
cluding (inter  alia)  the  "Messuage  of  Brycgham,"  with  adjacent  lands, 
woods  and  waters,  and  all  tolls  and  wrecks  of  ships  and  other  customs,  to 
God  and  St.   Cuthbert   forever. 

On  July  18,  1290,  the  "Treaty  of  Brigham"  was  here  consummated.  The 
Scots  Estates  assembled,  and  drafted  a  marriage  contract,  between  their 
Queen  and  Prince  Edward,  afterwards  ratified  by  English  Letters  Patent. 
Provisions  were  therein  made  for  the  practical  independence  of  Scotland  in 
that  there  could  be  no  trial  of  her  interests,  or  subjects,  outside  of  her  terri- 
tory. This  treaty  was  renounced  by  the  Scottish  King,  John  Baliol,  about 
two  years  later.  (Vide,  "History  of  Scotland,"  by  J.  PI.  Burton,  Vol.  II., 
pp.  48,  81  and  159.  "Haile's  Annals  of  Scotland,"  Edbg.,  1797,  Vol.  I.,  p.  208. 
"Syllabus  Rymer's  Foedera,"  Vol.  I.,  p.  109.  Calendar  Patent  Rolls,  Ed.  I., 
1281-92,  p.  386.)  "Brigham  Park"t  is  referred  to  in  the  English  "Calendar  of 
State  Papers"   (Domestic  Series — Vol.  CLL,  p.  518,  sec.  38,  1561). 

We  find  very  valuable  and  interesting  information  in  the  Earl  Home  Mss. 
(preserved  in  Hirsel,  Scotland),  first  published  in  Vol.  XII.  of  the  Historical 
Mss.  Commis.  (pp.  113,  114,  130,  131  and  132).  In  1450  appears  a  charter  from 
King  James  II.  to  William,  eighth  Earl  Douglas,  granting  lands  of  Brigham 
and  Brighamshiels  (recorded  in  the  Register  of  Great  Seal).  The  follow- 
ing year  shows  a  "Precept  of  Sasine"  from  said  Douglas  to  invest  Sir  Alex. 
Hume,  Knight,  of  the  lands  of  Brigham,  in  the  Sherififdom  of  Berwick,  Earl- 
dom of  March  ;  to  which  is  appended  the  earl's  seal.  In  1452,  is  a  charter 
from  King  James  II.  to  said  Sir  Hume,  of  lands  of  Brigham  and  Brigharn- 
sheils,  annexing  them  to  the  Barony  of  Hume,  in  Berwick,  to  be  held  in 
entail.  Next  follows,  in  1490,  a  charter  from  Alexander  Bruce  of  Brighame  to 
Alex.  Hume,  Great  Chamberlain  of  Scotland,  of  said  lands  of  Brigham,  in 
exchange  for  lands  of  Maw,  etc.  (in  Fifeshire),  to  be  held  by  services  due 
and  wont,  to  which  the  Bruce  seal  is  attached.  This  is  accompanied  by  a 
letter  of  re-entry  of  same  date,  binding  to  defend  Hume,  or  give  regress.  In 
156 —  (?)  A.  D.,  is  exhibited  a  lease  by  Dame  Marion  Hamilton.  Prioress  of 
Eccles,  granting  to  Alex.  Lord  Hume,  heritable  and  principal  bailie  of  the 
abbey,  for  his  services,  etc.,  the  teind  sheaves  of  the  lands  and  mains  of 
Brigham,  etc.,   for  five  years,  without  payment. 

In  A.  D.  16 — ,  was  executed  by  King  James  VI.  (Scotland)  to  Sir  George 
Hume,  a  grant  "in  blench  farm"  of  certain  estates,   formerly  held  by  the 

•Morse  seems  to  have  confused  this  place  with  Brigham,  Cumberland;  and 
to  have  considered  the  two  as  one  locality. 

tThis  is  the  present  "glebe,"  situated  in  front  of  the  parish  manse,  and 
contains  twenty-one  acres  of  good  soil. 

14 


Priory  of  Eccles,  among  them  "the  mmcroft  in  the  town  of  Brigham."  The 
monastery  was  dissolved,  and  the  free  whole  barony  of  Eccles  created  ;  to 
be  taxed  as   temporal   lordship  only. 

Fourth.  As  to  residences  in  Great  Britain  of  Brighams,  we  find,  besides 
those  localities  already  spoken  of,  more  or  less  historical  Brigham  lines  re- 
siding at  Foxley  House,  Lymm.  County  Chester;  Cannon  End  (or  Cane 
End),  County  Oxford;  Newcastle-on-Tyne,  Nottingham,  Hertfordshire, 
Norwich,  Crosthwaite,  Swavesey,  Battle  Manor,  Southampton  and  Wyton, 
Pocklington,  Richmond.  Carlton,  Drypool.  Flixton  and  Hunemanby,  all  in 
Yorkshire,  and  St.  Paul,  Covent  Garden,  City  of  Westminster,  Lambeth  and 
Duke's  Place,  all  in  London. 

Fifth.  Let  us  devote  a  little  space  to  the  subject,  Titles  and  Professions. 
We  shall  find  many  callings  exemplified,  not  a  few  giving  dignity  and  honor 
to  our  family  name. 

(i)  The  Manor  of  Ulldale  (Cumberland)  was  given  by  Waldeve,  Lord 
of  Allerdale,  to  Adam,  son  of  Lyolf,  ancestor  of  the  Bonekills,  whose  ances- 
tor married  John  Stewart,  kinsman  of  the  King  of  Scotland,  and  afterwards 
she  married  "Sir  David  Brigham."  (2)  Theobald  de  Brigham  certified  pur- 
suant to  a  writ  tested  at  Clipston,  March  5,  1316,  as  one  of  the  "lords  of  the 
town  of  Brigham,"  Yorkshire.  (3)  Willelmus  de  Brigham,  ditto  as  to  town 
of  Flixton,  Yorks.  (4)  Richard  Brigham,  Esq.,*  of  Lambeth,  London 
(Comptroller  of  the  \oiisc  of  the  Arclibislwp  Abbot),  married  Emelyn,  daugh- 
ter of  Sir  Robert  Hudson.  Bart.  Their  only  daughter,  Anne,  married  Thomas, 
Lord  Leigh;  they  having  but  one  child,  Anne,  who  died  young.  (The  fore- 
going four  citations  are  from  "Magna  Britania.")  (5)  Adam  de  Brigham, 
Esq.,  of  Westmoreland,  appears  before  Parliament  held  at  Lincoln  in  1315, 
as  attorney  for  Thomas  de  Lucy.  (6)  "Nicholas  Brigham,"  of  Caversham. 
County  Oxford,  was  a  graduate  of  Oxford  College,  a  prominent  lawyer,  jurist 
and  poet,  coming  of  Yorkshire  stock.  He  restored  the  tomb  of  Chaucer  in 
Westminster  Abbey.  (7)  Anthony  Brigham  was  cofferer  (treasurer)  of  the 
household  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  as  we  learn  from  Philpot's  &  Ryley's  "Visita- 
tion of  County  Oxford"  in  1634.  Inasmuch  as  it  is  the  opinion  of  some  that 
this  is  the  family  from  whom  our  "Thomas,  the  Puritan,"  was  descended,  we 
give  a  reproduction  of  the  matter  as  set  out  in  Philpot's  &  Ryley's  book. 

(Brigham  of  Cannon   End.) 

Arms ;     Argent,   a  ileiir  de   lis  within   an  orle   of   martlets   sable. 

Anthony  Brigham,  Cofferer  of  the  household  to — (Q.  Eliz.) 


/  / 

Thomas,  Patentee  for  the  Stannaries     Xpofer,    of    Cannon    Inde    in     Com. 
in  Cornwall  under  Q.  Eliz. — Ob.  s.  p.     Oxen.,    brother    and    heirs     to     Thos. 

Mar.  daughter  of  Weldon,  Cof- 
ferer to  King  Henry  VHL 
/ 

/  '/  / 

Wm.,  2d  son.  Thomas,  eldest  son,  living  Ao.  1634.  Hedon,  3d  son. 

Mar.  Dorothy,  daughter  of  John  Lyne  of  Norwich. 

/ 

/  ^  ~/  '  7  7 

Anthony,  2d  son.       Elizabeth.       Thomas,  son  and  heir.       Rachell.       Dorothy. 

(This  last  "Thomas,  son  and  heir,"  being  as  had  been  suggested,  the  very 
"Thomas,  the  Puritan,"  in  whose  honor  we  are  this  day  assembled. t) 

(8)  Concerning  the  said  tThomas,  "Patentee  for  the  Stannerics"  (i.  e., 
tin  mines)  in  Cornwall,  we  find  some  interesting  facts.  In  the  first  place, 
this  was  a  very  valuable  grant.  The  mines  were  very  old ;  in  fact,  the  same 
sought  out  by  the  Phoenecians  and  other  inhabitants  of  the  Mediterranean 
Sea,  before  the  dawn  of  the  Christian  era.     In  the  Calendar  of  State  Papers 

*Seo  abstract  of  his  will  later,  under  "English  Notes." 

tThis  is  erroneous.    According  to  the  Herald's    Visitation,    the    Thomas    was 
living  at  "Cannon  End"  many  years  after  our  Thomas  came  to  America. 
tSee    abstract    of    his    will    later    under  "English  Notes." 

IS 


(Domestic    Series),   preserved    in    the    Public    Record    Office,    London    (VoL 
CLL,  p.  13.  sec.  4),  we  find: 

"June  7.  1603.  Allegations  against  the  patent  granted  to  Thomas  Brigham 
and  Humphrey  Wemmes  by  the  late  Queen,  for  preemption  of  tin."  (p.  152, 
sec.  45)  Sept.  25,  1604.  Warrant  to  Sir  Richard  Smith,  Receiver  General 
of  Cornwall,  to  deliver  tin  at  a  certain  rate  to  such  persons  as  now  lend 
money  in  re-payment  thereof,  and  to  re-deliver  to  Thomas  Brigham  and 
Humphrey  Wemmes  the  tin  sold  by  them  to  the  Company  of  Pewterers. 
(Docquet.)  (p.  157,  sec.  75)  Oct.  14,  1604.  Reply  of  Thomas  Brigham  and 
Humphrey  Wemmes  to  an  annexed  petition  to  the  King  by  the  Master,  etc., 
of  the  Pewterer's  Company,  against  the  monopoly  granted  to  them  of  the 
preemption  of  tin.  (p.  335,  sec.  57)  Nov.  14,  1606.  Decree  of  the  Court  of 
Star  Chamber  against  Richard  Glover,  et  al.,  Pewterers  of  London,  for  en- 
deavoring to  frustrate  a  patent  granted  to  Thomas  Brigham  and  Humphrey 
Wemmes,  for  preemption  of  tin  in  Cornwall  and  Devon." 

And  so,  like  many  a  Brigham  before  and  since,  he  saw  the  clouds  of 
threatened  adversity  roll  away.  Yet,  it  was  not  all  otherwise  a  "bed  of 
roses,"  for  we  see  in  another  entry,  from  the  same  source  of  information, 
how  (p.  274,  sec.  26)  There  was  a  "Warrant  to  advance  £20,000  on  loan  to- 
Thomas  Brigham  and  Humphrey  Wemmes,  patentees  for  the  preemption 
of  tin.  on  their  delivery  of  tin  worth  more  than  that,  they  having  already  dis- 
bursed £60,000,  and  being  able  to  disburse  more.  They  will  add  ii.ooo  to- 
their  former  rent  of  £2,000,  and  lend  the  tinners  £10,000  yearly." 

(9)  Robert  Brigham  was  "Sheriff"  of  Newcastle-upon-Tyne  in  i486.  (10) 
Robert  Brigham,  Jr.,  was  Sheriff  in  1540,  and  "Mayor"  in  1550,  in  the  same 
city.  ("Heraldric  Visitation  of  the  Northern  Counties"  by  Thos.  Tonge,  Nor- 
roy  King  of  Arms.)  (11)  Humphrey  Brigham  was  a  "wealthy  merchant" 
of  said  Newcastle,  as  appears  by  his  will,  dated  July  25,  1570,  which  we  shall 
see   hereafter. 

(12)  One  Richard  Brigham  was  "Coach-maker  to  Kings  James  L  and 
Charles  L,"  as  appears  by  a  "Grant,  Sept.  13,  1619,  to  John  Banks  and  Richard 
Brigham,  on  surrender  of  John  Bank  and  Robert  More,  of  the  office  of 
Maker  of  the  King's  Coaches  and  Other  Carriages."  (Calendar  of  State 
Papers — Domestic  Series — Vol.  CLL,  p.  77.)  We  get  some  glimpses  as  to 
how  valuable  this  occupation  was,  it  being  imderstood  always  that  the  money 
of  those  days  was  worth  far  more,  dollar  for  dollar,  than  our  own  currency. 
"1620-22.  Third  accompt.  Bill  of  John  Banckes  and  Richards  Brigham, 
Coachmaker  to  the  King.  For  chariots  and  other  vehicles.  A  rich  chariot  for 
the  King  cost,  in  all,  £15."  Again,  "1624-25.  Two  long  bills  (respectively 
13  and  9  pp.)  of  Richard  Brigham,  for  reparations  of  the  King's  caroches 
and  chariots.  He  made  the  total  £368,  but  took  £280  in  satisfaction.  There 
were  two  new  coaches  :  one  is  said  to  be  of  the  German  fashion,  with  the  roof 
to  fall  asunder  at  his  majesty's  pleasure  (i.  e.,  a  sort  of  landau).  The  other 
was  of  the  Spanish  fashion.  The  like  of  them  were  never  made  before  in 
England."  (Histor.  Mss.  Commis.,  Lon.,  Vol.  VI.,  p.  326b.,  Mss.  of  Sir  F. 
U.  Graham.  Bart.,  Netherby,  Cumb.,  and  Vol.  VH.,  prt.  i.  p.  250a,  Mss.  of 
Lord  Sackville.  at  Knole,  Kent.)  This  Brigham  was  not  at  all  times  happy, 
for  in  the  House  of  Lords  Calendar  (Dec.  16,  1643)  we  find  account  of  his 
petition,  setting  out,  among  others,  the  following  facts :  that  he  had  a 
daughter,  who  married  .one  Leonard  Ward,  with  whom  a  private  agree- 
ment was  made,  which  the  petitioner  will  perform,  so  soon  as  Ward  shall 
perform  his  part ;  nevertheless.  Ward  has  caused  Brigham  to  be  arrested 
contrary,  though  the  matter  in  dispute  is  altogether  matter  of  equity;  peti- 
tioner has  no  remedy,  owing  to  the  distractions  of  the  times.  Annexed  is  a 
certificate  of  Robt.  Boys,  that  Brigham  was  and  is  sworn  coachmaker  to  his 
majesty.  The  "distractions  of  the  times"  of  which  he  speaks  were  the 
troubles  arising  from  and  accompanying  the  period  of  the  Commonwealth 
Civil  War,  when  the  fortunes  of  Englishmen  were  very  much  at  the  mercy 
of  parliamentary  committees,  to  obtain  funds  to  carry  on  the  fight  on  the 
side  of  the  parliamentary  party.  This  same  Richard  Brigham,  who  resided, 
by  the  way,  at  Covent  Garden,  London,  has  his  assessment  of  £500  for  this 
purpose  discharged  on  April  12,  1644;  it  appearing  that  most  of  his  estate 
consisted  of  debts,  owing  him  by  the  King  and  others  at  Oxford,  and  he 
having  made  wagons  and  done  work  for  the  army,  amounting  to  88£,  3s.,  od. 

:6 


But  on  Dec.  6,  of  the  same  year,  we  find  trouble  again  brewing  for  him — 
"On  information  of  parcels  of  money,  plate,  etc.,  belonging  to  delinquents 
hid  in  the  houses  of  Mr.  Browne,  Stapleton  and  Brigham,  in  Covent  Garden, 
order  that  Major  Hercules  Langrish  and  two  others  search  for  the  said  con- 
cealed goods,  and  inventory,  seize  and  secure  them  till  further  orders ;  with 
writ  of  assistance." 

On  the  following  "27  Jan."'  he  was  "assessed  at  ii50,"  for  the  purposes 
of  the  war;  but  the  following  "25  Feb."  witnesses,  his  assessment  "respited" 
till  his  accepted  debts  are  paid,  or  till  further  order,  "he  not  having  iioo." 
(Calendar  of  Commit,  for  Advance  of  Money,  prt.  I.,  pp.  38,  369-) 

(13)  George  Brigham  (probably  a  kinsman  of  Richard)  was  also  a 
"royal  coachmaker,"  as  we  find  from  the  same  authority  (Vol.  II.,  p.  583), 
as  well  as  some  other  readable  facts,  as  follows :    "Aug.  13,  1645. 

George  Brigham,  coachmaker  to  the  late  King, 
Thomas  Brigham,  his  brother  and  administrator,  ct  al. 

all  of  London." 
Then  come  two  pages  of  legal  proceedings,  disclosing  that  one  Thomas 
Brigham  resided  in  Duke's  Place,  London  ;  George  Brigham,  deceased,  was 
in  arms  and  died  at  Oxford ;  proceedings  over  a  £200  debt  owed  the  George 
Brigham  estate,  wherein  said  Thomas  Brigham  will  not  release  one  Pilchard 
of  his  imprisonment,  and  says  that  the  committee  shall  make  dirt  of  his 
bones  before  he  will  give  up  the  mortgage ;  there  is  order  for  Thomas 
Brigham  to  be  brought  before  the  committee  for  contempt.  Later,  John 
Brigham  of  Cottenham,  County  Cambridge,  as  executor  of  Thomas  Brigham, 
deceased,  was  apprehended  to  answer  contempt  for  not  delivering  up  certain 
writings  ;  he  was  discharged  from  restraint,  upon  performing  order  of  the 
committee. 

(14)  Another  Richard  Brigham  is  thus  happil}'  treated:  "London,  Feb. 
22,  1618.  Assignment  by  John  Langley  to  said  Richard,  both  being  of  Lam- 
beth, of  the  Keepership  of  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury's  Mansion  House, 
grounds  and  pasture  land,  called  Lambeth  Park."  (Calend.  State  Papers — 
Domestic  Ser. — Vol.  CLL,  p.  ^23,  sec.  29.)  [This  is  the  same  as  No.  4  supra. 
—Ed.] 

(15)  Still  another  Richard  Brigham,  this  time  a  "Sir"  of  the  time  of 
Queen  Elizabeth,  as  evidenced  by  a  letter  preserved  in  the  Mss.  of  Sir  A.  A. 
Hood,  St.  Andries,  Somersetshire ;  this  letter  is  written  by  Brigham  him- 
self, who  seems  to  be  in  Ireland  in  behalf  of  some  military  operations  against 
the  Scots ;  there  is  a  slight  engagement,  the  enemy  retiring  to  the  moun- 
tains ;  but  having  not  then  reached  Mayo,  he  following  them  on  foot,  accom- 
panied by  Sir  Donnell  O'Connor,  Sir  Thomas  de  Strange  and  Lord  Clanri- 
card.     (Hist.  Mss.  Com.,  Vol.  VI.,  p.  347b.) 

(16)  At  this  period  comes  another  military  Brigham,  "George"  by  given 
name,  as  vouched  for  by  a  Mss.  preserved  in  the  Muniment  Room  of  the 
New  Town  Hall,  Chester,  being  a  letter  of  date  26  April,  1597,  from  W. 
Horwoode,  High  Sheriff  of  County  Stafford,  to  the  Mayor  of  Chester,  an- 
nouncing the  appointment  of  said  Brigham  to  conduct  to  Chester  36  soldiers, 
levied  in  Staffordshire,  for  service  in  Ireland.  (His.  Mss.  Com.,  Vol.  VII., 
prt.  I.,  p.  379.) 

(17)  In  1332,  Robert  de  Brigham  was  appointed  a  procter  of  the  Church 
of  Wycham  by  the  prior  and  convent  of  Ely.  (His.  Mss.,  Com.,  Vol.  VI., 
p.  296b,  Mss.  Lord  Leconfield,  Petworth  Hse.,  Sussex.)  (18)  In  1587, 
Thomas  Brigham  of  Caversham,  County  Oxford,  was  confirmed  by  the 
Bishop  of  Wells  of  his  right  in  the  advowson  of  Asheburie  Rectory,  Berks., 
which  he  had  derived  from  Roger  Baylie  of  Dorchester  in  Dorset,  to  whom 
it  had  been  granted  for  twenty-one  years  by  the  late  Bishop  Gilbert,  22  Queen 
Elizabeth.     (His.  Mss.  Com.,  Vol.  X..  prt.  2,  p.  266,  Mss.  Wells  Cath.) 

(19)  From  the  same  very  valuable  source,  we  secure  the  following: 
"Grant  by  Richard  de  Kirkby,  Knight,  to  Robert  de  Fereby,  Rector  of  Egre- 
mont,  and  William  de  Brygham.  "Rector"  of  the  Church  of  Wabirthwayth, 
of  the  Manor  of  Wabirthwayth,  etc.  7  K.  Hen.  IV.,  Heraldric  seal.  (1406.) 
(His.  Mss.  Com.,  Vol.  X,,  prt.  4,  p.  224,  Lrd.  Muncaster's  Mss.,  Muncaster 
Castle.)  (20)  In  "Munimenta  Academica  Oxon."  (p.  621)  in  the  list  of  the 
Principals  of  the  Halls,  we  find  one  "John  Brigham"  to  have  been  a  "princi- 
pal of  St.  Cuthbert's  Hail." 

17 


(21 )  Walford's  (London,  1871)  "County  Families  of  the  United  King- 
dom" gives  Miss  Henrietta  Felicia  Elizabeth  Brigham  of  "Foxley  House, 
Lymm,  County  Cheshire,"  being  the  only  child  of  the  late  William  Brigham. 
Esq.,  who  died  in  1864 ;  coming  of  a  Yorkshire  branch  tracing  back  to  the 
reign  of  King  Henry  I.  [See  my  next  paper  for  fuller  particulars.]  (22) 
On  Nov.  16,  1329,  license  was  granted  for  John  Baroun,  to  enfeofif  John  de 
Brigham  of  a  messuage,  313^  acres,  5s.  rent,  in  Weyleye,  Cherlton  and  Dyn- 
nesfurnyval,  held  in  chief,  by  fine  of  a  half  mark.  (Cal.  Patent  Rolls,  Ed. 
HI.,  p.  458.)  (23)  Southampton,  Feb.  3,  1598,  brings  a  grant  to  John  Par- 
sons, on  surrender  of  Francis  Brigham,  of  the  office  of  a  "falconer:"  fee,  i6d. 
a  day,  and  22s.,  6d.  yearly  livery,  payable  from  Xmas.  1596.  (Calend.  State 
Papers,  Vol.  CCLXVL,  p.  17,  sec.  40.) 

(24)  Now  is  our  time  to  smile.  Among  the  Calendar  of  State  Papers 
(Domestic  Series,  Vol.  CLL,  p.  38,  sec.  38)  undated,  we  encounter,  "A  brief 
discourse  of  the  corruptions,  imperfections  and  great  deceipts  used  in  and 
about  the  making  of  beer,  vinegar,  bere-eger,  lickour  for  mustard,  aqua  coiit- 
posita  and  aqua  vita;"  accompanying  a  suit  by  Thomas  Brigham,  ct  al,  for 
a  grant  for  the  sole  manufacture  of  such  articles. 

(25)  Roger  Brigham,  Esq.,  of  Carlton,  Miniott,  County  Yorks.,  is  among 
the  list  of  those  owning  Catholic  estates  in  the  North  Riding  from  171 /- 
1781.  (His.  Mss.  Com.,  Vol.  IX.,  prt.  i,  p.  346b.)  (26)  One  Willelmio  de 
Brigham  is  concerned  in  the  enumeration  of  the  expenses  of  the  Great 
Wardrobe  of  King  Edward  HI.  ("Archseologica,"  by  the  Soc.  of  Antiq., 
London,  Vol.  XXXL,  p.  93) 

(27)  Nicholas  Brigham,  Esq.,  was  another  favored  son  of  the  line.  Among 
the  Stowe  Mss.,  is  an  "Original  order  from  Q.  Mary  to  George  Bridgeman, 
one  of  the  grooms  of  her  privy  chamber,  to  pay  to  Nicholas  Brigham,  Esq., 
"whom  she  has  appointed  teller  of  her  exchequer,"  the  sum  of  £8,000,  dated 
at  St.  James,  the  7th  Oct.,  5th  and  6th  year  of  her  reign,  it  being  on  vellum, 
with  the  Queen's  sign  manuel,  "Marye  the  Queue." 

"Bruxelles,  Mch.  30,  1556.  Confession  by  Thos.  White,  being  of  a  pro- 
posal of  one  Dethicke  to  acquaint  one  Hinnes  with  a  plot  for  seizing  the 
treasure  in  the  custody  of  Brigham  (Nicholas),  a  teller  of  the  exchequer, 
and  for  killing  the  King  and  Queen."  *  *  *  "Greenwich,  Mch.  31,  1558. 
The  Queen,  to  the  Lord  Mayor,  etc.,  of  London,  authorizing  Nicholas  Brig- 
ham to  receive  the  money  lent  to  her  by  the  city."  *  *  *  "Greenwich, 
May  12,  1558.  The  King  and  Queen  appoint  said  Brigham,  to  be  receiver  of 
all  money  due  or  payable  on  any  subsidy,  fifteenth,  loan  or  other  benevo- 
lence." 

"Heraldric  Mss.,  from  the  Council  at  Westminster  to  the  officers  of  the 
exchequer,  to  pay  to  the  officers  at  arms,  the  fees  of  £40  for  the  Knighthood 
of  the  King  (K.  Ed.  IV.),  £4.0  for  trappings  and  other  casualties  at  the  royal 
jousts  and  tourneys,  and  iioo  for  the  coronation:  and  with  accompanying 
note,  that  Sir  John  Baker,  treasurer  of  the  exchequer,  command  Mr.  Felton 
to  go  to  the  tellers :  and  one  of  them,  Mr.  Brigham,  paid  the  said  ii8o  to 
Garter,  in  testers  and  groats."  *  *  *  "S^-  James,  July  3,  1558.  A  war- 
rant on  parchment,  sealed,  under  the  sign  manuel  of  Queen  Mary  to  Sir 
William  Dunsell,  to  pay  i8oo  to  Nicholas  Brigham,  teller  of  the  exchequer." 
*  *  *  "A  like  warrant  to  the  foregoing,  to  pay  to  Nicholas  Brigham 
£1,400,  to  be  by  him  paid  to  Valentine  Browne,  for  the  soldiers  lately  belong- 
ing to  the  garrison  of  Guisnes  in  France."  *  *  *  "Feb.  1563  (Eliz.) 
Nicholas  Brigham,  by  grant  of  Vincent,  wardrobe  of  the  beds  of  King  Henry 
VIII. ,  entered  into  hall,  garden  and  premises  of  her  majesty's  almshouse  of 
Westininster." 

(28)  There  are  many  Brighams.  we  understand,  in  Ireland;  especially 
in  the  northern  part,  the  Scotch-Irish  region.  Among  the  archives  of  the 
town  of  Galway,  a  certain  Donnell  McRobwcke  Brimighame  (whom  we  take 
to  be  a  misspelled  Brigham)  is  recorded  as  alderman  in  1622.  (29)  From 
a  Catalogue  of  the  Monarchs  of  Ireland  (Calendar  of  State  Papers,  1603-24, 
Jas.  I.,  p.  347),  we  read:  "Milo,  son  of  Bilius,  son  of  Brigan  (a  suggestive 
form;  perhaps  nothing  more),  son  of  Brach.  Hiberus,  his  third  son,  ruled 
jointly  with  his  brother  Hermon  ;  died  B.  C.  1374.  From  three  brothers  of 
Milo  all  the  Irish  kings  are  descended." 

Sixth.     New  Arm.*;  and  Crests. 

■8 


In  this  direction  we  are  not  able  to  make  very  important  additions  to 
those  recorded  by  us  a  year  since.     Briefly,  this  much  may  be  said: 

(i)  The  Robert  Brigham  family,  from  whom  come  the  Sheriff  and  Mayor, 
Newcastle-upon-Tyne,  have  the  arms  of  one  of  the  Yorkshire  families,  from 
whom  they  are  probably  descended,  namely :  "Argent,  a  saltire  engrailed 
vert ;"  to  which  we  find  added  this  quite  important  bearing,  "in  chief,  a  cres- 
cent sable."  (Note. — There  is  also  mention  of  a  Brigham  family  at  Fysholme, 
but  the  arms  are  erased  from  the  manuscript.)  ("Heraldric  Visitation  of 
the  Northern  Counties,  in  1530,  by  Thos.  Tongue,  Norroy  King  of  Arms,  pp. 
XVII.,  LX.,  LXV.,  LXVL") 

(2)  In  a  pedigree  of  the  family  of  Francis  Brigham  of  Holdernesse,  Mid- 
dle Bayliwick,  Yorks.,  showing  four  generations,  at  the  date,  Sept.  5,  1665, 
to-wit:  (i)  Francis;  (2)  Ralphe ;  (3)  William;  (4)  John — we  find  an  old 
friend  in  these  arms  (exactly  the  same  as  the  foregoing),  "Argent,  a  saltire 
engrailed  vert."  But  we  note  this  addition  thereto  (in  way  of  a  crest), 
"Out  of  a  ducal  coronet  gules,  a  double  plume  of  ostrich  feathers  argent." 
(Note. — This  coat  is  likewise  quartered  with  the  arms  of:  (i)  Carton  of 
Carton;  (2)  Rosse  of  Routhe  and  (3)  Crimston  of  Crimston.)  ("Visita- 
tion of  the  Co.  of  Yorke,  by  Wm.  Dugdale,  Norroy  King  of  arms,  1666, 
p.   136.") 

Seventh.     Miscellanea. 

It  is  remarkable  how  trivial  matters  will  sometimes  escape  the  hand  of 
oblivion  (which  is  so  grasping  of  all  that  man  holds  dearest)  and  which  thus 
seen  (after  the  lapse  of  such  a  period)  appear  even  laughable — as  if  it  were 
the  sport  of  time  to  cut  down  the  choicest  flowers,  and  leave  but  a  few 
weeds  or  homely  blossoms  ;  to  signify  that  plain,  ordinary  life  was  the  most 
enduring  mortals  can  attain.  For  instance,  does  it  not  seem  to  smack  of 
humor,  that  we  should  find  preserved  in  the  "Calendar  of  State  Papers 
(Domes.  Ser.,  Vol.  CCLXXV.,  p.  492,  sec.  124)  "a  letter  dated  'Enfield, 
Nov.  25,  1600,'  Richard  Turner  to  Richard  Oseley,  Westminster,"  wherein 
he  notes  that  he  sends  (among  other  things)  by  messenger  to  "Mr.  Brigham, 
a  fat  goose,  six  blackbirds,  and  one  dozen  small  birds."  Under  a  former 
letter,  of  July  29th  preceding,  the  same  party  writing  to  the  same  said,  "Rec- 
ommend me  to  Master  Brigham  and  his  wife,  and  give  Joan,  Mrs.  Brig- 
ham's  maid,  20  shillings,  which  I  oromised  her  when  she  married.  I  trust 
to  see  them  all  again  ;  but  I  am  daily  sore  troubled  with  such  incommodities 
of  age,  that  I  trusted  to  have  been  dead  and  buried  before  this." 

Another  document  gives  us  a  glance  at  the  ancient  state  of  servitude  of 
the  English  nation.  From  a  "Catalogu;  of  Ancient  Deeds"  (Vol.  I.,  p.  523, 
c.  1372),  under  date  "Thursday  in  the  Octave  of  the  Purification,  17  K.  Ed. 
I."  (A.  D.  1289),  Warwickshire^  we  note,  "Crant  by  Sarah,  late  the  wife  of 
Thomas  Sorel  of  Bermingham,  to  Robert  de  Brigham,  of  her  bondmen  and 
villeins,  Richard,  son  of  Peter  le  Bule ;  Arice,  daughter  of  Humphrey 
Frideau,  and  Agnes,  daughter  of  Galfrida,  daughter  of  Margaret,  of  the  same 
place,  with  all  their  belongings." 

Here,  in  the  words  of  the  poet,  "If  you  have  tears,  prepare  to  shed  them 
now."  We  have  heard  it  alleged  that  there  had  never  been  a  case  recorded 
of  Brigham  crime,  great  or  small ;  wherefore,  it  was  to  be  argued  and  be- 
lieved, either  that  the  Brighams  had  been  too  good  to  do  any  breaking  of 
the  ten  commandments,  or  had  been  smart  enough  to  cover  up  undesirable 
footprints.  But,  alas,  the  remorseless  imprint  of  the  chronicle  of  time! 
Under  date  of  "March  28,  1292,  Westminster,  Robert  de  Brigeham  (we  are 
glad  they  spelled  his  name  with  an  e).  and  others,  broke  the  close  (i.  e.,  en- 
closed land)  of  Wm.  de  Goneville.  by  night,  at  Lirling,  County  Norfolk, 
fished  in  his  steers,  carried  away  fish  and  other  goods,  and  assaulted  his  men 
there."  (Calendar  Patent  Rolls.  Ed.  I.,  p.  516.)  What  do  you  suppose  the 
penalty  was?    We  are  left  in  the  dark. 

We  have  notes  covering  some  marriages  and  intermarriages  of  import, 
from  which,  for  brevity,  we  take  but  this :  John  Brigham  of  the  City  of 
Westminster,  London,  in  1637,  was  married  in  the  local  abbey  of  St.  Peter, 
to  Anne,  daughter  of  Sir  Thomas  Aylesbury.  Her  eldest  sister,  Frances,  was 
the  first  Countess  of  Clarendon,  and  thus  grandmother  of  Queen  Mary  II., 
and  Queen  Anne.  ("London  Marriage  Licenses,  1521-1869,  by  Jos.  Foster;" 
also  "The  Marriage,  Baptismal  and  Burial  Register  of  the  Collegiate  Church 

19 


of  Abbey  of  St.  Peter,  Westminster,  by  Jos.  L.  Chester.")  But  stay,  we  will 
exhibit  one  more,  for  variety  of  spelHng:.  "i573.  the  —  daie  of  October  was 
married  .yteven  icaterton  &  /enet  ftriggam."  ("The  Reliquary,"  London,  Vol. 
II,  p.  88.) 

Coming  to  the  subject  of  Burials,  we  would  like  the  privilege  of  looking 
through  the  work,  "All  the  Monumental  Inscriptions  in  the  Graveyards  of  Brig- 
ham  and  Bridekirk,  near  Cockermouth,  in  the  County  of  Cumberland,  from  1660 
to  1876:"  an  8vo.,  published  at  Cockermouth  by  H.  T.  Wake  in  1878,  a  copy 
of  which  is  in  the  British  Museum.  What  interesting  moss-grown  tales  rnay 
it  not  have  at  hand  for  us  all  !*  Lacking  this,  for  the  present,  we  will  give 
instead  an  interesting  bit,  as  follows:  "Robert  Darell,  Archdeacon  of  North- 
umberland, made  a  covenant  Oct.  9,  1537,  with  F.  Roland  Harding,  Prior  of 
the  Blake  Friers,  Newcastle-on-Tyne,  between  6  and  9  a.  m.  daily,  devoutly 
to  say  for  the  souls  of  William  Darell  and  John  Brigham,  late  of  Newcastle, 
Merchant,  their  wives  and  children,  the  De  profundis,  etc.,  ending  Absolve 
quaesnmiis  Domine,  and  Sedc  ad  dcxtram.     (From  "Brand's  Newcastle.") 

