Happy 98th Anniversary Ruby & Ganny!

From The Annals of Sandy Spring, Volume V, 1929-1947, edited by Herbert Osburn Stabler, published by American Publishing Co., copyright 1950, p. 181:  On June 7th [1940], the Brigham children gave Reuben and Marjorie a reception in honor of their 25th anniversary.

Translating for Richard Nixon

These photos were taken when Dad was serving in the Peace Corps in Santiago, Chile, in 1966 and 1967. My father, David Brigham, is the tall, thin young man pictured at the far left. This was during Richard Nixon's "wilderness years," the time between being Vice President and being elected President. Nixon was on a goodwill tour in Latin America, and during this stop in Santiago, Chile, my father acted as translator. The photos are remarkable considering Nixon's dismal view of the Peace Corps--he thought it would become a haven for draft-dodgers and tried to quietly dissolve the organization. My father served both in the Peace Corps and the US Army, so that's how much Tricky Dick knew.

Family homes

Initially I was working on this project for myself, but lately I realized that I'm really putting together a family history for my daughter Maureen. Hopefully one day she will enjoy these notes. Here are some small photos (borrowed from Google) showing the houses where Charlene, Theresa, Liz, Ken, and Rick--Maureen's grandparents--grew up.

More on Aunt Elsie

My dad's cousin Petie surprised me last night with two photographs of Aunt Elsie and an essay written by our Aunt Sissy. Although Elsie Brooke Snowden did not have any children of her own, her great-niece Petie definitely received Elsie's aesthetic inheritance. First, I would like to say a few words about Petie.

Artist Petie Brigham is a landscape painter working mostly in alkyd oils but I've seen some of her lovely watercolors and sketches as well. Her subjects are usually the sea, beaches, sounds and marshes of the Outer Banks. She studied painting in Woodstock, NY from 1969-73. Her approach to painting is to work from the abstract, loosely at first, toward realism. Petie layers paint opaquely and transparently, juxtaposing subtlety-mixed neutral colors against brighter more saturated color, until she achieves a sense of atmosphere and distance, but not necessarily detail, that reads to her eye. I am privileged to have two of her paintings hanging in my home. Petie Brigham lives and works on Roanoke Island. She is passionate, intelligent, and delightful to visit. Her work is custom-framed by Lynn Atkins Custom Framing in Manteo--Lynn is equally delightful. Petie's artwork is available through Greenleaf Art Gallery in Duck, North Carolina.

Marjorie Brigham Miller was the author of the essay below. We lovingly call her Aunt Sissy. She was Petie's aunt and my great-aunt. In turn, Aunt Elsie was Sissy's aunt and Petie's great-aunt. Sissy was 23 years old when Elsie died on December 21, 1945; Sissy was 72 years old when she wrote this down for Petie. There are some minor typos and historical inaccuracies, but I have not corrected them. I will share this essay with you as it was given to me, same as it was given to Petie. As Petie wrote to me, our Aunt Elsie "was a Mystery Woman in many respects."



Elsie Brooke Snowden

Excerpt from a letter written to my niece in Virginia with requested information about my Aunt Elsie Brooke Snowden. (Written in 1994 by Marjorie Brigham Miller)

This morning I have betaken myself to a faraway place, where only the green fields, distant hills, morning mist and lovely sounds of the birds claim my attention. Ever since you asked me to write a little about Elsie, my mind has been crowded with such a myriad of thoughts of her that had been stored away for many, many years. The mere mention of her name brought such a rush of childhood memories, with a combination of deep sadness and affection which swept over me so suddenly my eyes were filled with tears. All at once I realized that this woman, my aunt, had influenced my whole life, probably more than I had ever before realized, and I had an overwhelming desire to pull back as many memories as I could, to be given the privilege of, as an adult, being able to absorb the impressions and lessons and images with which she fired my childhood imagination so long ago.

There was always an air of sadness about her, and I always knew her life was a hard one. She was the eldest of five children and the two pictures that come to my mind are the first of her as a child with a pouty mouth, a toddler early displaced by other babies. The same mouth in adulthood became sensitive in early years and then firmly, grimly set as the dreams faded and the cruel years of the Great Depression made earning a livelihood next to impossible in the fine arts world. She had one fling at world travel; and that as a companion to a wealthy lady who traveled a few weeks “abroad” in Europe. On that wonderful journey, she sketched enough vistas and objets d’art to last all her life and had great memories of Rome and Paris.

Foremost among her talents must surely have been her gift for portraiture for which she won the Corcoran Art Gallery Gold Medal. As far as I know, any training she received was there, and it was there also she met her two dearest lifelong friends. There was the hint of an early love, but I never heard much about it. I only know she always seemed a very pensive, sad kind of person who had a deep sense of appreciation for beauty and nature and enjoyed funny situations and little jokes. She always made me feel that “if you could see something, you could draw it” and I always believed it and listened enraptured as she explained the wonderful mysteries of color, mixing, perspective and balance. Her teaching has remained with me all my life, although it was only the tag-along fun of a little girl watching a friendly aunt who enjoyed answering all my questions. I still remember the importance of ox-gall, the fragility of pastels, the sin of leaving brushes stiff with paint – not because she ever let me do any art work in her studio, but just because I was fascinated just to be allowed to watch her and listen to her.

