Residents of Browning’s Camp Settlement
Pottawattamie/Mills County

Residents

From the Pottawattamie High Council Minutes of 1846-1853, the following residents were added to the resident list (1).

James Lang (from Big Bend Branch)

The 1850 U. S. Census of Pottawattamie County was enumerated by Luke Johnson.  At that time, Johnson was a resident of Hyde Park settlement.  The enumeration began on August 30, 1850.  It appears that Johnson began his work with the settlement just on the ridge above his residence—Bullock’s Grove. After he enumerated his own settlement, Hyde Park, he next went to the settlement just west.  The names listed are probably from Browning’s Camp or those dwelling scattered up and down Mosquito Creek. 

#13 John Clark (age 56) (John Norman Clark)
Eliza (age 56) (wife) (Eliza Branch Sandifer)
Mary (age 30) (Mary Johnson Wells Clark)
Moses (age 22) (Moses Sandifer Clark)
Mathew (age 15) (John Matthew Clark)

#14 Thomas Weir (age 41)
Elizabeth (wife) (age 33) (Elizabeth Caroline Clark) (daughter of above John Clark)
Mary (age 4) (Mary Eliza Weir)
Nancy America Weir (born October 1850)

#15 John McLane (age 56)
Ester (wife) (age 45)
Stuart (age 13)
Hugh (age 10)

#16 John Bamford (age 62)
Mary (wife) (age 60) (Mary Jones)
Eve (age 27)
Sarah (age 25)
Ester (age 20)
Mary (age 20) (Mary Jane Bamford)

Joseph Astley (age 21) (Joseph Astle) (married Ester Bamford on September 25, 1850)

James Ashton (age 21)

#17 Joel Edmunds (age 50) (Joel Edmonds)
Eliza (wife) (age 40) (Eliza Ballard Brown)
Maroni (age 15) (Joel Moroni Edmonds)

Oliver Higgins (age 31)
Olive (wife) (age 32) (Sylvia Olive Edmonds) (Daughter of Joel and Eliza Ballard Brown Edmonds)
Joel (age 5) (Joel Marshall Higgins)
Laura (age 2) (Laura Ann Higgins)
Martha (age 6 mo.)

#18 Lyman Lafayette Corey (died March 26, 1850)
Elizabeth Cory (age 34) (Elizabeth Jane Wright)
Mary (age 15) (Mary Jane Corey)
George (age 10) (George Lyman Corey)
Warren (age 5) (Warren Wright Corey)
Amos (age 1) (Amos Bonesteel Corey)

#19 Goodman Oldham (age 31)
Nancy (wife) (age 25) (Nancy Green Harris)
Catherine (age 7)
Benjamin (age 5)
James (age 6 mo.)

#20 George Boyaston (age 35) (George Boydston)
Jane (wife) (age 31) (Jane Harris)
Jasper (age 9)
James (age 7)
Benjamin (age 5)
John (age 3)
David (age 6 mo.)
David Benjamin Boydston (born March 29, 1952)

#21 Richard Musgrave (age 43)
Margaret (wife) (age 43) (Margaret Baillie)
Eliza (age 16)
George (age 13)
Agnes (age 9)
Joseph (age 6) (Joseph Gardner Musgrave)

#22 Joseph Clark (age 32) (Joseph Chandler Clark)
Phalindia (wife) (age 48) (Phylinda Carpenter)
Sophronia (age 21) (Sophronia Phylinda Clark)
Oron (age 17)

#23 Jonathan Browning (age 44)
Elizabeth (wife) (age 46) (Elizabeth Stalcup)
David (age 21) (David Elias Browning)
Barbara (19) (Barbara Jane Browning)
Westley (age 18) (John Wesley Browning)
James (age 17) (James Allen Browning)
Asenith (age 15) (Asenath Elizabeth Browning)
Martha (age 12) (Martha Clarissa Browning)
Melvina (age 10) (Mary Malvina Browning)
Nancy (age 8) (Nancy Lavina Browning)
Alma (age 5) (Jonathan Alma Browning)
Melinda (age 2) (Melinda Vashti Browning)

Charles Cory (age 3) (Charles Joseph Corey) (son of Lyman Lafayette Corey)

#24 John Galliher (age 27)
Sarah (wife) (age 25) (Sarah Ann Browning) (Daughter of Jonathan and Elizabeth Browning)
Lehi (age 2)
Barbara (age 5 mo.)
Sarah Ann (born October 27, 1851)

#25 William Mason (age 48)
Sarah (wife) (age 55) (Sarah Wright)

George (age 29)
Mary (wife) (age 27) (Mary Ann Beard)

#26 William Bradbury (age 30) (William Bradbury, Jr.)
Jane (wife) (age 26) (Jane Dunsdon)
Margaret (age 6) (Margaret Townsend Bradbury) (Daughter of Margaret Townsend, deceased)

Thomas Dunson (age 10) (Thomas Dundson) (Brother of Jane Dunsdon)

Maria Bradbury (age 50) (Maria Goulding) (Mother of William Bradbury, Jr.)