Of  Epitaphs,  we  will  give  a  single  ancient  specimen,  being  the  last  words 
over  the  remains  of  Adam  Brigham,  who  died  at  Norwich,  England,  in  1685, 
aged  54: 

"In  youth,  I  poor  and  much  neglected  went, 
My  gray  and  wealthy  age  in  mirth  I  spent. 
To  honors  then,  I  courted  was  by  many, 
Altho'  I  did  in  nowise  seek  for  any ; 
But  what  is  now  that  wealth,  that  mirth,  that  glory? 
Alas!    'Tis  grave,  'tis  dust,  'tis  mournful  story: 
Ne'erless,  my  soul  through  Christ  a  place  enjoys 
Where  blessed  Saints  with  him  in  God  rejoice." 
—  ("Chronicles  of  the  Tombs,"  by  Thos.  Jos.  Pettigrew,  p.  448.) 

We  promised  to  give  the  will  of  "Vnfray  Brigham,  of  Newcastell,  Mer- 
chant."    Here  it  is : 

"In  the  name  of  god  Amen,  on  ye  XXVth  of  Julye  1570  and  of  ye  reigne 
of  o'r  sou'inge  ladie  queue  Elizabeth  by  ye  grace  of  god  &c.  the  XIj  yere, 
I  Vnfray  Brigham  of  ye  towen  of  Newcastell  vpon  tyne  m'chant  seeke  in 
bodie  but  holl  in  mynde  &  p'fytt  reme'branc  praysed  be  my  lorde  god  do  make 
my  last  will  &  testam't  in  man'  &  fourme  ffolowinge,  ffirst  and  afore  all  things 
I  do  bequithe  &  comytt  my  soule  into  thands  of  ye  same  god  our  heavenlie 
father  into  wheis  hands  Jesus  Christ  my  onlye  hope  staye  redeam'r  &  saye- 
yor  hanhinge.  vpon  ye  crosse  did  comend  his  sperite  &  my  bodie  to  be  buried 
in  alhallowes  churche.  It'm  I  bequithe  &  gyve  vnto  Robert  brigh'm  my  sone 
ye  full  third  p'te  of  all  my  goods  in  default  of  whome  I  will  ye  same  third  p'te 
to  be  p'ted  equallie  porcion  &  porcion  betwixt  my  brother  Xp'ofer  &  my  two 
susters.  It'm  I  gyve  &  bequithe  vnto  my  dought'r  Anne  the  other  third  p'te 
of  my  goods  in  defauld  of  whome  I  gyve  &  bequithe  ye  same  third  p'te  to 
Anne  my  wyffe.  It'm  I  gyve  &  bequithe  vnto  my  said  wyffe  for  a  token  yt 
goblett  ye  wch  hir  mothr  did  bequithe  vnto  me.  It'm  I  gyve  &  bequithe 
vnto  my  sone  Robert  my  gould  rynge  wch  haith  ye  horse  head  vpon  it 
weyinge  one  unce  of  gould.  It'm  I  will  yt  my  brother  geoge  styll  shall  haue 
ye  custodie  of  my  said  sone  &  of  his  goods  vntil  he  come  to  lawfuU  aidge 
and  in  default  of  my  said  sone  Robert  I  gyve  &  bequithe  my  said  ringe  to  my 
brother  Xp'ofer  brigh'm.  It'm  I  gyve  &  bequithe  vnto  ye  poore  &  p'sonrs 
IIJs.  Illjd.  It'm  I  gyve  &  bequithe  vnto  my  brother  Xy'pfo'  brigh'm  my 
beste  cloke.  It'm  I  gyve  &  bequithe  vnto  my  frynde  andra  goffton  my  blake 
bagg  wch  I  had  of  Jerom  benett.  It'm  I  gyve  &  bequithe  vnto  my  cosinge 
John  haveloke  my  gylted  dager.  It'm  I  gyve  &  bequite  vnto  my  wyfes  thre 
brothers  will'm  diconson  andro  Bewicke  &  Xp'ofo'  Cooke  to  etche  of  them 
Vs.  It'm  I  bequithe  to  Roger  berebrewer  Vs.  It'm  to  my  two  susters  two 
Jewells  of  precious  stones  and  to  Anne  ye  vnicorne  home.  It'm  to  m'garett 
litle  ye  iewell  of  em'aude.  It'm  to  Isabell  gefton  als'  haveloke  one  old 
grote.  It'm  all  my  detts  &  fun'all  expencs  discharged  I  do  gyve  &  bequithe 
vnto  my  sone  Robert  all  others  my  goods  moveable  &  vnmoveabl  not  hear 
above  bequithed  and  hym  my  sone  Robert  I  do  constitute  ordaine  &  appoynt 

*I've  since  had  the  pleasure.    There's  not  one  Brigham  name  in  it. 

20 


my  full  &  sole  executor  of  this  my  last  will  &  testament.  In  witness  where- 
off  I  haue  sett  wth  myne  hand  myne  owne  name  to  this  my  p'sent  will  in  ye 
p'sence  of  my  brother  styll  my  cosing  John  havelock  &  of  John  magbray 
mynister  ye  day  and  year  above  written." 

And  now,  a  word  on  Discoveries,  to  come  to  our  own  country,  in  closing 
a  somewhat  too  extended  article.  We  suppose  you  wonder  what  is  meant 
by  discoveries.  Did  you  ever  dream  that  there  had  been  a  Brigham  in  Amer- 
ica ahead  of  Thomas  the  Puritan?  Well,  there  was  (I  do  not,  however,  here 
refer  to  the  one  coming  to  Massachusetts  Bay  Colony  in  early  times — Se- 
bastian, I  think,  was  his  given  name — who  dropped  out  of  sight  and  record 
in  a  singular  fashion).  Here  is  a  letter  x'crbatiin  from  the  "Bouverie  Mss., 
preserved  at  Brymore,"  near  Bridgewater,  Eng.  (His.  Mss.  Com.,  Vol.  X., 
prt.  6,  p.  85.)  : 

"1633,  Oct.  28.  Island  of  Providence.  Wm.  Rudyerd,  Wm.  Rous,  Roger 
Floyde  &  Jolm  Brigham  to — {probably  John  Pym,  the  great  English  leader). 
We  do  not  find  here  the  largeness  that  was  reported.  At  the  arrival  of  the 
^^aflower  (not  Mayflower),  the  country  was  furnished  with  an  overplus  of 
provisions  for  the  number  of  persons  here.  In  October  following,  the  new- 
comers had  a  crop  of  corn.  In  that  month  80  more  came  from  Bermuda, 
who  had  been  dissuaded  by  the  seamen  from  bringing  provisions.  Although 
they  had  felled  a  great  quantity  of  ground  by  the  end  of  Nov.  and  planted 
it  with  corn,  the  dry  season  came  on  so  fast  that  little  of  it  came  to  g[pod. 
These  Bermudans  (Baremoodians)  had  little  help  of  the  provisions  of  store, 
which  was  spent  in  the  fruitless  work  of  Warwick  Fort.  Thus  many  have 
endured  great  hardness.  The  island  is  full  of  hills,  and  not  so  fertile  as  was 
reported.  At  New  Westminster,  and  where  Captain  Axe  lives,  the  ground 
has  this  year  twice  failed  in  corn.  This  allotment  of  two  acres  a  head  will 
no  more  than  find  food.  Even  if  tobacco  were  as  vendible  as  ever,  the 
quantities  from  here  would  never  cloy  the  market.  The  tobacco  that  can  be 
made  between  January  and  August  may  be  as  good  as  that  of  any  other 
country  out  of  the  Indies,  if  we  observe  the  Spaniards'  course  of  keeping  it 
a  year  before  sending  it  home.  The  worms  eat  our  rafters,  and  the  dust 
falling  upon  our  tobacco  hinders  the  burning  and  makes  the  taste  bitter. 
Most  men  will  have  plaintains  &  papawes  in  their  season.  Pines,  orange  trees 
&;  lime  trees  grow,  but  do  not  bear.  Potatoes  are  the  most  thriving  and  cer- 
tain food  we  have.  Fortification  goes  on  slowly,  and  we  are  environed  with 
enemies.  From  Fort  Henry  on  the  southwest  to  Fort  Warwick  on  the  north- 
east, a  distance  of  7  miles,  the  land  is  inhabited.  The  29  pieces  of  ordnance 
here,  if  fitly  placed,  would  free  the  west  side.  The  north  side  is  not  inhab- 
ited, and  it  is  partly  defended  by  breakers.  20  pieces  of  ordnance  are  requi- 
sits  for  its  defence.  In  the  harbor  there  is  good  riding  for  20  ships.  What- 
ever others  may  relate,  this  is  the  truth." 

One  other  reference  of  kindred  interest,  and  we,  for  the  purposes  of  this 
article,  will  bid  you  a  kind  adieu.  In  the  Calendar  of  State  Papers,  already 
so  often  quoted  by  us  (Domestic  Ser.^ — ^Vol.  CLI.,  A.  D.  1581-90,  Q.  Eliz., 
p.  146,  sec.  35),  we  learn  that  Mr.  Secretary  (probably  Walsingham)  has 
been  informed  by  Mr.  Anthony  Brigham,  that  he  approved  of  the  Western 
discoveries  in  America ;  recommends  the  formation  of  a  company,  and  ad- 
vises them  to  hearken  to  the  offers  of  Sir  Philip  Sidney  and  Sir  George 
Peckham.  This  "Anthony"  Brigham  may  be  the  very  one  who  was  treas- 
urer ("cofferer")  to  Queen  Elizabeth;  and  the  "Western  discoveries  in  Amer- 
ica," to  which  reference  is  made,  are  undoubtedly  those  in  the  West  Indies 
and  Bahamas.  So  we  are  quite  justified  in  believing  that  the  "company"  rec- 
ommended was  actually  formed,  that  they  did  "hearken"  to  "Sir  Philip  Sid- 
ney" (or  someone  of  good  standing),  and  that  this  letter  of  "John  Brigham" 
and  others,  we  have  quoted,  is  information  returned  by  them  as  settlers  of 
the  "Company"  in'  the  New  World.  (It  is  entirely  natural  that  we  should 
query  in  our  minds  what  became  of  this  John  Brigham,  who  was  settled 
and  writing  back  to  England  some  year  and  a  half  before  our  Thomas  the 
Puritan  was  sailing  out  of  London.) 

We  hope  at  a  subsequent  gathering  to  be  able  to  give  some  further  facts 
both  valuable  and  interesting.  But  for  this  present,  good-bye  and  God- 
speed. 

21 


MY   ENGLISH   TRIP. 


Dear  Kinsfolk : 

For  a  fifth  time,  the  honorable  pleasure  has  been  given  me  of  addressing 
a  Brigham  audience,  upon  some  matters  touching  our  clan's  history  and 
lineage.  The  writer  has  spent  the  past  summer  in  Great  Britain,  during 
which  period  many  facts  were  gleaned  bearing  upon  our  family  tree.  It  is 
proposed  herein,  to  give  as  thorough  a  peep  into  the  note-book  of  the  trip  as 
the  hour's  limit  will  permit. 

As  you  may  know,  there  are  four  places  in  Great  Britain  bearing  the  name 
Brigham.  One  in  Yorkshire,  and  two  in  Cumberland,  England;  while  the 
fourth  is  nestled  just  over  the  border,  in  Berwickshire,  Scotland.  It  is  with 
a  modest  pride  that  the  writer  reflects  that  he  is  probably  the  only  Brigham 
who  has  ever  visited  all  of  these  scenes.  He  feels  amply  repaid  for  his 
pains,  and  hopes  that  the  fresh  knowledge  gained  will  be  a  joyful  satisfac- 
tion to  the  entire  American  clan  Brigham.  Views  were  taken  of  the  most 
important  features,  which  may  be  seen  at  this  meeting,  and  will  doubtless 
in  due  time  find  their  way  into  a  permanent  Brigham  history.  Maps  were 
likewise  drafted  from  the  ordnance  survey  of  Great  Britain,  which  will  still 
further  aid  us  in  comprehending  these  localities. 

Starting  from  London,  a  run  of  about  four  hours,  finds  one  at  York,  the 
ancient  Roman  capitol  of  the  island.  Here  you  change  cars  for  Driffield, 
which  is  situated  in  the  East  Riding  of  Yorkshire.  About  half  way  over,  you 
are  obliged  to  change  again  at  Market  Weighton  (pronounced  Weeton)  ; 
from  which  it  is  a  short  run  across  the  "Wolds"  to  Driffield,  at  one  time 
capitol  of  the  Saxon  Kingdom,  and  where  it  is  reported  that  King  Alfred 
lived,   died   and   was   buried. 

Seated  in  a  dogcart,  we  set  out  for  our  five-mile  drive  to  old  Brigham, 
Yorkshire.  The  way  lies  through  a  landscape  of  level  fertile  farms,  studded 
with  substantial  buildings,  surrounded  by  abundant  ripening  crops.  Much  of 
the  distance  we  are  alongside  a  canal,  which  runs  its  brief  course  from  Drif- 
field* towards  Hull,  and  used,  before  the  advent  of  railways,  to  thrive  in  an 

♦While  here  we  took  opportunity  of  purchasing  the  following  work,  issued 
in  1S9S,  "Contributions  Towards  a  History  of  Driffleki,  and  the  Surrounding 
Wolds  District,  in  the  East  Riding  of  the  County  of  York,"  by  the  late  Fredk. 
Ross,  F.  R.  H.  S.  Though  no  reference  therein  is  made  to  Brigham,  it  con- 
tains some  196  pages  of  very  interesting  matters,  touching  the  country  imme- 
diately adjacent,  beginning  at  a  period  like  2,000  years  back.  Driffield,  like 
Biigham,  is  situated  upon  the  Yorkshire  Wolds,  a  range  of  chalk  uplands, 
presenting  an  undulatory  surface,  which  have  for  unnumbered  centuries  been 
the  home  of  various  races,  of  whom  our  only  knowledge  has  been  learned 
from  their  burial  mounds.  The  earliest  races  are  divided  into  the  two  known 
as  "long-headed,"  succeeded  by  the  "round-headed"  (also  called  the  "early" 
and  "later"  stone-races),  who  were  succeeded  by  the  Brigantes,  who  intro- 
duced the  age  of  metals.  Then  came  the  Roman,  who  developed  Yorkshire 
amazingly;  York  itself  being  commonly  called  "altera  Roma."  Later  followed 
Angles,  Saxons  and  Danes,  all  of  whom  left  numerous  sepulcliral  mounds  upon 
the  Wolds,  wherefrom  have  been  exhumed  prehistoric  bones,  weapons,  imple- 
ments,  pottery,  jewelry  and  the  like. 

The  first  certain  date  concerning  this  town  comes  down  to  us  through  the 
Anglo-Saxon  Chronical:  "Anno  705.  This  year  Alfred,  king  of  the  Northum- 
brians, died  at  Driffield,  on  the  nineteenth  before  the  Kalends  of  January." 
In  the  field  at  Driffield,  between  the  north  end  of  Middle  street  and  the  Beck, 
are  the  remains  of  a  very  extensive  castle,  but  now  all  beneath  the  soil.  This 
is  understood  to  be  the  home  of  the  ancient  Anglo-Saxon  kings,  as  mentioned 
by  the  antiquarian  Leland,  three  centuries  and  a  half  ago.  From  the  death  of 
Alfred  there  is  no  record  or  tradition  of  the  place  being  a  royal  residence, 
though  it  continued  to  be  a  royal  manor  until  the  fifteenth  century.  Coming 
now  to  the  time  of  the  Norman  Conquest,  the  Anglo-Danes,  by  their  repeated 
uprisings,  so  incensed  the  Conqueror,  that  he  laid  in  waste  a  tract  sixty  miles 
square  between  the  Humber  and  Durham.  In  this  devastation  Driffield  was 
Included,  for  we  read  in  Domesday  Book,  1086,  where  it  speaks  of  "Drifelt, 
with  the  four  berewicks,"  which,  "in  the  time  of  King  Edward,  were  valued 
at  £40."  that  "now  the  King  has  them  and  they  are  waste.!' 

The  greatest  splendor  known  to  this  scene  was  unquestionably  during  the 
Saxon  period,  of  which  we  know  so  little;  thereafter  it  sank  to  the  insignificance 
of  a  rural  village,  whose  uneventful  monotony  was  relieved  only  by  its  four 
markets  a  year.  The  present  century  has  marked  a  wonderful  growth  from 
about  1,300  to  about  6.000  population,  while  its  railway  and  canal  have  been 
the  means  of  upbuilding  considerable  commerce  and  manufacturing.  (We  have 
purposely  entered  into  a  note  of  considerable  length,  becavise  Brigha'T>.  being 
a  suburb  of  Driffield,  has  participated  in  no  small  way  in  all  these  vicissitudes. 
Majori  continet,  in  se  minus. 

22 


excellent  local  commerce.  We  saw  but  one  canal  boat,  however,  and  that 
was  being  drawn  by  a  man,  whose  mother  was  aboard  tending  the  rudder. 
As  the  craft  sat  low  in  the  water,  it  must  have  carried  quite  a  cargo.  The 
man,  with  broad  strap  across  his  arms  and  chest,  very  slowly  drew  it  through 
the  water.  When  I  indicated  my  desire  to  take  a  view  of  so  unusual  a  spec- 
tacle, he  smilingly  halted  until  I  had  secured  an  excellent  likeness. 

At  four  cross-roads,  we  found  a  sign-board,  one  of  whose  arms  pointed 
towards  (and  out)  "Brigham"  hardby.  Soon  we  were  climbing  a  slight 
rise,  called  "Brigham  Hill,"  which  commands  a  pleasant  view  in  all  direc- 
tions. As  we  proceed  up  "Brigham  i^ane,"  we  pass  the  post-office  and  an 
old  sand-pit  on  the  right,  while  on  the  left  are  a  few  low  buildings  occupied 
by  a  blacksmith  and  harnessmaker.  In  the  rear  is  a  farm  called  "Little  Brig- 
ham." Just  over  the  brow  of  the  hill,  we  reach  the  "Manor  House,"  whose 
extensive  buildings  betoken  that  the  proprietor,  Mr.  Stork,  is  a  prominent 
breeder  of  hackney  horses.  At  the  foot  of  the  hill,  by  the  canal,  stands  the 
public  house,  known  for  generations  as  "The  Brigham  Arms."  In  truth, 
the  family  coat  of  arms  used  to  grace  the  sign  ;  but  forty  years  ago.  when 
the  place  was  sold  by  the  Brighams,  it  was  taken  down,  never  again  to  be 
seen  there. 

A  drawbridge  spans  the  canal,  and  just  below  the  "Arms"  is  "Brigham 
Landing."  Years  ago  it  was  a  thriving  hamlet  with  much  trade,  but  it  is 
now  simply  a  rural  district,  with  no  special  marks  of  distinction  to  individ- 
ualize it.  In  an  adjoining  field  (a  part  of  "Sledmere  Farm"),  a  stone  slab 
fitly  chronicles  the  passing  of  the  Brigham  race  out  of  this  neighborhood, 
after  a  continuous  possession  extending  from  the  Norman  Conqueror's  time. 
The  short-sighted  judgment  of  the  generous  erector  neglected  to  enclose, 
or  even  raise  it  above  the  surrounding  meadows.  How  long  it  will  with- 
stand the  rubbings  against  it  by  the  cattle  and  their  occasional  horned  as- 
saults, we  cannot  conjecture.  We  wish  it  might  stand  forever;  but  gravely 
fear  that  another  half  century  will  have  witnessed  its  overthrow,  with  no 
friendly  hand  to  re-erect  its  honored  form.  Howbeit,  we  at  least  have  taken 
a  likeness,  together  with  the  inscription  ;  which  in  some  Brigham  Memorial 
ought  to  keep  the  annals  of  the  sacred  spot  eternally  green. 

That  you  may  form  an  intelligent  idea  of  the  extent  of  this  ancient  estate, 
I  give  an  extract  from  Coram  Rege  Rolls  (40  Ed.  III. — Ric.  HI.,  p.  1104), 
obtained  from  researches  in  the  London  Public  Record  Office,  the  same  being 
taken  from  an  Inquisition  Post  Mortem  held  at  York  Castle,  wherefrom  it 
appears  :  George  Brigham,  Lord  of  the  Manor  of  Brigham,  Yorkshire,  died 
without  issue  in  1576,  leaving  real  property,  which  by  marriage  settlement 
had  been  entailed  upon  his  nephew.  Francis  Brigham,  as  follows:  "15  mes- 
suages, 20  cottages,  5  tofts,  16  crofts;  1,200  acres  of  arable  land,  800  acres 
pasture,  1,200  acres  meadow,  500  acres  moor  and  marsh,  500  acres  turf,  in 
Brigham."  Surely,  this  4,200-acre  estate  is  no  inconsiderable  property ;  and 
when  we  reflect  that  it  was  in  the  family  750  years,  have  we  not  just  cause 
for  pride,  because  of  the  tenacity  with  which  succeeding  generations  clung 
to  the  cradle  of  our  clan  ? 

On  our  way  to  Scotland,  we  stopped  over  at  Newcastle-Upon-Tyne,  the 
magnificent  second  city  of  the  United  Kingdom.  Our  family  seems  to  have 
been  more  prominently  identified  with  this  city  than  any  other.  Though  the 
origin  and  disappearance  of  this  branch  of  our  family  is  veiled  in  obscurity, 
it  is  certain  that  for  at  least  three  generations,  from  i486  to  1550,  they  were 
in  the  lead  of  Newcastle  families.  During  that  period,  Robert,  Christopher 
and  Robert  Brigham,  each  in  turn,  became  Sheriff  and  afterwards  Mayor  of 
this  city. 

Christopher  B.  was  a  merchant  of  means  and  of  generous  impulses,  as 
sufficiently  appears  from  his  founding  of  "Brigham  Hospital,"  which  was 
situated  near  the  north  walls  of  the  city,  contiguous  to  the  Pilgrim  Gate, 
and  bounded  by  Pilgrim  Street,  High  Friar  Lane  and  High  Friar  Chare. 
This  institution  (later  mentioned  by  Leland,  Tanner,  Wallis,  and  other  his- 
torians) has  long  since  disappeared,  and  been  succeeded  by  fine  business 
blocks,  which  stretch  along  one  of  the  leading  thoroughfares  of  the  modern 
city.  The  city  walls  have  been  demolished,  while  along  the  western  boundary 
of  the  Brigham  Hospital  site  runs  Grey  Street,  one  of  the  grandest  avenues 


in  all  England.  Directly  opposite  is  the  towering  monument  dedicated  to 
Earl  Grey,  the  distinguished  parliamentary  reformer  of  the  fore  part  of  the 
passing  century. 

In  further  proof  of  the  dignity  of  the  said  Christopher  Brigham,  we  might 
add  that  King  Henry  VIII.  (Pat.  4  Hen.  VIII.,  p.  2,  m.  8)  granted  him  a 
patent,  whereby  he  was  excused  from  serving  on  juries,  etc.,  and  had  the 
privilege  of  sitting  witli  his  hat  on  in  the  presence  of  the  King  and  his  heirs. 

To  reach  Brigham,  Scotland,  z'ia  the  east  coast,  you  must  change  trains 
at  Berwick,  and  go  westward  by  another  line  as  far  as  Coldstream ;  whence 
a  four-mile  drive  is  made  over  finely  kept  roads,  through  a  beautiful  rolling 
country  of  first-class  farms.  The  village  of  Brigham  is  a  single  street  about 
a  mile  long,  made  up  mostly  of  one-story  scattered  cottages,  including  some 
ale-houses  and  a  post-office.  A  few  cots  are  ruinous,  and  others  have  in  recent 
years  been  pulled  down.  In  England,  as  in  the  United  States,  the  trend  is 
away  from  the  farm  to  the  city.  The  two  principal  farms  are  called  "Long 
Birgham"  and  "Birghamhaugh."  When  the  spelling  and  pronunciation  be- 
came changed,  I  know  not;  but  BiVgham  (Bur-jam)  it  is  now  altogether 
■called.     In  history,  however,  it  is  known  as  Bn'gham. 

The  town  lies  about  a  half  mile  from  the  Tweed,  to  which  it  runs  nearly 
parallel.  The  river  oflfers  excellent  trout  and  salmon  fishing,  especially  at 
"Brigham  Dub,"  a  deep  still  pool  between  rapids.*  From  Birghamhaugh 
bend  to  its  mouth,  the  Tweed  is  the  boundary  between  England  and  Scot- 
land ;  and  it  is  tradition  that  a  bridge  (such  as  the  name  of  the  village  should 
suggest)  once  spanned  the  flood  at  this  place;  but  no  trace  remains.  The  same 
lamentable  truth  holds  of  the  ancient  chapel,  the  site  of  which  is  pointed 
■out.  But  Birgham  (Brigham)  is  an  antique  settlement  whose  recorded  his- 
tory dates  back  more  than  1,000  years;  so  that  we  may  reconcile  our  minds 
to  the  certain  fact  of  many  unknown  vicissitudes. 

Its  early  annals  were  glorious;  in  1188  Henry  II.  sent  ambassadors  thither, 
who  met  with  the  Scotch  King  and  dignitaries,  to  consider  whether  contri- 
bution should  be  made  to  one  of  the  earlier  crusades ;  in  1290,  the  Scots  met 
liere  to  ratify  the  proposed  union  of  Prince  Edward  (son  of  King  Edward 
I.)  of  England  with  Margaret  of  Scotland;  in  1290,  the  "Treaty  of  Brig- 
ham" was  solemnized  here,  providing  for  the  national  freedom  of  Scotland; 
in  1 291.  the  twelve  competitors  for  the  Scotch  throne  met  here,  to  present 
their  claims  before  the  English  Commission.  They  still  point  out  a  field 
as  the  place  where  Parliament  convened,  in  those  bygone  days  when  the 
king  and  his  legislators  were  wanderers. 

In  the  old  burying  ground  (some  of  whose  stones  reach  back  into  the 
third  preceding  century)  not  a  Brigham  name  is  to  be  found.  They  early 
seem  to  have  sought  "fresh  fields  and  pastures  new."  The  present  Lord 
Paramount  is  Earl  Home,  whose  chief  residence  is  but  a  few  miles  distant 
towards  Coldstream.  He  now  fishes  in  "Brigham  Dub,"  and  shoots  his  game 
in  the  preserve  known  as  "Birgham  Wood." 

Carlisle,  in  his  Topographical  Dictionary  of  Scotland,  speaking  of  Birg- 
ham, says:  "During  1830-31,  no  less  than  ninety-four  persons  emigrated  to 
America."  Perhaps  many  years  before  a  Brigham  performed  a  similar  act. 
We  doubt  much,  however,  that  there  was  any  by  the  name  still  living  there 
at  the  time  when  "Thomas  the  Puritan"  began  to  figure  in  our  pedigree.  Let 
me  not  forget  to  mention  the  vulgar  phrase,  "Go  to  Birgham,"  is  frequently 
used  in  the  neighborhood,  in  the  sense  of  our  phrase,  "Go  to  Halifax." 

Brigham,  Cumberland,  lies  to  the  southwest  of  its  Tweed  namesake  ;  like 
which,  in  the  old  days  of  inveterate  border  strife,  it  belonged  now  to  Scot- 
land, now  to  England,  as  each  in  turn  might  become  the  victorious  aggressor. 
Borne  many  a  mile  through  purple  heather,  we  change  cars  at  Carlisle,  from 
which  a  short  run  brings  one  to  Brigham,  Cumberland.  Nearing  the  town,  we 
see  the  long  stone  bridge  (whose  prototype  ages  ago  gave  name  to  the  place) 
spanning  the  Derwent,  much  swollen  with  recent  rains ;  from  whose  flood 
I  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  a  seven  and  one-half  pound  trout  pulled. 

*As  we  stood  viewmg  this  scene,  Mr.  Scott,  a  brother-in-law  of  Earl  Home, 
came  up  in  conventional  garb,  to  go  out  in  his  boat  fishing.  We  explained  our 
visit,  -whereupon  he  became  quite  agreeable  and  offered  us  a  cigarette  of 
superior  brand. 

24 


Hard  by  the  railway  station  stands  the  time  honored  church,  dedicated 
to  St.  Bridget,  whose  modest  pile  of  masonry  has  been  largely  modernized. 
On  the  vestry  wall  hangs  the  oldest  tablet  observed,  being  a  small  one  of 
brass,  dated  1633,  in  memory  of  one  Swinburne,  Knight ;  while  in  the  choir  is 
a  memorial  tablet  to  Mr.  Pollock,  the  vicar's  son,  who  recently  died  of  fever 
in  South  Africa,;  in  defense  of  Ladysmith.  Some  interesting  fragments  of 
carved  stone  (for.nerly  parts  of  the  edifice)  are  placed  about  the  altar.  The 
environing  churcuyard  contains  a  choice  collection  of  unique  slabs,  ofttimes 
very  large  and  iiassive.  They  reach  back  into  the  1600s,  but  no  Brigham 
name  is  found.  Near  the  old  vicarage,  but  graded  quite  over  when  the  rail- 
way was  built,  is  the  historic  location  known  as  "Nun's  Well"-  to  whose 
merits  the  poet  .Vordsworth  composed  a  sonnet.  A  more  commonplace 
spot  than  is  its  p/esent  aspect,  it  would  be  hard  to  find. 


To  reach  the  village,  you  must  walk  a  half  mile  or  more  up  a  good  hill, 
passing  through  "Brigham  Low  Houses,"  consisting  of  two  country  inns,  the 
"Lime  Kiln"  and  the  "White  Sheaf."  At  the  latter  inn,  they  recalled  the 
visit  made  some  years  since  by  our  kinsman,  D.  H.  Brigham  of  Springfield, 
who  at  our  first  Marlboro  meeting  kindly  gave  us  all,  for  a  souvenir,  an 
excellent  cut  of  Brigham  Church,  taken  from  a  photograph  which  he  had 
brought  back.  Strange  to  say,  it  so  happened  that  I  was  unable  to  get  lodg- 
ings at  either  public  house :  so,  as  it  was  a  showery  dav,  I  was  very  glad  to 
board  the  next  train  and  spend  the  night  at  Cockermouth. 

In  going  up  "Brigham  Hill,"  you  pass  along  a  causeway,  from  which  you 
look  down  on  either  side  50  or  more  feet  into  vast  pits,  the  beds  of  worked 
out  lime  kilns,  and  try  to  realize  what  a  great  industry  this  must  have  been 
from  time  immemorial.  Millions  of  tons  have  been  excavated  during  the 
march  of  the  centuries.  Three  kilns  are  in  present  use  in  the  neighborhood ; 
the  output  of  one  of  the  largest  being  usually  twenty  tons  daily,  with  a  maxi- 

25 


mum  capacity  of  double  that  amount.  Considerable  unburned  lime  is  shipped 
to  Workington,  to  be  used  in  the  treatment  of  iron  ore. 

Reaching  the  height  of  land,  and  the  one  winding  street  which  forms 
the  older  village,  you  see  at  a  glance  what  a  diary  of  history  iies  about,  could 
it  but  play  the  oracle  and  speak.  Old  farm  houses  and  barns,  with  yards  not 
always  cleanly  kept,  are  interspersed  upon  the  thorougl^.are  with  newer, 
trimmer  town  residences.  We  first  turn  westward,  and  descending  grad- 
ually .'^ome  half  mile  come  to  the  modern  Brigham  schoolho.'.se,  built  in  solid 
masonry  in  excellent  taste,  surrounded  by  a  substantial  higlt  stone  wall.  The 
merry  children  come  trooping  out  to  dinner,  whose  woodet- -bottomed  shoes, 
as  they  romp  along,  resound  like  a  squadron  of  horse  guards.  Retracing 
our  steps,  we  turn  off  at  a  private  gateway  upon  the  kft  leading  to  the 
Fletcher  mansion,  the  residence  of  the  nabob  of  the  viciu'i";'  whose  head  had 
died  but  a  few  weeks  before. 

The  recently  built  east  end  of  the  village  is  on  the  h(  ight  of  ground,  con- 
sisting of  modest,  but  substantial  and  well-designed  re;idences,  whose  front 
yards  bloom  with  a  profusion  of  beautiful  flowers.  F:om  its  proximity  to  a 
small  stream  by  the  same  name,  it  is  frequently  called  "Eller  Beck  Brigham." 
Beyond  is  what  was  "Brigham  Commons;"  but  about  a  score  of  years  since, 
it  was  divided  up  among  the  property  owners,  a:id  is  now  hedged  off  into 
many  a  sightly  field. 

From  the  "Alpha  Catalogue  of  Enrollment  of  Exchequer  Pleas"  in  the 
Round  Room  of  the  Public  Record  Office,  London  (2  Vol.,  "Bli-By,"  p.  96), 
the  record  in  a  suit  brought  by  one  Bell  vs.  one  Hudson  (who  was  then 
"crown  farmer  of  the  Rectory  of  Brigham,"  Cumberland)  shows  the  follow- 
ing interesting  custom  of  the  place  :  From  time  immemorial  the  inhabitants 
had  been  in  the  habit  of  paying  in  lieu  of  tythc,  for  every  tenth  lamb,  if  ten 
or  more,  a  modus  of  i6d  (i.  e.  pence)  for  6,  I4d ;  7,  i4K'd;  8,  isd;  g,  I5^d. 
Also  for  every  tenth  calf,  if  ten  or  more,  2S,  2d  (i.  e.,  shillings  and  pence), 
and  for  every  number  above  five  at  the  following  rates:  6,  2S ;  7,  2s,  yid; 
8,  2s,  id;  9,  2s,  iK'd.  Also  for  the  tythe  of  hens  2d,  and  for  eggs  and  chick- 
ens ;  for  each  old  hen,  2  eggs ;  every  hen-chicken,  i  egg."  It  also  appears  the 
custom  to  pay  "A  composition  of  4s,  lod  for  the  tythes  of  what  kind  soever 
of  grain,  hay,  hemp,  linen  and  all  kinds  of  fruit."  Truly,  this  is  an  interesting 
peep  into  the  way  of  raising  church  money  at  Brigham  300  years  ago. 

From  Brigham  to  Keswick  is  a  most  delightful  ride  through  the  famous 
Lake  District  of  England,  which  affords  a  constant  succession  of  charming 
panoramas,  the  most  characteristic  features  of  which  are  the  lakes,  bounded 
by  oval  hills,  covered  with  purple  heather.  Up  the  Greta  River  from  Kes- 
wick a  short  mile,  we  reach  the  modern  built  hamlet  of  Brigham.  The  lower 
portion  called  "Brigham  Nook,"  consists  of  a  neighborhood  of  well-kept 
cottages,  one  ale-house,  and  an  excellent  school  erected  in  1851,  which  is 
attended  by  about  100  pupils  of  both  sexes  from  the  agricultural  and  manu- 
facturing population,  a  part  of  the  instruction  being  garden-work.  At  this 
place,  "Brigham  tollbar"  (or  bridge)  of  masonry  crosses  the  Greta,  leading 
towards  Skiddaw,  most  famous  of  the  mountains,  only  one  and  one-half 
miles  distant. 