Just the mention of the name ”Elsie” brings a picture to my mind of large serious sea-blue eyes, an ample sensitive mouth, and a mass of strawberry-blonde hair piled above a sad, pale face.

Blessed with a very practical and forward-thinking little Quaker mother, she was ever somewhat at odds with her viewpoint. After my grandmother gathered her girls together and gave them a brief explanation of feminine hygiene and an even briefer summary on the facts of live, Elsie’s only comment was: “I think the whole thing is perfectly disgusting!”

Ever the artist and aesthete, she recoiled as her elderly semi-invalid little mother would retire for her afternoon nap and say, “Now, Elsie, thee has two hours. Go and paint!” So many nights, her weary but inspired artist-daughter could be found painting beautiful flower still-life creations by the flickering light of a kerosene lamp. After a hard day’s work keeping house in a large old house and caring for her demanding, aging parents, the spark of her talent still managed to produce lovely rich creations on her canvas.

In order to make money when the market would not demand expensive oil paintings, she put “pride in her pocket” and taught herself heraldry – researching it out at the Library of Congress. She did coats of arms and sold them, framed, for $25.00 each, hating every minute of the exacting, detailed, unimaginative work, all the while longing to be working with her beloved oils.

Her only years of freedom were the two or three she had lived alone in a Washington, D.C. basement studio-apartment at Henderson’s Castle on 16th St. After that it was back to the old family home “Ingleside” in Ashton with no electricity, an aged pump, woodstoves and in later years, needy parents.

Somehow, almost osmotically, her appreciation for beauty, her love of color, delicate fragrances, the exquisiteness of Nature – all seemed to absorb into my own being, just from sharing days with her. I realize now how great was the privilege of my brief association with her and I wish the world of art could have known her better. The cursing blight of those hard years must have smothered many great creative talents, forced to scratch out a livelihood under rigorous, grueling conditions. Like Monet, she gardened all her life, carefully raising the flowers she wanted in her pictures. The delicate blues, soft rose tones and pure whites for light effects, the rich golds, crimsons and tawny oranges to group with rich blue plates and aged crockery.

The rare opportunities to do portrait work gave us glimpses of the depth of her talent, kin to that of the Dutch Masters and sadly, not many remain in the family. She requested that all unfinished works be burned at her death. Looking back, I'm reminded of Wordsworth’s “Lucy”. “She dwelt among untrodden ways” and spent her life at a period when times were hard and maintaining even “genteel poverty” was almost impossible.

She longed for a trip, a rest, a break from so much care. In her mid-fifties she required surgery for abdominal malignancy. She welcomed the “rest”, saying to her sisters, “I am the only one of you girls who has never had a good rest in the hospital”. She enjoyed the cards, flowers, pretty lingerie and being cared for. Two days after surgery, she died in her sleep – the one thing in her life that was easy. Until I began to write, I had never realized the indelible mark my dear aunt left in my personal outlook on life. Perhaps her greatest legacy lies in the great appreciation of beauty she gave by example, which I, in turn, have so enjoyed sharing with my children. She never knew them, but a lot of what they know and are may well have come from what she taught me by attitudes and example. To me, she was what Robert Henri would term “a true art spirit”.

[More on Elsie Brooke Snowden's life and artwork is here.]

Polaroid album

My mother gave me a little red Polaroid album a while back, and I have finally gotten around to scanning the pictures. The photos begin with Thanksgiving and Christmas at Foxley, then a trip to the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, and finally Easter photos in the front yard at Foxley. Polaroids were certainly fun and convenient--but they don't have a date printed on the back of them like processed film. I know that the Polaroid Swinger camera was produced between 1965 and 1970. The photos are certainly from that era. Julie and Rich were married in 1967, and they appear together here, possibly in their first home in one. Ganny died in July 1970, and Doc Bussler died in 1972. Do you see Anna Bussler in any of the pictures?--she died in October 1967. I'm going to do my best to identify everyone below the photos, but please help me if you know who is in the pictures and when they were taken. Thanks!



Thanksgiving at Gladys and Dave's home Foxley. Around the table clockwise: Young Dave's eyeglasses and nose (my father), Rich, Julie, an unknown man whose hands are in the picture, Dottie, Vernon, at the head of the table is Gladys (my grandmother), unknown young lady, Ganny (my great-grandmother), the top of Pat's head, unknown young lady with dark hair, Liz in white sweater holding food (my mother), and unknown young lady with blonde hair. One of the unidentified young ladies is probably Dottie's daughter Anita.



Thanksgiving at Foxley, around the table clockwise: Ganny (my great-grandmother), Pat , unknown young lady with dark hair, Liz (my mother), unknown young lady with blonde hair, at the head of the table again is Gladys (my grandmother), Dave (my father), Rich, Julie, unknown man, Dottie, and Vernon Swiger.



My grandmother's sister Dorothy Beall Swiger. This is the dining room at Foxley on Thanksgiving.



Christmas at Foxley: Dave unwrapping an aquarium set (my father), Gladys cleaning her glasses (my grandmother), and Ganny (my great-grandmother).



Julie next to the Christmas tree. This does not look like Foxley--maybe it was taken at her new home with Rich.





