The following information was assembled from numerous sources and cannot be used directly as proof of Qualifying Service or Lineage.
It is considered a research aid and is intended to assist in locating sources that can be used as proof.
State of Service: VA
Qualifying Service: Private / Patriotic Service
This information is taken from the Biographical Record of Washington County Pennsylvania by J.H. Beers & Co. on page 1241.
With the Revolution breaking out, Thomas enlisted under General Washington, and was one of his ferrymen crossing the Delaware, He was also one of Washington’s select marksmen, and was a man of great muscular power, weighing from two hundred and fifty to three hundred pounds.
Thomas Brownlee, son of Archibald, grew to manhood, and was married to Martha Shearer. After taking up his claim and after the Revolution the young man came farther west, locating in Buffalo Township, Washington County Pennsylvania. He there entered 600 acres of land, nearly half of which tract is still in the possession of his descendants, (as of 1893).
The following children to Thomas and Martha Brownlee: Hamilton, Archibald, David, Margaret, Jane, and Martha.
Author: Michael D. C. Merryman
Thomas Hamilton Brownlee was born 21 Dec. 1751 in Scotland, a son of Archibald Brownlee (1710-1788) and Margaret Hamilton (1713-1785). He served in the Revolutionary War as a Private in the Companies of Captain Silas Zane and Uriah Springer and Colonels William Russell and John Gibson, 1777-1779, in the Ninth Virginia Regiment under Brigadier General Peter Muhlenberg at Valley Forge.
After the Revolution, he married Martha Shearer and moved west, establishing himself in Buffalo Township, Washington County, Pennsylvania. According to the Commemorative Biographical Record of Washington County, Pennsylvania, “He there [Buffalo Township] entered 600 acres of land, nearly half of which tract is still in the possession of his descendants. His brothers, James and William, and his cousins, James and John Brownlee, each took up 600 acres.”
Thomas and Martha were the parents of Hamilton, Archibald, David, Margaret, Jane and Martha. Martha Shearer Brownlee, wife of Thomas, died 27 Nov, 1801 at Buffalo Township. Thomas was married 23 June 1803 to Elizabeth Greathouse Muncy. (Elizabeth was first married to James Muncey who predeceased her in 1801, and was the mother of John, Mary, Samuel and Treaney Muncey.) Thomas and Elizabeth were the parents of William T., Elizabeth, Rachel and Susan.
Thomas made his Will 23 July 1816, in which he named his wife Elizabeth Brownlee “…and her four children…” being Elizabeth, Susanah, Wilim [sic] and Reacheal [sic], sons David, Archibald and Hamlton [sic]; daughters, Martha, Margaret and Jeain [sic] Brownlee; grandson Thomas Brownlee son of Hamilton Brownlee.
He was laid to rest at South Buffalo Cemetery at Claysville, Washington County, Pennsylvania. His obituary in the Washington Reporter, dated 5 August 1816, page 3 was as follows:
“Died – On Saturday morning, the 27th ult Mr. Thomas Brownlee, aged 65 years, of Buffalo township, Washington County. The deceased was among the first settlers in this county and was esteemed by his acquaintances as a Christian, patriot, and kind husband; a tender parent and obliging neighbor. He suffered beyond conception, for ten days before his death, with the dreadful complaint, and graval or stone.”
His wife, Elizabeth, died 26 December 1841 at Washington County, Pennsylvania, and was laid to rest beside her husband, Thomas.
Sources:
Commemorative Biographical Record of Washington County, Pennsylvania (1893) by J. H. Beers and Company, page 1241.
Last Will and Testament of Thomas Brownlee, Deceased, Will Book 3, Pages 104-106, Washington County, Pennsylvania via ancestry.com: Pennsylvania, Wills and Probate Records, 1683-1993; Will Books, Vol. 3-4, 1814-1832.
NSDAR Ancestor A016065, Thomas Brownlee, Citing NARA M881, Compiled Military Service Records, Roll 1055 and Published Pennsylvania Archives Third Series, Volume 22, Page 729.
valleyforgemusterroll.org/muster.asp accessed 17 Feb 2019
Find a Grave, database with images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 17 February 2019), memorial page for Thomas Hamilton Brownlee (21 Dec 1751-27 Jul 1816), Find a Grave Memorial No. 135509847, citing South Buffalo Cemetery, Claysville, Washington County, Pennsylvania, USA; Maintained by ptthomas (contributor 46910424). Note: The obituary of Thomas Brownlee is cited on his Find A Grave page.
Find a Grave, database with images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 17 February 2019), memorial page for Elizabeth Greathouse Brownlee (1771-26 Dec 1841), Find a Grave Memorial No. 41004104, citing South Buffalo Cemetery, Claysville, Washington County, Pennsylvania, USA; Maintained by James D Leeper (contributor 47169051).
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