Passing  through  the  village,  a  short  walk  upon  the  left-hand  road  brings 
the  visitor  to  "Brigham  Forge,"  a  picturesque  sheltered  spot,  where  the  Greta 
is  spanned  by  another  staunch  stone  bridge,  and  the  power  from  the  fall 
drives  electric  and  laundry  plants.  Keswick  Brigham  has  no  time-honored 
history,  and  was  of  interest  to  seek  out  simply  because  of  the  name  it  bears. 

Returning  by  rail  towards  London,  a  change  of  cars  gave  us  a  few  hours' 
wait  at  Penrith,  which  happy  opportunity  we  seized  to  walk  a  few  miles,  and 
do  (hastily)  the  famous  seat  of  Lord  Brougham's  family.  I  do  not  claim 
any  relationship  (nearer  than  Adam  and  Eve),  but  the  words  Brougham 
and  Brigham  mean  the  same;  brough  (like  brig),  signifies  a  bridge.  Per- 
haps in  forgotten  ages,  the  ancient  ancestors  of  the  Broughams  once  bore  the 
Brigham  name  ;  for  there  was  no  settled  orthography,  until  comparatively  re- 
cent years.  This,  however,  would  be  romancing,  from  which  we  prefer  to 
keep  as  free  as  possible  our  historical  gleanings. 

Well,   at   any    rate,    the    house   of   Brougham    is   both    ancient    and    distin- 

2'0 


guished ;  while  its  possessions  are  not  far  removed  from  the  Brighams  of 
Cumberland.  "Brougham  Hall,"  the  present  residence,  is  enclosed  by  for- 
midable walls,  penetrated  by  a  massive  gate,  leading  to  a  large  inner  court, 
much  like  the  Middle  Age  fortress-houses  of  the  great ;  but  the  more  vener- 
able pile  is  "Brougham  Castle,"  about  a  mile  distant  upon  the  river's  bank, 
whose  ruin  reveals  the  once  tremendous  strength  of  its  extensive  masonry. 
This  gigantic  structure,  dating  from  the  Normans,  was  dismantled  by 
Cromwell,  when  he  was  abroad  upon  his  tour  of  destruction  and  demolition, 
upon  so  vast  a  scale  as  had  not  been  equaled  since  the  royal  command  of 
Henry  VHI.   dissolving  the  monasteries. 

Before  leaving  this  subject  of  Brigham  towns,  though  I  made  no  pil- 
grimage to  the  spot,  I  must  not  forego  brief  allusions  to  the  ancient  Royal 
Manor  of  Brigham  in  Norfolk.  In  later  times,  the  spelling  has  been  changed 
to  the  modern  e(4uivalent,  " Bridgcham."  but  it  was  called  "Brigham"  as  late 
as  during  the  reign  of  Henry  VHI.,  i.  e..  after  1500  (vide  "Particulars  for 
Grants,  Index  Locorum — Henry  VIII. — Pub.  Rec.  Off.,  London).  Its  an- 
tiquity is  sufficiently  avouched  by  its  mention  in  Domesday  Book,  compiled 
by  the  Norman  Conqueror  before  iioo.  The  historian,  Stacy  (Hist.  Nor- 
folk Co.,  1829),  says  that  it  was  named  from  the  bridge  which  was  the  pass- 
age to  Rowtham  Cross,  and  was  a  remarkable  and  much  frequented  way 
for  all  pilgrims  that  traveled  from  Suffolk  and  other  parts  to  our  "Lady  of 
Walsingham."  The  old  church  has  a  "Norman  North  Porch;"  and  there 
being  no  tower,  its  two  beds  are  hung  in  a  house  in  the  yard.  Brigham  con- 
tains the  Manor  of  Hackford  and  the  Rectory. 

I  find  early  mention  of  Brigham  families  at  all  these  old  Brigham  places. 
Yes,  and  in  a  volume  of  Inquisitions  and  Assessments  Relating  to  Feudal 
Aids  (in  Pub.  Rec.  Off.),  it  appears  that,  as  early  as  1346,  one  John  de 
Brygham*  had  lands  at  Faleton,  in  the  "Hundred  of  Harrygg  &  Bude- 
legh,"  Devonshire.  It  is  impossible  for  your  historian  to  account  (even 
conjecturally)  for  the  origin  and  antecedents  of  this  clansman.  Neither  can 
we  offer  any  explanation  of  one  William,  son  of  John  de  Brigham,  who 
(according  to  Coram  Rege  Rolls)  was  in  Lincolnshire  in  1307  (though,  not 
unlikely,  he  was  of  York  or  Norfolk  origin). 

But  little  information  has  reached  me  touching  the  Brighams  of  Brigham, 
Scotland.!  From  the  printed  Exchequer  Rolls  (examined  in  the  Prin- 
cipal Registry  House,  Edinburg),  I  learned  that  William  Brigham,  in 
1525,  had  lands  in  the  Lordship  of  Brigham :  and  that  Adam  Brig- 
ham had  lands  there  in  1559.  From  another  entry,  it  appears  that 
Adam's  male  line  ran  out,  and  a  daughter,  Elizabeth,  was  his  only  child. 
From  the  Registry  of  the  Privy  Council  of  Scotland,  it  appears  that  this 
Elizabeth  Brigham  married  one  Alex.  "Dicksonn,"  of  Newton  in  Brigham. 
I  might  add,  Dickson  is  a  common  family  name  about  Brigham,  with  stones 
of  many  of  its  departed  scions  in  the  churchyard.  The  Parish  Register  of 
Eccles,  within  which  this  Brigham  is  situated,  do  not  begin  until  about  1700; 
subsequent  to  the  time  when  the  Brighams  departed,  and  so  not  of  any  assist- 
ance. Also,  the  Index  of  Wills  for  Berkwickshire  (preserved  in  the  New 
Registry  House,  Edinburgh),  from  1562  to  1670,  reveals  not  one  Brigham 
estate. 

Concerning  our  clan  in  Cumberland,  there  are  many  entries  available,  to 
prove  their  existence  thereabouts  for  several  centuries.  In  a  Calendar  of 
Documents  Relating  to  Scotland  (Vol.  I.,  p.  97),  John  de  Briggehaim  of 
Cumberland  appears  as  witness  to  a  grant  as  early  as  1210.  From  Notes  on 
Coram  Rege  Rolls,  it  appears  that  in  the  reign  of  Henry   III.    (1216-1272), 

*\Ve  cannot  help  wondering,  was  the  spelling'  there  not  changed,  later  on, 
to  "Bringham"?  We  find  such  an  old  family  in  County  "Devon,"  bearing  a 
coat  of  arms.    It  is  surely  suggestive! 

tl  have  just  received  word  from  The  Hon.  J.  Balfour  Paul,  Lyon  King  of 
Arms  (Heralds'  College),  Edinburgh.  Scotland,  who  says:  "There  is  no  doubt 
that,  as  you  say,  the  name  Brigham  is  more  English  than  Scottish.  No  arms 
have  ever  been  recorded  here  for  any  one  of  the  name;  but  there  are,  here  and 
there,  scattered  up  and  down  the  Records  which  have  been  printed,  stray  no- 
tices of  persons  of  the  name,  such  as  John  Brigholm,  a  Scottish  merchant,  who 
got  a  safe  conduct  to  trade  for  a  year  in  England,  in  1439.  *  *  *  j  (Jq  not 
think  any  one  of  the  name  ever  possessed  land  in  Scotland,  or  that  the  family 
was   conspicuous   in   any   way." 

27 


Waldeve  de  Brigham  presented  to  the  advowson  of  the  Church  of  Brigham 
Thomas  de  Brigham,  whose  son  and  heir  was  John,  who  had  but  two  daugh- 
ters, "AHcia  and  Johanna,"  coheiresses.  From  the  De  Banco  Rolls  (Mss. 
Series,  Vol.  XXVIII.,  p.  863)  one  finds  that  in  1274  John  and  Thomas  Brig- 
ham, sons  of  Adam  de  Brigham,  had  lands  in  Galenter  (?).  From  Coram 
Rege  Rolls  (p.  583,  23  Ed.  III.,  23  Ric.  II.),  Thomas  Brigham  was  in  Cumber- 
land in  1381.  While  in  the  same  record  in  1413  (14  Hen.  IV.),  we  find  this 
pedigree  under  the  same  county:  John  de  Brigham  had  two  sons,  William 
de  Brigham  (who  dies  childless,  seized  of  lands  in  Castelbrigg),  and  his 
brother,  Peter  de  Brigham,  whose  heir  was  "Galfred,"  whose  heir  was  John 
Smith.  The  family  early  disappeared  from  the  neighborhood,  however,  for 
the  records  of  Brigham  Church  show  nothing  of  them  during  the  past  300 
years;  nor  do  the  wills  for  the  Deanery  of  Copeland  (wherein  were  made 
the  probate  of  Brigham  residents  wills)   disclose  any  Brigham  estates. 

That  the  ancient  Royal  Manor  of  Brigham  in  Norfolk  gave  rise  to  a 
Brigham  family  line,  we  may  reasonably  infer  from  numerous  entries  found. 
In  Coram  Rege  Rolls  (25  Ed.  I.,  p.  289)  we  hear  of  one  Alande  Brigham  in 
Norfolk,  as  early  as  1297.  In  Parkin's  Topographical  History  of  the  County 
of  Norfolk  (Vol.  6,  p.  144),  the  heirs  of  one  William  de  Brigham  are  named, 
as  being  part  owners  in  a  knight's  fee  of  land  in  Bradenham  Manor  in  1347. 
And  in  the  same  history  is  record  of  one  Adam  Brigham,  who  died  at  Nor- 
wich in   1685.  \ 

The  most  persistent  Brigham  line  occurs  in  connection  with  the  annals 
of  Yorkshire.  Paulson's  History  of  Holderness*  gives  the  following  re- 
markable pedigree  of  nineteen  Brigham  generations:  i,  Walter  Brigham 
of  Brigham,  in  the  time  of  Henry  I.  (1100-1135)  ;  2,  Robert;  3,  Hugh;  4, 
Theobald;  5,  Sir  William  (whose  will  was  dated  in  1277)  ;  6,  Theobald;  7, 
John;  8,  John;  9,  William;  10,  Sir  John;  11,  George;  12,  Ralph;  13,  Fran- 
cis; 14,  Ralph;  15,  William;  16,  John;  17,  Roger;  18,  John,  Esq.,  and  19, 
Dr.  William  Brigham,  who  was  "living  in  1786,"  says  Poulson,  who  adds, 
"this  family  is  now  become  extinct."  This  last  statement  is  shown  to  be 
error,  in  Sheahan  &  Whellen's  History  and  Topography  of  the  City  of  York 
and  the  East  Riding  of  Yorkshire  (1856).  The  said  Dr.  Wm.  Brigham 
moved  from  Brigham  to  the  city  of  Manchester,  whereby  the  family  became 
"extinct"  upon  the  estate  of  Brigham,  which  probably  accounts  for  Poulson's 
statement,  for  it  is  certain  that  Dr.  Wm.  Brigham  had,  among  others,  a  son 
Wm.  Brigham.  Esq.,  whose  residence  was  Foxley  House, t  Lymm.  Cheshire. 
He  it  was,  who  sold  the  very  last  Brigham  property  in  Brigham,  Yorkshire, 
removed  the  "Brigham  Arms"  from  the  Inn.  and  erected  the  monument  here- 
tofore referred  to  at  length.  Said  "Squire"  Brigham  had  but  an  only  daugh- 
ter, who  had  the  misfortune  to  marry  an  unscrupulous  Frenchman,  to  whose 
criminal  actions  her  death  was  doubtless  due.  She  had  a  child,  whose 
whereabouts   and   descendants    (if   any)    are   to   the   writer   unknown. t     The 

*We  had  the  good  fortune  to  procure,  at  reasonable  price,  a  new  (uncut) 
copy  of  this,  now  rare  and  valuable,  treatise,  the  full  title  of  which  is:  "The 
History  and  Antiquities  of  the  Seigniory  of  Holderness,  in  the  East  Riding  of 
York,  Including  the  Abbies  of  Meaux  and  Swine,  with  the  Priories  of  Nunkeel- 
ing  and  Burstall;  Compiled  from  Authentic  Charters,  Records  and  the  Unpub- 
lished Manuscripts  of  the  Rev.  William  Dade,  Remaining  in  the  Library  of 
Burton  Constable;  with  numerous  embellishments;  by  George  Poulson,  Esquire, 
*  *  *  Hull,  MDCCCXL."  It  is  composed  of  two  quarto  volumes,  aggregating 
more  than  1,000  pages,  and  by  far  the  most  valuable  book  which  has  been  writ- 
ten of  this  part  of  York,  wherein  is  situated  Brigham.  The  pedigree  and  notes 
of  the  Brighams  occur  in  the  second  volume,  on  pages  268,  269.  It  should  be  set 
out  in  full  in  any  complete  Brigham  history. 

tl  have  had  a  letter  from  the  present  owner  of  Foxley  House,  L.  Clark, 
Esq.,  who  has  very  kindly  promised  me  a  picture  of  the  house  and  chapel. 

JI  have  had  some  very  pleasant  correspondence  with  Rev.  I.  Kennedy,  Vicar 
of  Foston-on-the-Wolds.  situated  only  a  mile  from  Brigham.  who  promises 
later  to  send  me  some  notes  from  his  parish  records.  He  also  kindly  cited  me 
to  the  records  of  the  Leet  Courts,  which  used  to  be  regularly  held  at  Brigham, 
up  to  about  forty  years  ago.  From  a  newspaper  clipping  (enclosed  in  one  of 
his  recent  letters)  I  am  able  to  glean  a  few  more  points  about  this  unfortunate 
Brigham  marriage.  It  appears  the  Frenchman's  name  was  Henri  Dieubonne 
Pierrau  de  Tourville,  that  he  shot  his  wife  at  Foxley  House,  in  the  dining- 
room,  about  1867;  she  died  soon  after,  leaving  an  only  child,  Henri  de  Tourville, 
Jr.,  who  was  supnosed  to  have  been  placed  under  a  false  name  in  London. 
The  father  married  a  second  time,  and  pushed  this  wife  over  a  precipice,  for 
which  crime  he  was  undergoing  an  eighteen  years'  penal  servitude  in  Austria 
at   the   time   of   his   death.    The    Brigham    property   descended   to    his    son,    and 

2« 


arms  recorded  of  this  branch  are  :  "Argent,  a  sakire  engrailed  vert."  Va- 
rious notes  bearing  on  their  Hne  are  preserved  in  the  Mss.  Room  of  the  Brit- 
ish Museum.*  and  pedigrees  were  twice  recorded  in  the  London  Heralds' 
College,  in  1612  and  1666. 

It  was  formerly  my  impression  that  perhaps  all  the  Brighams  sprang  from 
a  common  Brigham  ancestor,  whose  origin  I  was  inclined  to  attribute  to 
Yorkshire.  Later  researches,  however,  lead  me  to  the  changed  belief  that 
there  were  no  less  than  four  distinct  Brigham  lines,  founded  by  individuals, 
who  assumed  this  surname  in  the  early  days,  when  it  became  the  proper 
thing  to  have  a  surname ;  and  that  they  assumed  this  particular  name  be- 
cause they  lived  at  one  or  another  of  the  four  Brigham  places. 

From  which  branch  descended  our  "Thomas  the  Puritan"  I  regret  my 
present  inability  to  say,  though  I  incline  to  the  opinion  that  it  was  Yorkshire. 
I  made  thorough  search  among  wills  in  the  Prerogative  Court  of  Canter- 
bury, the  Prerogative  and  Exchequer  Court  of  York,  and  the  Durham  Pro- 
bate Court,  in  hopes  of  gleaning  some  clue  which  would  lead  to  an  intelli- 
gent solution  of  the  vexatious  problem,  but  in  vain.  In  the  Canterbury 
Probate,  from  1558  to  1660,  occur  but  eleven  Brigham  wills,  the  residences 
of  four  being  in  London,  three  in  Yorkshire,  and  one  each  in  Oxford,  Surry, 
Sussex  and  Kent  counties.  At  Durham  Probate,  I  was  disappointed  in  not 
finding  a  single  Brigham  will.  As  its  jurisdiction  extended  (until  recently) 
over  Northumberland,  as  well  as  Durham  County  (both  of  which  lie  just 
above  Yorkshire).  I  was  prepared  to  find  many  Brigham  estates. 

York  Probate,  however,  makes  a  better  showing ;  in  fact,  the  largest,  I 
fancy,  of  any  court  in  the  Kingdom.  From  1437  to  1602,  I  found  thirty-two 
Brigham  wills.  This  latter  year  was  the  one  at  which  I  began  to  make  careful 
search,  which  I  made  to  embrace  the  period  between  1602  to  1660;  during 
which  time  I  found  eighteen  Brigham  estates.  The  will  books  here  are  sim- 
ply enormous,  frequently  approximating  1,000  pages  quarto  in  size,  upon 
parchment,  which,  with  heavy  binding,  handles  and  clasps,  weigh,  perhaps,, 
not  less  than  seventy-five  pounds.  It  thus  became  a  manual  (as  well  as  cler- 
ical) labor  to  examine  them.  My  regret  was  poignant,  that  not  a  clue  was- 
found  tending  to  point  out  the  origin  of  our  "Thomas  the  Puritan."  From 
correspondence  hereafter  to  be  carried  on,  it  is  earnestly  hoped  that  the  mys- 
tery will  be  solved. 

You  will  be  interested  to  know  that  the  British  Museum  Library  has  a  fine 
collection  of  books  by  Brighams ;  thirteen  different  authors  being  repre- 
sented, more  than  half  of  whom  are  Americans.  It  was  a  pleasant  surprise 
to  find  among  them  a  medical  treatise  by  my  own  father. 

Perhaps  as  good  an  end  as  any,  to  this  rambling  narrative,  may  be  made 
in  a  brief  account  of  the  person  who  seems  (from  the  records)  to  have  been 
most  distinguished  of  all  the  Brighams.  I  refer  to  Nicholas  Brigham,  poet, 
jurist  and  historian,  whose  untimely  end  forestalled  full  fruition  of  his 
genius.  By  tradition  his  birth  was  from  the  prominent  family  at  Caversham, 
Oxford,  the  founder  of  which,  Anthony  Brigham,  was  Bailiff  of  the  King's 
Manor  there  under  Henry  VIII.  Nicholas  is  reported  to  have  finished  his 
education  at  Hart  Hallt  (now  Hertford  College),  one  of  the  oldest  institu- 
tions of  learning  at  Oxford.  (The  registers  of  these  early  years  are  missing 
from  the  school  records).  He  appears  to  have  removed  thence  to  one  of  the 
Inns  of  Court,  where  he  made  a  thorough  study  of  law  and  history.  His  love 
for  poetry,  however,  was  a  lifelong  passion,  as  manifested  in  many  flights  of 

upon  conviction  of  the  father  the  moneyed  income  was  paid  to  the  lad's  cus- 
todian; but  from  his  abduction  in  18S2  to  1S87  the  tenants  were  not  called  upon 
for  any  rent.    I  hope  later  to  be  able  to  give  the  whole  story. 

♦Additional  MS.  No.  18,011,  folio  103  b.— Harleian  MS.  No.  1,394,  pp.  113-115. 
349_Harl.  MS.,  No.  1,487,  fol.  300— Harl.  MS.,  No.  805,  fol.  75— Harl.  MS.,  No. 
1,557,  fol.  13,  contains  the  pedigree  of  the  Oxford  branch  (printed),  to  which  I 
have  often  alluded. 

fHart  Hall  (Aula  Cervina)  was  founded  in  1284  by  Elias  de  Hertford,  and  is 
one  of  the  oldest  institutions  at  Oxford.  It  was  created  a  College  by  royal 
charter  in  1740,  as  "Hertford  College,"  but  had  only  a  brief  career  on  its  new 
foundation.  In  1874  it  was  reincorporated  under  the  original  title.  Its  buildings 
are  fine  modern  structures  situated  near  the  Bodleian  Library.  Some  remains 
still  exist  of  the  original  Hall,  of  which  many  were  distinguished  members, 
such  as  Sir  Matthew  Hale  and  Charles  James  Fox. 

2y 


his  Pegasus.  Biographers  say  he  died  in  December,  1559,  but  from  the  pro- 
bate of  his  estate,  into  which  I  examined,  it  is  determined  that  he  passed 
away  on  the  "20  Feb.  1558."  He  was  buried  in  "Poet's  Corner,"  Westmin- 
ster Abbey,  beside  his  daughter  Rachel,  whom  he  lost  at  the  age  of  four. 
Camden  in  his  work  (published  in  1606),  upon  those  intombed  at  Westmin- 
ster, gives  the  full  inscription  upon  the  grave  of  the  daughter,  but  he  does 
not  mention  anything  of  the  sort  concerning  the  father.  From  the  forego- 
ing, we  might  possibly  infer  that  Nicholas  never  had  any  epitaph,  though 
historians  agree  that  he  was  herein  buried  near  the  tomb  of  Chaucer,  father 
of  English  poets,  to  whom  Brigham  had  caused  a  monument  to  be  erected. 
Chaucer's  tomb  yet  remains,  dim  with  hoar  antiquity  and  slowly  crumbling 
away ;  but  the  exact  spot  of  Brigham's  grave  cannot  longer  be  made  certain.* 
He  left  no  will,  his  estate  being  administered  by  his  "widow  Margaret"  in 
the  Commissary  Court  of  the  Dean  and  Chapter  of  Westminster  ("Bracy," 
fol.  272).  The  names  of  his  surviving  children,  if  he  left  any,  do  not  appear; 
and  as  there  are  no  contemporary  registers  preserved  .at  Westminster,  it  is 
impossible  to  decide  whether  he  left  issue.  He  did,  however,  leave  children 
of  his  brain,  in  several  notable  works,  namely: 

(i)  Reruni  Quotidianarum  Venationcs  (or  a  Diary  of  Memoirs  in  12 
Bks.  (2)  Vcnationibus  Rcriim  Menwrabilum,  in  i  vol.,  being  biographic  in 
character,  from  which  Bale  (in  his  "Scriptores"  published  in  1559)  makes 
extract  touching  two  (now  obscure)  English  writers. t  (3)  Diversoruni  Poe- 
luatum,  in  i  vol.,  being  a  collection  of  poems  from  his  own  pen. 

The  biographer  Pitts  intimated  that  Brigham  was  author  of  other  works ; 
but  if  so,  we  of  this  day  are  ignorant  even  to  their  very  names.  The  early 
writers  give  one  the  impression  that  the  works  named  were  published  by 
Brigham ;  yet,  strange  to  say,  not  a  single  volume  is  to  be  found,  either  in 
the  mammoth  collection  of  British  Museum  Library,  or  in  the  historic  col- 
lection at  Oxford  (which  I  visited),  where  (being  his  alma  mater),  it  would 
seem  Nicholas  Brigham  would  have  been  actively  interested  to  preserve  these 
offspring  of  his  erudite  talents.  What  a  text,  from  which  to  preach  a  sermon 
upon  the  uncertainty  of  posthumous  fame !  Nicholas  Brigham, t  poet,  histor- 
ian and  jurist,  the  publisher  of  ambitious  and  voluminous  treatises,  the 
erector  of  the  Chaucer  monument,  the  greatest  of  our  clan,  buried  in  West- 
minster (that  most  honored  spot  in  which  an  Englishman  can  lie)  ;  and  here 
we,  some  three  and  a  half  centuries  later,  seek  in  vain  for  the  works  from 
his  pen,  and  must  even  remain  ignorant  as  to  whether  he  left  a  posterity ! 
"Vanity,  vanity;    all   is  vanity!" 

Perhaps  the  prettiest  compliment  of  all  is  paid  him  by  the  biographer 
Pitts,  a  part  of  whose  laudation  I  will  here  freely  translate  from  the  Latin, 
in  which  it  is  published.  "Nicholas  Brigham.  *  *  *  jj^  poetry,  above  the 
common    crowd;     eloquent    as    an    orator;     an    experienced   jurisconsult;     a 

*From  attending  an  afternoon  service  at  St.  Paul's  one  Sunday  we  set 
out  for  Westminster  in  the  evening-.  Being  rather  late,  the  nave  had  become 
filled,  so  that  we  were  informed  at  the  front  (west)  entrance,  that  we  must 
go  round  to  the  transcept  door,  entering  through  Poet's  Corner.  "We  were 
fortunate  in  obtaining  a  seat  almost  opposite  Chaucer's  tomb,  and.  possibly, 
just  abpve  (certainly  not  far  from),  the  remains  of  Nicholas  Brigham.  It  was 
a  most  awe-inspiring  moment!  Soon  the  services  began;  the  light  of  burning 
candles,  while  abundant  for  the  worshipers,  was  lost  in  the  distances  of  the 
vast  structure;  while  the  choir  and  organ,  outpouring,  though  they  did,  a 
tremendous  volume  of  thrilling  sacred  music,  re-echoing  through  many  a  shrine 
and  chapel,  having  resounded  to  the  remotest  portions  of  the  great  edifice, 
finally  died  away  into  the  inky  depths  of  the  high  loft,  now  and  then  returned 
in  softest  resonance,   like   that  of  a  heavenly   "Choir  Invisible." 

f'Guilhelmus  [William]  Wickham"  and  "Bartholomaeus  [Bartholomew] 
Florarius." 

}Do  not  confound  this  Nicholas  with  the  one  spoken  of  in  my  Anglian 
Brighamiea,  as  "Teller  of  the  Exchequer"  to  Queen  Mary.  The  fact  that  they 
both  bear  the  same  name,  are  prominent,  and  in  London  at  the  same  period, 
makes  it  a  question  of  easily  mistaken  identification.  In  fact,  the  best  modem 
English  biographer  of  Nicholas,  the  poet,  falls  into  this  very  error,  of  making 
these  two  parties  one.  It  is  clear,  however,  that  Nicholas,  the  "poet,"  died  in 
1558,  and  that  his  estate  was  administered  upon  in  the  Commissary  Court  of 
the  Dean  &  Chapter  of  Westminster;  while  concerning  Nicholas,  the  "Teller," 
I  find  him  living  as  late  as  "1563,"  at  which  time  he  "entered  into  hall,  gardens 
and  premises  of  her  Majesty's  [Q.  Elizabeth]  Almshouses  of  Westminster." 
Very  likely,  the  two  were  nearly  related;  but  in  what  degree  I  am  imable  to 
say,  save  that  I  do  not  believe  the  relationship  could  have  been  that  of  father 
and  son. 

30 


signally  successful  historian ;  as  an  antiquarian  researcher  into  the  lore  of 
ancient  Albion,  very  diligent."  Surely,  this  is  an  epitaph  any  man  might 
well  feel  proud  to  have  written  of  himself  after  death. 

In  closing,  I  must  not  omit  to  express  my  sincere  thanks  to  those  whose 
generous  contributions  aided  materially  in  making  the  pilgrimage  to  the  an- 
cient Brigham  seats.  Their  names  will  hereafter  appear  in  not  more  fitting, 
but  more  enduring,  connection. 

Finally,  let  me  appeal  to  the  pride  of  all  our  kindred — since  it  is  now 
proposed  to  finish  a  Brigham  Family  History — that  each  individual  renew  his 
energy  to  the  end  that  complete  records  of  our  clan  may  be  brought  together 
as   speedily  as  possible. 

Hoping  to   meet   you   all   at   subsequent   reunions, 

Very    sincerelv,    your    historian, 

W.   I.  TYLER  BRIGHAM. 


THOMAS   BRIGHAM,   THE   PURITAN. 


For  a  fourth  time  I  have  the  pleasure  of  addressing  a  representative  Brig- 
ham audience,  and  I  have  chosen  a  subject  which  must  interest  all,  "Thomas 
Brigham,"  commonly  called   "The  Puritan." 

Who  was  our  common  ancestor,  this  Thomas  Brigham,  the  first  of  his 
name  in  America?  In  a  sense,  the  question  is  easily  answered,  like  most  of 
his  fellows,  he  was  undoubtedly  an  Englishman.  Farther  than  this,  we  can- 
not positively  decide.  But  we  will  speak  briefly  of  three  sources,  from  any 
one  of  which  he  might  have  come ;  and  from  one  of  which  it  is  most  reason- 
able to  suppose  he  actually  did  spring. 

First.  There  are  some  who  pin  their  faith  to  a  certain  Thomas  Brig- 
ham. who  was  living  about  1634  at  Caversham,  near  Oxford,  England,  as  is 
conclusively  shown  by  a  printed  report  of  a  herald's  visitation,  published  by 
the  Surtees"  Society.  His  father's  name  was  Thomas,  and  he  had  had  a  great- 
uncle  Thomas.  The  facts  of  this  suggestive  date  (1634),  the  recurrence  of 
the  given  name  "Thomas,"  as  well  as  the  conspicuous  position  occupied  by 
this  family  at  that  time,  seem  to  be  the  principal  grounds  upon  which  be- 
lievers stand. 

Now,  there  are  some  patent  hindrances  to  so  easy  an  inference.  The 
great-grandfather  of  this  youngest  Thomas  had  been  Anthony  Brigham 
(treasurer  to  the  household  of  Queen  Elizabeth),  whose  eldest  son,  Thomas, 
was  one  of  the  grantees  to  the  famous  tin  mines  of  Cornwall.  (The  magni- 
tude of  these  mines  may  be  seen  from  the  single  fact  that  they  soon  after- 
wards spent  $300,000  upon  their  development;  which,  of  course,  would  in 
these  days  represent  a  sum  several  times  larger.)  This  "patentee,"  Thomas, 
died  without  issue;  and  his  brother,  Christopher  (who  was  grandfather  to 
the  youngest  Thomas,  of  whom  we  have  been  speaking),  fell  heir  to  his 
large'  estates.  According  to  the  laws  of  the  country,  his  estate  would  have 
descended  to  the  father  of  Thomas  ;  and  Thomas,  Jr.,  himself,  in  due  time, 
have  become  the  possessor.  Now,  will  some  one  tell  me  why  would  he  run 
away  from  so  good  a  start  in  life?  This  family  supported  a  coat  of  arms, 
and  Thomas'  grandmother  was  a  daughter  of  one  Sir  Weldon,  Treasurer  to 
King  Henry  VIII.  Why  wasn't  this  coat  established  on  this  side  the  water, 
if  he  is  the  one?  Wouldn't  the  heir  to  so  proud  a  line  be  likely  to  raise  quite 
a  stir  in  the  new  land  to  which  he  came?  Would  not  there  be  some  record 
of  the  fact  on  the  other  side?  Rev.  Abner  Morse  (in  his  Brigham  book, 
published  in  1859)  tried  to  establish,  in  quasi  fashion,  that  our  Thomas,  the 
Puritan,  was  of  noble  origin;  and  he  "spreads  it  on  so  thick"  that  I  guess 
the  clan  has  been  holding  its  aggregated  head  higher  ever  since.  He  shows, 
for  instance,  that  the  Puritan  possessed  "joint  stools,"  etc.,  etc.,  which  seemed 
sufficient  proof,  in  those  early  days,  of  high  birth.  But  Mr.  Morse  (in  a 
footnote)  himself  implies  a  negative  to  the  ideft  that  the  Puritan  came  from 
the  Oxford  family. 

Second.  Near  Great  Driffield,  Dickering  Wapontake,  East  Riding,  York- 
shire, is  a  hamlet  called  Brigham.  In  this  vicinity,  the  history  of  the  Brig- 
hams  dates  back  to  the  time  of  King  Henry  I.  Brigham  as  a  sirname  in 
certain  parts  of  east  Yorkshire  is  to  this  day  quite  common.     Many  of  the 

31 


New  England  Puritans  hailed  from  Yorkshire.  Says  a  recent  authority, 
"There  are  words  and  phrases  current  in  America,  as  taken  by  the  Pilgrims, 
which  are  now  obsolete  in  England,  save  in  Holderness," — a  district  in  which 
is  located  the  Brigham  country.  For  myself,  I  admit  an  inclination  to  think 
our  Thomas  came  from  this  region  ;  which  I  also  believe  was  the  cradle  of 
the  Brigham  family.  Sir  Richard  Saltonstall's  homestead,  in  Watertown, 
Mass.,  was  bounded  on  the  east  by  the  homestead  of  our  ancestor ;  he  came 
on  the  same  boat  (the  "Suzan  &  Ellin"),  but  at  a  different  time.  Perhaps 
Thomas  Brigham  belonged  to  the  Saltonstall  party — their  locating  side  by 
side  they  might  have  been  acquainted  across  the  water,  not  unlikely  lived  in 
the  same  part  of  the  country.  Saltonstall  is  known  to  have  come  from 
Yorkshire  ;  it  is  reasonable  to  suppose,  that  Thomas  Brigham  was  from  the 
same  region. 

Third.  There  is  a  "Cumberland"  Brigham  district  in  England;  two,  in 
fact,  but  one  of  them  has  sprung  up  since  the  departure  of  our  "Puritan." 
During  the  past  year,  I  have  corresponded  with  the  Vicar  of  the  parish  of 
the  historic  Brigham,  who  sends  among  other  things,  the  following  item : — 

"The  Manor  of  Uldale,  near  Brigham. 

Sir  Ranulph  Bonekill  had  issue,  Alexander,  whose  son  Adam  gave  Aiverth- 
waite,  parcel  of  his  Manor  of  Uldale,  to  the  Priory  of  Carlisle.  The  said 
Adam  had  issue,  another  son  Alexander,  whose  daughter  and  heiress  was 
married  to  John  Stuart,  kinsman  to  the  King  of  Scotland,  and  afterwards 
married  to  David  Brigliatn,  a  Scottish  knight  renowned  for  his  prowess  and 
bravery;  and  by  this  marriage  the  Manor  of  Uldale  passed  to  the  Brigham 
family.  This  David  Brigham  was  a  companion  of  Sir  William  Wallace,  who 
was  executed  at  London,  for  treason  against  his  king  Edward  L,  against 
whom  (with  Robert  Bruce)  he  took  part.  Wallace  was  a  man  of  extraordi- 
nary strength,  and  David  Brigham  an  exceeding  good  horseman;  whereupon 
the  Scots  made  this  rhyme : — 

The  man  was  ne'er  so  wight  nor  geud. 
But  worthy  Wallace  durst  him  bide ; 
Nor  ever  horse  so  wild  or  weud, 
But  David  Brigham  durst  him  ride. 

Ihis  and  other  things  tend  to  confirm  the  tradition  that  your  ancestors 
went  from  Jicrc  to  America.  And  the  account  of  Thomas  Brigham's  mar- 
riage with  Mercy  Hurd  is  a  further  confirmation.  There  are  plenty  of  Hurds, 
or  Hirds,  still  in  this  ncighborlwod.  The  scent  becomes  stronger  and  stronger 
the  farther  we  advance  upon  our  search.  But  it  is  more  than  ever  clear,  that 
you  should  follow  it  up  lierc  in  person." 