It looks like my grandparents went to see the Liberty Bell with Julie and Rich. The first photo shows the backs of heads: stranger, Rich, and Julie. The second shows Gladys in a fur coat, the Liberty Bell, Rich, and Julie. This is perhaps the fur coat my grandfather gave her as a Christmas gift one year, wrapped in a garbage bag.





Always collies at Foxley. This little one appears prominently in the Easter photos, too.



Dave (my grandfather) snoozing in a wingback in his stocking feet.



The bow tie is a dead giveaway: this is Doc Bussler.





Easter at Foxley, clockwise starting at the top: Rich, Julie, Young Dave, Gladys, and Pat.



Easter at Foxley, clockwise starting at the top: Rich, Julie, Pat, Gladys, and Big Dave.

Elsie Brooke Snowden

Elsie Brooke Snowden, born March 4, 1887, at Ingleside in Ashton, Maryland, was the oldest child of Francis "Frank" Snowden and Frances "Fannie" Brooke Stabler. She had three sisters (Miriam, Anna, and Marjorie) and one brother (Edward). Her sister Marjorie was my great-grandmother. Elsie never married or had children. Instead she studied art at what is now the Corcoran College of Art & Design in Washington, DC, and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia. Elsie was awarded the prestigious Cresson Travelling Scholarship twice (I am trying to verify this info with PAFA archives) and used the prize money to travel to Europe in the summers of 1913 and 1914. Exhibiting regularly with the Society of Washington Artists and Washington Watercolor Association, and at the Corcoran Gallery Biennials, Elsie became known for her atmospheric landscapes and city scenes. Elsie Brooke Snowden died December 21, 1945, and was buried next to her parents in the Sandy Spring Friends Meeting Graveyard marked by a granite marker in Row L, Plot 3, Site 3.



What follows are excerpts from The Annals of Sandy Spring that provide snapshots of Elsie Brooke Snowden's life and career as an artist. They also reveal Elsie the avid gardener and Elsie the caregiver to her ailing widowed mother. Because most of Elsie's life, aside from art school and Europe, was spent at the family home in Ashton, Maryland, where she was born, I have also excerpted a section of the Snowden family history that describes Ingleside (or Engleside as Mr. Cook spells it). Throughout the excerpts my own notations are in brackets. You may click on the images for a larger view and more information about each. As always, I strive for accuracy--please notify me of any factual or typographical errors.


(This is a photo of art students at the Corcoran around 1890--not a photo of Elsie--but probably similar to her classes there 20 years later. I am surprised that the group is mostly women. From the Smithsonian collection.)

Excerpts from The Annals of Sandy Spring, Volume IV, 1909-1929:

p. 10 - May 28th [1909] Elsie B. Snowden finished a successful year at the Corcoran Art School in Washington, receiving from her instructors honorable mention of her work and $25.00 in gold as a more substantial reward. Some time during the following winter she resumed her studies at this institution. [This entry appears to have been added a year too late. I found an article in the Washington Times dated May 29, 1908, about the award.]



p. 93 - [Early 1912] Elsie B. Snowden has again distinguished herself by having some of her work accepted at the water color exhibition in New York and by the Philadelphia Academy of Fine Arts where she is a student, at its exhibition in oil.

p. 151 - [June 1913] About this time Elsie Snowden who had been attending the Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia, went abroad with some of her artist friends to spend a number of weeks on the continent of Europe. [I believe this travel was because Elsie received the Cresson Travelling Scholarship for the first time.]



p. 187 - [June 1914] Elsie B. Snowden in early June won a $500 scholarship at the Art League in Philadelphia. This gifted young woman sailed soon after for Europe, where the skies, unclouded at the time, were soon darkened by the terrible war clouds. Her experiences there were both interesting and exciting, and her family were most anxious when all communication was cut off. Her safe return home without previous notice, was a great relief. [The award was Elsie's second Cresson Travelling Scholarship.]

p. 209 - [January 1915] Elsie B. Snowden won still another prize for a picture at the New York Art League, the amount being $50.00.  The subject given her was "Equal Opportunity", and her interpretation was given first place and first prize.



p. 216 - [May 1915] Again we record with pleasure the prize of $100 won by Elsie B. Snowden at the Philadelphia Art League, in the May competitions, giving Sandy Spring a thrill of pride that this one of her daughters continues to distinguish herself and honor her birthplace.

p. 442 - [Winter and Spring 1924] During the winter, Elsie B. Snowden received several more agreeable recognitions of her unusual talent as an artist. A picture hung at the Independent exhibition at the Waldorf in New York was bought by Phelps Stokes, a well known connoisseur, for $100.00, and a French count who had seen some of her work in this country wrote for a French Art Magazine an article describing it in most appreciative terms. [The exhibition was the 9th Annual Exhibition of the Society of Independent Artists. The "connoisseur" was most likely architect Isaac Newton Phelps Stokes.]



p. 523 - [1926] Elsie B. Snowden's work at the Exhibition of Water Color Artists in Washington received high honor; hers was one of the only four paintings that sold and was bought by Mrs. John B. Henderson.  Miss Leila Mechlin, prominent art critic of Washington, wrote of the painting as a notable work. [According to the Corcoran Archives, this exhibition was either the 30th Annual Exhibition of the Washington Water Color Club from February 5 - 28, 1926 or the 31st Annual Exhibition of same from December 18, 1926 - January 16, 1927. Mrs. Henderson was Mary Foote Henderson wife of the Senator from Missouri. At this time Leila Mechlin was art critic for The Washington Daily News, also known as The Star.]