#27 John Cuilsby (age 60) (John Silsbee)
Elizabeth (wife) (age 60) (Elizabeth Bemis)
Mary (age 19) (Mary Silsbee)

#28 John Lovel (age 38) (John Lovell)
Ann (wife) (age 41) (Ann Parsons)
George (age 15) (George Lovell)
Joseph (age 4) (Joseph Hyrum Lovell)
Martha (age 1) (Martha Ann Lovell)

Elizabeth Stephens (age 30) (Married John Ostler)

John Ostler (age 25)
Christiana (wife) (age 25) (Christiana Abbott)

#29 Daniel Hereford (age 37) (Daniel Brown Hereford)
Elizabeth (wife) (age 35) (Elizabeth Profitt)
William (age 10) (William M. Hereford)
Martha (age 7) (Martha Elizabeth Hereford)
Elisha (age 6) (Elisha Brown Hereford)
John (age 2) (John Anderson Hereford)
Mary (age 2 mo.) (Mary Ann Hereford)

#30 William James Morgan (died 1849)
Malinda Morgan (age 39) (Malinda Martha Vincent)
Elizabeth (age 17) (Elizabeth Jane Morgan)
Kevlin (age 19) (Sterling Price Morgan)
James (age 12) (James Morgan)
Henry (age 9) (Henry H. Morgan)
Charles (age 7) (Charles J. Morgan)
Sarah (age 4) (Sarah M. Morgan)
Albert (age 2) (Albert Morgan)

#31 John Carlin (age 51) (John Carling)
Ann (wife) (age 45) (Ann Green)
Isaac (age 17) (Isaac Van Wagoner Carling) (Son of Emeline Keaton, deceased 1844)
Catherine (age 15) (Catherine Keaton Carling) (Daughter of Emeline Keaton, deceased 1844)
Abraham (age 12) (Abraham Freer Carling) (Son of Emeline Keaton, deceased 1844)
Francis (age 5) (Francis Caleb Carling)
Joseph (age 3) (Joseph Mathew Carling)

#32 Thomas Richmond (age 45)
Elizabeth (wife) (age 44) (Elizabeth Green)
Everitt (age 18) (Everett Richmond) (Son of Sarah Ann Burrows, deceased)
Jesse (age 16) (Jesse Richmond) (Son of Sarah Ann Burrows, deceased)
Joseph (age 9) (Joseph Burrows Richmond) (Son of Sarah Ann Burrows, deceased)

#33 Alexander Melville (age 29) (Alexander John Melville)
Jane (wife) (age 23) (Jane Ann Dutson)
Margaret (age 3) (Daughter of Elizabeth Adamson Melville, deceased)
John William Melville (died February 24, 1850)
James Andrew Melville (born March 25, 1852)


Possible Births

Albert Morgan, 27 May 1849, to William James and Malinda Martha Vincent Morgan

John William Melville, 21 June 1849, to Alexander and Jane Ann Dutson Melville

George Albert Mason, 21 September 1850, to George and Mary Ann Mason

Sarah Ann Galliher, 27 October 1851, to John and Sarah Ann Galliher

James Andrew Melville, 3 March 1852, to Alexander and Jane Ann Dutson Melville

Marriages

From the Pottawattamie County Marriages, the following individuals were listed as coming from Browning’s Camp (2).

William Fausett from Allred’s Camp and Julianne Tremaine from Browning’s Camp on 28 May 1849. (Question as to why the name was Julianne Tremaine, as no Tremaines were found)

William Alexander Fausett was born on April 11, 1830 in Maury, Tennessee.
Julia Ann Stephens was born in 1830 in Ontario, Upper Canada. 

Deaths

The death of Sally Sabin was announced in the Frontier Guardian as “Sabin, Sally, wife of Ara W. Sabin, 6 January 1849, at Browning’s Settlement, 23 years, 11 months, and 20 days (3).”

Ara Williams Sabin
Sarah “Sally” Canfied (wife)

Travel West

Many of the residents came west with the Henry W. Miller Company.  About 229 individuals and 63 wagons joined this Company in Kanesville.  The Company departed on 8 July 1852. 

Joseph Astle
Ester Bamford Astle (wife)

Jonathan Browning
Elizabeth Stalcup Browning (wife)
Aseneth Elizabeth Browning
Barbara Jane Browning
David Elias Browning
James Allen Browning
John Wesley Browning
Jonathan Alma Browning
Martha Clarissa Browning
Mary Melvina Browning
Melinda Vashti Browning
Nancy Lovina Browning

John Witt Carling
Ann Green Carling (wife)
Abraham Carling
Catherine Carling
Francis Caleb Carling
Isaac VanWagoner Carling
Joseph Mathew Carling

John Galliher
Sarah Ann Browning Galliher (wife)
Barbara Galliher
Lehi Galliher
Sarah Ann Galliher

William Mason
Sarah Wright Mason (wife)
John Mason
William Mason, Jr.

George Mason
Mary Ann Beard Mason (wife)

John Lovell
Elizabeth Smith Lovell (wife)
George Lovell
Joseph Hyrum Lovell
Martha Ann Lovell

Alexander Melville
Jane Ann Dutson Melville (wife)
James Andrew Melville
Margaret Melville

Another resident of Browning’s Camp, Joel Edmund, organized a Company which departed on June 10, 1852.  The following were among those in the Company.

Joel Edmunds
Eliza Ballard Brown Edmunds (wife)
Joel Moroni Edmunds

Oliver Higgins
Sylvia Olive Edmunds Higgins (wife)
Joel Marshall Higgins
Laura Ann Higgins
Martha Ann Higgins

Bibliography

1. Pottawattamie High Council minutes, 1846-1852; 1850 December-1851 March; Church History Library, https://catalog.churchofjesuschrist.org/assets/dff41a9e-b768-40b7-bde1-98b2c19f8c90/0/0 (accessed: December 14, 2021)

2. “Pottawattamie County Marriage Records,” Pottawattamie County Genealogical Society, 2000.

3. Orson Hyde, ed., Frontier Guardian, 21 February 1849.