And  so  it  may  be  that  Cumberland  is  the  first  home  of  our  Thomas* 

To  pass  from  speculation  to  known  facts.  The  first  item  about  "The  Puri- 
tan," which  we  have  thus  far  seen,  is  to  be  found  in  Camden  Hotten's  book, 
entitled,  "Lists  of  Emigrants  from  England  to  America,  1600-1700."  This 
book  was  compiled  from  reliable  London  Admiralty  reports.  From  it.  we 
learn  that  on  the  "18  April,  1635,  Tho  :  Briggham"  embarked  from  England 
on  the  ship  "Suzan  &  Ellin,  Edward  Payne,  Master,"  for  New  England.  The 
same  year,  Paige  (in  his  history  of  Cambridge,  Mass.),  assigns  the  arrival 
of  our  Thomas  (and  36  other  males)  in  Watertown.  Mass.  This  Water- 
town  was  the  fourth  settlement  in  Massachusetts  Bay  Colony,  being  made  in 
July,  1630.  Salem  (begun  in  1628),  Charlestown  and  Dorchester  alone  being 
older.  Surelv,  we  may  claim  that  our  antecedants  trace  back  to  the  founda- 
tion stones  of  the  Old  Commonwealth.  On  the  18  Feb.,  1637,  Thomas  Brig- 
ham had  l)ecome  a  "freeman."  His  homestead  was  situated  in  the  southeast- 
ernmost  corner  of  Watertown,  being  bounded  on  the  east  by  Cambridge-town- 
line.  In  truth,  in  the  year  1754,  Cambridge  absorbed  his  homestead,  and  hun- 
dreds of  other  acres  originally  a  part  of  Watertown. 

This  is  historic  ground,  my  brethren  ;  and  as  (one  showery  morning  pre- 
ceding our  Boston  reunion)  f  walked  along  through  this  beautiful  region, 
my  heart  filled  with  emotion,  to  think  that  260  years  before,  my  seventh 
lineal  ancestor,  "Thomas  Brigham,  the  Puritan,"  had  stood  upon  that  very 
ground  and  been  working  out  his  lifework.  Near  by  was  Mount  Auburn, 
made   sacred  by  the  ashes  of  a   nation's   heroes   and  heroines.      Nearer  yet, 

*In  the  light  of  my  recent  researches  this  Is  very  improbable. 

32 


within  stone's  throw  of  where  once  stood  Thomas'  log  house,  was  Cambridge 
Hospital  and  ample  park;  at  the  south,  through  low  lands,  flows  the  crooked 
Charles  River.  I  felt  like  laying  my  hands  upon  its  placid  waters,  and 
saying: 

"Old  friend,  it  was  a  long  time  to  wait;  but  I  have,  at  last,  come  to  pay 
you  my  sincere  regards,  too  profound  for  speech.  Here  I  am,  dear  old 
Charles,  after  two  centuries  and  a  half,  a  little  altered  like  yourself;  but 
neither  the  worse,  we'll  trust,  for  the  inevitable  changes.  I'm  just  36.  the 
same  age  as  'the  Puritan'  after  he  had  been  your  constant  companion  here  for 
four  years.  Much  such  a  looking  chap,  I  guess,  but  dressed  in  other  style. 
There  are  more  of  us  now,  thousands  in  fact,  scattered  far  and  wide  ;  but 
all  true  Brighams,  proud  of  our  lineage,  proud  of  their  American  cradle. 
In  their  name  I  greet  you  with  joy  and  tenderness.  And  so,  friend  Charles, 
God  bless  you  and  farewell !" 

Those  ancient  "homestalls"  were  cut  up  into  all  sorts  of  shapes  and  sizes ; 
to  suit  the  influence  of  the  grantee,  I  suppose,  or  the  depth  of  his  wallet.  The 
outlines  of  Thomas'  homestead  suggests  vividly  the  shape  of  an  old-fash- 
ioned coffin.  (Probably  Thomas  didn't  think  of  this;  if  he  did,  it  didn't 
interfere  either  with  his  sleep  or  his  prosperity.)  In  extent  it  was  14  acres, 
just  7-8  the  size  of  his  next  door  neighbor's.  Sir  Richard  Saltonstall's.  This 
contiguity  and  ample  domain  vouched  well  for  the  standing  and  means  of  our 
Thomas.  Though  not  a  conspicuous  man,  he  held  offices  ;  was  constable  of 
Watertown  in  1639  and  1642,  and  selectman  in  1640  and  1647. 

(  I  think  this  aversion  to  public  life  is  hereditary.  It  certainly  is  an  excep- 
tion to  find  a  Brigham  holding  a  leading  office.  In  speaking  with  a  Judge 
of  Court  in  Watertown  about  our  kinsman  Charles  Brigham,  the  Boston 
architect,  he  remarked: — "It  was  the  hardest  thing  in  the  world  to  get  him 
interested  in  our  political  life.  One  vear,  we  did  finally  get  him  to  take  a 
little  office ;  but  that  was  all.  That's  all,  too,  I  or  the  neighbors  have  against 
him.     He  sticks  to  his  own  business  about  as  closely  as  any  man  I  know.") 

Concerning  the  exact  location  of  the  Puritan's  homestead,  it  is  my  duty  to 
enter  a  conflict  of  opinions.  Paige's  History  of  Cambridge  (one  of  our  very 
best  town  histories)  says,  "Thomas  Brigham^  about  the  year  1638,  resided  at 
the  easterly  corner  of  Brattle  and  Ash  Streets."  This  is  the  only  published 
authority  upon  the  question  which  I  have  seen.  But  the  records  do  not  seem 
to  justify  our  holding  with  this  stand.  This  much  is  certain;  a  part  of 
Thomas  Brigham's  eastern  boundary  line  was  in  the  east  boundary  line  of  the 
original  limits  of  Watertown.  Now,  ancient  maps  of  Watertown  make  this 
boundary  to  come  about  in  the  line  of  present  "Spark  Street."  During  the 
past  year.  I  have  had  correspondence  with  Wm.  R.  Richardson,  Esq..  a  lawyer 
of  standing  in  Boston  (who  has  had  much  experience  with  the  land  titles 
and  ancient  monuments,  metes  and  bounds  in  this  locality),  and  he  gives  his 
opinion  :  "I  think  it  very  certain  that  up  to  1750,  the  original  line  between 
Cambridge  and  Watertown  was  substantially  upon  the  line  of  present  Sparks 
Street.  In  any  event,  Thomas  Brigham's  lot  was  bounded  on  the  east  by 
Cambridge  town  line,  not  only  during  his  ownership,  but  during  the  owner- 
ships of  many  of  his  successors  in  title.  It  is  also  bounded  on  the  south 
by  the  Charles  River :  I  have  no  doubt,  therefore,  that  the  southern  boundary 
was  the  northern  bend  of  Charles  River."  This  last  is  further  proof,  for  the 
"northern  bend  of  Charles  River"  comes  right  at  the  foot  of  Sparks  Street. 
Indeed,  we  may  safely  say,  Mr.  Paige  committed  himself  without  sufficient 
research,  when  he  says  Thomas  lived  at  "Ash"  Street,  which  is  something 
like  a  half  mile  farther  eastward. 

The  south  side  of  his  fourteen  acre  tract  is  at  present  a  poor  Irish  settle- 
ment ;  but  the  north  runs  through  to  Brattle  Street,  along  which  it  extends 
many  hundred  feet,  right  in  the  heart  of  Cambridge  uppertendom.  Going 
along  this  street  to  the  east,  we  soon  pass  one  of  those  bulwarks  of  American 
liberty,  the  public  school,  upon  which  is  ceramically  written,  "Washington 
School ;  descendant  of  the  'Faire  Grammar  Schoole,'  First  School  in  Cam- 
bridge." And  so  we  realize,  our  clan  had  its  beginning  amid  choice  and 
scholarly  haunts  ;  the  literary  home  of  a  metropolis,  which  from  that  day  to 
this  has  done  more  than  any  other  in  wisely  shaping  and  dominating  our 
national  policy. 

Thomas  Brigham  had  several  valuable  grants  outside  of  Watertown.     One 

33 


in  1652  was  of  180  acres  in  "Shawshine,"  since  incorporated  under  the  recog- 
nized name  Billerica.  Another  was  of  "^2  acres  in  present  Somerville,  which 
had  considerable  legal  discussion  at  the  hands  of  his  representatives  after 
his  death.  To  this  latter  grant,  he  moved  in  middle  life;  and  there  resided 
until  the  time  of  his  death,  December  8,  1653,  at  the  untimely  age  of  fifty. 
Underlaid  by  a  superior  bed  of  argilaceous  slate,  the  site  has  partly  been 
owned  by  Cambridge  for  a  long  time,  by  which  it  is  treated  as  a  valuable 
stone  ledge.  The  yawning  chasm  shows  the  long  continued  work  of  many 
landscape  vandals.  Otherwise,  it  is  mostly  built  up  quite  citylike,  with  many 
trim  residences,  streets  and  modern  public  improvements.  To  the  eastward, 
however,  one  may  yet  look  over  virgin  meadows,  across  to  Tuft's  College, 
not  far  distant ;  or  turning  westerly  may  gaze  at  the  historic  "Powder  Tower." 
Surely  our  Thomas  was  blessed  with  good  landed  judgment,  and,  had  his  life 
been  spared  to  the  length  of  many  of  his  descendants,  he  might  have  left  an 
even   more   enviable   fortune. 

Rev.  Morse  says  Thomas  Brigham  was  probably  buried  in  Medford.  What 
particular  reason  he  has  for  saying  so,  he  does  not  add.  It  would  seem  as  if 
he  would  turn  with  greater  affection  to  old  Watertown.  whose  burial  plot 
was  almost,  or  quite,  as  near.  It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  we  are  never 
likely  to  positively  know  the  spot,  since  it  was  one  of  those  early  graves 
long  since  returned  to  undistinguishable  mother  earth.  But  as  it  is  the 
best  we  can  do.  let  us  spend  a  moment  upon  both  of  these  ancient  reposi- 
tories of  the  dead. 

I  first  quote  from  Usher's  History  of  Medford. 

■'The  places  used  by  the  first  settlers  of  Medford  for  the  burial  of  the 
dead  is  not  positively  knozvn.  Whether  from  unwillingness  to  follow  Eng- 
land's example  in  providing  expensive  and  well-secured  grounds,  or  from 
their  inability  to  do  so,  we  cannot  say;  but  the  fact  is  clear,  that  such  pro- 
visions for  the  dead  were  not  made.  The  oldest  gravestone  in  the  present 
graveyard  near  Gravelly  Bridge  bears  date  1691."  (That  is,  almost  a  half 
century  after  the  death  of  our  Puritan.) 

Bond's  History  of  Watertown,  says  : 

"The  earliest  mention  of  a  burial  place  in  the  town  records  is  July  5, 
1642.  (That  is  over  eleven  years  prior  to  the  death  of  our  Thomas.)  When 
was  ordered  up  a  sufficient  fence  about  the  burying  place,  with  a  five-foot 
pale  and  two  rails  well-nailed,  by  the  15th  of  the  seventh  month;  the  town 
to  pay  for  it.  *  *  *  The  location  is  not  described,  but  is  doubtless  what 
is  known  as  the  Old  Burying  Ground  of  Watertown.  *  *  *  fThere  are 
only  extremely  few,  if  any,  older  graveyards  in  New  England,  and  it  was 
the  only  one  in  town  for  more  than  seventy  years." 

And  Harris  says,  in  his  "Epitaphs  from  the  Old  Burying  Ground  of 
Watertown :" 

"The  Burying  Ground  of  Watertown,  one  of  the  oldest  in  the  country, 
and  second  to  none  in  interest,  is  situated  not  far  from  the  present  geograph- 
ical center  of  the  town,  on  the  corner  of  Mt.  Auburn  and  Arlington  streets. 
*  *  *  It  was  in  use  as  early  as  1642,  and  probably  the  only  one,  until  the 
one  in  that  part  now  Waltham.  *  *  *  The  oldest  legible  stone  is  that 
of  Sarah  Hammond,  1674.  (  Only  twenty-one  years  after  the  death  of  our 
Thomas.)  *  *  *  ^  probable  tradition  tells,  the  earliest,  soon  abandoned, 
was  on  the  opposite  side  of  Mt.  Auburn  Street,  and  on  land  owned  in  1869 
by  Mr.  Joseph  Bird.  *  *  *  Depressions  may  still  be  seen  covered  with 
stones  ;  an  old  custom  to  protect  graves  from  wolves.  *  *  *  Excavations 
might  prove  the  truth." 

This  is  about  all  that  can  be  said.  Does  not  Watertown  seem  to  be  the 
more  probable  resting  place  of  our  ancestor?*  Though  we  find  no  tablet 
raised  by  devoted  hands,  no  moss-covered  inscription,  it  is  not  to  be  mar- 
veled at.  Contemporaries  who  had  filled  greater  niches  in  their  lives,  also  lie 
in  their  unmarked  unknown  graves.  Leaving  ample  estate  and  family  which 
upheld  a  good  name,  it  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  Thomas  Brigham  had 
the  conventional  slate  slab  used  in  that  day,  bearing  its  death's  head  or  cherub 
at  the  top,  below  which  were  plain  lines  of  birth  and  death,  and  not  unlikely 
at  the  bottom  a  Biblical  text  or  stanza  from  the  well-worn  hymn-book.     If 

•Some  of  Thomas'  friends  were  buried  in  Cambridge's  old  burial  grround; 
and  he  may  rest  there. 

34 


so,  like  many  of  far  more  recent  erection,  i,.  has  either  crumbled  to  dust,  or  by 
careless  hands  of  later  day  laborers  been  put  (like  him  for  whom  it  was 
raised)  underneath  the  sod.  where  nature's  sad,  yet  kindly-intended,  minis- 
trations have  long  before  this  effaced  an  inscription,  which  henceforth  for- 
ever must  remain  a  blank. 

And  now,  as  we  mentally  pass  from  sacred  shadows  out  upon  the  high- 
way of  life,  let  us  exemplify  the  wholesome  sentiment  of  our  Longfellow  : 

"Trust  no  future,  howe'er  pleasant ; 
Let  the  dead  past  bury  its  dead; 
Act,  act  in   the   living  present, 
Heart  within  and  God  o'erhead." 


MARLBOROUGH   AND   THE  SECOND   GENERATION   OF   AMERL 

CAN    BRIGHAMS. 


■'Is  your  name  Brigham?  Is  your  wife's,  or  mother's  name  Brigham? 
Was  Brigham  the  euphonious  surname  of  either  of  your  grandmothers,  a 
great-aunt  or  cousin  german?  Very  well,  sir  (or  madam),  here  are  the  keys 
of  old  Marlborough:  enter  forthwith  into  the  joys  prepared  for  the  elect." 
Such,  and  similar,  were  the  dialogues  acted  and  re-enacted  upon  the  occasion 
of  the  second  meeting  of  the  Brigham  Famil}'  Association,  September  12, 
1894.  The  day  was  perfect ;  the  God  of  Puritans  has  always  held  a  warm 
spot  in  his  heart  for  the  descendants  of  our  "Puritan,''  who  was  an  early 
pioneer  of  the  Old  Bay  State.  Most  loyal  was  the  town  to  its  traditions  of 
hospitality,  royally  lavish  and  cordial  in  preparation  and  entertainment  of 
the  hundreds  of  "kith  and  kin,"  who  from  near  and  far  joyfully  assembled 
upon   the  appointed  day. 

It  is  obviously  fitting  that  this  article  of  your  historian  should  dwell  some- 
what upon  the  records  of  this  town  of  Marlborough  (our  family  Mecca),  add- 
ing a  few  salient  features  of  a  generation  of  our  family  which  was  among 
the  earliest  and  most  prominent  of  its  colonizers,  and  whose  descendants  in 
myriad  numbers  have  age  after  age  continued  to  people  and  animate  a  scene 
from  which  they  drew,  and  upon  which  they  have  conferred  honors. 

Marlborough- — situated  in  the  westerly  part  of  Middlesex  County,  its  west- 
ern boundary  being  territory  of  the  County  of  Worcester — lies  about  twenty- 
five  miles  west  of  the  "Hub."  Although  not  incorporated  until  the  year  1660, 
it  was  considerably  earlier  opened  bv  squatters ;  for  Sudbury,  Marlborough's 
eastern  boundary,  and  from  which  removed  most  of  its  earliest  settlers,  was 
incorporated  as  early  as  1639,  i.  e.,  only  nineteen  years  from  the  date  of  land- 
ing of  the  Mayflower.  The  geographical  Marlborough  of  today  is  by  no 
means  commensurate  with  that  of  the  past,  a  fact  which  must  needs  be  borne 
in  mind  in  speaking  of  these  early  Brighams.  From  its  ancient  widespreading 
territory  have  sprung  other  municipalities,  locally  known  as  "The  Boro 
Towns,"  as  follows:  In  1717,  Westborough  was  taken  from  the  western  por- 
tion of  the  present  town:  in  1727  Southboro  was  created  from  the  south- 
ern part  of  the  town:  in  1766  Northboro,  which,  after  1744  had  been  locally 
known  as  the  "North  Precinct"  of  Westborough,  was  created  into  a  self- 
government  :  finally,  'n  1866,  Hudson  was  for  the  greater  part  carved  out  of 
the  northern  part  of  Marlborough.  Thus  five  towns  have  sprung  out  of  the 
bosom  of  the  one,  in  all  of  which  living  scions,  as  well  as  numerous  head- 
stones, with  many  an  unmarked  grave,  in  their  old  and  newer  burying 
grounds,  testify  to  the  thrift  and  perpetuity  of  the  Brigham  name. 

Seeking  the  rich  natural-meadow  marshes,  the  earlier  settlers  came  to 
make  new  homes  :  filled  with  thoughts  of  God,  and  acting  out  the  stirring 
events  of  their  period  with  a  characteristically  intelligent  manhood,  whose 
type  is  without  a  peer  in  the  history  of  our  country.  The  first  petition  con- 
cerning Marlboro  to  the  General  Court  of  the  Old  Commonwealth  came 
from  certain  of  the  inhabitants  of  Sudbury,  and  was  headed  by  Edmund 
Rice,  Sr..  who  subsequently  married  the  widow  of  Thomas  Brigham,  the 
Puritan  ;  wherefore,  we  may  proudly  assert  that  a  Brigham  matron  rocked 
the  infant  giant  Marlborough  in  his  cradle.  The  town  grant  was  made  under 
the  spelling  "Marlborow  ;"  but,  at  a  meeting  of  citizens,  the  same  year  changed 

65 


to  "Marlborough,"  which  form  again  has  drifted,  in  this  age  of  brief  direct- 
ness, into  the  recognized  "Marlboro." 

Let  me  here  state  that  in  1862  Charles  Hudson  published  a  valuable  his- 
tory of  this,  his  native,  town,  which  is  accessible  for  purposes  of  research, 
to  whom  all  interested  parties  must  feel  very  grateful  for  a  medium  for 
quickly  arriving  at  much  of  vital  value.  Having  made  this  citation,  time  de- 
mands that  the  balance  of  our  hour  should  be  pertinently  limited  to  Brighams 
and  their  deeds. 

Upon  the  death  of  Thomas  Brigham,  the  Puritan  (in  1653,  at  Cambridge), 
his  widow,  ncc  Mercy  Hurd,  is  next  heard  of,  in  1655,  as  the  wife  of  Ed- 
mund Rice,  widower,  of  Sudbury.  They  removed  soon  after  to  Marlborough, 
taking  with  them  the  five  Brigham  children  who  survived  their  Puritan  an- 
cestor. Mr.  Rice,  as  a  leading  citizen  of  the  new  town,  took  up  his  residence 
by  the  "Great  Road,"  on  the  northerly  side  of  Williams'  Pond  and  near  the 
famous  hostelry  which  bears  the  same  name.  By  his  former  wife,  "Tamazine," 
whom  he  married  in  England,  Mr.  Rice  had  had  numerous  progeny,  who  have 
long  since  founded  large  families,  which  (together  with  the  Howes  and 
Brighams)  rank  as  the  most  numerous  of  the  neighborhood.  But  Edmund 
Rice  by  Mercy  (Hurd)  Brigham  (his  second  wife),  had  no  sons;  only  two 
daughters,  "Ruth"  and  "Ann."  "Goodman  Rice"  died  at  a  good  old  age 
and  was  buried  in  Sudbury.  Thereafter  his  widow  took  for  a  third  husband 
William  Hunt,  formerly  of  Concord,  but  at  that  date  of  Marlborough,  where 
he  died  (seemingly  without  issue  by  this  marriage)  in  1667.  His  widow, 
Mercy   (Hurd)   Brigham-Rice-Hunt,  died  in  1693,  in  advanced  old  age. 

And  now,  for  some  further  consideration  of  the  five  Brigham  heirs  of  the 
second  generation  from  our  Puritan  ancestor.  Their  names  in  order  of 
birth  are  Mary,   Thomas,  John,   Hannah  and   Samuel. 

Speaking  of  the  first,  Mary  Brigham,  Morse  (in  his  genealogy  of  our 
family)  records  (p.  8)  simply  this:  "Born  probably  in  Watertown ;  men- 
tioned only  in  her  father's  will."  Savage,  in  his  Genealog.  Diet,  of  New 
England  (p.  253),  sets  down  that  Mary  "probably  died  before  her  father." 
In  view  of  the  fact  that  Thomas,  the  Puritan,  died  the  day  after  making  his 
will,  wherein  Mary  is  provided  for,  it  is  evident  that  Savage  is  in  error  upon 
this  point. 

I  now  call  your  attention  to  a  most  important  matter  in  this  connection : 
Paige,  in  his  Hist,  of  Cambridge  (pp.  501-2),  a  most  thorough  and  pains- 
taking work,  chronicles  that  "Mary  went  to  Sudbury  and  Marlborough  with 
her  mother,  brothers  and  sister,  when  her  father  died,  where  she  married 
John  Fay  of  Marlboro."  And  he  gives  evidence,  as  indicated  by  a  legal  docu- 
ment on  record  in  a  court  of  Middlesex  County  (Mid.  Prob.  Recs.,  VH., 
9)  wherein  (joining  with  other  complainants),  John  Fay  and  Samuel  Fay, 
children  of  Mary  Fay  of  Marlborough,  and  heirs  of  Thomas  Brigham,  late 
of  Cambridge,  commenced  suit  September  28,  1695,  to  recover  certain  lands 
in  the  possession  of  Samuel  Hastings,  who  had  purchased  the  Puritan- 
Brigham  homestead.  John  Fay,  Sr.'s,  wife  was  "Mary,"  and  there  was  no 
other  Fay  in  Marlborough  at  that  time  of  suitable  age  to  be  the  father  of  the 
said  John,  Jr..  and  Samuel  Fay,  parties  to  said  suit.  I  think  Mr.  Paige  is 
correct ;  and  that  the  genealogist  of  the  Brigham  family  must  include  in  his 
work  the  descendants  of  these  John  and  Samuel  Fays,  sons  of  Mary  (Brig- 
ham) Fay.  Both  of  whom  had  large  families,  among  them  being  males  who 
became  the  heads  of  very  numerous  branches,  as  one  may  see  from  the  brief 
record  given  them  in  Hudson's  said  work.  This  Mary  (Brigham)  Fay  had 
also  a  daughter  Mary,  who  inter-married  with  Jonathan  Brigham  (a  son  of 
Thomas  Brigham,  second),  by  whom  she  had  ten  children,  who  started  sev- 
eral male  lines  of  Brighams.  Hudson,  as  far  as  he  goes,  does  not  conflict 
with  Paige's  position.  And  he  adds  the  following  interesting  fact,  that  John 
Fay  retired  (with  most  other  Marlboroites)  during  King  Philip's  War,  to 
Watertown,  where  he  buried  his  wife  and  a  younger  son,  David,  just  coming 
five  years.  If  future  researches  should  ever  unearth  the  burial  place  of  our 
Puritan  ancestor,  it  is  very  probable  that  his  daughter  Mary,  and  this  young 
grandchild  will  be  found  sleeping  by  his  side. 

Time  demands  expedition ;  therefore,  let  us  hasten  to  the  next  child, 
Thomas   Brigham,   Second.      Before  proceeding,    let   me   say    (what   hardly 

36 


seems  necessary)  that  my  remarks  do  not  pretend  to  be  in  an}-  sense  exhaust- 
ive biographies  (which  time  does  not  permit).  They  are  mainlj'  inferences, 
drawn  from  more  or  less  familiar  publications,  together  with  some  original 
communications  and  observations,  added  to  results  of  personal  research. 

Thomas,  Second,  came  to  Marlborough  with  his  mother.  From  his  step- 
father, Edmund  Rice,  he  made  a  purchase  of  land  near  Williams  Pond,  which 
Avas  the  starting  of  that  immense  farm  afterwards  acquired  from  the  original 
Indian  occupants  and  finally  included  in  his  own  right  many  hundreds  (prob- 
ably thousands)  of  acres,  stretching  miles  away  towards  Chauncey  Pond. 
This  sufficed  to  subdivide  for  several  generations  into  comfortable  farms  for 
his  descendants,  numbers  of  whom  remain  upon  the  soil  to  this  day.  The 
successive  owners  of  the  "old  home  place,"  on  Glen  Street,  have  been  as  fol- 
lows:  (i)  Thomas  Brigham ;  (2)  Gershom  Brigham ;  (3)  Benjamin  Brig- 
ham;  (4)  Warren  Brigham;  (5)  Benjamin  Thomas  Brigham,  (6)  by  whom  it 
was  sold  to  Elisha  Bond  about  1865,  thence  to  Bond's  son-in-law,  Bradford 
Latham,  thence  in  1893  to  George  F.  Nichols,. whose  wife  was  Abbie  A.  Brig- 
ham (a  daughter  of  Hon.  Addington  Brigham,  and  sister  to  William  M. 
Brigham,  Esq.,  of  Marlborough).  Through  the  kindness  of  Mrs.  Lucy  A. 
(Brigham)  Brown,  widow  of  Sidney,  of  Marlborough,  I  am  able  to  exhibit 
a  photograph  of  the  last  male  Brigham  owner,  who  is  said  to  have  resem- 
bled strikingly  his  paternal  ancestry,  having  "thick,  wavy  black  hair,  black 
eyes  and  red  cheeks;  a  fine-looking  man."  (Chas.  F.  Brigham,  Allston, 
Mass.,  owns  the  parchment — first  deed — from  Benjamin  Rice  to  Thomas 
Brigham.  Jr.) 

The  first  dwelling,  a  log  hut,  built  by  Thomas,  the  Second,  was  burned 
during  his  absence  by  flax  catching  fire.  About  1706,  he  built  a  frame  house, 
which  was  left  for  an  "ell"  by  his  son  Gershom,  who  built  a  two-story  house 
about  1724;  this  "ell"  was  finally  taken  down  in  1791  by  Warren  Brigham. 
while  making  repairs.  Through  the  kindness  of  Mrs.  Lucy  B.  Brown,  of 
Marlboro,  Mass.,  you  may  see  a  reproduction  of  the  house  as  it  last  stood.* 
Mrs.  Brown  was  the  last  occupant  (having  moved  out  in  1889),  after  which 
it  was  uninhabitable  for  some  years,  and  was  taken  down  by  Mr.  Brown, 
when  he  became  owner.  "The  house  was  clapboarded,  but  never  painted  out- 
side ;  only  two  rooms  finished :  the  sitting-room  and  the  principal  bed- 
room were  plastered  and  painted." 

The  location  has  long  been  called  the  "Warren  Brigham  Place,"  from  its 
fourth  owner,  who  died  at  the  remarkable  age  of  87,  over  half  a  century  ago. 
Up  to  his  time  there  had  been  no  Warren  Brighams,  and  it  may  be  worthy 
of  attention  to  say  that  our  researches  during  the  past  year  have  explained  the 
mystery  of  the  given  name  Warren.  In  Tilden's  History  of  Medfield,  Mass., 
(p-  505),  we  learn  the  interesting  fact,  that  Warren  Brigham's  grandfather, 

Gershom  Brigham,  Third,  married  in  1703  "Mehitable   ( ,  Morse  has  it, 

but  now  known  to  be)  Warren,"  who  was  the  sixth  child  of  Joseph  Warren, 
early  settler  of  Medfield,  whose  house  was  burned  in  King  Philip's  War. 
Joseph  Warren's  wife  was  Experience  Wheelock,  daughter  of  Ralph  Wheel- 
ock,  the  "Founder  of  Medfield,"  who.  had  taken  a  degree  of  A.  M.  at  Clare 
College,  Cambridge,  England. 

The  greater  part  of  this  old  Thomas  Brigham  estate  was  a  portion  of 
the  old  plantation  "Ockoocangansett,"  which  had  been  reserved  to  the  In- 
dians out  of  the  ancient  boundaries  of  Marlborough,  and  which  manj^  con- 
tended they  forfeited  by  their  perfidy  during  Philip's  War.  Without  the 
consent  of  the  General  Court,  certain  leaders  of  Marlborough,  at  a  (we 
opine)  nominal  sum  (the  amount  of  which  can  never  be  known,  by  reason 
of  the  subsequent  disappearance  of  the  deed)  obtained  title  to  this  planta- 
tion of  5,800  acres,  wherein  all  the  Brigham's  of  the  dav  were  interested  as 
members  of  the  company.  Through  the  generosity  of  Miss  Martha  L.  Ames, 
of  Marlborough,  a  worthy  descendant  of  old  Brigham  stock,  we  are  permitted 
to  look  upon  one  of  these  earliest  deeds,  it  being  dated  "May  10,  1706,"  being 
conveyance  of  13^4  acres  of  meadow  land,  as  explained  by  a  map,  going  to 
Thomas  Brigham,  Second,  out  of  "Cow  common"  land,  and  certified  to  by  his 
brother,  "Dr.  John,"  who  had  been  chosen  "surveyor  and  clerk"  by  the  pro- 
prietors. 

Upon  this  farm,  on  the  south  side  of  present  Forest  Street   (beyond  the 

*We  have  a  drawing  of  this  for  the  Brigham  Family  History. 

37 


continence  of  Glen  Street),  somethinsr  like  a  score  of  rods  from  the  highwajr 
and  at  the  foot  of  Crane  Hill,  rest  the  last  of  the  Marlborongh  Indians,  they 
being  of  the  Nipmnck  tribe,  whose  earlier  generations  listened  to  their  in- 
spired guide,  the  great  Eliot.  Their  last  chief  expired  in  his  wigwam  near 
by  Williams'  Pond,  and  was  buried  at  a  place  where  the  last  generation  of 
citizens  could  make  out  about  thirty  other  individual  graves.  At  this  writing 
there  is  to  be  seen  only  a  somewhat  raised  rectangular  plot,  about  30x75  feet, 
wherein  are  several  grave  depressions  in  the  rough  pasture  soil,  from  whose 
center  springs  a  mature  native  apple  tree.  This  spot  has  long  been  sacredly 
preserved  by  successive  Brigham  owners ;  and,  historically  speaking,  is 
worthy  of  some  dignified  and  lasting  monument.  A  rough  stone  wall  might 
(at  a  nominal  cost  of  time  and  money)  enclose  the  spot;  while  their  brief 
general  epitaph  might  l)e  very  appropriately  chiseled  upon  a  rude  boulder 
brought  from  near  at  hand.  And  so,  a  long  farewell  to  those  aboriginal  ten- 
ants who,  for  countless  ages,  had  possessed  the  soil,  which,  now  for  over  two 
centuries,  has  yielded  its  bountiful  harvests  to  such  Brighams  as  have  been 
"to  the  manor  born." 

Let  us  hasten  to  the  third  member  of  our  second  generation,  namely  John 
Brigham.  This  founder  of  the  "lost  tribe"  of  our  family  (who  Mr.  Alorse 
has  rather  curtly  dismissed,  perhaps  in  heat  engendered  by  the  comparative 
fruitlessness  of  his  researches)  is,  so  far  as  we  can  learn,  a  most  interesting 
and  honorable  character.  Speaking  of  him.  Drake  in  his  History  of  Middle- 
sex County  (.Vol.  H.,  p.  141,  ct  scq.).  has  recorded:  "It  should  be  said  in 
passing,  that  he  was  one  of  the  most  popular  and  remarkable  men  of  his 
day,  having  considerable  capacity  for  public  affairs,  unusual  ability  as  a  sur- 
veyor, and  some  ambition  as  a  land  speculator  ;  he  was  returned  as  representa- 
tive from  Marlborough  in  1688.  and  from  Sudbury  in  1706.''  Lewis  in  his 
History  of  Worcester  County  (Vol.  II.,  p.  i33-)-  following  in  like  strain, 
calls  him :  "John  Brigham,  the  doctor,  surveyor.  Commissioner  of_  the  Gen- 
eral Court,  land  speculator  and  the  most  enterprising  man  in  town." 

To  our  mind.  Dr.  John  Brigham  foreshadows  the  hustling  type  of  to- 
day, and  were  he  living  at  this  moment,  I  think  every  man  of  us  would  gladly 
grasp  his  hand  in  welcome  of  "one  of  our  kind."  Indeed,  it  is  because  of  the 
very  exuberance  of  this  John's  activity,  his  ubiquitous  absorption  here  and 
there,  into  this  and  that  varying  problem  of  the  place  and  hour,  which  makes 
the  fragmentary  gleanings  of  him  so  fascinating,  yet  unsatisfactory.  He  en- 
joys the  unique  distinction  of  having  been  the  first  settler  of  Northboro.  and 
the  builder  of  its  first  (a  saw)  mill.  He  surveyed  (among  others)  the  Marl- 
borough Indian  Plantation  of  6.000  acres,  in  1672:  was  granted  the  extensive 
"Coram  farm"  for  services  rendered  as  surveyor;  in  1708  (Hudson's  Sud- 
bury, p.  124),  he  surveyed  and  mapped  Sudbury  Township,  and  was  a  Marl- 
borough delegate  to  the  convention  called  against  the  "Tyrant  Andros."  If 
Drake  is  correct  (vide  supra),  he  must  have  been  a  representative  /ojtr  years, 
for  our  indefatigable  librarian  and  curator,  Miss  Emma  E.  Brigham,  has 
found  for  me.  among  the  State  Archives  (Recs.  Gen.  Crt.  of  Mass..  Vol.  VI., 
pp.  16.  220).  that  John  Brigham  represented  Marlborough  (again)  in  1689 
and  1692. 

His  old  homestead*  was  situated  on  what  is  now  Berlin  Street,  just  on 
the  edge  of  Northboro  Centre  village,  across  Howard's  Brook,  where  his 
mill  was  built  on  a  site  still  used  for  that  purpose;  a  good  part  of  the  dam 
is  formed  of  native  rock,  attesting  John's  shrewd  selection  of  an  advan- 
tageous spot.  This  farm  has  long  been  known  as  the  "Priest  Whitney 
Place"  (from  the  occupancy  of  the  Rev.  Peter  Whitney,  an  honored  histo- 
rian of  Worcester  County),  who,  having  been  ordained  in  1767  and  dying  in 
1816,  built  in  1780  a  fine  mansion  house,  still  standing  in  half-neglected 
picturesqueness.  In  1839  Silas  Haynes  came  into  possession,  who  was  .suc- 
ceeded in  1852  by  Mr.  S.  McClure,  with  whom,  in  September,  1894,  the  writer 
had  an  interview.  North  of  the  residence  at  the  orchard  end,  opposite  some 
fence-bars,  two  rods  distant,  is  a  level  piece  of  meadow  plowed  over  many 
times  by  Mr.  McClure,  who  remembers  well  the  spot  where  the  plow  touches 
"the  white  sand,"  which  was  filled  into  the  cellar  of  the  original  John  Brig- 
ham house.    This  spot  is  about  18x20  feet.    In  the  rear,  it  slopes  down  quickly 

*I   have   takpn   photographs   of   this   and   many   other   places. 

38 


to  lower  marshy  ground,  where  was  a  spring  (probably  first  used  by  John 
B.)  four  or  five  rods  east;  now  filled  up.  but  recognized  in  an  indentation 
of  the  rounded  slope. 