Excerpts from The Annals of Sandy Spring, Volume V, 1929-1947:

p. 16 - Sept. 15 [1930] a large number of people visited the unusual and beautiful detura plants of Elsie Snowden at Engleside [sic]. During the night of bloom two plants had 90 bell-shaped blooms, six inches in length and three inches in diameter, and very fragrant. There was also a night-blooming cereus with fourteen blooms. The garden lovers of the neighborhood visiting this unusual sight felt that this was the most beautiful display of floraculture ever seen in Sandy Spring.


p. 207-8 -  [Winter 1941-1942] Fannie B. Snowden and daughter Elsie again spent the winter at the home of her daughter and son-in-law, Louis and Anna Bussler at Ashton. [Elsie's father Francis Snowden died September 11, 1936. And the latter years of Fannie's life were spent as a partial invalid, so mother and daughter wintering with "Doc" and "Nan" makes a lot of sense. The Bussler's home was located less than half a mile away from Ingleside. Elsie's mother died March 25th, 1943.]



p. 279 - Elsie Brooke Snowden passed away Dec. 21st [1945] after a brief illness at Garfield Hospital in Washington. The daughter of Francis and Frances Brooke Snowden, she was born at Ingleside March 4th, 1887. After training at the Corcoran Art School in Washington and the Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia, she twice traveled abroad on scholarships from the Philadelphia Academy. She received recognition in the United States and Europe for her landscape and portrait paintings, and the Corcoran School honored her with its Annual Gold Medal. Interment was in the Friends Meeting House grounds at Sandy Spring. (E.T.S.) [Garfield Hospital merged with several other facilities to become present day MedStar Washington Hospital Center. I had photographed Elsie's parents' headstone a few years ago; next time I'm in Sandy Spring I will photograph Elsie's marker. Elsie Brooke Snowden was 58 years old when she died.]

Excerpts from Montpelier & The Snowden Family by William G. Cook:

p. 52 - ENGLESIDE [sic.]  At 17720 New Hampshire Avenue in Ashton, Md. still stands Engleside, built after 1800. A sign post on the highway marks the lane leading to this delightful home that sits several hundred yards back.

William Henry Stabler built this home for his son William. Henrietta (Stabler) Snowden, the daughter of William, Jr., moved here wit her children after her father's death in 1867. She and her husband, Nicholas Snowden, had made their home at Avondale in Laurel, Md. until he lost his life fighting with the Confederate Army during the Civil War. Henrietta lived at this place for forty years where she passed away in 1907. Her son Francis, who married Frances Stabler, took over his mother's home and lived there until his death in 1936. Elsie Snowden, who never married, was the last of the family to own the home place. She passed away in 1945. Engleside was sold to a Mr. McLaury who sold the place to William F. Bowling. Today the residence is occupied by the James P. O'Connor family.

Hand-hewn pine uprights were used in the building of this home in place of studding for the outside walls of brick. In some places the brick had been left exposed on the inside walls.

A large living room, hall, and dining room, library with a fireplace, and a kitchen made up the first floor. Many changes and additions have been made since the Snowdens have gone. A few have been made on the inside and several rooms have been added on the outside.



[More on Elsie Brooke Snowden is here. Entry updated 3/5/2013.]

Marjorie Brigham Miller

BERLIN - Marjorie Brigham Miller, 89, of Berlin died Jan. 28, 2012, with family by her bedside.

Born Feb. 22, 1922, in Washington, D.C.; the daughter of Reuben and Marjorie (Snowden) Brigham. Graduating with a bachelor's degree from the University of Maryland School of Nursing in 1944, she continued her nursing career until retiring in 1986. On July 18, 1944, she married Robert Whitley Miller at her parents' home in Sandy Spring, Md. Their life together was spent in New Jersey, Maryland, Massachusetts and eventually settling in Vermont in 1960. Marjorie and Robert were married for 42 years prior to his death July 25, 1986. She also served as a lieutenant in the Medical Corps in the U.S. Army 1944-1945, stationed in the Philippines. Her nursing career spanned 42 years in many areas of hospital nursing including working in the first intensive care unit at the now Fletcher Allen Health Care to nursing supervisor at Central Vermont Medical Center from its opening in 1968 until 1986. Her family, profession and encouraging young people were always important to her. She is remembered for her kind words, positive outlook, high professional standards, talent as a mentor and teacher to those she worked with and the ability to add humor to most any situation.

Later in life, her days were spent writing, reading, gardening, knitting, hand-quilting, enjoying hearing about the accomplishments of her children and grandchildren and living each day with the belief of "make the most of all that comes and the least of all that goes."

She is survived by her children: Robert Miller and wife Gail Pataky, of Charlottesville, Va., Anne Wall and husband Jonathan Wall, of Ely, Nev., Margaret Whittaker and husband Kenneth Whittaker, of Wenham, Mass., Stephen Miller and wife Cynthia Johnson, of Calais, Frank Miller, of New York City, Christine Koonz and husband Jeff Koonz, of Middlesex, Richard Miller, of Middlesex; 10 grandchildren; nine great-grandchildren; and many close nieces and nephews.

She is predeceased by her husband, Robert Miller, and her three brothers.