In  1684,  John  was  one  of  the  grantees  from  the  Indians  of  land  from 
which  was  formed  the  "Plantation  of  Sudbury"  (Hudson's  Sudbury.  Way- 
land  &  Maynard,  po.  4,  5),  whither  he  removed  from  Northboro.  and  long 
lived  on  the  old  Sudbury  and  Marlborough  road  near  Sudbury  town  line. 
The  old  homestead  building  (where  Abijah  Brigham  once  lived)  stood  about 
ten  rods  west  of  the  present  Lucius  Brigham's  house,  and  was  a  large  old- 
fashioned  red  building  with  long  sloping  roof  {Ibid.  p.  71).  His  last  days 
were  spent  with  his  daughter  Mary  Fay  of  Northboro,  where  he  died,  at 
the  remarkable  age  of  83,  and  was  probably  buried  in  the  altogether  neglected 
grown-up  old  burying  ground  of  the  vicinity.  It  is  worthy  of  note,  that  the 
given  names  of  his  seven  children  recall  those  dearest  to  his  heart:  Sarah, 
after  his  wife;  Mercy,  after  his  mother;  Mary  and  Hannah,  after  his  sisters; 
Thomas,  after  his  father  and  eldest  brother ;  Samuel  and  John,  after  his 
other  brother  and  himself.  Singularly  enough,  he  had  just  enough  children 
in  all,  and  just  enough  of  each  sex,  to  go  around  the  beloved  circle. 

Concerning  Hannah,  fourth  child  of  the  "Puritan."  I  can  pause  at  this 
time  for  only  one  (a  most  important)  consideration.  Morse  says  (p.  8)  she 
was  "born  March  9,  1650;  married  Samuel  Wells  of  Hassenburgh.  Conn." 
I  am  unable  to  find  any  "Hassenburg.  Conn ;"  but  there  is  a  Glastenbury  in 
that  state,  which  is  doubtless  the  town  intended.  Glastenbury  was  anciently 
that  part  of  Wethersfield  which  lay  across  on  the  east  side  of  the  Connecticut 
River;  Wethersfield  (just  south  of  Hartford)  having  been  the  earliest  Con- 
necticut town,  dating  back  to  1635,  as  settled  by  former  residents  of  Water- 
town,  Mass.  (Bond's  Watertown,  p.  1002).  The  Wells  (or  Welles)  family 
was  among  the  principal  proprietors  and  first  settlers  of  Glastenbury  (Conn. 
Hist.,  Col.  Barber,  p.  gi).  Thomas  Wells  came  to  Massachusetts  with  Sir 
Richard  Saltonstall,  upon  the  ship  Susan  and  Ellen,  thence  to  Connecticut, 
where  he  became  governor,  and  had  a  son,  Captain  Samuel,  who  had  a  son 

living  in   Glastenbury,   who   "married   Ruth   Rice,   daughter   of  Rice, 

of ,  June  20,  1693;    she  died  March  30,  1742,  age  83.''     Their  first  child, 

which  died  in  infancy,  was  named  Mercy  (Hinman's  First  Settlers  of  Conn., 
pp.  94-95.)  This  is  the  Ruth  Rice  who  was  a  daughter  of  Edmund  and 
Mercy  (Hurd)  Brigham-Rice,  she  being  half-sister  of  Hannah  Brigham 
aforesaid,  from  which  fact  doubtless  our  good  friend  Morse  was  led  to 
make  the  above  error,  without  sufficiently  inquiring  into  details  :* 

Hudson's  Marlboro  (p.  431)  correctly  gives  Ruth  Rice's  marriage  to  Sam- 
uel Wells.  But  who  did  "Hannah"  Brigham  marry?  Paige  again  sets  us 
right,  in  his  History  of  Cambridge  (pp.  501-2)  ;  she  married  William  Ward 
of  Marlboro.  This  is  shown  by  two  Massachusetts  public  records,  referred 
to  by  that  tireless  author — one,  wherein  her  name  is  given  as  Hannah  Ward, 
and  another  where  William  Ward  (her  husband)  joins  with  Thomas,  John 
and  Samuel  Brighatn  in  1681  in  conveying  to  one  Nicholas  Fessenden,  cer- 
tain of  the  "Puritan"  Brigham  homestead  in  Cambridge.  Paige  says:  "I  do 
not  find  any  Hannah  Ward  in  that  town  who  could  represent  herself  as  a 
daughter  of  Thomas  Brigham.  except  the  wife  of  William  Ward,  who  united 
with  the  Brighams  in  the  sale  of  the  Cambridge  land.  This  Hannah  had  been 
the  wife  of  Gershom  Fames  ;  and  is  supposed  by  her  descendant,  Andrew  H. 
Ward,  in  his  History  of  Shrewsbury  (p.  457)  to  have  been  a  daughter  of 
Solomon  Johnson  of  Sudbury.  But  I  think  it  more  probable  that  Thomas 
Brigham  was  her  father,  and  that  John  Brigham.  who  witnessed  the  execu- 
tion of  her  will,  October  30,  1714,  was  her  brother."  Hudson  (Hist,  of  Marl., 
P-  357)  concurs  with  Ward  that  Gershom  Fames  married  a  Hannah  John- 
son, daughter  of  Solomon  and  Hannah  Johnson,  but  on  turning  to  the  John- 
son genealogy  (in  the  same  book,  p.  403)  we  do  not  find  any  daughter  "Han- 
nah" among  Solomon's  enumerated  offspring.  This  at  once  raises  a  doubt. 
Hannah  Fames  had  two  children:  Hannah  (named  from  hen-elf)  and  also  a 
posthumous  daughter.  Mary.  Which  raises  a  question,  was  not  the  second 
one  named  after  her  sister,  Mary  (Brigham)? 

Hoping  to  settle  once  for  all  this  vexed  question,  I  have  corresponded  with 

♦See  also  Ward's   Genealogy   of  the  Rice   Family  (1858),  p.  10. 

39 


Miss  Martha  Ames  of  Marlboro,  a  conscientious  genealogian,  of  kindred  col- 
lateral stock  to  Ger shorn  Eames.  While  she  is  unable  at  present  to  solve 
the  mystery,  it  would  appear  we  are.  while  waiting  for  more  cogent  evidence, 
entitled  to  hold  with  Paige.  It  is  pleasing  hope  on  which  to  rest,  for  Hannah 
Ward  was  the  mother  of  worthy  descendants,  her  grandson  Artemus  (a 
graduate  of  Harvard),  having  been  appointed  Commander-in-Chief  of  the 
Massachusetts  Revolutionary  forces,  whereof  he  was  in  command  at  the 
time  of  being  relieved   by   Washington. 

Finally,  we  come  to  Samuel  Brigham,  youngest  son  of  "the  Puritan." 
In  his  Inventory  of  estate,  we  find  the  following  items :  "£20  in  hides  in 
flFats  [vats]  ;"  "los.  in  tools  for  shoemaking."  To  Samuel  Brigham  is  due 
the  honor  of  founding  in  old  Marlborough  the  tanning  and  shoe  trades, 
which  latter  has  grown  so  prodigiously  in  recent  years  as  to  have  over- 
shadowed all  other  industries  of  the  place.  Some  idea  of  the  extent  of  these 
manufactories  may  be  had  from  the  four  Howe  factories,  which  turn  out  daily 
15.000  pairs  of  shoes,  give  employment  to  1,500  hands,  and  have  a  weekly 
pay-roll  of  $18,000.  We  went  through  the  principal  one,  whereof  Charles 
Brigham  is  superintendent.  One  of  Samuel  Brigham's  descendants  began  a 
similar  manufacturing  business  at  Hudson,  which  furnished  myriad  foot 
coverings  for  soldiers  in  the  late  Civil  War.  This,  in  the  hands  of  its  pres- 
ent manager,  Wilbur  F.  Brigham,  has  prospered  and  is  at  this  writing  the 
leading  industry  of  the  place.  George  B.  Brigham  of  Westboro  had  a  genera- 
tion ago  established  quite  a. business  of  this  kind. 

The  first  tannery  was  erected  about  1700  by  Samuel  Brigham,  near  his 
dwelling  house  on  East  Main  Street,  about  one  and  one-quarter  miles  east  of 
the  old  Village  Academy.  It  descended  to  his  son  Jedediah,  to  his  son  Wins- 
low,  to  his  son  Captain  Daniel,  to  his  son  Captain  Daniel,  and  when  the  las** 
retired  from  active  life,  in  the  early  1850s,  the  tannery  ceased  to  be  used. 
In  1859,  Daniel's  son  Dennison  owned  the  site  ;  for  many  years  it  was  being 
taken  down  piecemeal  and  was  wholly  demolished  by  1875.  The  place  is  now 
in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Francis  C.  Curtis,  who  married  a  Brigham. 

Through  the  kindness  of  Mr.  Timothy  Brigham  Patch,  we  are  permitted 
to  see  the  outlines  of  the  tan  yard  as  it  looked  some  fifty  or  a  hundred  years 
ago,  when  it  was  developed  to  its  highest  pitch.*  An  eye  witness  in  1894 
might  have  seen  the  following  sight:  A  rectangular  field  by  the  roadside 
(Main  Street)  of  about  an  acre  in  extent,  enclosed  by  stone  walls,  wherein 
towered  a  magnificent  old  elm ;  hard  by  an  ancient  well  spring,  covered 
by  one  of  the  stones  formerly  used  for  grinding  bark  (the  otlv^-  stone  serv- 
ing as  a  back  door  step  at  the  house  of  Mr.  Curtis,  a  few  rods  distant)  ;  to 
the  north  of  the  spring  were  remains  of  the  old  Samuel  "fifats,"  of  smallish 
size,  whose  chestnut  timbers  (well  preserved)  were  sampled  for  relics.  Near 
by,  used  to  stand  a  curry  shop,  bark  shed,  bark  mill,  and  a  second  curry  shop, 
which  served  sometimes  for  a  dwelling ;  this  last  has  now  blown  out  into  a 
permanent  dignity  across  the  street  under  the  name  of  "Glen  Cottage."  The 
main  part  of  the  old  Jedediah  (son  of  Samuel,  from  whom  he  inherited  the 
old  homested)  house  is  about  20x40  feet,  falling  off  to  a  lean-to  on  the  side, 
which  was  built  about  1718.  Having  been  removed,  we  had  to  go  to  No.  36 
School  Street  to  see  it;  where,  although  now  enjoying  a  period  of  renais- 
sance, it  is  quite  true  to  the  essential  features  of  its  birthright.  An  "ell," 
about  18x39  feet,  cut  off  and  taken  to  an  adjoining  lot,  had  been  recently 
taken  down. 

Samuel  Brigham,  aside  from  his  leather  ventures,  was  a  man  of  large 
landed  possessions  and  a  character  of  great  weight  in  his  community.  As 
lieutenant  in  Queen  Anne's  War,  he  received  from  government  a  reward  for 
military  services.  According  to  the  State  Archives  (Recs.  Gen.  Crt.  Mass., 
Vol.  VI.,  p.  522;  VIII.,  p.  116),  he  was  thrice  representative  from  Marlbor- 
ough, in  1697,  1699  and  1705. 

This  branch  (as  may  be  seen  from  Morse)  exhibits  a  remarkable  holding 
to  the  habit  of  transmitting  the  original  given  name  from  father  to  son. 
Samuel  Brigham.  Second,  had  an  eldest  son  Samuel,  Third,  who  had  an 
eldest  son  Samuel,  Fourth,  who  died  in  infancy,  and  was  succeeded  by  an 
eldest  brother  Samuel,  Fourth,  Jr.,  who  had  an  only  son  (posthumous)  Sam- 

*We  have  a  plan  of  this  prepared  for  the  Brigham  Family  History. 

40 


uel.  Fifth,  who  had  a  second  s^on  Samuel,  Sixth,  who  had  a  second  son  Sam- 
uel. Seventh,  who  had  an  eldest  son  Samuel,  Eighth,  and  when  the  full 
data  is  in,  we  shall  expect  to  see  another  Samuel,  or  two,  in  this  direct  line, 
true  "chips  of  the  old  block." 

Samuel  Brigham,  Second,  lies  buried  in  the  Old  Cemetery  in  the  rear 
of  the  Academy,  where  also  (probably)  rest  his  brother  Thomas  and  their 
mother. 

Did  time  permit,  it  were  pleasant  task  to  speak  somewhat  of  Brigham 
Cemetery,  Brigham  Street,  and  numerous  old  Brigham  haunts  and  resi- 
dences of  Marlboro  and  vicinity  :  but  now  we  must  defer  to  other  important 
functions.  In  closing,  we  make  public  acknowledgment  of  thanks  to  some 
of  Marlboro,  aside  from  those  already  mentioned,  whose  kindnesses  furthered 
our  researches  and  made  better  results  possible ;  especially  Sheriff  Charles 
Morse,  Winslow  Warren  and  wife,  Henry  O.  Russell,  as  well  as  Ashley  and 
Eugene  Brigham  and  their  wives. 

And  now,  in  the  words  of  our  beloved  Longfellow,  "Look  not  mourn- 
fully into  the  past,  it  comes  not  back  again  ;  wisely  improve  the  present,  it  is 
thine  ;    go  forth  to  meet  the  future  without  fear  and  with  a  manly  heart." 


IN  MEMORIAM. 

One  of  the  faithful  has  left  us:  DR.  FRANKLIN  WHITING  BRIG- 
HAM, of  Shrewsbury  is  no  more.  He  was  Second  Vice  President  of  the 
Brigham  Family  Association,  always  present  and  doing  his  duties,  none 
wishing  us  a  better  "God-speed,"  or  more  widely  esteemed. 

Dr.  Brigham  was  a  son  of  Dr.  Adolphus  Brigham  of  Shrewsbury,  Mass., 
where  he  was  born  in  the  year  1841,  and  received  early  academic  education, 
which  was  finished  by  a  course  at  Leicester  Academy;  he  was  ever  devoted 
to  his  alma  mater,  a  regular  attendant  at  all  alumni  reunions.  He  graduated 
at  Harvard  Medical  School  in  1865,  and,  after  serving  two  years  as  Acting 
Assistant  Surgeon,  U.  S.  N.,  moved  to  his  native  town,  where  ever  after  he 
continued  to  reside,  one  of  its  most  beloved  and  useful  citizens.  His  father 
had  been  known  as  "The  Doctor  of  Shrewsbury,"  which  applied  with  double 
force  to  the  son.  Not  only  Shrewsbury,  but  all  surrounding  towns  for  many 
miles,  looked  to  him  for  health  when  ill.  Probably  no  physician  in  central 
Massachusetts  was  so  often  sought  in  consultation,  or  could  find  their  loss 
more  universally  mourned.  He  was  long  conspicuous  in  the  Massachusetts 
Medical  Society  and  repeatedly  at  the  head  of  the  Worcester  District  Med- 
ical Society,  always  having  been  a  close  student.  Without  political  aspira- 
tions, his  opinions  were  sought,  irrespective  of  party  lines,  upon  all  local  im- 
provements ;  to  his  influence  as  much  as  that  of  any  one  man  the  town  owed 
its  public  library;  to  all  the  poor  and  needy,  he  was  a  generous  friend.  Dr. 
Brigham's  first  wife,  nee  Miss  Alice  Bates  of  Providence.  R.  I.,  died  soon 
after  their  marriage,  and  he  remarried  to  Miss  Sarah  Lewisson  of  Worcester. 
He  left  a  brother,  Frederick.  The  following  verses,  composed  by  the  doctor, 
had  been  sung  at  the  funeral  of  his  mother,  and  were  rendered,  by  the  quar- 
tette of  his  choice,  at  his  own  obsequies  : 

"Father  of  all,  to  Thee  returns  my  soul. 

Worn  with  the  travail  of  the  earthly  strife ; 
Henceforth,  Thy  mansions  blest  shall  be  my  goal, 
And  the  glad  leisure  of  celestial  life. 

"Friends  of  my  heart,  I  will  not  say  adieu. 
For  you  shall  follow  me,  ere  many  days ; 
Impatient   I   shall   there  be   waiting  you. 

Where  funeral  dirges  change  to  songs  of  praise." 

Yet  another  of  our  Brigham  Familv  Directorv,  our  honored  Third  Vice 
President,  DEXTER  H.  BRIGHAM. "of  Sprin^eld,  Mass..  passed  to  his 
well-merited  reward,  December  14,  iSgS.  He  was  son  of  Benjamin  F.  Brig- 
ham, farmer,  of  Shutesbury,  Mass..  where  the  subject  of  this  notice  was  born 
in  the  year  1826,  whence  he  removed  at  the  age  of  seven,  with  his  parents, 
to  Westboro,  Mass.  At  sixteen,  he  had  the  best  clerkship  in  the  town ;  at 
seventeen,  was  assistant  postmaster :  at  eighteen,  received  so  flattering  an 
offer  to  go  elsewhere  that  his  employer  felt  bound  to  make  him  a  partner  in 

41 


the  firm,  which  became  hence  Fay,  Brigham  &  Co.  At  twenty-tliree.  he  de- 
termined to  have  a  store  of  his  own,  and  to  become  a  gent's  clothing  dealer 
at  Springfield,  Mass.,  where  he  forthwith  opened  up  a  modest  place  at  the 
corner  of  Alain  and  Vernon  streets.  Popular  and  energetic,  he  succeeded  from 
tlie  first  day,  and  had  taken  a  leading  place  in  local  trade,  when  the  Civil 
War  gave  him  another  opportunity.  He  began  taking  contracts  for  uni- 
forms, the  fulfillment  of  which  brought  into  his  employ  many  scattered  shops. 
In  1860-62.  he  was  the  pioneer  in  the  paper  collar  and  box  industry.  He 
had  the  misfortune  to  be  burnt  out  in  1861,  but  was  soon  on  his  feet,  stronger 
than  ever.  Gradually,  Mr.  Brigham  grew  into  the  fur  trade,  which  developed 
to  such  unexpected  degree,  that  in  1888,  he  sold  out  his  clothing  interests, 
and  devoted  himself  wholly  to  ladies'  wardrobes.  At  the  time  of  his  demise 
eighty  persons  were  on  his  pay-roll.  He  married,  in  1849.  Miss  Lomira  C. 
Forbush,  who  survives.  It  is  a  sorrowful  recollection,  that  they  were  to  have 
celebrated  their  golden  wedding  the  year  following  his  death.  Two  daugh- 
ters blessed  their  happy  union — -the  present  Mrs.  W.  M.  White  of  Spring- 
field, who  has  two  children  of  her  own  (Edith  and  Howard),  and  a  de- 
ceased daughter,  Mrs.  Emma  C.  Bugbee,  who  left  two  children  (Ernest  and 
Florence).  Mr.  Brigham  left  also  one  brother,  C.  A.  Brigham  of  Westboro, 
and  a  sister,  Mrs.  B.  N.  Davis  of  Dayton,  Ohio. 

The  late  death  of  ROBERT  BRECK  BRIGHAM  of  Boston,  whose  will 
contained  such  munificent  legacies  to  public  institutions,  recalls  the  passing 
nearly  a  generation  ago  of  a  near  relative,  Peter  Bent  Brigham,  who  also  left 
his  millions  for  an  eleemosynary  creation.  Boston  has  rarely  experienced 
such  generosity  from  two  members  of  any  single  family.  Mr.  Robert  B.  was 
not  of  the  showy  type  of  citizen,  not  brilliant  socially,  not  ambitious  politically, 
a  plain,  quiet,  sensible  business  man  ;  that  he  had  good  habits  and  shrewd 
mind  are  proved  by  the  fact,  he  started  with  nothing  and  acquired  great 
wealth ;  that  he  had  a  good  heart  and  entertained  broad  views  of  human- 
ity, are  sufficiently  evidenced  by  his  numerous  bequests  to  relatives  near  and 
far,  with  this  supreme  gift  to  create  a  much-needed  public  charity. 

Robert  Brigham  started  in  life  as  an  oyster-opener,  for  an  uncle  on  Court 
Street,  Boston,  and  soon  opened  a  small  establishment  of  the  same  kind 
for  himself;  but.  his  health  failing,  had  presently  to  sell  out  and  go  to 
Florida.  Returning  in  i86-0,  he  opened  a  restaurant  at  No.  642  Washington 
Street,  Boston,  of  which  he  continued  proprietor  the  rest  of  his  life,  grad- 
ually increasing  its  dimensions,  and  about  ten  years  ago  converting  it  into 
"Brigham's  Hotel."  For  a  long  time,  it  was  the  sole  institution  of  its  sort 
in  the  metropolis  ;  and  as  it  was  always  run  along  the  same  lines,  it  held  a 
patronage  distinctly  its  own,  which  newer  places  did  not  attract ;  the  old 
bachelors,  especially,  found  here  a  congenial  haunt.  His  great  start  towards 
fortune  was  made  during  the  war,  when  values  of  real  estate  were  at  bottom 
prices;  at  this  period,  he  commenced  to  acquire  realty,  which  at  his  death 
included  many  choice  pieces,  mainly  in  the  heart  of  the  city.  So  unostenta- 
tious was  his  daily  life,  that  few  knew,  until  his  will  spoke,  how  successful 
and  magnanimous  a  man  had  been  in  their  midst  so  many  years.  His  estate, 
aggregating  more  than  $2,500,000.  was  devised  as  follows:  Twenty-three 
charitable  and  benevolent  institutions  were  remembered,  most  of  them  by 
annuities  of  $1,000  each,  his  more  or  less  distant  relatives  were  remembered 
(he  had  no  family  of  his  own),  his  sister,  Elizabeth,  in  an  especial  degree, 
she  having  long  been  mistress  of  his  house.  The  residue  and  bulk  of  his 
great  fortune,  however,  was  set  aside  for  a  trust  fund,  the  income  to  be  used 
in  the  erection  and  support  of  an  institution  to  be  known  as  the  "Robert 
Brigham  Hospital  for  Incurables."  Thus,  coming  generations  shall  have 
cause  to  bless  at  least  one  member  of  our  clan, 

HON.  WALDO  BRIGHAM,  born  at  Bakersfield,  Vt.,  in  1829,  closed  a 
noteworthy  career  at  Hyde  Park,  in  his  native  state,  April  2,  1900.  His  father 
was  a  well-to-do  farmer,  who  gave  his  son  a  common  school  education, 
rounded  out  by  a  course  in  the  University  of  Vermont,  whereat  he  graduated 
in  the  class  of  1854.  He  read  law  and  was  admitted  to  the  Lamoille  County 
Bar  in  1857  ;  for  the  next  five  years  he  was  associated  with  Hon.  Homer  E. 
Royce  in  Bakersfield.  at  the  end  of  which  time,  he  came  back  to  Hyde  Park 
and  helped  to  form  the  partnership  of  Brigham  &  Waterman  (George  L.), 
which  coiitiiHi:<l  for  twenty  years  doing  a  large  practice.     In  1867-68.  he  rep- 


resented  Hyde  Park  in  the  Legislature,  and  was  a  leading  spirit  in  securing 
a  charter  for  the  Portland  &  Ogdensburg  Railway ;  was  also  President  of  the 
Lamoille  V^alley  Railway  for  ten  years.  He  was  a  very  prominent  Democrat, 
in  a  state  where  it  was  never  the  dominant  party ;  was  candidate  for  Lieu- 
tenant-Governor, delegate  to  the  National  Convention,  nominee  for  United 
States  representative  and  Senator,  etc..  etc.  For  twenty-five  years  he  waj 
President  of  the  Lamoille  Central  Academy,  Vice  President  of  the  Vermont 
Bar  Association,  of  which  he  was  a  leading  member,  and  trustee  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Vermont.  He  left  three  daughters — Mrs.  H.  M.  McFarland  of 
Hyde  Park;  Mrs.  James  Buckham  (eldest  son  of  President  Buckham  of  the 
University  of  Vermont),  and  Miss  Blanche  Brigham,  a  teacher  in  the  La- 
moille Academy. 

CYRUS  BRIGHAM,  head  of  the  C.  Brigham  Companv  milk  contractors, 
died  at  his  summer  residence.  Green  Hill,  Nantasket,  July  12,  1899,  after  a 
long  suffering  of  six  years.  He  was  a  son  of  the  late  Halloway  Brigham  of 
Westboro,  Mass.,  but  early  went  to  The  Hub  and  worked  into  a  business 
which  became  so  extensive  that  it  has  been  called  the  largest  distributors 
of  milk,  butter  and  cheese  in  the  country.  He  was  a  well-known  tenor 
singer,  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Apollo  Club  ;  in  all  his  relations,  social 
and  business,  he  commanded  the  respect  and  confidence  of  the  community. 
He  left  a  widow  and  one  son,  who  continue  to  reside  in  the  handsome  home 
in  Roxbury. 

MOSES  BARTLETT  BRIGHAM,  born  at  Bakersfield,  Vt.,  September 
18,  1823,  but  since  1868  a  resident  of  Somerville,  Mass.,  passed  away  at  the 
latter  place.  March  14.  1900.  In  early  life,  he  was  in  the  produce  business; 
l)ut  later  in  the  collection  and  insurance  employment :  in  all  he  left  a  good 
name.  His  w-ife.  ncc  Almira  E.  Fillebrown,  shortly  preceded  him  into  the 
great  hereafter,  having  died  January  17,  igoo.  She  was  a  daughter  of  James 
and  Welthea  (  Piper )  Fillebrown,  born  at  Cavendish,  Vt.,  December  20,  1833. 
Both  were  interred  at  Cavendish,  in  the  family  lot.  They  left  an  only  child. 
William  E.  Brigham.  Esq..  of  the  "Boston  Transcript,"  two  terms  efficient 
President  of  the  Brigham  Family  Association,  to  whose  untiring  services  the 
family  association  owes  very  much  for  its  present  rejuvenated  and  prosper- 
ous condition. 

BENJAMIN  B.  NOURSE,  born  in  Berlin,  Mass..  unto  Theophilus  and 
Lois  Nourse.  died  at  Westboro.  Mass..  September  24,  1900.  aged  84.  He 
began  life  as  a  carpenter,  turning  to  a  special  branch  (plant  trellises)  in 
i860,  under  the  firm  name  Nourse.  White  &  Co.,  who  also  manufactured 
Nourse's  folding  plant  stands  and  flower  cases.  He  was  also  an  accurate 
surveyor,  and  found  much  employment  by  private  parties.  He  was  the  best 
informed  on  town  matters  of  any  of  his  contemporaries,  filled  the  offices  of 
collector,  assessor,  and  (for  a  longer  term  than  any  other  man)  selectman. 
In  1875,  he  was  appointed  Special  Justice  of  the  First  District  Court  of  East- 
ern Massachusetts,  which  he  held  at  the  time  of  his  death.  He  possessed  a 
remarkable  constitution  and  had  known  not  a  sick  day  to  the  date  of  his  fatal 
illness,  notwithstanding  his  more  than  four-score  years.  In  1843,  he  mar- 
ried Miss  Mary  E.  Longley,  by  whom  he  had  four  children — Frank  (who 
died  young)  ;  Henry,  of  literary  talents  (also  died  young)  ;  Miss  Emma  and 
Walter  B.  Nourse,  of  Barker  &  Nourse,  architects,  W'orcester. 

"Uncle"  CHARLES  BRIGHAM,  as  he  was  generally  for  many  years 
known,  was  born  at  Hudson  (then  called  Sawyer's  Mills),  Mass.,  December 
II,  1815,  where  he  passed  away  January  2,  1899,  having  passed  his  83d  mile- 
stone. He  was  the  last  survivor  of  the  sixth  generation  from  our  "Puritan" 
ancestor.  During  his  life,  he  saw  the  scenes  of  his  nativity  change  from  a 
hamlet  to  a  busy  commercial  center;  and  in  all  this,  he  had  an  active  and 
vital  interest.  Many  local  offices  were  reposed  in  him  at  various  times,  whose 
duties  were  ever  faithfullv  and  well  discharged.  In  the  field  of  temperance, 
he  was  a  most  zealous  worker ;  as  a  friend  of  the  colored  slave  he  had  such 
immortals  as  Garrison  and  Emerson,  who  shared  in  the  early  dangerous 
subterfuges  then  necessary  to  give  fugitives  their  only  chance  for  freedom. 
In  such  crises,  his  literary  and  forensic  abilities  played  a  most  conspicuous 
role.  The  first  fire  company  was  organized  largely  through  his  influence ; 
and  he  was  likewise  foremost  in  welcoming  the  Unitarian  Church  into  exist- 
ence within  the  nnmicipal  precincts,   during  forty  years,  he  missed  but   four 

43 


meetings  of  that  denomination.  His  generosities  were  universal,  and  large 
according  to  his  means  ;  he  would  go  without,  rather  than  let  another  do  so. 
The  public  streets  and  greens  were  scenes  of  his  tender  care  and  watchful 
thought:  "to  blossom  like  the  rose"  was  the  tune  which  nature  sang  in  his 
wake.  He  attended  several  of  our  reunions,  and  always  enjoyed  with  the 
best  of  us.  Perhaps  the  finest  eulogium  which  might  be  spoken  would  read 
like  this  :  "May  we  all,  when  we  come  to  life's  end,  be  as  sincerely  mourned, 
as  'Uncle'  Charles." 

RUFUS  H.  BRIGHAM,  a  nephew  of  the  foregoing  Charles,  passed  away 
at  Hudson,  Mass.,  March  2,  1890,  in  his  62d  year.  He  was  the  eldest  son  of 
the  late  Captain  Francis  ±5righam,  who  sixty-six  years  ago  founded  the  shoe 
factory  which  today  is  the  principal  industry  of  Hudson.  This  concern  now 
goes  under  the  firm  style  of  "F.  Brigham  &  Co.,"  of  which  Rufus  Brigham 
was  the  senior  partner.  He  was  a  conservative  business  man,  honest  and 
sound  in  judgment;  of  genial  nature  and  fond  of  his  jokes.  He  had  been  a 
prominent  member  of  the  fire  company,  in  which  he  maintained  a  deep  in- 
terest. His  wife,  a  Miss  Mossman  of  Sudbury,  Mass.,  survived  him,  with 
their  distinguished  son,  Hon.  William  H.  Brigham  of  Hudson.  The  de- 
ceased had  three  brothers  and  two  sisters — William,  Wilbur,  Waldo,  Laura 
and  Ida.  Wilbur  Brigham,  with  the  son  of  the  departed  brother,  now  has 
the  burdens  of  this  great  business  to  carry  on  henceforward.  The  interests 
of  the  concern  are  in  good  hands,  and  will  prosper ;  but — a  giant  has  lain 
"down   to   pleasant   dreams." 

CHARLES  BRIGHAM,  of  the  Boston  Post-Office  service,  died  in  that 
city,  January  13,  1900.  He  was  born  at  Brownington,  Vt.,  October  26,  1814, 
and  thus  was  past  eighty-five  at  the  time  of  his  demise.  He  entered  the  pos- 
tal service  in  Boston  in  the  year  1837,  and  continued  there  to  the  time  of  his 
decease,  which  made  him  the  very  oldest  clerk  in  the  postal  service.  He  was 
always  genial,  competent  and  faithful ;  a  true  Brigham.  He  attended  the 
first  Brigham  reunion  at  Chicago,  and  many  later  ones  held  in  the  East.  He 
leaves  a  son,  Charles  H.   Brigham  of  Boston. 

EDWARD  AMHERST  STEWART  met  his  death  resignedly,  as  a  true 
Christian,  at  Derby,  Vt.,  June  2,  1900.  He  was  born  at  Brownington,  Vt., 
June  13,  1834,  being  a  son  of  Thomas  C.  and  grandson  of  Amherst  Stewart, 
who  was  a  pioneer  in  that  town.  His  mother  was  nee  Miss  Emily  Brigham, 
a  daughter  of  Silas  Brigham,  one  of  the  first  settlers  of  Brownington.  His 
early  life  was  spent  in  his  father's  store,  after  his  education  had  been  com- 
pleted at  Derby.  For  a  few  months,  he  was  connected  with  Quincy  Market, 
Boston,  btit  soon  returned  home,  to  enter  the  law  office  of  his  uncle,  John 
L.  Edwards,  of  Derby,  Vt.  He  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1858,  and  was  the 
partner  of  his  uncle,  until  chosen,  in  1865,  Judge  of  Probate  for  the  District 
of  Orleans,  whose  duties  he  discharged  satisfactorily  for  eleven  years.  In 
1859-61,  he  was  Assistant  Clerk  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  and  in 
1862-63,  Clerk  of  the  same  body.  In  1872,  he  bought  a  half  interest  in  the 
Express  and  Standard  of  Derby,  and  for  nine  years  did  the  most  of  its  edi- 
torial writing.  From  1881,  he  was  engaged  in  the  insurance  business  and  set- 
tlements of  estates  of  decedents.  He  was  long  a  deacon  in  his  church,  also 
its  treasurer  and  deeply  interested  in  the  building  of  its  new  edifice.  No  man 
could  be  missed  out  of  his  surroundings  more  than  he  will  be.  He  married, 
in  i860,  Jane  Kelly  of  Derby,  to  whom  four  children  were  born — two  sons, 
both  of  whom  died  early,  and  two  daughters — Mrs.  Emma  L.  Hallenborg  of 
New  York  City  and  Mrs.  Kate  M.  Holbrook  of  Newport,  Vt.,  which  latter, 
with  their  mother,  survive  to  mourn  a  saddest  bereavement.  Mr.  Stewart  had 
attended  some  of  our  family  reunions,  in  which  he  seemed  deeply  interested. 

STEWART  J.  PARK,  as  we  are  briefly  informed,  died  in  New  York, 
October  13,  1899.  His  widow,  Mrs.  Lizzie  R.  Park,  is  a  member  of  the 
Brigham  Family  Association.  She  resides  in  Leominster,  Mass.,  and  will 
have  the  sympathy  of  our  whole  clan. 

DR.  DANIEL  A.  CHASE  died  at  Cambridge,  N.  Y.,  April  7,  1899.  He 
was  born  sixty-nine  years  ago,  at  Athens,  Vt.,  and  graduated  from  the  Brad- 
ford (Mass.)  Academy  in  1848.  He  came  of  a  medically-given  family  and 
so  himself  naturally  followed  the  profession  of  an  M.  D.,  after  graduation 
in  1852,  at  the  Cincinnati  (Ohio)  Eclectic  Medical  Institution.  He  first  lo- 
cated at  North  Greenwich.   N.  Y..  but  soon  after  settled  at  Cambridge,   his 

44 


henceforth  home,  saving  a  few  years  elsewhere  called.  He  was  a  surgeon  in 
the  U.  S.  Navy  during  the  Civil  War,  and  thereafter  traveled  in  all  the  great 
subdivisions  of  the  world.  He  was  a  member  of  many  medical  fraternities, 
and  no  physician  was  more  highly  thought  of  than  himself  in  the  whole 
county  of  his  residence.  His  sunny  disposition  made  his  presence  a  constant 
cheer  in  the  sick  room ;  the  poor  were  given  of  his  skill,  often  without  any 
payment  whatever,  save  that  which  they  could  not  withhold,  gratitude.  His 
wife  was  Elvira  Rebecca  Chase,  daughter  of  Merrick  and  Maria  (Brigham) 
Chase,  who  survives  her  irreparable  loss,  with  two  daughters — Mrs.  A.  L. 
Holland  of  Boston  and  Mrs.  H.  S.  Blackfan  of  Shushan,  N.  Y. 

JOHN  S.  BRIGHAM  of  Worcester,  Mass.,  died  at  Colorado  Springs, 
Colo.,  February  19,  1897. 

FRED  A.  BRIGHAM  of  Spencer,  Mass.,  died  May  26,  1897. 

ELIJAH  W.  BRIGHAM  of  Waltham,  Mass.,  died  in  July,  1900. 

ELISHA  ALDIS  BRIGHAM,  born  at  Fayston,  Vt,  in  December,  1821, 
died  at  Chippewa,  Mich.,  in  June,  1899.  He  early  went  West,  where  he  was 
long  and  prominently  identified  with  his  adopted  home  and  environment.  A 
farmer  by  calling,  he  was  of  the  true  Yankee  type,  and  wrote  both  good  prose 
and  verse.  He  was  class  leader  in  the  Methodist  Church  many  years,  and 
leaves  a  vacancy  which  will  be  sore  felt.  He  married  Celia  Baxter  of  More- 
town,  Vt.,  who,  after  nearly  a  half  century  of  happy  wedded  life,  shortly 
preceded  him  into  the  hereafter,  January  17,  1897.  They  had  four  children — 
Ziba  (who  goes  on  with  the  old  homestead),  Elisha  (a  prominent  lumberman 
of  Bayfield,  Wis.),  Dr.  Edwin  (a  practicing  physician  at  Indianapolis,  Ind.), 
and  Rosina.  who  died  in  young  womanhood. 

SARAH  (BRIGHAM)  MANSFIELD,  a  sister  of  the  above  Aldis  Brig- 
ham,  was  born  at  Fayston,  Vt.,  October  17,  1836,  and  died  at  Lebanon,  N.  H., 
in  April,  1898.  Endowed  by  nature  with  wit,  beauty,  sweet  disposition  and 
literary  abilities,  she  might,  had  heaven  so  willed  it,  reached  a  prominent  posi- 
tion in  the  realm  of  letters  ;  but  in  her  case,  as  in  so  many  another,  circum- 
stances forbade  to  follow  her  tastes.  She  was  an  able  occasional  contributor 
in  both  prose  and  verse  to  periodical  literature,  and  wrote  the  article  upon 
the  town  of  "Roxbury"  for  Miss  Heminway's  Vermont  Gazetteer.  A  daugh- 
ter, Mrs.  Bessie  (Mansfield)  Crozier,  also  a  resident  of  Lebanon,  passed  away 
soon  after  in  January,  1899,  leaving  a  family  to  mourn  their  bereavement. 
Besides  her  husband,  there  survive  Mrs.  Mansfield  a  son,  William,  engaged 
in  mining  speculations  in  South  America,  and  a  daughter,  Mrs.  Katherine 
Waterman,  of  Burlington,  Vt. 

MRS.  ADA  L.  (BOYCE)  SHERBURNE,  daughter  of  George  O.  and 
Laura  (Brigham)  Boyce,  met  a  most  tragically  sudden  death  at  Kirksville, 
Mo.,  April  27,  1899.  Her  husband.  Dr.  Herman  K.  Sherburne,  was  also  vio- 
lently injured  by  the  same  cyclone.  She  was  born  at  Fayston,  Vt.,  Septem- 
ber 5,  1861  ;  wed  in  1884,  she  had  a  little  son,  Theodore,  who  preceded  his 
mother  to  the  Spirit  Land.  Her  maturer  years  were  passed  at  Barre  and 
Montpelier,  Vt,  where  she  was  highly  esteemed  in  leading  .social  circles.  She 
was  an  attendant  at  the  first  Marlboro  reunion.  "Whom  the  Gods  love,  die 
voung!" 

MINERVA  RISLEY  CLSHING  died  at  Dunkirk,  N.  Y.,  February  16, 
1897,  and  was  buried  at  Fredonia. 

REV.  C.  A.  G.  BRIGHAM  of  Enfield,  Conn.,  died  at  the  home  of  his  son, 
William,  leaving  a  widow,  October  12,  1897.  He  had  attended,  and  highly 
enjoyed,  three  of  our  reunions. 

News  comes  to  us  of  the  death,  in  recent  years,  of  WILLIAM  E.  BRIG- 
HAM, Treasurer  of  the  Jamaica  (Mass.)  Pond  Ice  Company;  but  detailed  in- 
formation  is  entirely  wanting. 

MRS.  MARY  A.  PEASE  (the  maiden  name  of  whose  mother  was  Anna 
A.  Brigham)  died  at  Indian  Orchard,  Mass.,  March  19,  1897,  leaving  four 
children — Mrs.  Frank  M.  Clark,  Mrs.  Minerva  E.  Miller,  Erskine 
K.  and  Rosa  B.  Pease,  all  of  Indian  Orchard.  Deceased  also  left  three  broth- 
ers— David  and  John  Gould,  of  Ware,  and  Daniel  Gould,  of  Springfield, 
Mass. 

The  death  of  GEORGE  BRIGHAM,  of  Clayton,  N.  Y.,  occurred  Novem- 
ber 7,  1897,  in  his  90th  year.  He  was  a  pioneer  of  the  town,  which  he  helped 
reclaim  from  its  former  wilderness  condition.     A  native  of  Otsego   (N.  Y.) 

45 


County,  a  son  of  Alexander  Brigham,  he  removed  with  his  parent  to  Jeffer- 
son County,  in  1820,  where  they  built  and  kept  the  first  Limerick  hotel.  He 
married  Miss  Almena  Smith  of  Perch  River,  N.  Y.,  who  died  in  1868.  Of 
their  two  children,  William  died  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  while  Theodore  S. 
now  resides  upon  the  old  homestead. 

MRS.  HARRIET  A.  (BRIGHAM)  CUMMINGS  passed  away  at  her 
home  in  East  Boston,  Mass.,  February  26,  1897,  being  a  daughter  of  the  late 
Franklin  Brigham.  Her  end  came  very  suddenly,  bereaving  four  sisters  and 
two  brothers.  She  possessed  rare  courage  and  ready  sympathy,  which  en- 
deared her  to  a  large  circle  of  friends.  She  was  an  especially  enthusiastic 
and  punctual  member  of  the  Boston  Brigham  Club.     Rcquicscat  in  pace. 

Upon  the  day  of  our  last  Marlboro  reunion,  were  held  the  last  sad  rites 
over  the  mortal  remains  of  one  of  our  beloved.  DR.  JOHN  WESLEY  BRIG- 
HAM, of  Sutton,  Mass.  His  father,  Rev.  Elijah  Brigham,  was  the  founder 
of  Methodism  in  Worcester,  Mass.,  and  married  Mary  Loker  of  Sudbury. 
The  son  was  born  at  Fitchburg.  Mass.,  March  11,  1835,  and,  having  finished 
an  academic  course  at  Wilbraham  Academy,  became  a  disciple  of  Esculapius. 
For  fifteen  years  he  followed  his  profession  in  Wisconsin,  was  also  for  a 
time  a  resident  of  Iowa  and  New  York.  Owing  to  impaired  nervous  condi- 
tion, he  moved  to  Sutton  in  1870,  where  he  bought  a  farm,  and  continued  to 
reside  until  the  final  shock  which  called  him  hence.  He  married  in  1856 
Betsy  A.,  daughter  of  Capt.  Alonzo  S.  Jelleff  of  Ripon,  Wis.,  who  bore  him 
four  sons — Dexter  A.  (chairman  of  the  Selectmen  of  Sutton;,  Alfonso  G. 
and  Curtis  M.  J.  of  Fisherville,  and  Sydney  D.  of  Worcester. 

MAYOR  BRIGHAM  (the  father  of  our  honored  Brigham  Family  Asso- 
ciation President),  born  at  Westmoreland,  N.  Y.,  May  16,  1806,  died  at  To- 
ledo. Ohio,  January  8,  1897.  in  his  91st  year.  His  father  was  a  native  of  Fitz- 
william,  N.  H.,  who  left  pioneer  conditions  there  for  others  as  rugged  in 
"York  State."  Unfortunate  conditions,  with  the  poor  health  of  his  parent, 
from  early  years  made  the  subject  of  this  sketch  necessarily  a  mainstay  of 
the  family ;  he  had  but  very  limited  school  advantages,  and  at  twenty-one  set 
out  upon  his  trade  career,  a  carpenter.  He  first  located  at  Watertown,  N. 
Y.,  where  he  married  Miss  Clarissa  Bill,  by  whom  he  had  a  little  daughter 
at  the  time  he  went  West.  Reaching  Buffalo  by  canal  boat,  he  boarded  the 
historic  "Commodore  Perry"  for  the  locality  since  named  Toledo,  Ohio, 
which  was  to  be  his  future  home.  For  a  short  time  in  early  career,  he  lived 
in  Michigan,  during  the  building  of  a  church  at  Dundee ;  while  also  he  was 
member  of  a  firm,  which  built  a  few  miles  of  road  for  the  Southern  Michigan 
Railway.  In  1841  he  was  engaged  as  repair  agent  by  the  Erie  &  Kalamazoo 
Railway.  His  wife  dying  the  following  year,  leaving  three  small  children,  he 
took  them  for  a  time  to  his  old  New  York  home,  where  he  soon  after  married 
for  his  second  wife.  Miss  Malinda  P.  Merrell  of  Westmoreland,  and  returned 
to  Toledo.  In  1852.  a  severe  illness  of  sciatica,  together  with  the  unfortu- 
nate loss  by  fire  of  his  shop  and  tools,  influenced  him  to  turn  to  labors  less 
physically  exacting;  so  we  find  his  busy  nature  next  employed  as  hardware 
merchant  and  bookkeeper.  From  1876.  he  was  ever  after  largely  confined 
to  his  house,  unable  to  follow  regularly  any  occupation.  While  imseeking 
of  honors,  his  long  life  is  replete  with  varied  usefulness,  with  many  a  dig- 
nity and  trust  added  thereunto.  Especially,  is  his  lifework  indelibly  im- 
printed upon  the  early  history  of  Toledo  ;  here  he  was,  at  different  times, 
Justice  of  the  Peace,  member  of  the  City  Council,  member  of  the  first  Board 
of  Police  Commissioners,  City  Mayor,  superintendent  of  erection  of  High 
School  Building,  as  well  as  of  the  church  of  which  he  was  so  long  a  promi- 
nent supporter.  Of  this  church  (the  First  Congregational),  he  was  a 
founder,  long  its  choirmaster,  and  forty-six  times  elected  its  clerk.  Indeed, 
this  devotion  to  God's  house  is  most  marked  in  his  line;  his  grandfather 
was  a  deacon  for  fifty  years,  and  his  father  for  forty-six  years,  which,  with 
the  son's  service,  aggregated  147  years  for  the  three  generations.  Where 
shall  we  seek  a  parallel  ?  During  three  visitations  of  cholera.  Mayor  Brig- 
ham was  always  found  at  the  danger  point  of  relief.  For  some  time  he  was 
Collector  of  Tolls  of  Ohio  canals.  He  helped  to  form  one  of  the  earliest  anti- 
slavery  societies,  at  Vienna.  N.  Y..  in  1832.  and  was  ever  an  active  worker  in 
the  field  of  temperance.  He  composed  the  words  and  music  of  a  Brigham 
hymn,  which  was  sung  at  our  first  gathering.     Truly,  his  life  was  rich  in  all 

46 


the  essential  elements  of  success.  His  wife,  of  fifty-four  years  of  loving  asso- 
ciation, survived  him,  with  her  five  children,  Stanley  F.,  George  M.,  William 
A.,  Frederick  M.  and  Harry  C.  Brigham,  who,  with  the  two  by  former  mar- 
riage, Hon.  C.  O.  Brigham  and  Mrs.  Harriet  E.  (Brigham)  Beach,  make  up 
the  worthv  sum  of  the  next  generation.    All  honor  to  "The  Puritan  !" 

MARTIN  FREEMAN  BRIGHAM  (father  of  our  most  faithful  late 
Brigham  Family  Association  Secretary,  Miss  Emma  E.  Brigham),  entered 
into  rest  from  Dorchester,  Mass.,  October  17,  1897,  upon  the  eve  of  his  88th 
birthday,  an  age  exceeded  but  by  one  of  his  Brigham  ancestors.  Born  at 
Whitingham,  Vt.,  October  19,  1809,  the  eldest  child  of  John  Brigham  of  that 
town,  he  devoted  some  years  to  the  business  of  tanner  in  his  native  place ; 
but  in  1844  removed  to  Cambridge,  Mass.,  and  two  years  later  to  Roxbury, 
Avhere  he  opened  what  became  an  extensive  baking  enterprise.  Soon  taking 
into  partnership  a  brother,  John  A.  Brigham,  the  firm  was  known  until  1861 
as  M.  F.  &  J.  A.  Brigham.  At  this  time,  the  business  had  so  developed  that 
the  partnership  was  dissolved,  and  the  senior  took  the  Roxbury  branch  to 
himself,  carrying  it  on  alone  until  1868,  when  he  retired.  For  many  years 
longer,  however,  he  continued  to  actively  interest  himself  in  various  fields. 
His  character,  while  it  did  not  lack  the  stern  ethical  self-demands  of  the 
Puritan,  was  sweetened  by  a  tolerance  and  charitable  spirit,  which  made  him 
dear  to  all,  young  and  old  alike.  He  attended  some  of  our  Brigham  reunions, 
which  he  much  enjoyed.  In  1836,  he  married  Miss  Elizabeth  Maria  Smith  of 
Phillipston,  Mass.,  who  passed  away  in  1876,  leaving  three  children^Francis 
H.  Brigham,  Miss  Emma  E.  Brigham  and  Mrs.  Thomas  D.  Cook  of  Boston. 
Mr.  Brigham  left  two  brothers  (Hosea  W.  Brigham,  Esq.,  of  Winchester,  N. 
H..  and  John  A.  Brigham  of  South  Braintree,  Mass.),  and  a  sister,  Mrs.  M. 
E.  Legate  of  Grove,  Vt. 

GEORGE  OTIS  BRIGHAM,  the  leader  of  Westboro's  (Mass.)  business 
life,  suddenly  departed.  February  13,  1898.  In  early  life,  Mr.  Brigham  was  the 
Boston  agent  of  the  Westboro  Milk  Company,  which  passed  into  his  hands 
in  1852,  and  proved  very  profitable.  In  1866.  he  became  cashier  of  Westboro's 
First  National  Bank,  and  Treasurer  of  the  local  savings  bank,  upon  its  incor- 
poration in  1869,  which  latter  position  he  filled  most  ably  to  the  time  of  his 
death.  In  1867,  he  was  chosen  Town  Treasurer,  and  continued  in  such  office 
to  the  end  of  his  days.  He  favored  every  town  improvement,  and  was  chief 
promoter  of  the  Village  Improvement  Society;  among  the  municipal  depart- 
ments, which  owe  so  much  to  him,  either  as  founder  or  improver,  are:  the 
water  works,  electric  light  system,  fire  department  (a  portion  of  which  is 
known  as  the  ''George  O.  Brigham  Steamer  Co.")  and  the  Humber  &  Co., 
America,  Limited,  Cycle  Mfg.  Co.,  the  last  being  the  most  valuable  industry 
of  the  place.  He  was  also  one  of  the  earliest  members  of  the  local  Agricul- 
tural Society,  in  which  he  never  lost  interest.  At  times,  brusque  in  speech, 
he  had  the  tender  heart  of  a  child,  for  no  man  was  more  universally  helpful. 
"No  citizen  was  held  in  higher  esteem,  none  more  trusted,  none  more  loved 
for  his  manly  virtues."  Alas,  that  so  good  a  type  should  pass  away,  unper- 
petuated  !  The  son  of  Captain  Otis  Brigham,  he  died  childless,  leaving  only 
two  surviving  sisters — Mrs.  A.  A.  Hutchinson  and  Miss  Lucy  Brigham,  with 
the  latter  of  whom  he  had  made  his  earthly  home. 

EDWARD  L.  BRIGHAM,  for  seventy  years  a  resident  of  Worcester, 
Mass.,  where  he  was  the  very  first  merchant  to  sell  ready-made  clothing, 
the  city's  senior  Odd  Fellow,  was  called  to  his  reward  September  13.  1898, 
when  almost  92  years  of  age.  Born  in  the  old  Brigham  town  of  Marlboro, 
he  at  19  went  to  Worcester  to  learn  the  tailor's  trade.  Though  retired  for 
some  years  by  senility,  he  was  once  very  active  in  the  home  of  his  adoption ; 
a  member  of  the  original  volunteer  fire  department,  and  the  Worcester  Coun- 
ty Mechanics'  Association.  By  his  three  wives  (Eliza  Brewer,  Susan  Sawyer 
and  Annie  J.  Sawyer,  which  last  survived  him),  he  had  four  children — 
Eliza,  Elinor,  Edward  L.,  Jr.,  and  Walter  A.  Brigham,  who  (the  last)  died 
some  years  since  in  New  York. 

REV.  DWIGHT  WILLIAMS,  born  in  Cazenovia.  N.  Y..  April  28.  1826, 
passed  to  the  realm  of  spirits  from  his  native  town.  June  13.  1898.  He  was 
the  son  of  Elijah  Williams.  Esq.  (representative  of  one  of  the  oldest  and 
most  prominent  families  of  the  place)  and  nee  Miss  Sophia  Brigham  of  Marl- 
boro. Mass.     He  finished  his  academic  education  in  1836,  at  Cazenovia  Semi- 

47 


nar^^  In  1850,  he  was  licensed  to  preach  in  the  Methodist  Church,  and  re- 
ceived into  full  membership  in  the  Oneida  Conference  in  1853.  His  frail 
health  at  several  times  caused  him  to  be  voluntarily  placed  vipon  the  super- 
annuated list;  but  he  did  an  immense  amount  of  faithful  service.  His  first 
field  of  labor  was  in  the  Litchfield  circuit;  and,  thereafter,  he  was  pastor  at 
Mt.  Morris,  Madison,  Camillus,  Hamilton,  Oxford.  Clinton,  Georgetowni, 
Trumansburg,  Petersboro,  Vernon  Center,  Montezuma,  Cincinnatus,  Au- 
burn, Canandaigua  and  Syracuse.  He  was  a  cordial  Abolitionist ;  recognizing 
in  intemperance  the  greatest  menace  to  true  civilization,  he  was.  from  its 
birth,  associated  with  the  Prohibition  Party,  and,  in  1873,  its  candidate  in 
New  York  for  Secretary  of  State.  His  nature  was  highly  complex  and  ideal : 
gentleness  and  grace  were  conspicuous  in  his  manhood  ;  but  he  had,  too,  the 
courage  of  convictions  and  unswerving  integrity,  combined  with  the  consid- 
erate demeanor,  which  stamps  the  true  Christian.  He  wed,  in  1855,  Keziah 
E.  Lane  of  New  Hartford,  N.  Y.,  and  had  four  children,  three  of  whom  are 
living — Miss  Susan  B.  Williams,  Prof.  Dwight  Williams,  Jr.  (of  Cazenovia,), 
and  Mrs.  Vernam  Bartow.  He  was  widely  known  as  a  vigorous  graceful 
writer;  for  a  time  was  assistant  editor  of  the  Northern  Christian  Advocate, 
and  later  editor  of  The  Watchzvord.  It  is,  however,  rather  as  a  poet  that  we 
must  regard  him  in  his  secular  writings.  He  published  three  volumes  of 
verse,  the  first  in  1876,  the  "Beautiful  City"  in  1887,  while  his  "Mother  of 
the  Wonderful"  is  regarded  as  his  most  finished  production.  Many  book- 
lets, hymns,  songs  of  patriotism  and  miscellaneous  contributions  likewise 
dropped  from  his  pen.  "His  verse  was  pure  in  quality,  elevated  in  tone,  opti- 
mistic and  helpful  in  spirit."  As  a  Brigham,  he  was  always  interested  in  our 
reunions.  Our  1896  Worcester  meeting  (at  which  his  son  was  present),  was 
a  very  marked  illustration  of  this  fact;  for  he  had  gone  to  the  (considerable) 
expense  of  printing,  in  exceptional  style  (to  present  to  each  visitor)  liis  stir- 
ring poem,  "Brigham!"  In  concluding  this  sketch,  we  cannot  do  better  than 
to  quote  a  few  stanzas  therefrom : 

"Hail,  sons  of  Brigham!     Loyal  stock! 

A  chapter  in  our  stor}^ 
Whose  genesis  is  Plymouth  Rock, 

Its    chivalry    and    glory ; 
Hail,   daughters  of  a   sturdy  band. 

Who   faced   the   sunset's   beauty. 
To  build  their  altars  long  to  stand, 

Dear  shrines  of  love  and  duty. 
*         *         *     '    *         *         *         * 

What  though  their  temples  were  log-hewn. 

And  chimin?  bells  were  wanting, 
Love  kept  t'     r  reverent  hearts  in  tune 

With  heaven's  high  themes  enchanting : 
Say  not  their  creed  was  hard  and  cold. 

Their  hearts  were  never  stoic. 
Love  made  their  virtues  manifold. 

Love  made  tlieir  souls  heroic. 
******* 

Our  sires,  behind  their  straight-back  chairs, 

Made  holy  supplication. 
And  we  have  answer  to  their  prayers. 

In  this,  our  glad  ovation  :-  - 
A  vision  charms  me  as  I  ga'^e, 

A  long  ancestral  column. 
That  reaches  through  the  distant  maze 

Of  silent  years  and  solemn. 
Bring  me  a  goblet  from  the  well,* 

As  our  first  father  knew  it. 
Where  to  the  depths  the  bucket  fell 

And  sparkling  forth  he  drew  it. 
And  we  will   drink  the  health  of  each 


*An  incident  very  similar  actually  happened  at  our  first  Marlboro  Reunion. 

48 


And  every  Brigham  brother, 
Far  as  the  golden  Hnks  may  reach. 
Back  to  our  Island  mother. 

Ye  Brothers,  Sisters,  Lovers,  drink ! 

Ours  is  a  loyal  story. 
From  wood-crowned  hill  to  river  brink 

We  own  a  "yeoman"  glory; 
And  may  our  sons  be  brave  and  true. 

Our  daughters  as  the  whiteness 
Of  Iilly  bloom  in  morning  dew, 

In  beauty  and  in  brightness. 

^  ^  ^  ^  ;|;  ;|i  :}: 

We  greetings  say  and  sweet  farewells, 

But  life's  highway  is  golden 
And  leads  to  far-off  citadels. 

Of  angel-eyes  beholden. 
Keep  step  !     Our  motto  leads  beyond, 

Still  on !    "In  crncc  sains." 
Till,  at  the  gate  of  diamond. 

The  blessed  ones  shall  hail  us."' 


PERSONALS.* 

CHARLES  OLIVER  BRIGHAM,  a  resident  of  Toledo,  Ohio,  for  more 
than  sixty  years,  is  a  son  of  Mavor  and  Clarissa  (Bill)  Brigham,  and  a  de- 
scendant, in  the  eighth  generation,  of  Thomas  Brigham.  "The  Puritan."  W^e 
refer  to  an  obituary  notice  elsewhere  herein  of  Mavor  Brigham.  for  details 
of  the  parents'  very  active  life,  and  something  of  the  anterior  line.  They  went 
from  the  American  Brigham  "Mecca"  (Marlboro,  Mass.)  to  Fitzwilliam,  N. 
H.,  thence  to  opening  "York  State,"  and  so,  by  short  (but,  in  those  days, 
tedious  and  difficult)  stages  to  the  "Modern  Mother  of  Presidents."  But 
they  took  with  them  an  abiding  faith  in  New  England  institutions,  the 
"meeting  house  and  public  school,"  which  love  has  been  handed  down  un- 
alloyed to  their  descendants.  The  great-grandfather  of  the  subject  of  this 
brief  sketch  was  a  Revolutionary  veteran,  a  participant  in  the  famous  battle 
of  Bunker  Hill,  where  he  fought  under  Gen.  Stark,  in  Col.  Read's  regiment. 
Charles  O.  Brigham  was  born  September  gtb,  1838,  while  his  father  was  a 
temporary  resident  of  Dundee,  Michigan:  for  jh  1840,  he  returned  to  Toledo, 
which  has  since  been  the  home  of  the  family.  The  son  received  only  the  lim- 
ited common-school  education  afforded  by 'a  *;hen  pioneer  community;  his  has 
been  the  school  of  men,  rather  than  booksi^'a  school  at  which  have  been 
gained  the  brightest  ideas  of  many  of  our  country's  most  worthy  citizens.  At 
the  early  age  of  15,  he  entered  into  telegraph  service  with  the  Erie  &  Michigan 
Telegraph  Company ;  and  upon  the  reorganization  of  the  Western  Cnion 
Telegraph  Company,  accepted  a  position  in  their  Toledo  office,  and  con- 
tinued to  be  identified  with  that  company,  in  various  capacities,  until  October, 
1900,  an  uninterrupted  period  of  more  than  45  years.  During  the  time,  he 
acted  for  20  years  as  agent  and  correspondent  of  the  Western  Associated  Press 
for  Northwestern  Ohio,  as  well  as  several  years  superintendent  of  the  city's 
electrical  system.  In  politics,  he  is  a  Republican,  though  not  an  ultra  partisan ; 
always  taking  an  earnest  and  active  interest  in  public  affairs,  of  the  state 
and  city  wherein  he  has  al-,vays  resided.  At  the  time  of  forming  the 
Brigham  Family  Association  in  Chicago,  in  189.3,  he  was  unanimously  elected 
president;  and  was  the  general  choice  annually  for  our  first  three  meetings, 
when  he  declined  further  re-election.  At  our  recent  reunion  held  in  Boston, 
there  were  urgent  reasons  (without  reflecting  anything  but  great  credit  upon 
the  retiring  very  efficient  President)  why  Mr.  C.  O.  Brigham  should  be  again 
placed  at  the  head  of  matters.     After  much   solicitation,   he  gracefully  con- 

*Don't  you  find  anything  here  about  yourself?  We're  sorry;  but  we  live 
so  far  from  mo.st  of  the  Brighams  that  wo  hear  too  little  of  them.  When  any- 
thing unusual  happens  to  you  or  yours,  sit  down  and  write  me.  Then  I  can 
bring  it  up  another  time.  For.  if  this  pamphlet  is  satisfactory,  we  mean  to  get 
up  one  after  the  next  meeting  of   the  Brighams. 

49 


sented,  at  the  sacrifice  of  personal  feelings  and  interests,  to  allow  his  name 
to  be  used  in  connection  with  the  office.  The  cordiality  of  his  election  could 
leave  no  doubt  as  to  the  universal  esteem  in  which  his  kinsfolk  hold  him. 
In  addition  to  his  other  good  qualities,  he  comes  of  a  long-lived  race.  Thank 
heaven !  His  great-grandfather  dying  at  the  age  of  96,  while  his  father  lived 
to  see  his  91st  year.  We  hope  to  have  the  pleasure  of  attending  a  Brigham 
Reunion  twenty  years  hence,  and  also  of  seeing  "C.  O."  in  the  chair.  Himself 
and  wife  have' missed  but  one  of  the  six  meetings  held  to  date;  and,  when 
we  think,  they  have  all  been  held  at  great  distances  from  Toledo,  one  can 
appreciate  the  devoted  sacrifice  of  time  and  money  which  has  been  freely 
given,  to  spend  a  few  never-to-be-forgotten  hours  with  the  Brigham  clan.* 

Our'  retiring  president.  William  E.  Brigham,  of  Boston,  is  one  of  the 
fixtures  upon  "The  Daily  Transcript."  He  has  won  his  way  up  by  hard  work 
and  proofs  of  his  ability,  and  now  has  a  prominent  position,  looking  after 
the  political  news.  He  has,  not  long  ago,  taken  to  his  home,  in  Somerville, 
a  "help  meet"  from  New  Hampshire;  though  he  is  not  yet  pater  familias,  we 
hope  he  may  soon  become  so.  There  cannot  be  too  many  such  members  in 
our  clan !  ^^ 

Hon.  William  M.  Brigham  of  Marlboro  seems  to  be  making  "his  mark' 
in  the  right  sort  of  way.  A  lawyer  by  profession,  he  has  for  some  years 
been  upon  the  bench,  and  repeatedly  has  gone  up  to  Boston's  State  House, 
to  help  make  laws  for  the  Old  Commonwealth.  Having  made  and  interpreted 
the  law,  there's  only  one  branch  left,  namely  the  execution  of  it.  "Governor 
Brigham"  wouldn't  sound  badly,  would  it. 

Hon.  Johnson  Brigham  (who  had  added  so  much  to  two  of  our  Reunions), 
when  he  came  back  from  Aix  la  Chapelle,  where  he  was  United  States  Consul, 
settled  at  Des  Moines,  Iowa,  where  he  founded  "The  Midland  Monthly."  He 
built  this  publication  up  to  a  firm  basis,  upon  strictly  high-class  literary  lines, 
when  he  received  such  flattering  inducements  as  decided  him  to  part  with  it. 
He  is  now  State  Librarian  of  Iowa. 

Hon.  John  Brigham,  of  Delta,  Ohio,  better  known  as  "The  Colonel,"  long 
at  the  head  of  the  national  Grange,  was  called  four  years  ago  to  Washington, 
as  Assistant  Secretary  of  Agriculture.  We  hear  nothing  but  good  of  him.  Is 
President  McKinley  going  to  '.'swap  horses"  while  crossing  the  river?  We 
don't  believe  it. 

The  venerable  Thomas  Brigham  Rice  of  Barre,  Mass.,  came  to  the  first 
Brigham  Reunion  in  Chicago,  and  the  three  following  ones  in  the  East. 
We've  missed  him,  the  past  two  sessions.  Is  he  living?  We  want  to  grasp 
his  hand  at  the  next  meeting. 

Hosea  Brigham,  Esq.,  of  Winchester,  N.  H.,  has  been  a  very  regular 
attendant,  since  our  Reunions  have  been  held  in  the  East;  but  we  missed 
'im  this  time.  Come,  Brother  Brigham.  the  association  has  recently  taken  on 
"a  new  lease  of  life,"  and  we'll  expect  to  exchange  greetings  often  hereafter. 

We  must  have  the  pleasure  of  hearing  the  "Brigham  Band,"  of  Marlboro, 
at  our  next  meeting,  even  if  we  have  to  go  to  that  dear  old  town  in  order  so 
to  do.  By  the  way,  since  the  association  is  now  self-supporting,  why  wouldn't 
that  be  as  good  a  place  as  any  to  reunite  in  next  time,  anyhow?  Every 
Brigham  traces  back  to  that  town,  it  would  mean  a  large  gathering  (for  which 
there  is  always  ample  accommodations)  and  interesting  places  of  visitation 
all  about.  Besides,  we  have  an  idea  in  our  noddle,  which  we're  going  to  dis- 
close one  of  thes ;  days,  which  needs  such  a  spot  as  that,  and  none  other,  for 
its  practical  working  out. 

*Out  of  modestly  meager  materials  sent  us,  we  have,  giving  some  latitude 
to  our  feelings  (but  not  imagination),  evolved  the  above  unsatisfactory 
sketch.  His  life  has  not  been  romantic,  or  filled  with  newsy  vicissitudes ;  it 
has  been  a  steady,  faithful,  intelligent,  successful  application  of  high  business 
principles  to  the  problems  oft'ered  by  his  environment.  He  has  been,  and  is, 
liked,  respected,  trusted,  by  everybody  who  knows  him.  As  for  his  love  for 
the  "B.  F.  A.,"  we  need  but  to  quote  a  few  lines  from  a  recent  letter:  "I  shall 
be  glad  to  talk  over  with  you  several  matters  touching  the  welfare  of  our 
Association.  I  sincerely  wish,  that  we  may  be  able  to  concert  plans  for  its 
growth  and  prosperity,  a  very  largely  increased  interest,  etc.  I  feel  that  we 
ought  to  make  the  effort,  even  at  the  expense  of  time  and  labor  on  our  part." 
—Ed. 

50 


Hon.  Addington  Brigham  of  Marlboro,  our  indefatigable  Curator  and 
Librarian,  made  a  good  point  in  his  speech  at  Boston.  Let  all  the  Brighams 
who  are  authors,  or  who  have  such  writers  in  their  families,  send  copies  of 
their  books  to  Mr.  Brigham,  to  be  preserved  in  our  Family  Library.  Besides, 
they  will  later  be  very  useful,  in  the  preparation  of  a  chapter,  "Brigham 
Authors,"  in  the  forthcoming  Brigham  Family  History.  It's  been  so  long 
incubating,  that  it's  got  to  hatcJi  now ! 

We  just  couldn't  let  our  recent  secretary.  Miss  Emma  E.  Brigham  of  Bos- 
ton, "retire  to  private  life,"  so  she's  now  treasurer.  She  is  so  full  of  good 
actions  that  it  is  hard  to  tell  when  she  finds  time  to  rest.  But  for  her  timely 
interposition  (with  that  of  one  or  two  others,  we  might  name),  the  B.  F.  A. 
would  now  be  in  a  thoroughly  moribund  condition,  if  not  actually  in  rigor 
mortis.  There  is  a  debt  of  gratitude  owed  by  this  association  deeper  than 
words;  some,  at  least,  of  us  know  the  circumstances  and  rejoice.  We  some- 
times need  trials  and  afflictions  to  develop  our  strength ! 

Mr.  Edmund  Brigham  of  Chicago,  for  years  assistant  freight  agent  of  the 
Northwestern  Railway,  has,  within  the  past  twelve  month,  become  general 
freight  agent.  To  this  arduous  position  (one  of  the  most  exacting  in  the 
corporation)  Mr.  Brigham  brings  excellent  health  and  habits,  good  humor, 
shrewd  ideas  coupled  with  much  active  experience  under  his  former  superior. 
He  will  succeed.    Congratulations  ! 

Mr.  Henry  Brigham  of  Chicago,  late  with  Armour  &  Co.,  left  that  big  con- 
cern (at  which  time  the  senior  member  of  that  house  took  occasion  to  present 
a  beautiful  watch,  suitably  engraved),  to  go  with  the  Booth  &  Co.  fish  com- 
pany of  Baltimore,  the  largest  plant  of  its  kind  in  America.  He  is  located 
in  the  Chicago  offices,  where  he  makes  contracts  for  the  freighting  of  all  their 
enormous  business. 

Mr.  Gus  Brigham  of  Chicago  is  as  deeply  a  lover  of  music,  as  when,  seven 

/years  ago,  he  gave  us  taste  of  his  metal,  at  our  first  Reunion  at  the  Chicago 

,''  World's  Fair.     It  would  be  a  pleasure  to  hear  him  at  some  other  of  our 

'.'  gatherings.     Why   not  the  next?     He   has   a   prominent   position   with   the 

Thompson  Piano  Co.  in  Chicago,  and  ranks  well  as  a  composer  of  songs. 

"The  Brigham  Lectures,"  are  the  edifying  entertainments,  with  which 
Nat  M.  Brigham  of  Los  Angeles,  California,  is  delighting  audiences  in  that 
portion  of  our  land.  The  titles  run :  "Grand  Canon  of  Arizona,"  "Land  of 
the  Snake  Dance"  (introducing  Indian  and  Spanish  music),  "Utah  and  the 
Mormon  Commonwealth,"  "The  Apache  Warpath"  (with  martial  music), 
Bob  Burdette  says,  "The  mantle  of  Stoddard  has  not  fallen  upon  Brigham; 
he  has  a  better  costume  of  his  own."  Success,  Brother  Brigham.  Bravo! 
Will  you  not  kindly  come  to  our  next  Family  Reunion  and  "Give  us  a  taste 
of  your  metal  ?" 