A memorial service will take place in July 2012. Memorial contributions will be used to establish a scholarship in her name for a U-32 High School student entering the nursing profession. Donations may be sent c/o Chris Koonz, 273 East Hill Road, Middlesex, VT 05602.

Published in Times Argus on February 18, 2012

Surname origins

The following information is from The Internet Surname Database. (© Copyright: Name Origin Research www.surnamedb.com 1980 - 2011.)

Brigham
This is an English surname which seem to be particularly well recorded in the county of Yorkshire, and specifically in the eastern part around Hull, Beverley and York. The spellings are usually Brigham and much more rarely Brigam and Briggam. It is has two possible places of origin, being Brigham in Cumberland near Cockermouth, but most likely from Brigham near the small town of Driffield in East Yorkshire. The latter place seems to have been "diminished" in the 17th century, through changes in agricultural practices, and specifically drainage of the wetlands. Between the 14th and 19th centuries huge areas of East Anglia, Lincolnshire and as far north as Northallerton in North Yorkshire were affected, when lands which were formerly meadow cattle pasture, after draining became arable or were used for sheep, who required dry lands. It is estimated that as a result over one thousand villages disappeared completely or became diminished, the villagers forced to leave for other places. When they did, they took or were given, as their surname, the name of their former village. Brigham means the settlement by the bridge, that in Yorkshire being recorded in the famous Domesday Book of 1086, and in Cumbria two centuries later. An early example of the surname recordings is that of Ellen Brigham. She conveniently married a Robert Briggs at Pocklington, East Yorkshire, on May 1st 1505, in the reign of King Henry V11th (1485 - 1509).

Snowden
Recorded in several forms including Snowden, Snowdon, Snodin, Snoding, Snoden and Snowding, this is a surname of English origins. It is locational from any of the places called Snowden in West Yorkshire and Hertfordshire, or Snowdon in Devonshire, but not Snowden mountain in Wales. All derive from the Old English pre 7th century word 'snaw', meaning snow, and 'dun', meaning hill, the general meaning of the place name is 'The hill where snow lies long'. The places called Snow Hill in Berkshire, and Snow End in Hertfordshire were also formerly called 'Snowden', and they may have given rise to surnames. Early examples of the recordings include Matthew de Snoudon of Somerset in 1278, Elizabeth Snoden of Kent in 1551, Sara Snoddin also of Kent in 1655, Ellen Snodin in the registers of the city of London in 1677, Elizabeth Snowdin and Ann Snowding also of London in 1695. The marriage of Thomas Snowden and Helen Abbey was recorded at the church of St. Martin and St. Gregory, in the city of York, on November 25th 1593. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Henry de Snewedon. This was was dated 1277, in the Fines Court Rolls of Essex, during the reign of King Edward 1st known as 'The Hammer of the Scots', 1272 - 1307. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

Juliann Brigham Kolanowski

BERLIN — Juliann Kolanowski, 64, died Monday, Sept. 19, 2011, at her home in Ocean Pines. Born in Olney, she was a daughter of the late David L.and Gladys Brigham.

She is survived by her loving husband of 44 years, Richard G. Kolanowski; a son, R. Paul Kolanowski and his wife, Maria, of Brinklow, Md.; and daughter, Alison Evans and her husband, Scott, of Titusville, Fla. She was an adored grandmother of Anna, Christina and Kelly Kolanowski. She is survived by a sister, Patricia Spilman of Mount Airy, Md.

She was preceded in death by a brother, David A. Brigham.

Mrs. Kolanowski started her career as a school teacher in Prince Georges County. After her children were born, she taught piano lessons for the next 37 years, both in Montgomery County and here in Ocean Pines. She was director of music for Community Church of Ocean Pines for seven years. She also accompanied local performing artists, along with the Pine Tones and Worcester County Chorale.

A memorial service will be held Saturday at Community Church of Ocean Pines at 11 a.m. The Revs. Bill Sterling and Thomas McKelvey will officiate. A donation may be made in her memory to Coastal Hospice PO Box 1733 Salisbury, Md.

Published in The Daily Times on September 21, 2011.

Behold Your Son

This was a sermon for the Easter season written and delivered by David A. Brigham (my father) sometime between 2000-2002.

BEHOLD YOUR SON
David A. Brigham

Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdelene. When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, 'Dear woman, here is your son,' and to the disciple, 'Here is your mother.' From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.

"Mom, can I go out and play now?"

"No, Jesus, you promised me you'd do your school work before you went outside."

"Mom, Mom, can I have a piece of fruit?"

"No, Jesus, that fruit is for our dinner and besides, you promised you'd sweep your Father's workshop before dinner."

It's not easy to imagine those types of real life scenes playing out in the life of Jesus and his mother. Did you ever stop to think about Jesus the Christ having those kinds of talks with "Mom"? Isn't it hard to picture the real Jesus as a child, as a teenager? Isn't it hard to see Him in real life episodes,in family settings, in conflict and uncertainty? Isn't it hard to think about the daily dialogue he had with his mother and father, his siblings, his friends?

After all, this is the Savior, the Messiah, the Son of God!

But the essence of our faith is that God gave his Son to this life for us--subjecting Him to the real world, and all its relationships, all its reality, all its ups and downs, all its pain.