Rev.  Prof.  Albert  Perry  Brigham,  A.  M.,  at  the  head  of  the  department  of 
geology  and  natural  history  in  Colgate  University,  Hamilton,  N.  Y.,  has  just 
contributed  a  work  to  the  Twentieth  Century  Series  of  text  books,  "Geo- 
logical Science."  i2mo.,  cloth,  price  $1.40,  D.  Appleton  &  Co.  An  elementary 
treatise,  well  written,  edited  and  illustrated,  accompanied  by  suggestions  to 
teachers.  He  is  a  grandson  of  Phineas  Brigham,  who  went  from  Worcester 
County,  Mass.,  to  Madison  County,  N.  Y.,  in  1810.  He  preached  for  several 
years  at  Stillwater  and  Utica,  N.  Y.,  but  in  1892  rounded  up  his  degrees  by 
an  "A.  M."  from  Harvard.  His  teaching  has  been  mainly  at  "Colgate,"  and 
Cornell  and  Harvard  Summer  Schools ;  he  is  a  member  of  many  learned 
societies,  and  has  been  a  voluminous  contributor  to  numerous  standard 
periodicals. 

Rev.  Leander  Brigham  of  Warren,  Vt.,  has  just  celebrated  his  golden 
wedding.  Never  very  physically  strong,  he  has  lived  to  good  age  of  great 
usefulness.  He  has  exemplified  very  radical  ideas  in  his  life ;  preaching  a  free 
gospel  wherever  the  spirit  called  him,  accepted  no  fixed  salary,  but  living  upon 
whatever  might  come  in  as  purely  voluntary  contributions.  Though  not 
without  parallel,  such  an  undeviating  practice  is  quite  exceptional  in  these 
business-like  times.  He  has  not  been  a  layer  up  of  goods  in  this  world,  but 
his  reward  will  certainly  come.  A  truer  Christian,  according  to  his  lights, 
does  not  now  live. 

SI 


CONSTITUTION  OF  THE  BRIGHAM  FAMILY  ASSOCIATION. 


ARTICLE  I.     NAME. 

This  association  shall  be  called  the  BRIGHAM  FAMILY  ASSOCIA- 
TION. 

ARTICLE  II.     PURPOSES. 

The  purposes  of  this  association  shall  be.  to  promote  acquaintanceship  and 
good-fellowship  among  the  descendants  of  Thomas  Brigham,  "The  Puritan ;" 
to  collect  and  preserve  such  documents  and  articles  of  historic  interest  as 
relate  to  the  Family  of  Brigham  ;  and  to  assist  in  preparing  and  making  public 
an  adequate  family  record. 

ARTICLE  III.     MEMBERSHIP. 
Any  person  of  the  name  or  kin  of  Brigham,  or  related  thereto  by  mar- 
riage, may  become  a  member  of  this  association,   upon  the  payment  of  one 
dollar,  which  sum  shall  also  include  the  dues  for  the  first  year. 

ARTICLE  IV.     DUES. 
The  annual  dues  shall  be  one  dollar,  payable  in  advance. 

ARTICLE  V.     MEETINGS. 

Meetings  of  this  association  shall  be  held  biennially,  at  such  time  and  place 
as  the  majority  vote  of  the  directors  taken  by  mail  shall  approve;  provided, 
that  no  selection  of  time  and  place  shall  have  been  made  by  a  majority  of  the 
members  of  this  association  present  and  voting  at  a  regular  meeting. 

ARTICLE  VI.     OFFICERS. 

The  officers  of  this  association  shall  consist  of  a  President,  five  Vice- 
Presidents,  a  Secretary,  a  Treasurer,  an  Historian,  a  Librarian-Curator,  and 
five  additional  Directors.    All  these  shall  constitute  the  Board  of  Directors. 

ARTICLE  VII.     ELECTION  OF  OFFICERS. 

Officers  shall  be  chosen  by  majority  ballot,  at  every  regular  meeting. 

ARTICLE  VIII.     DUTIES  OF  OFFICERS. 

1.  The  duties  of  the  officers  shall  be  such  as  usually  appertain  to  those 
positions. 

2.  The  Secretary  shall  keep  the  record  of  all  meetings  of  this  association, 
and  shall  have  charge  of  all  the  books,  papers  and  records  of  this  association, 
excepting  such  as  pertain  to  the  offices  of  Treasurer  and  Librarian-Curator ; 
and  shall  appoint  an  Assistant  Secretary,  who  shall  perform  such  duties  as 
the  Secretary  may  direct. 

3.  The  Treasurer  shall  receive  and  disburse  all  monies  of  this  as.sociation, 
upon  voucher  approved  by  the  President  and  the  Secretary ;  and  shall  keep 
a  book  account  of  all  receipts  and  disbursements  ;  and  a  list  of  all  members  of 
this  association,  which  shall  also  show  the  standing  of  members  in  the  matter 
of  dues  ;  and  shall  issue  due  bills  annually  ;  and  shall  submit  a  written  report 
at  every  regular  meeting. 

4.  The  Historian  shall  prepare  a  paper  upon  some  theme  of  general 
Brigham-Family  interest  for  each  regular  meeting ;  shall  notice  the  demise 
of  members  of  this  association,  as  well  as  of  all  distinguished  Brighams 
wheresoever  occurring ;  and  in  connection  therewith  may  prepare  and  pre- 
sent, for  adoption  by  this  association,  such  Resolutions  as  may  seem  fitting. 

5.  The  Librarian-Curator  shall  oe  the  custodian  of  all  books,  pamphlets, 
documents,  heirlooms,  etc.,  of  Brigham  Family  historic  interest.  He  shall 
keep  an  accurate  book  record  of  the  same,  and,  whenever  practicable,  shall 
prepare  and  exhibit  the  same  at  every  regular  meeting. 

6.  The  reports  of  all  officers  made  at  regular  meetings  shall  be  written ; 
and  all  reports,  papers,  essays,  orations,  etc.,  provided  for  herein,  or  volun- 
tarily rendered  to  this  association,  shall  be  legibly  written  or  printed,  and 
shall  be  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  Librarian-Curator. 

7.  The  Board  of  Directors  shall  have  disposing  powers  in  all  matters  of 
finance ;  and  no  financial  obligation  shall  be  incurred,  without  the  authority  of 
the  President  and  the  Secretary.  Five  board  members  and  the  records  at  any 
meeting  of  the  Directors  shall  constitute  a  quorum. 

52 


ARTICLE  IX.     AMENDMENTS  TO  THE  CONSTITUTION. 
This  constitution  may  be  amended  at  any  meeting  of  this  association  by  a 
two-thirds  vote  of  the  members  present  and  voting. 


OFFICERS  OF  THE  BRIGHAM  FAMILY  ASSOCIATION. 

President,  Charles  O.  Brigham,  Toledo,  Ohio. 

Secretary,  W.  I.  Tyler  Brigham,  Chicago,  111.,  6034  Ingleside  avenue. 

Treasurer,  Miss  Emma  E.  Brigham.  564  Columbus  avenue,  Boston,  Mass. 

Historian,  W.  I.  Tyler  Brigliam,  Chicago.  111. 

Librarian-Curator,  Addington  M.  Brigham,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

First  Vice-President,  Lorimon  S.  Brigham,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Second  Vice-President.  Johnson  Brigham.  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

Third  Vice-President,  Merrill  D.  Brigham,  Worcester,  Mass. 

Fourth  Vice-President,  Charles  W.   Brigham,  Lowell,  Mass. 

Fifth  Vice-President,  William  D.  Brigham,  Dorchester,  Mass. 

Directors,  William  E.  Brigham,  Somerville.  Mass. ;  Miss  Helen  F.  Brig- 
ham, Cambridge,  Mass. :  L.  Fred  Rice,  Boston,  Mass. ;  Walter  D.  Brigham, 
Willimantic,  Conn. ;    Charles  H.  Brigham,  Boston,  Mass. 


MEMBERS  OF  BRIGHAM  FAMILY  ASSOCIATION,   FROM   1893  TO 

DATE. 


Brigham.  Chas.  H.,  Ft.  Payne,  Ala. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvin  O.,  Oakland.  Cal. 

Brigham,  Frank  E.,  Oakland,  Cal. 

Brigham,  Mrs.  Mary  A..  Oakland,  Cal. 

Brigham,  John  E.,  Toronto,  Canada. 

Brigham,  Elijah,  Trinidad,  Colo. 

Brigham,  Walter  Damon,  Willimantic,  Conn. 

Brigham,  H.,  Eleanor,   Hartford,   Conn. 

Brigham,  John  C,  Washington,  D.  C. 

Stewart,  Thos.  T.,  Washington.  D.  C. 

Brigham,  A.  N.,  Chicago,  111. 

Brigham,  Dr.  B.  A.  R..  Chicago,  111. 

Brigham.  Chas.  F.,  Chicago,  111. 

Brigham,  E.  D.,  Chicago,  111. 

Brigham,  Miss  F.  M.,  Chicago,  111. 

Brigham,  Geo.  F.,  Jr.,  Chicago,  111. 

Brigham,  G.  B.,  Chicago,  111. 

Brigham,  Capt.  Henry  G.,  Chicago,  Ih. 

Brigham,  O.  D.,  Chicago,  111. 

Brigham,  Philip  V.,  Chicago,  111. 

Brigham,  Willard  I.  T.,  Chicago,  111. 

Brigham,  Mrs.  Willard  I.  T.,  Chicago,  III. 

Newton.  P.  A.,  Chicago.  111. 

Brigham.  S.  F.,  Chicago,  111. 

Brigham.  L.  W.,  Chicago,  111. 

Brigham,  Jos.  H.,  Dover,  111. 

Atkins,  Mrs.  E.  C,  Indianapolis,  Ind. 

Brigham,  Chas.  E.,  Indianapolis.  Ind. 

Brigham,  O.  T.,  Bancroft,  Iowa. 

Brigham,  Hon.  Johnson,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

Brigham,  Mrs.  Johnson,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

Ives,  Mrs.  Julia  Brigham,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

Brigham,  Fred  A.,  Topeka,  Kan. 

Brigham,  R.  S.,  Topeka,  Kan. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wm.  H.,  No.  Bridgton,  Maine. 

Brigham,  Chas.  E.,  Ashburnham,  Mass. 

Brigham.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  E.  D..  Ashburnham,  Mass. 

Rice,  Thos.  Brigham,  Barre,  Mass. 

Rice,  iMiss  Lucy,  Barre,  Mass. 

Brigham.  O.  W.,  Barre,  Mass. 

Hill,  Mrs.  Abigail  (deceased),  Belmont,  Mass. 

53 


Brigham,  Charles   (deceased),  Boston,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Charles  H.,  Boston,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Chas.  E.,  Boston,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Dr.  Daniel  T.,  Dorchester,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Edmund  M.,  Dorchester,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Edgar  M..  Dorchester,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mrs.  Eliza,  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Elizabeth  P.,  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Emma  E.,  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Francis  H.,  Dorchester,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mrs.  F.  M.,  Dorchester,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Geo.  E.,  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Geo.  H.,  South  Boston,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Helen  S.,  South  Boston,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Rev.  J.  W.,  South  Boston,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Miss  Julia  L.,  South  Boston,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Miss  Margherita,  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Martyn  Freeman  (deceased),  Dorchester,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Miss  Pauline,  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Robert  Breck   (deceased),  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  William  D.,  Dorchester,   Mass. 

Brigham,  William  E.   (deceased),  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Will  E.,  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 

Carpenter,  A.  E..  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 

Cook,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  T.  D.,  Dorchester,  Mass. 

Cook,  Walter  F.,  Dorchester,  Mass. 

Goodnow,  A.  W.,  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 

Goodnow,  Joseph  Wilson,  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 

Goodnow,  Miss  Marion  Coleman.  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 

Green,  Mrs.  Martha  Brigham,  Jamaica  Plain,  Mass. 

Howe.  Elmer  P.,  Jamaica  Plain.  Mass. 

Hutchinson,  James  D.   (deceased),     Roxbury,  Mass. 

Livermore,  Geo.  B.,  Brighton,  Mass. 

Ford,  Mrs.  S.  J.,  Brighton,  Mass. 

Rice,  Mrs.  Edwin,  Brighton,  Mass. 

Rice,  L.   Frederick,  Brighton,  Mass. 

Rice,  Henry  Brigham,  Brighton,  Mass. 

Seavey,  Mrs.  Alice  Hutchinson,  Roxbury,  Mass. 

Andrews,  Mrs.  Henrietta  M.,  Boylston  Centre,  Mass. 

Hyde,  Harriet  M.,  Boylston,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Miss  Agnes  Otis,  Brookline,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mrs.  Joshua,   Brookline,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Helen  F..  Cambridge,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Miss  Mary,  Cambridge,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Jessie  M.,  Chicopee  Falls,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Nellie  E.,  Chicopee  Falls,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  J.  D.,  Clinton,  Mass. 

Priest,  Mrs.  H.  B..  E.  Norton,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Dr.  H.  H.,  Fitchburgh,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Dr.  Sarah  C,  Fitchburgh,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and    Mrs.  Seth  E.,  Fitchburgh,  Mass. 

Coolidge,  Mrs.  Ellen  D.,  Fitchburgh,  Mass. 

Fairbanks,  Mrs.  Elvira  R.,  Fitchburgh,  Mass. 

Brigham.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Irving  D.,  Framingham,  Mass. 

Buck.  Geo.  W.,  Framingham,  Mass. 

Buck,  Jennie  R..  Framingham,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Nicholas  H.,  Grafton,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Herbert  E..  Hubbardston,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Chas.  E.,  Hubbardston,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mrs.  Annie  E.,  Hudson,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Caleb  L.,  Hudson,  Mass. 

Brigham,  F.  W.,  Hudson,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Frank  E.,  Hudson.  Mass. 

Brigham,  Humphrey,  Hud.son.  Mass. 

Brigham,  Wilbur  F.,  Hudson,  Mass. 


Brigham,  W.  R.,  Hudson,  Mass. 

Holden,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Charles,  Hudson.  Mass. 

Farnsworth,  Charles  L.,  Hyde  Park,  Mass. 

Farnsworth,  Edith  M.,  Hyde  Park.  Mass. 

Brigham,  Sidney  H.,  Lawrence.  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Chas.  H.,  Leommster,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Eugene  C,  Leoniinister,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Chas.  W.,  Lowell,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Ellen  M.,  Lowell,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Emeline,  Lowell,  Mass. 

Brigham,  O.  A.,  Lowell,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Sarah  F.,  Lowell,  Mass. 

Cooper,  Mrs.  A.  C,  Lowell,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Addington  M.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ashley,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  C.  Waldo.  Marlboro.  Mass. 

Brigham,  Charles  F.,  Marlboro.  Mass. 

Brigham,  Cyrus  (deceased),  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Ella  A.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mrs.  Emma  B.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Eugene  O..  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Eustace  H.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Fred  A.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mrs.  Fred  A.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Harrison  E.,  Marlboro.  Mass. 

Brigham,  Harry  E.,  Marlboro.  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Herbert  W..  Marlboro.  Mass. 

Brigham,  Jonas  E.  (deceased),  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mrs.  Mary  E.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Lorimon  S..  Marlboro,  ]\Iass. 

Brigham,  Morrill  F.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Sidney  A.,  Marlboro.  Mass. 

Brigham,  William  H.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Brip-ham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  William  M..  Marlboro,  ^L^ss. 

Brigham.  Willis  F.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Bigelow,  Mrs.  Hannah  E.,  Marlboro.  Mass. 

Boyd,  Miss  Florence,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Boyd,  Miss  Lydia.  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Curtis,  Mrs.  Carrie  A.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Howe,  Mrs.  S.  H.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Morse,  C.  F.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Morse,  Walter  B.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Nichols,  Mrs.  Abbie  Brigham.  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Perry,  Mrs.  A.  H.  Brigham,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Smith,  Mrs.  Mary  F.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Wheeler,  Mrs.  L.  B.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Wheeler.  L.  S.,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Witherbee,  Mrs.  William  Wallace,  Marlboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Charles  Edmund,  Aledford,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Fred.  William,  Medford,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Miss  Mary,  Medfield,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Arthur  L..  Melrose,  Mass. 

Boden,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Edw.  B..  Melrose  Highlands,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Jason  S.,  Milford,  Mass. 

Glidden,  Mrs.  Helen  B.,  Natick,  Mass. 

Hill,  Mrs.  Junius,  Newton.  Mass. 

Johonnot,  Mrs.  E.  P.  B.,  Newton,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Louis  S..  Newton  Highlands,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  L.  K.,  Newton  Highlands.  Mass. 

Kendall,  Josiah  Fay,  Newtonville,  Mass. 

Kendall,  Mrs.  Sarah  J.  B.,  Newtonville,  Mass. 

Kendall,  Miss  Sjlvinia  B.,  Newtonville,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Aaron,  North  Attleboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Charles  B..  Southboro,  Mass. 

Buck.  Helen  M.,  Southboro.  Mass. 


JO 


Buck,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wallace  B.,  Southboro,  Mass. 

Buck,  William  Henry,  Southboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  John  Addison,  South  Braintree,  Mass. 

Butterworth,  Frank  H..  South  Framingham,  Mass. 

Adams,  Mrs.  Allen,  Spencer,  Mass. 

Brigham.  Miss  Anna  F.,  Spencer,  Mass. 

Linley,  Mrs.  Libbie  Brigham.  Spencer.  Mass. 

Axteil.  Clara  S..  Springfield.  Mass. 

Bemis.  Mrs.  E.  M..  Spencer,  Mass. 

Brigham,  D.  H.   (deceased).  Spencer,  Mass. 

Brigham.  Orlando  S.,  Spencer,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Dexter.  Sutton.  Mass. 

Brigham,  John  W.   (deceased).  Wilkinsonville,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Eliiah  W.    (deceased),  Waltham,   Mass. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  John  B.,  Waltham,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Hattie  S..  Watertown,  Mass. 

Brigham.  Edw.  F..  Westboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Geo.  Otis  (deceased),  Westboro,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Mrs.  Eliza  A.  H.,  Westboro,  Mass. 

Rice,  Mrs.  Jane  M.,  Westboro,  Mass. 

Rice,  Miss  Jennie  M.,  Westboro,  Mass. 

Nourse,  B.  B.   (deceased).    Westboro,  Mass. 

Brigham.  John  B.,  West  Boylston,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Harrison  G.  O.,  West  Everett,  Mass. 

Case,  Kate  A.,  Westfield.  Mass. 

Sprague,  Katherine  M.,  Westfield.  Mass. 

Allen.  Mrs.  A.  L.,  West  Millburv.  Mass. 

Whipple,  Mrs.  Horace  P.,  Whitinsville,  Mass. 

Stanley,  Mrs.  Mary  Hobart,  Whitman,  Mass. 

Brigham,  A.  C,  Whitman.  Mass. 

Brigham,  C.  G.,  Winchenden,  Mass. 

Carter,  F.  W..  Winthrop.  Mass. 

Sibley.  C.  A.,  Winthrop,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Alice  C,  W^orcester,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Edmund  R.,  Worcester,  Mass. 

Brigham,  J.  Augusta,  Worcester,  Mass. 

Brigham,  John  S..  Worcester.  Mass. 

Brigham.    Mrs.   John    S.    (deceased),    Worcester,    Mass. 

Brigham.  L.  L..  Worcester.  Mass. 

Brigham.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Merrill  D.,  Worcester.  Mass. 

Brigham,  Nathaniel  S.,  Worcester,  Mass. 

Brigham,  Ralph  H.,  Worcester.  Mass. 

Brigham,  Sarah  N.,  Worcester,  Mass. 

Barrett.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Geo..  W^orcester.  Mass. 

Carter,  Lewis,  Worcester,  Mass. 

Forbes,  Hon.  and  Mrs.  W.  T..  Worcester,  Mass. 

Forbes,  Miss  Cornelia  Brigham,  Worcester,  Mass. 

Howe,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  A.  M.,  Worcester,  Mass. 

Howe.  E.  E.,  Worcester,  Mass. 

Knight,  Mrs.  Henry  S.,  Worcester,  Mass. 

Leland,  Anna  M.,  Worcester.  Mass. 

Rider.  Carrie  A..  Worcester  Mass. 

Rider.  Ella  I..  Worcester,  Mass. 

Simonds.  F.  P..  Worcester,  Mass. 

Taft,  Mrs.  Cornelia  A.,  Worcester,  Mass. 

Brigliam,  D.  C,  Decatur,  Mich. 

Fox,  A.  C.  Dryden,  Mich. 

Brigham.  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Homer  C.  Grand  Rapids,  Mich. 

Chafi^ee,  Mrs.  Sophronia  D.    Flint,  Mich. 

Brigham.  John  H..  Duluth.  Minn. 

Marshall.  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Charles  B.,  Stillwater.  Minn. 

Brown,  Robert  M.,  Lamar,  Mo. 

Brigham,  W^  A..  Independence,  Mo. 

Brieham,  F.  M.,  Kansas  Citv    Mo. 

Brigham,  Samuel  P.,  So.  Omaha,  Neb. 

56 


Perry,  Calvin  Brigham.  Keene.  N.  H. 

Brigham,  Silas,  Lisbon,  X.  H. 

Brigham.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Eugene  C,  Manchester,  N.  H. 

Brigham,  Eugene  W.,  Manchester,  N.  H. 

Doane,  Nathaniel,  Jr.,  Manchester,  N.  H. 

Williams,  Mrs.  Frank  E.,  Nashua,  N.  H. 

Brigham,  Miss  Elizabeth,  Rindge,  N.  H. 

Brigham,  Willard  C,  Rindge,   N.  H. 

Brigham,  Hon.  Hosea  W.,  Winchester.  N.  H. 

Brigham,  Miss  Maud  F..  Winchester,  N.  H. 

Brigham.  Elijah  W..  Binghamton,  N.  Y. 

Brigham,  Elmer  W.,  Binghamton,  X.  Y. 

Brigham,  Mrs.  Rachel  L.,  Binghamton.  N.  Y. 

Pooler.  E.  D..  Briar  Hill.  N.  Y. 

Williams.  Rev.  Dwight  (deceased).  Cazenovia,  N.  Y. 

Brigham,  T.  S..  Clayton.  N.  Y. 

Cushing,  Mrs.  M.  Risley  (deceased).  Dunkirk.  N.  Y. 

Brigham,  Prof.  Albert  Perry.  Hamilton.  N.  Y. 

Brigham.  Elijah  W..  Lestershire,  N.  Y. 

Gregg.  Mrs.  S.  B.,  Lestershire.  N.  Y. 

Brigham,  A.  Ward,  New  York  City. 

Brigham,  Edward  Franklin.  New  York  City. 

Brigham.  Silas  O..  New  York  City. 

Brigham,  W'alter  S.,  New  York  City. 

Coxford,  Mrs.  Rose  Brigham,  New  York  City. 

Aitcheson,  Miss  Mina  Brigham,  Schuylerville,  N.  Y. 

Aitcheson,  Thos.  Brigham,  Schuylerville,  N.  Y. 

Brigham,  Milton.  Spencerport,  N.  Y. 

Moore.  Electa  Brigham.  Utica.  N.  Y. 

Pratt.  Henry  H.,  Cleveland,  Ohio. 

Brigham,  Col.  J.  H.,  Delta,  Ohio. 

Beach,  Mrs.  "Harriet  Brigham,  Toledo,  Ohio. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  C.  O.,  Toledo.  Ohio. 

Brigham,  F.  S.,  Toledo.  Ohio. 

Brigham.  Mavor  (deceased).  Toledo,  Ohio. 

Brigham,  S.  F.,  Toledo,  Ohio. 

Brigham,  W.  A.,  Toledo,  Ohio. 

Brigham.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  W.  E..  Toledo,  Ohio. 

MacLaren  Mrs.  S.  K.,  Toledo,  Ohio. 

Marks,  Mrs.  Sarah  B.,  Toledo,  Ohio. 

Brigham,  Joel,  Wauseon,  Ohio. 

Brigham,  J.  R.,  Corry,  Pa. 

Brigham.  Miss  Clara  J..  Damascus,  Pa. 

Brigham,  James  L.,  Damascus.  Pa. 

Brigham.  Ralph  M..  Franklin.  Pa. 

Brigham.  O.  W..  Galilee.  Pa. 

Brigham.  Mrs.  Mary  E.,  Philad.elphia,  Pa. 

Rice,  Lewis  (deceased),  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Bradley,  Mrs.  Chas.  H.,  Pittsburg.  Pa. 

Brigham,  H.  C,  Newport,  R.  L 

Brigham,  Chas.  A.,  Providence,  R.  L 

Brigham,  John  O.,  Providence,  R.  L 

Adams,  Mrs.  H.  T.,  Hill  City.  S.  D. 

Brigham.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Nat  M.,  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah. 

Waterman,  Kate  M..  Burlington,  Vt. 

Spaulding,  Mrs.  Wm.,  Derby  Line,  Vt. 

Boyce,  Mrs.  Laura  B.,  Montpelier,  Vt. 

Sherburne.  Mrs.  Ada  L.  (deceased),  Montpelier,  Vt. 

Stewart    Edw.  A.    (deceased),  Newport.  Vt. 

Northrop.  Mrs.  D.  F.,  Sheldon,  Vt. 

Brigham,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bella  B.,  Townsend,  Vt. 

Phelps,  Brigham  T.,  Westminster  Sta.,  Vt. 

Brigham,  Jerome  R..  Milwaukee,  Wis. 

Arnold,  Mrs.  Fanny  Brigham.  Sharon,  Wis. 

Brigham,  Rev.  and  Mrs.  Geo.  French,  Sharon.  Wis. 


n/ 


A  FEW  ENGLISH  NOTES.* 
LONDON. 

One  who  undertakes  a  general  English  genealogic  research  (if  he  does  not 
know — and  most  do  not — the  exact  spot  or  place  he  seeks)  will  likely  begin 
at  London,  i.  e.,  headquarters.  Perhaps  a  few  remarks  will  not  be  without 
a  modicum  of  interest,  at  least  to  some. 

Somerset  House.  The  magnificent  pile  (whose  Victoria-Embankment 
facade  is  the  most  imposing,  though  it  fronts  upon  Wellington  Street,  as 
well  as  extending  for  a  distance  along  the  Strand)  is  so  called,  because  erected 
on  the  site  of  the  palace  of  the  Protector  Somerset.  It  is  occupied  by  many 
public  offices  ;  those,  for  instance,  of  the  Audit,  Registrar  General,  Internal 
Revenue,  Admiralty  and  Probate.  In  this  last  division  are  found  the  records 
of  many  local  and  "peculiar"  probate  courts  ;  especially,  those  of  the  Pre- 
rogative Court  of  Canterbur}^  the  most  important  in  the  kingdom. 

"Fees,  fees,"  is  a  word  so  often  used,  that  an  American  on  first  going 
abroad  is  apt  to  be  annoyed,  until  he  speedily  falls  into  the  custom.  But  the 
advocates  of  "Literary  Enquiry"  have  been  so  far  successful,  that  one  may 
"without  fee"  see  and  glean  from  records,  down  to  the  year  1800.  To  obtain 
permission,  one  must  address  a  line  to  the  "President  of  the  Probate  Division 
and  the  Admiralty  Division  of  the  High  Court  of  Justice,  the  Principal  Pro- 
bate Registry,  Somerset  House,  London,"  putting  "Department  of  Literary 
Inquiry"  in  the  corner  of  the  envelope,  stating  in  the  communication  your 
name,  address,  profession,  object  of  search  and  its  probable  length — which 
must  be  vouched  for  by  a  property  holder.  (Being  a  stranger  in  a  strange 
land,  I  obtained  suitable  credentials  from  "our  very  obliging  United  States 
Consul  General  Osborne,  whose  office  is  in  Great  St.  Helen's.) 

Within  brief  time,  I  received  official  notice,  "Available  for  Six  Months,"  that 
I  might  enjoy  the  privileges  sought  for.     Upon  presenting  this  at  the  proper 
office,  a  card  was  issued,  as  follows : 
No.  5492. 

HER  MAJESTY'S  HIGH  COURT  OF  JUSTICE, 

Probate,  Divorce,  and  Admiralty  Division. 

(PROBATE.) 

The  Principal  Registry,  London. 

DEPARTMENT  FOR  LITERARY  INQUIRY. 

7th   May,    1900. 

Admit  W.  I.  Tyler  Brigham,  Esq., 

From  7th  May,  1900,  to  7th  Oct.,  igoo. 

(Signed)  F.  H.  JEUNE." 

With  this  in  pocket,  I  repaired  to  "Room  9,"  in  the  basement  on  the  south 
side  of  the  Great  Quadrangle,  to  make  appointments  for  labor.  The  work 
room  is  a  double  chamber,  united  by  a  great  archway,  wherein  are  four  square 
tables,  at  which  fourteen  persons  may  comfortably  be  employed  at  a  time.  The 
hours  are  10  A.  M.  to  3  -.30  P.  M.  all  week  days  but  Saturday,  when  they 
are  10  to  1 130 ;  there  is  also  a  long  summer  vacation,  during  which  the  rooms 
are  closed.  The  courteous  clerk  (still  pronounced  "Clarke"  in  Great  Britain) 
will  be  pleased  to  assign  you  two  days  a  week,  where  he  finds  vacancies  upon 
his  date-book,  such  as  may  be  most  convenient  to  yourself.  (I  found,  that  by 
being  one's  self  especially  favorable,  one  might  have  special  favors  ;  so  that 
for  weeks  I  was  there  daily — after  11  A.  M. — at  which  hour  there  was  in- 
variably a  vacant  seat  for  me,  with  a  polite  permission  to  take  it.) 

As  they  have  but  two  luggage  assistants,  and  the  tomes  to  be  handled 
both  to  and  from — sometimes  quite  a  distance — are  ponderous,  there  must  be 
a  limit  to  the  number  daily  allowed  to  be  seen  ;  so  that  you  must  restrict  your- 
self to  eight  Registers  a  day — only  two  of  which  can  be  yours  at  a  time — 

*We  take  much  pleasure  in  publishing'  the  names  and  residences  of  those 
whose  collective  contributions  went  materially  towards  bearing  the  expenses 
of  the  English  Brigham  researches:  Miss  Emma  Brigham,  Mrs.  Martha  B. 
Green,  Mrs.  Edwin  Rice,  Miss  Helen  S.  Brigham,  L.  Frederick  Rice,  Henry  B. 
Rice  and  William  D.  Brigham,  all  the  foregoing  of  Boston,  Mass.;  William  E. 
Brigham,  Somerville,  Mass.;  Miss  Helen  P.  Brigham  and  Miss  Mary  Brigham, 
of  Cambridge,  Mass.;  Charles  W.  Brigham,  Miss  Ellen  M.  Brigham,  Miss  Sarah 
P.  Brigham  and  Miss  Emeline  P.  Brigham,  of  Lowell,  Mass.;  Seth  E.  Brigham 
and  Dr.  Hubbard  Brigham,  of  Pitchburg,  Mass.:  William  M.  Brigham,  Marl- 
boro, Mass.;  Mrs.  D.  H".  Brigham,  Springfield.  Mass.:  Miss  Nellie  Brigham, 
Chicopee  Falls,  Mass.;  Mrs.  Rose  B.  Coxford  and  Edward  Brigham.  of  New 
York  City;  Hon.  Johnson  Brigham,  Des  Moines,  la.,  and  Fred  A.  Brigham, 
Topeka,   Ka.s. 

58 


though  you  may,  in  addition,  have  (as  many)  Calendars  and  Act  Books  as  you 
wish.  (The  Calendars  furnish  you  with  the  names  of  your  family  estates, 
together  with  the  years  wherein  they  were  probated ;  so  it  is  the  first  labor 
to  go  through  these,  for  the  requisite  period,  that  you  may  know  what  books 
and  how  to  call  for.  The  Act  Books  are  only  occasionally  useful,  by  giving 
side  lights,  through  certain  proceedings  in  causes.  The  Registers  are  the 
books  of  books,  as  herein  the  wills  appear  at  length.  Instead  of  being  num- 
bered seriatim,  they  are  named  from  the  first,  or  the  principal,  estate  which 
happens  to  have  been  probated  in  that  volume.  E.  g.  "Fairfax,"  Pembroke," 
"Grey.") 

You  make  your  wants  known  upon  green  slips;  giving  simply  the  years 
(upon  the  proper  lines),  if  you  wish  either  Calendars  or  Act  Books;  but, 
should  you  wish  Registers,  you  must  state  the  "name"  of  the  volume,  as  well 
as  the  '"folio"  (or  page)  whereupon  is  to  be  found  the  estate  you  expect  to 
examine  into.  (This  "folio"  is  a  very  elastic  quantity,  for  it  contains,  as  a 
rule,  anywhere  from  eight  to  twelve  pages.  They  now  make  the  volumes  uni- 
formly of  fifty  folios,  eight  leaves  to  the  folio.)  Many  of  the  calendars  are 
kept  in  the  room  where  you  work;  so  that,  as  to  such,  you  are  instructed  to 
"help  yourself."  Your  notes  must  be  made  in  pencil,  and  at  the  end  of  each 
visit  you  must  sign  your  name  in  a  register.  If  you  express  a  wish  (as  I  did) 
to  photograph  one  of  these  curious  volumes,  you  learn  that  it  must  be  done 
officially  and  at  considerable  expense. 


Brigham  wills  found  and  examined  in  Canterbury  Court  are  as  follows : 
Brigham,  Thomas,  161.3,  "Capell,"  folio  62,  of  Caversham,  Oxford.     (This 
is  evidently  the  person  set  out  in  the  Oxford  herald's  pedigree.)     The  will 


widdowe,",  "Nephewe  Thomas  Brigham,  sonne  of  my  saide  Brother  Christo- 
fer,"  William  Brigham,  "another  son  of  Xfer,"  a  nephew,  Gurgeney,  Edward 
Reade,  Thomas  Manwaringe,  "my  Godson,  George  Manwaringe,"  Jerom 
Leydon,  Jr.,  niece  Elizabeth  Stone  (wife  of  Thomas),  a  daughter  of  his 
sister,  Gurgeny,  Robert  Leydon,  son  of  Robert,  cheesemonger,  deceased; 
"my  Cozen  Lake's  daughter,"  Jasper  Goodwines  and  wife,  is  for  rings;  £13 
6s  8d  for  the  poor  of  his  parish  and  the  parish  wherein  he  may  die ;  40s  to  each 
servant  in  his  house  who  has  served  him  above  three  days  at  the  time  of  his 
death;  "my  Cozen  Alexander  Hampden,  knight,  and  his  lady,  a  piece  of  plate 
of  £10  value,  and  each  £3  for  a  ring;"  each  of  his  executors  has  £3  for  a  ring. 
"My  two  sisters,  namely  my  sister  Leydon  and  my  sister  Gergeny,  each  £3 
for  rings.  Still  others  have  sums  for  remembrance  rings  ;  Humfrey  Wymes 
(this  is  undoubtedly  the  person  associated  as  partner  with  the  testator  in 
the  great  tin  mines  of  Cornwall,  of  which  they  were  grantees  under  Queen 
Elizabeth),  a  godson,  Thomas  Horton;  Humfrey  Baker,  John  Cordrey. 
Michaell  Heydon  and  Edwarde  Reade  are  executors.  Further  proceedings 
(/('  bonis  non  in  the  above  estate  are  found  in  "Soame,"  folios  62-64;  "Swan," 
folio  I,  &  "Byrde,"  in  1624  seems  to  wind  it  up. 