The story of Jesus begins with his mother. Through Mary, the mother, we come to understand Jesus--the loving child, the dedicated son. The gospel story finds the real life Mary, not a story book figure, there for her Son, from childbirth in a stable, to death on a cross, and the incredible joy of resurrection. Loving always, faithful always--Mary was there, always.

Not every mother and son relationship is perfect. Some are failures. Occasionally we hear of a mother who abandons or mistreats a child, or cares little for her children. But this is rare. A mother's love is, generally, an extraordinary thing--and there is undoubtedly as special bond between mother and son.

I have always been very close to my own Mother. But I never understood the powerful bond of Mother and Son so clearly until I hear my own Dad's last words to me as he prepared for death's passage. Those last words: "Take care of Mom."

I was prepared to do that anyway. After all my Mother and I were close; I was the oldest living child; and I was her neighbor. But, at that moment, my obligation to her become so real, so personal, so spiritual. The Father passed the care of the Mother to the Son. "Take care of Mom."

Mary, the loving Mother, supported her Son throughout his life, and suffered unmercifully at his death. We can hardly imaging the physical pain of the crucifixion. Equally, there is no way to know the pain of heart which Mary felt as she stood at the foot of the cross and saw her Son.

Jesus, the loving Son, felt the special bond between Mother and Son, never waivered in his respect and compassion for Mary, and reached out to her at his death, seeking to make sure that she was cared for emotionally and materially. He gave her care over to others and acknowledged her special place in the history of the Christian faith.

This was Mary, the mother of God's Son. What an exalted title! This was Mary, the loving mother of Jesus. What an exalted role! "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear... Blessed is she who has believed what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!"

There is no doubt that Mary was a tower of strength for all around her. There is no doubt that she knew exactly the role that Jesus would have to fulfill. There is no doubt that she loved him as deeply as any mother could ever love a son, and more.

Washington Irving captured Mary and all who would be like her when he wrote, "There is an enduring tenderness in the love of a mother to a son that transcends all other affection of the heart! It is neither to be chilled by selfishness, nor daunted by danger, nor weakened by worthlessness, nor stifled by ingratitude. She will sacrifice every comfort to his convenience; she will surrender every pleasure to his enjoyment, she will glory in his fame, and exult in his prosperity--and if misfortune overtake him, he will be the dearer to her from misfortune...and if all the world beside cast him off, she will be all the world to him."

Equally, while Jesus would preach the importance of putting God's work above even our family, no son ever loved a mother more than he loved Mary. She was a constant in his life. She was there for him. He was there for her.

The words at the cross are so few. We are left trying to imagine what it was all really like, to sense the overwhelming tragedy, to wonder how it could possibly be. In Jesus' few words, though, he speaks volumes.

As Mary stands at the foot of the cross looking up at her son, I think she is saying this: "Jesus, my Son, I love you dearly. I cannot bear to see you suffer like this. If I could, I would take your place right now. I have loved you since the moment God place you in my womb. I have understood my special role and responsibility. I know you are the Messiah. I can't understand why all this is happening. My heart is breaking. But I will never stop loving you."

Jesus hangs on the nails that pierce his hands. He can hardly speak, but he looks down and sees his mother. I believe he is saying to all of us: "My beloved friends, no matter what happens, we must love each other and take care of each other. I'm sorry you have to see me in such pain, an sorry this all has to happen this way. But it does! I ask you to look after my mother. I ask all of you to help your mothers and fathers and friends, to have special care for the elderly and the infirm, to reach out and lend a hand, to feed others spiritually and physically. I love you."

Jesus left us a sermon, a hundred sermons, a thousand sermons, in just a few words.

On Calvary, Jesus gave his mother over to the care of his friends, and gave all people in need over to the care of others. Her strength and her example help us to come to God, just as God came to us through her.

Notwithstanding the torture and pain, there is time and ability to take care of things that matter, to tie up the loose ends, to look after others, to pour out a heart, to show unending love...

"Take care of Mom."

Rocky Gap Veterans Cemetery

My father, David Arthur Brigham, is buried in Flintstone, Maryland, in the Rocky Gap Veterans Cemetery just down the road from Rocky Gap State Park. He died seven years ago today at Glyndon in Ashton, Maryland, at the age of fifty-nine after a prolonged battle with metastatic prostate cancer.

October/November 1971

Some wag has said, "For God so loved the world that He did not send a committee." Another has dealth with the peculiar construction of the camel and expressed the conviction this was a horse designed by a committee.

The great American game has become service on committees. If we want something lost in the shuffle, buried and forgotten, with only a little backwash, we turn it over to a committee. If we want others to share responsibility in the decision or a criticism, we spread the base by assigning a committee to take the matter under advisement.

Conversely, we can focus the best talent and dedication on a worthy objective by carefully selecting those who will relate to all the angles and come in with the answer.

Don't frighten and frustrate yourself by thinking out the number of hours in each month you spend on committees, sub-committees, and committee related activities. When someone calls or taps you on the shoulder and says, "Will you serve on the committee to...," is the your mouth always set to say YES?

Is you family proud of your committee involvement? Do they ever see you at home? Are they just as glad it is this way? Or, are they constantly upset and nagging because you are never home.

There is always a reason for dealing with a subject. The trigger which fired this shot was a mention of the hours and hours given by individuals serving as committee members in the interest of the League of Federal Recreation Associations, all 62 of the agency members, and the 150,000 individual federal employees who are known as participants.

Committee members are always subject to the judgement of those who do not like the conclusions, wish they had been asked to serve, or who know they could have done a better job. So, who can you please and why do you agree to serve? Probably it's because you care, you have pride, and you know that someone must do or nothing is done.

Oliver Wendell Holmes once said, "A man should share the action and passion of his times at the peril of being judged not to have lived." Each generation has an obligation to make whatever sacrifices are necessary to preserve the great privileges which were given us.

We now know that a Constitution to be followed must first be written, a Prayer to be answered must be given, and to be gained Membership must first be sought.

Now you have the inspiration and you are ready to reach out for your challenge and opportunity. You want to serve on a committee.

Fine, we have just the spot for you. To be successful as a committee member, you must be a man of vision and ambition: a diplomat, after-dinner speaker, after-dinner guzzler and a night-owl.

You must continue to work all day, take phone calls all night, and be on the job next morning early.

Oh yes, you must be able to please all organizations and auxiliaries. You must be both a Democrat and a Republican, be a man's man and a ladies man, a model husband and father, a devoted son-in-law, a good provider, psychiatrist, manager, and magician.

You must attend all meetings, tournaments, union sessions, funerals and visit jails, hospitals and credit unions. In you spare time you will be expected to review the constitution, by-laws and organizations structure of LFRA.

When you have related to your committee assignment, given it the best you have, there will be those whose soft tones will credit you with sincerity of purpose. Your loyalty will be cited and friends will recognize that some pretty ordinary persons have become very substantial leaders because you had the uncanny ability to get teamwork out of the group.

But you are not unique. There have been many committeemen. Historically, each one has been caught up in the ageless pattern of freedom, which is always revolutionary. Freedom is always alive, marching on many fronts... The ferment of freedom never ends.

David L. Brigham
Committeeman Extraordinary

September 1971

The Water Witch was novel to some who reviewed this spot last month. It caught Jim's eye and he traced the Executive Witch to his den. If you don't believe in coincidence you can hop off right here.

It all began back in Iowa. A young Maryland lad had just gone to the tall corn State to do some broadcasting, some news reporting and some public relations. He wound up with the old AAA (Agricultural Adjustment Administration) and met Jim of the AP (Associated Press). Who could forget the battered felt hat, the crisp verbiage and the urgency of effort fostered by hungry days as a stringer and cub reporter. We related like a magnet and he was soon with USDA and AAA also.

Both boys moved from Iowa at the request of Uncle Sam. One found a home in Missouri and the other in Minnesota. They kept in close touch and crossed paths with some frequency. Then came the big events. Two baby girls arrived within days of each other. Both struggled for life and lost. The two families were drawn even closer together.

The surprise was a little understandable when the two wives compared notes. Yes, indeed they were. So within a few weeks of each other a couple of young men saw the light of day. They were worth waiting for! Within ten days of the even the Missouri Dad was heading for infantry service in World War II. Before leaving he called Jim to tell him of the "Greeting from the President."

You guessed it... Jim had just enlisted in the Seabees. Both wound up in the Pacific until it was over there. And who do you think made it home fro Christmas in 1945? Both did!

Next the Christmas card from Jim to Dave in 1946. Mine's due in April, when's yours? A hurry up reply informed Jim the other arrival had been scheduled for May. And so the two girls began their almost joint journey.

No one would expect you to believe there was a girl apiece the following summer. There were other similarities like the wives being sick at the same time and the work changes which sent both to the Washington area a few days apart. Then, as the years and activities have a way of doing such relationships in, the two families lost contact.

There was a call last week. Jim wanted to speak to Dave. He had read a column in a thing called the Recreation Register. It was about a witch or something. Was this the same Dave? Well... Well, if it is... Well, Jim, how old is your Grandson? Well, how did you know I only had one grandchild and it is a boy? Well, that's easy. I have a grandson myself and my oldest daughter is the Mother... Same with you I'm sure? Exactly the same!

It was country talk about finding water and digging a well that brought us back together. We began our renewed visit with well... And when he asked something about LFRA and my interest in the future of this association of and for federal employees, it was easy to use the same thought collecting delay, well...

I had to begin with the deep well of despair some of us have battled hard to overcome. There was the shortage of interest, the limited funding and the primary responsibility of willing horses to their own agency associations rather than to an overall League.

It made you feel like the frog in the bottom of the well who thought the entire world was the patch of sky he could see when he looked up. We didn't get the full view and begin to realize the potential until we looked over the top edge of the well.

Then, there was a the bucket of cream lowered par way down into the well to keep cool. Two frogs fell in. One pushed the panic button, folded up and sank to the bottom. The other kicked, scrambled and struggled. He churned the cream, created a pat of butter, hopped upon it, gave a great leap from this floating perch and escaped the well.

Is there any word we use more? This is the most convenient and versatile of the four-letter words. How do we begin when the boss says, "Why haven't you...?" Perhaps the wife would like to know what kept you at the office? Or, the preacher why you missed services? What's the reason payment is a little slow this month? Did you get a check-up? There's a problem with your kid and we'd like to know... The first thing to come to mind as we stall for the answer to meet the situation is WELL... Well eh!