Brigham,  Richard,  Esq..  of  Lambeth,  Surry,  "Pile,"  folio  47;  will  dated 
16  Jan.,  1635.  (The  will  of  his  wife,  Emeline,  is  probated  thenext  year,  1637, 
in  "Goare,"  fol.  122;  but  adds  nothing  to  the  facts  presented  in  her  husband's 
probate.)  Richard  makes  bequests  to:  St.  Paul's  Cathedral,  the  poor  of 
Lambeth,  the  poor  of  the  Parish  of  St.  Botehafn,  London,  also  of  Croydon; 
the  poor  yoemen  of  "His  Grace's  household,"  (i.  e. — the  Archbishop  of  Can- 
terbury), his  old  fellow-servant,  Thomas  Whale;  Elizabeth  Billing,  Robert 
Cornwell,  his  loving  sister,  Thomazin  Blaxton,  and  her  eldest  daughter, 
the  widow  Morman ;  her  second  daughter,  and  others  ;  his  brother  Thomas 
Brigham  (has  £20  money,  and  £20  annual  interest  in  the  lease  of  Overland's 
Rectory)  ;  his  wife  Emeline  and  two  daughters,  Jane  and  Anne,  brothers-in- 
law  Thomas  and  Henry  Hudson,  William  Lorde,  Archbishop  of  Canter- 
l)ury.  and  his  Chaplains,  Messrs.  Bray  and  Heywoods ;  his  loving  brother,  John 
Brigham,  who  is  joined  as  "overseer"  with  the  treasurer  of  His  Grace's  house. 
(This  is  evidently  the  "Richard,"  Controller  of  the  Archbishop's  house," 
set  out  in  my  Anglian  Brighamea.) 

Brigham,  Thomas.  "Citizen  and  Cordweyner,"  of  London,  "Fairfax,"  folio 
134,  will  dated  19  September,  1649.  Bequests  to:  His  brother,  John  Brigham 
(who  is  given  his  four  houses  in  Wentford  street,  St.  Mary's,  Whitechapel, 

59 


Middlesex,  also  being  appointed  executor),  to  his  brother-in-law,  John  Wright, 
and  he  mentions  his  "late  brother,"  George  Brigham.. 

Joane  Brigham,  widow  of  London,  "Bowyer,"  folio  156,  will  dated  20  Sep- 
tember, 1652.  Speaks  of  her  "butcher's  stall  within  Leaden  Hall"  (i,  e. present 
Leadenhall  St.),  in  London;  her  cozen,  Thomas  Peele  of  BRIGHAM,  in  Cum- 
berland, tailor,  has  i8o  due  her  from  the  late  Richard  Brigham  of  St.  Mar- 
tin's-in-the-Fields,  coachman.  (This  is  the  "Royal"  coach-maker  mentioned  in 
my  "Anglian  Brighamea").  Thomas  Brigham.  son  of  Thomas,  late  of  "Co- 
tum"  (probably  Gotham),  and  Richard  Churchill,  butcher,  of  London,  execu- 
tors.     (She  seems  to   have  died   childless.) 

George  Brigham.  husbandman,  Eastrington,  York.  "Pell,"  folio  280.  will 
dated  19  June,  1658 :  Mentions  his  brothers,  Robert  and  Thomas  Brigham, 
also  Robert  and  Margarett,  children  of  the  said  Thomas;  his  sister,  Abigail 
Brigham  ;    his  son,  Robert  Brigham  is  executor. 

John  Brigham.  Esq.,  Swansey,  Cambridge,  1667,  "Carr,"  folio  114,  makes 
his  wife,  Jane,  executrix,  and  mentions  his  only  child  a  minor  "Harker." 

John  Brigham  grocer,  of  Westminster,  London,  "Pembroke."  folio  49, 
1668.  will  dated  20  Jan.,  1649,  wishes  to  be  buried  in  "Margarett  Church  in 
Westminster,"  near  his  former  wife  and  child.  Mentions  cozens  Benjamin 
&  Josua  Blaxton,  Marie  Brigham,  daughter  of  his  brother  Thomas,  deceased; 
his  wife  Margaret  and  daughter  Elizabeth  made  executors.  Brother  John 
Turner,  mercer,  of  London,  and  friend  Michael  Arnold,  Sr.,  brewer,  are  ap- 
pointed overseers. 

British  Museum  Reading  Room.  This  magnificent  structure,  upon  classic 
lines,  is  situated  in  Great  Russel  Street,  Bloomsbury  (West  Center)  ;  the 
particular  portion  thereof  above  alluded  to  being  a  superb  circular  apartment, 
surmounted  by  a  dome  whose  diameter  exceeds  that  of  St.  Peter's  at  Rome. 
Here  is  accommodation  at  once  for  no  less  than  300  workers,  each  with  a  desk, 
with  two  tables  exclusively  set  apart  for  ladies  (who  have  equal  rights  also 
in  the  room  at  large). 

To  obtain  admittance,  you  must  make  proper  application  in  writing,  ac- 
companied with  sufficient  sureties.  (The  American  Embassy  became  my 
surety.  It  is  situated  tipon  Victoria  Street — not  far  from  Westminster  Abbey 
— though  the  Ambassador's  residence  is  in  Pall  Mall,  the  "Diplomatic  neigh- 
borhood." Upon  presenting  references,  the  secretary  of  the  embassy  extended 
very  gratifying  consideration ;  including  privileges  of  attending  sessions  of  the 
Houses  of  Commons  and  the  Lords,  visiting  the  Royal  Mews  at  Buckingham 
palace,  etc.  The  American  representative  is  understood  to  be  especially 
favored,  in  being  allowed  the  disposal  of  two  seats  a  session  of  both  Houses  of 
Parliament;    while  other  countries  are  ordinarly  allowed  but  one.) 

On  receiving  favorable  reply  tne  entry  clerk  issued  the  following  ticket : 

"NOT  TRANSFERABLE. 
A  66999. 

4479- 

This  Ticket  Admits 

Mr.  W.  I.  Tyler  Brigham, 

26  Doughty  St.,  W.  C, 

to  the  READING  ROOM  of  the 

British  Museum, 

for  the  Term  of  Three  Months. 

Available  from  17th  May  to  17th  Aug.,  1900." 

Armed  with  such  a  passport,  one  may,  as  he  wills,  avail  himself  of  the 
enormous  aggregation  of  books,  maps,  and  manuscripts  to  be  found  here,  upon 
all  week  days,  between  the  hours  of  9  and  7.  It  is  indeed  a  busy  place! 
Around  the  almost  entire  periphery  of  the  apartment  are  arranged  alcoves, 
filled  with  books  of  most  frequent  quest  and  general  authority,  touching 
broad  subjects  oftenest  the  subject  of  studious  inquiry.  These  may  be  taken 
down  in  numbers,  as  one  pleases  freely  to  consult;  the  only  conditions  being, 
decent  use  and  return  to  proper  place.  I  cannot  say  how  many  most  valu- 
able volumes  are  thus  easily  reached,  but  it  is  thousands  upon  thousands ; 
such  a  collection,  in  short,  as  would  make  many  a  fine  library  run  over  with 
joy,  could  they  but  fill  their  shelves  with  these  books  to  the  exclusion  of  all 
others. 

The  greatest  and  choicest  favors,  however,  are  arranged  in  excellent  stacks 
in  room  after  room  contiguously  located  ;  to  see  any  of  which,  you  must  fill 
out  a  proper  slip  for  each  book,  place  it  in  a  basket  upon  the  center  circular 
bar,  wherefrom  they  are  frequently  taken  by  one  of  numerous  attacJics,  and 

60 


the  requested  article  brought  to  your  desk  (which  are  lettered  in  rows,  and 
numbered  by  seats)  within  a  reasonable  time.  Some  of  the  largest  or  priceless 
burdens  are  never  brought  to  the  main  room ;  to  consult  which,  you  pass  out 
by  the  back  thereof,  through  a  corridor,  into  the  large  room,  of  extensive 
quadrangular  proportions.  When  through  consultation,  you  must  return  these 
to  the  desk,  and  reclaim  (to  destroy)  your  checks.  They  are  perfectly  free 
in  giving  you  access ;  but  I  fancy  any  infringement  of  rules  would  be  sum- 
marily dealt  with. 

In  another  part  of  this  division  of  the  immense  building  is  the  Manu- 
script Students'  Room,  where  the  Harleian,  Additional,  and  other  manuscripts, 
old  seals,  etc.,  may  be  examined  into.  Being  for  the  most  part  unpublished, 
great  care  is  required  in  their  handling;  to  which  end,  portable  rests,  adjust- 
able to  any  angle,  are  on  all  the  tables,  whereupon  you  will  be  required  to 
keep  placed  whatever  you  may  have  in  use.  By  special  request,  we  were 
permitted  to  look  upon  that  immortal  public  document,  the  parchment 
Magna  Charta.  which  has  passed  through  literal  fire  and  water,  having,  until 
recent  times,  been  in  private  hands. 

Of  other  departments  of  this  enormous  museum  Iwill  not  speak,  it  being, 
in  no  sense  germain  to  my  undertaking.  It  seems  as  if  the  curious  and  the 
historically  interesting  of  all  countries,  and  all  time,  had  here  been  aggregated 
or  were  represented.  Perhaps,  the  most  generally  looked  for.  are  the  famous 
"Rosetta  Stone"  (from  which  intelligent  light  into  the  Egyptian  hieroglyphics 
was  first  shed  to  us  moderns)  and  the  "Elgin  Marbles,"  from  the  Parthenon 
at  Athens. 

Public  Record  Office.  Is  between  Fleet  Street  and  High  Holborn,  runs 
from  Fetter  Lane  to  Chancery  Lane,  with  its  main  entrance  through  an  im- 
posing gateway  upon  the  last  thoroughfare.  A  modern  structure,  to  which 
when  I  first  went  there,  they  appeared  to  be  building  an  addition ;  but  the  ex- 
penses of  the  Boer  War  were  so  heavy,  that  they  postponed  further  action. 
Herein  are  preserved  many  of  the  oldest  and  most  valuable  public  docu- 
ments of  the  kingdom.  First,  comes  the  Doomesday  Book  of  land  titles,  com^- 
piled  by  the  Norman  Conqueror  more  than  800  years  ago ;  long  kept  in  the 
old  Norman  city  of  Winchester,  later  at  Westminster,  now  herein  to  be  seen 
by  such  as  know  of  it  and  its  whereabouts.  It  is  in  two  parchment  volumes,. 
of  the  size  and  thickness  of  common  ledger  books ;  written  in  black  ink,, 
somewhat  illuminated  in  red,  whose  colors  are  remarkably  preserved. 

Following  Doomesday  Book,  and  of  great  value,  touching  the  sphere  of; 
subinfeudation,  sale  and  transfer  of  lands,  are  the  Pipe  Rolls  (partly  pub- 
lished by  the  Pipe  Rolls  Society),  Miscellanea  of  the  Exchequer,  Hundred 
Rolls  (printed  by  the  British  Record  Commission),  Placita  Quo  Warranto, 
Kirby's  Quest  (printed  by  the  Surtees  Society)  and  the  Fine  Rolls.  Concern- 
ing Land  Sale  and  Transfer  Inter  Vivos,  come  the  Charters  (a  host  of  ma- 
terial, bits  of  which  have  been  published  at  different  times  by  various  authors), 
Feet  of  Fines,  King's  Silver  Books  (from  Henry  VIII.),  Indexes  to  Cove- 
nant Books,  Indexes  to  Concords  of  Fines  and  Recoveries.  Concerning  Land 
Legal  Proceedings,  are  Rolls  of  King's  Court  (to  Edward  I.,  1272),  De  Banco 
Rolls  (from  1272,  exclusive  jurisdiction  over  land,  and  contain  many  valuable 
pedigrees),  Exchequer  of  Pleas  (from  1272,  on  "Equity"  side),  Court  of 
Chancery  and  Duchy  of  Lancaster  (Equity).  Under  Criminal  Proceedings, 
come  the  Crown  Plea  Rolls  (from  1272,  including  Rolls  of  Assize,  Eyre, 
Coroners,  Gaol  Delivery,  Parliament  Rolls  for  Attainder  and  Star  Chamber 
Records).  Under  State  Papers,  come  Chancery  Files,  Miscellaneous  Records 
of  Chancery,  Rymer's  Foedera,  Statutes  and  Journals  of  Parliament.  Recusant 
Rolls,  Parliamentary  Surveys,  Royalist  Composition  Papers,  Plundered  Minis- 
ters' Accounts,  etc.)  Under  Ecclesiastical  and  Monastic  Records,  come  Cler- 
ical Subsidy  Rolls,  Suppression  Records,  Composition  for  Tithes,  etc.  Under 
Fiscal  Records,  are  Lay  Subsidy  Rolls,  Queen's  Remembrancer  of  the  Ex- 
chequer, Custom  Rolls,  etc.  Concerning  Descent  of  Lands,  are  Inquisitions 
F^ost  Mortem  (two  series.  Chancery  and  Exchequer),  Escheators'  Accounts 
and  Proofs  of  Age.  Under  Grants  from  the  Crown,  came  Charter  Rolls  (from 
1199,  for  fairs,  markets,  warrens,  corporations,  etc.),  Originalia  Rolls,  Calen- 
dar of  Treasury  Papers,  Close  Rolls,  Patent  Rolls,  Hundred  Rolls  and 
Placita  de  Quo  Warranto. 

The  only  credential  needed  to  enter  here  is  a  presentable  appearance,  and 
you  must  register  your  name  and  address  at  once,  and  each  time  you  come. 
Then  you  are  allowed  to  pass  on  into  the  Round  Room  and  the  Long  Room, 
the  two  which  are  the  students'  resort.     It  is  open  week  days  from  10  to  4; 

61 


Saturdays,  from  lo  to  2  only.  You  make  out  separate  tickets  for  each  article 
desired,  of  which  you  may  have  at  a  time  but  three.  The  rooms  named  are 
lined  with  alcoves,  filled  mainly  with  Indexes  and  Calendars,  from  which 
you  learn  what  you  will  require;  then  the  assistants  will  bring  them  (on 
ordersfrom  the  desk  clerk)  from  the  other  vaults  in  the  building  wherein 
the  original  records  are  kept. 

From  around  the  period  of  1600  (whereat  my  researches  mainly  began), 
English  commenced  to  be  generally  written  in  the  records ;  and,  as  I  was 
already  familiar  with  the  earliest  records  in  America  (which  date  at  about 
the  same  period),  it  did  not  take  long  to  get  into  full  swing.  But  from  that 
era  backwards  (towards  the  very  properly  called  "Dark  Ages"),  when  modi- 
fications of  Law  Latin,  as  tinctured  by  the  Norman-French,  was  the  sole 
language  of  public  record,  it  becomes  more  and  more  difficult  as  one  proceeds 
towards  the  earlier  times.  In  fact,  record  interpretation  at  this  stage  must 
become  a  laborious  science,  in  which  none  has  attained  absolute  proficiency — 
there  being  abbreviations  and  arbitrary  signs,  which  continue  in  instances  to 
puzzle  the  wisest.  (There  have  been  some  helps  published  along  this  line. 
Perhaps  the  best  is  Martin's  "Record  Interpreter ;"  of  which  I  bought  a  copy, 
and  found  I  was  enabled  to  English  some  passages,  which  before  had  been 
as  "Greek"  to  me.) 

Heralds'  College.  This  edifice,  situated  upon  Queen  Victoria  Street 
(near  St.  Paul's),  is  spacious  and  imposing,  with  a  front  court  reached 
through  an  arched  gateway.  The  college  was  founded  by  Richard  III.,  1483, 
and  consists  ot  thirteen  members — three  kings-of-arms  (Garter,  Clarenceux 
and  Norroy),  six  heralds  (Windsor,  Chester,  Lancaster,  York,  Richmond 
and  Somerset),  and  four  pursuivants  {Rouge-croix,  Blue-mantle,  Rouge- 
dragon  and  Portcullis).  As  this  is  a  private  fee  college,  it  was  necessary  for 
me  to  place  a  commission.  Mr.  T.  M.  J.  Watkins  ("Portcullis")  was  as- 
signed to  care  for  my  needs  (a  gentleman  whom  I  found  both  reasonable  and 
obliging,  who  makes  a  specialty  of  tracing  Welch  pedigrees). 

The  functions  of  this  institution  were  formerly^  more  numerous  and  im- 
portant (in  some  respects)  than  at  present;  still  this  has  derogated  but  little 
from  the  pomp  and  ceremony  of  a  conservative  nation.  The  records  preserved 
here  form  the  largest  genealogic  and  heraldic  collection  in  the  world,  often  re- 
ferred to  by  searchers.  A  former  "Norroy,"  was  Sir  Isaac  Heard,  who  was 
the  second  husband  of  the  widow  of  Captain  David  Ochterlony,  her  maiden 
name  having  been  Catherine  Tyler,  of  Boston,  Mass.,  U.  S.  A. 

The  Library  of  Heralds'  College  is  divided  into  "Records"  and  "Collec- 
tions." The  "Records"  include:  Visitation  Books  (Henry  Vlll.-James  II., 
being  compilations  of  arms  and  pedigrees  made  by  Visits  of  Heralds  to  various 
parts  of  the  country ;  many  have  been  published  by  the  Harleian  Society,  and 
others).  Books  of  Modern  Records  (miscellaneous  pedigrees,  recorded  since 
the  Visitations),  Books  of  Pedigrees  and  Arms  of  Peers  (compiled  1767), 
Books  of  Pedigrees  and  Arms  of  Baronets  (cornpiled  1783),  Funeral  Cer 
tificates  (valuable  as  showing  deaths,  burials,  marriages  and  children  of  upper 
families).  Books  of  Royal  Marriages,  Coronations,  Funerals,  etc..  Earl  Mar- 
shall's Books  and  Grants  of  Arms. 

The  "Collections"  include  3,000  manuscript  volumes,  which  are  either  the 
w^ork  of  members  of  the  college  since  its  establishment,  or  such  others  as 
have  been  obtained  by  purchase. 


UP  IN  THE  NORTH  COUNTRY. 

PREROGATIVE  EXCHEQUER  COURT  OF  YORK.  The  various  resi- 
dences of  the  32  Brighams,  whose  wills  were  probated  in  the  above  court, 
from  its  inception  down  to  1600,  are  summarized  as  follows :  Bridlington, 
Lepington  (parish  Scrayngham),  York,  Bishopburton,  Howsom,  Beverly, 
Foston,  Attingwickc,  Fisholme,  Sherifhoten.  Wyton,  Holme  (Spaldingmore), 
North  Dalton,  Sylcsthorne,  Butterwicke,  Thirkelbie.  They  appear  to  have 
represented  many  walks  of  life ;  yeoman,  barber,  carpenter,  butcher,  hus- 
bandman, merchant,  chaplain,  Esquire  and  Gentleman. 

The  estates  carefully  examined  during  the  period  in  question  are : 
Brigham,  William,  of  Butterwicke,  1602,  Vol.  28,  page  823. 
Brigham,  Robert,  of  Everly,  1603,  Vol.  29,  page  215. 
Brigham,  Richard,  husbandman,  Kirkbie,  1603,  Vol.  29,  page  225. 
Brigham,  Henry,  of  Seaton,  1606,  Vol.  30,  page  165. 
Brigham,  Christopher,  of  Kirkbie,   161 1,  Vol.  31,  page  736. 
Brigham,  Robert,  1612,  Vol.  32,  page  260. 

62  ^ 


Brigham,  John,  1614,  Vol.  33,  page  372. 

Brighani,  George,  1614,  Vol.  33,  page  616. 

Brigham,  Richard,  1616,  Vol.  34,  page  95. 

Brigham,  John,  1618,  Vol.  35,  page  6. 

Brigham,  Richard,  1620,  Beverly  :    had  son  Thomas,  Vol.  36,  page  668. 

Brigham,  Isahella,  1632,  Vol.  42,  page  281. 

Brigham,  Henry,  1637,  Vol.  42    page  367. 

Durham  Probate  consists  of  two  courts — Court  of  the  Dean  and  Chapters 
of  Allertonshire  (North  Riding  of  Yorkshire)  and  the  Durham  Consistory 
Court,  which  latter  down  to  1858,  had  jurisdiction  also  over  the  County  of 
Northumberland.     As  before  observed,  no  Brigham  estates  are  here. 

At  New  Castle,  we  found  corroborative  evidence  of  a  mistake  recorded  at 
the  Heralds'  College  in  London.  In  the  Report  of  this  college  rendered  me 
was  reference  made  to  "Brigham  Monumental  Inscription"  from  Northum- 
berland. On  referring  to  the  volume  at  the  college,  it  proved  to  be  record 
of  one  "Christopher  Brigham  of  New  Castle,  St.  Nicholas  Church,"  which 
gave  as  Jiis  arms:  an  annulet,  between  three  horses'  heads,  couped  and  ca- 
parisoned. As  I  had  already  studied  up  pretty  thoroughly  the  subject  of 
Brigham  arms,  from  all  pulDlished  authorities,  and  had  never  found  any 
ascribed  to  our  family  which  at  all  approached  the  above  description  ;  and 
knowing  this  "Christopher"  Brigham  to  have  been  of  a  fine  New  Castle  fam- 
ily, I  determined  to  learn  more  about  this  matter  when  I  reached  that  city. 
Accordingly,  at  first  opportunity,  I  repaired  to  the  said  "St.  Nicholas' 
Church,"  which  was  found  to  be  a  very  old  and  interesting  structure,  filled 
with  monuments,  which  the  very  obliging  custodian  was  glad  to  point  out  to 
us.  On  making  known  the  exact  nature  of  my  visit,  he  took  me  to  the  apart- 
ment where  the  records  were  kept,  and  produced  a  printed  book,  bearing  the 
title,  "A  Collection  of  Arriiorial  Bearings,  Etc.,  of  St.  Nicholas'  Church,  Etc.," 
from  which  (in  Vol.  I.,  page  5)  we  took  the  following  entry:     "Tomb  Stone 

in  the  Nave.     1531.     Pray  for  ye  soule  of  Horsleyie,  march,  aventurer 

sometime  maior  of  this  town  &  ,  his  wife  .     Arms,  ■ 

three  horses'  heads  couped bridled ,  an  annulet  for  difference." 

We  found  no  Brigham  record  or  arms  in  the  work;  but  here  were  the 
very  arms  recorded  to  our  family  at  Heralds'  College,  London,  credited  to 
the  family  of  "Horsleyie."  Since  then,  I  have  had  time  to  look  up  the  rec- 
ords of  the  Horsleyie  family  i.i  Burke;  and  I  found  that  this  standard  author 
upon  heraldry  gives  this  family  the  above  arms,  but  none  others.  (I  might 
say  that  it  affords  a  very  striking  instance  of  what  are  known  as  "allusory" 
or  "canting"  arms  ;  being  such  as  allude  to  the  name  of  the  person  bearing 
them.  Thus,  the  head  of  the  horse,  in  the  above  arms  alludes  to  the  surname 
of  the  family  bearing  them,  i.  e.,  "Hors\ty\&.") 

Yes,  I  feel  positive  (for  even  the  attaches  of  a  royal  institution,  like 'Her- 
alds' College,  are  mortal;  and  so  liable  to  error),  that  some  one  connected 
with  the  above  college  in  the  past,  in  some  "Visitation"  to  Northumberland, 
made  an  incorrect  entry.  At  that  time,  there  was  not  unlikely  a  Brigham 
tombstone  preserved  in  "St.  Nicholas,"  which  might  have  been  located  hard 
by,  and  contributed  to  the  said  mistake.  We  know  that  "Christopher"  Brig- 
ham, as  is  recorded  of  the  above  "Horsleyie,"  was  also  a  "march,  (i.  e.,  mer- 
chant) aventurer,  sometime  maior  of  this  towne"  (i.  e.,  New  Castle).  We 
would  be  in  error  to  assume  the  above  coat  came  into  the  Brigham  family  by 
reason  of  intermarriage  with  the  "Horsleyies,"  for  in  such  event,  we  should 
have  found  it  "impaled"  with  the  Brigham  coat. 

This  error  of  Heralds'  College  is  all  the  more  apparent  on  referring  back 
to  my  article,  "Anglian  Brighamea,"  where  are  seen  the  correct  arms  of  the 
New  Castle  Brighams,  as  recorded  by  "Tongue,  Norroy  King,"  whose  Visita- 
tion was  in  1530.  They  bear  the  same  arms  as  the  Brighams  of  Yorkshire, 
from  whom  they  probably  descended. 


We  wish  to  thank  Mr.  J.  M.  Thompson,  Curator  of  the  Historical  De- 
partment, General  Registry  House,  Edinburgh,  and  Sir  Andrew  Agnew,  Cus- 
todian of  the  Scotland  Parish  Registers,  New  Register  House,  Edinburgh, 
for  their  very  kind  interestedness  in  behalf  of  our  researches.  Though  the 
material  there  proved  to  be  very  meager,  we  are  sure  everything  possible  was 
done  by  these  gentlemen  to  further  our  task. 

While  at  Wells,  I  took  occasion  to  visit  the  Cathedral  and  Bishop's  Palace. 
(As  wills  were  formerly  matter  of  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction,  my  county  re- 

63 


searches  led  to  old  cathedral  towns  or  "cities,"  for  ridiculous  as  it  seems  to 
a  Yankee,  only  cathedral  centers  are  "cities"  in  England.  Just  think  of  it. 
Cardiff,  the  modern  great  coal  port,  is  only  a  village,  while  Llandaff,  but  two 
miles  away,  with  a  population  of  but  two  or  three  thousaand,  because  it  has 
a  cathedral,  is  a  "city.")  Cathedrals  are  the  crowning  glory  of  England; 
they  are  epitomes  of  local  and  general  history  from  Saxon  to  modern  times, 
the  embodied  narratives  of  the  origin  and  development  of  insular  archi- 
tecture, the  most  venerable  and  beautiful  fabrics  standing  anywhere  upon 
English-speaking  soil.  Perhaps  I  may  be  pardoned  a  few  sentences,  touch- 
ing this  remarkable  pile  (as  I  must  pass  over  many  others  visited  in  silence), 
as  typical  (to  a  degree)  of  its  kind;  exceedingly  complete  and  well-pre- - 
served,  though  not  among  the  largest,  but  having  some  features  peculiarly 
its  own. 

In  the  first  place  "The  Close"  is  still  surrounded  by  its  heavy  excluding 
walls  (quite  exceptionally  preserved,  I  found)  pierced  with  massive  gateways 
(usually  opened,  but  closed  often  enough  to  preserve  the  legal  status  of  a 
"private  way").  Many  similar  structures  have  been  so  encroached  upon, 
that,  though  they  bear  an  inalienable  air  of  majesty,  they  seem  crowded;  at 
Wells,  you  see  "the  impressive  spectacle  from  afar,  and  have  time  to  let  it 
grow  upon  you  as  you  near  its  sacred  precincts.  Its  west  facade,  composed 
of  two  corner  towers  connected  by  a  walled  screen  of  the  central  gable,  is 
regarded  as  the  finest  of  its  period,  and  affords  the  best  display  of  exterior 
sculpture  to  be  found  in  Great  Britain.  A  most  uncongenial  climate,  added 
to  vandalous  trespasses,  accounts  for  many  an  unfilled  niche ;  but  enough 
remains  to  sugp^est  to  the  imagination,  the  supreme  effect  which  must  have 
been  produced  by  the  ancient  entirety.  Within,  the  walls  of  delicate  creamy 
limestone  present  an  exquisitely  chaste  appearance,  befitting  the  sanctuary. 
As  it  was  about  the  hour  for  morning  service  our  patient  watch  was  rewarded 
by  a  most  impressive  spectacle,  the  aged  prelate  leading  from  the  vestry  his 
procession  of  godly  assistants ;  as  we  soon  after  ascended  the  central  tower, 
the  music  from  men  and  organ  coming  up  from  below  resounded  faintly 
solemn,  like  the  chorus  of  heavenly  cherubim.  The  steps  of  the  stairway 
leading  to  the  Chapter  House  are  so  worn  that  it  seems  like  ascending 
a  gradual  incline ;  the  crowning  glory  of  this  beautiful  room  is  the  central 
clustered  pillar,  which  at  the  capital  divides  into  a  ribbed,  fanlike  vaulting 
elsewhere  unequaled.  In  the  north  transept  is  the  oldest  clock  in  the  world ; 
It  was  made  in  the  fore  part  of  the  14th  century  by  a  monk  of  Glastonbury 
Abbey,  where  it  kept  time  for  two  centuries  and  a  half,  until,  on  the  dissolu- 
tion of  the  monastery,  it  was  removed  to  Wells,  where  it  kept  the  hours  for 
a  similar  period,  when  it  was  replaced  by  modern  works,  the  old  being  sent 
to  the  museum  of  South  Kensington,  where  it  yet  ticks,  and  is  regarded  as 
the  very  oldest  piece  of  working  mechanism.  The  figures  connected  with  the 
clock  are  unique ;  outside  on  the  tower  two  knights  in  armor  strike  the 
hour  bells  with  their  battle  axes;  within,  a  figure  (called  by  the  rustics 
"Jack  Blandiver")  kicks  the  small  bell,  and  on  the  hours  four  knights 
come  out  on  horseback  with  their  tilting  lances,  two  going  in  each  direction, 
and  as  a  result  of  their  racings  one  unfortunate  is  put  Jwrs  dc  combat.  (As 
the  other  three  always  come  off  "Scott  free,"  it  can  hardlj-  be  called  "fair 
play.")  The  half-ruinous  cloister  (wherein,  it  is  said,  Cromwell  stabled  his 
horses),  surrounding  a  burial  quadrangle  filled  with  old  tombs,  a  singl.e 
gnarled  evergreen  standing  out  stunted  in  the  center  filled  me  with  a 
pensiveness  such  as  did  no  other  of  the  several  indescribable  ones  later 
visited.  Of  its  multitudinous  attractions,  we  single  out  a  few  :  The  inverted 
arches  (built  at  a  later  date  to  support  the  sinking  central  tower),  old  Nor- 
man (or  pre-Norman)  font,  old  chapels  and  intramural  shrines,  original 
misericords  (all  that  remains  of  the  first  woodwork,  showing  as  fine  carving 
as  any  on  the  island)  and  grotesque  corbels  and  capitals.  A  most  charming 
natural  feature  is  beheld  from  the  bishop's  garden,  being  St.  Andrew's  spring. 
Its  outflow  has  created  a  little  pool  of  such  tremendous  depths  that  no  line 
has  found  bottom,  which  empties  hard  by  into  a  moat,  now  nearly  filled  up. 
which  quite  surrounds  the  palace,  where  glide  stately  swans.  To  this,  and 
other  springs,  is  due  the  name  given  ages  ago  to  the  place  and  the  church, 
i.  e..  Wells.  The  palace  grounds,  of  considerable  extent,  are  surrounded  by 
battlemented  walls,  whose  drawbridge  (now  transformed  to  a  more  station- 
ary device)  with  its  elevating-chain,  the  rust-eaten  portcullis  and  bastioned 
gate-house,  pierced  with  cross-shaped  openings  for  archers,  give  a  more 
complete  picture  of  medieval  ecclesiastic  power  and  dignity  than  I  observed 
elsewhere. 

64 


THIS  MEANS  YOU! 

The  undersigned  has  undertaken  to  prepare  a  Brigham  Family  History. 
As  it  will  make  a  volume  of  from  600  to  800  pages,  it  means  zvork,  work, 
PLENTY  OF  WORK.  How  can  you  aid  in  this?  By  sending  in  your  family 
records.  If  they  belong  there,  we  wish  them  :  the  sooner  the  better.  Whether 
or  not,  you  '"care  a  straw"  about  this  matter  ;  even  if  you  vow  never  to  spend 
one  cent  upon  such  a  book— none  the  less.  I  say,  if  your  RECORDS  belong 
THERE,  I  WANT  THEM.     So  Send  them  along,  that  my  work  may  be  complete. 

A  former  well-meant  attempt  of  this  sort  was  undertaken  some  years  ago 
by  Dr.  B.  A.  R.  Brisrham.  His  health  and  spirits  failed  him;  so  far  as  he 
is  concerned,  the  work  is  already  acknowledged  to  be  a  dead  failure.  It  was 
a  pity!  It  is  too  bad!  What's  to  be  done?  The  work!  What  work?  The 
Brigham  Family  History.  Surely,  we  cannot  supinely  allow  the  disability 
of  one  man  to  defeat  the  avowed  aims  and  purposes  of  our  entire  clan,  as 
expressed  time  and  again  through  its  Brigham  Family  Association. 

Are  you  a  Brigham  ?  Then  set  to  work !  The  records  sent  by  you  to  Dr. 
Brigham  (if  you  sent  any)  do  not  now  acquit  you  from  this  endeavor.  No, 
indeed;  the  work  must  all  thoroughly  be  brought  together  again  from  the 
beginning. 

It's  a  shame,  you  say?  Well,  there's  no  help  for  it.  So,  don't  "cry  over 
spilt  milk!"  If  you've  been  through  it  once  (and  survived),  you  can  once 
more  ;  and  it  will  come  easier.  If  you've  never  yet  made  any  move  in  this  di- 
rection, it's  high  time  you  did.     There  now:    "Fall  in  line!" 

If  you  are  familiar  with  Morse's  Brigham  History,  begin  where  he  left 
oflf  (indicating  the  number  of  your  ancestor,  as  given  by  Morse)  and  con- 
tinue on  down  to  this  date.  If  you  are  not  familiar  with  the  Morse  book, 
begin  back  as  far  as  you  certainly  are  able  to  do  ;  then  complete  your  record, 
leaving  to  me  the  task  of  finding  out  your  true  branch  on  the  noble  old  fam- 
ily tree. 

I'm  not  particular  about  the  form  of  your  answer,  as  it  must  all  be  re- 
written in  any  event.  Just  arrange  them  into  families,  as  you  see  fit ;  and  in 
doing  so  bear  in  mind  that  I  wish  the  following  facts  given  :  Births,  mar- 
riages and  deaths  (giving  dates  and  place  of  each),  occupations  and  resi- 
dences, military,  political  and  church  records  of  any  members,  anecdotes, 
etc. ;    in  fact,  anything  about  them  which  is  of  general  interest. 

Now,  please  take  up  this  (your)  duty  and  write  me.  Don't  delay;  don't 
doubt  your  ability,  or  the  lack  of  general  interest  in  your  story !  Do  your 
best ;  and,  if  you  need  help,  I'll  aid  you !  It's  more  than  likely  that  I  shall 
have  something  complimentary  to  say  in  my  next  Report  about  those  who 
take  a  prompt  and  earnest  interest  in  this  subject. 

Cordially  and  faithfully,  your  kinsman, 
W.  I.  TYLER  BRIGHAM, 

(Secretary   and    Historian    B.    F.    A.), 

6034  Ingleside  Avenue,  Chicago,  111. 


THE  NEXT  REUINIOIN 


OF    THE 


Brigham  Family   Associatic 


WILL   BE    HELD    IN 


1902 


(Probably  in  Massachusetts.) 


Due  Notice  Thereof  Will  Be  Given. 


All  o/  Brigham  Blood  are  hereby  cordially  invited  to  be  in  attendance 


BOSTON  PUBLIC  LIBRARY 


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