There was Jacob's Well..the Well of Bethlehem, Abraham, Issac and the "well of living water." There is the Artesian well form which water flows of its own pressure. Some are purported to go to the well once too often and find only disappointment.

There are tales of those who bought an interest in a dry well. Others invested in prospecting for a productive oil well. Some made it with a well and some lost it. There's been many sunk in or drawn from a well.

Well, how are you feeling? Well, I hope!

There are other "wells" like Fargo and Wellington and wellsweep, wellbeing, well meaning, welldoer, welldisposed, well born, and well head. The last supplies water to a spring or well and the flow begins the circuit.

Why dwell upon the well? Jim started it and I want to tell him why I pursued it. You see, even before we heard of each other, I found the right girl and gave her a ring. She ran through the big farm house to the back porch where her Dad was taking off his boots. The skinny college lad followed...at a most reasonable distance.

"Look Daddy, look!" I guess he saw the little diamond. The response drifted back into the kitchen, "My Lord child, that boy's not dry behind the ears yet!"

Then you know who came on the scene and gulped..."Well...Sir...ah...eh...mmmm...."

And the 230 pound, six foot plus recognition followed:

"WELL...That's a deep subject when you get to the bottom of it."

David L. Brigham
Executive Director

Maryland Roots

Luckily most of our Maryland ancestors were Quaker and, thus, meticulous record keepers. In this post I have traced each family connection as far back as I could and pinpointed the initial emigrants to America in the Brooke, Johns, Snowden, and Thomas families. As you see I still have a way to go filling in the blanks and will update this post as I continue my research. [Originally posted 8/26/09; updated 10/13/09.]

Genealogy notations:
b. - born
d. - died
bur. - buried
m. - married
m1. - first marriage
m2. - second marriage
div. - divorced
Names appear as First Middle "Nickname" LAST.
Dates appear as Day Month Year (1 Jan 1900).
Blanks indicate missing information.
Connections between generations appear in green.
Initial emigrants and arrival information appears in red.

1st Generation

Robert BROOKE, son of ____________, b. 3 Jun 1602, arrived in Maryland from England on 29 Jun 1650, d. 20 Jul 1655, m1. Mary BAKER, daughter of ________, b. ___, 4 children, d. ___, m2. Mary MAINWARING, daughter of Roger MAINWARING, b. ___, 10 children, d. 29 Nov 1663
1. Baker BROOKE b. 16 Nov 1628, d. ___
2. Mary BROOKE b. 19 Feb 1630/1, d. ___
3. Thomas BROOKE b. 23 Jun 1632, d. ___
4. Barnaby BROOKE b. ___, d. ___
5. Charles BROOKE b. 3 Apr 1636, d. ___
6. Roger BROOKE, Sr. b. 20 Sept 1637, d. 8 Apr 1700, m1. Dorothy NEALE, m2. Mary WOLSLEY
7. Robert BROOKE b. 21 Apr 1639, d. ___
8. John BROOKE b. 20 Sept 1640, d. ___
9. Mary BROOKE b. 14 Apr 1642, d. ___
10. Ann BROOKE b. 22 Jan 1645/6, d. ___
11. Frances BROOKE b. 30 May 1648, d. ___
12. Elizabeth & Henry (twins) BROOKE b. 28 Nov 1652, d. ___
13. Basil BROOKE b. 1651, d. 1651 (same day)

Hugh KENSEY, son of _______________, b. ___, d. ___, m. Margaret ___________, daughter of ____________, b. ___, d. ___
1. Elizabeth KENSEY b. ___, d. 1 Feb 1715/16, m1. Thomas SPARROW (d. 1674/5), m2. Richard JOHNS

2nd Generation

Roger BROOKE, Sr., son of Robert BROOKE and Mary MAINWARING, b. 20 Sept 1637 at Bretonew (Brecknock) College, England, d. 8 Apr 1700, bur. at Battel Creek Plantation, MD, m1. Dorothy NEALE, daughter of ________, b. ___, mother of Roger BROOKE, Jr., d. ___, m2. Mary WOLSLEY, daughter of ________, b. ___, mother of Cassandra and Mary BROOKE, d. ___
1. Roger BROOKE, Jr. b. 12 Apr 1673, d. ___, m. Eliza HUTCHINS
2. Cassandra BROOKE
3. Mary BROOKE

William COALE, son of __________, b. ___, d. 30 Oct 1678 , minister of Society of Friends, resided in Anne Arundel County, m1. Hester ---, b. ___, 1 child, d. ___, m2. Hannah ---, b. ___, 1 child, d. 20 Nov 1669, m3. Elizabeth THOMAS, daughter of Philip THOMAS and Sarah HARRISON, b. ___, 3 children, (after William COALE's death, Elizabeth THOMAS married Edward TALBOT), d. __ 1726 (see Note A)
1. William COALE b. 21 Sept 1655, d. __ 1700, m. Eliza SKIPWITH +
2. William COALE, Jr. b. 20 Oct 1667, d. __ 1715, m. Elizabeth SPARROW +
3. Elizabeth COALE b. 30 Aug 1671, d. ___, m. Nathan SMITH
4. Philip COALE b. 6 Sept 1673, d. ___, m. Cassandra SKIPWITH
5. Samuel COALE b. 9 Apr 1676, d. ___
[+ Need to research further which William Coale was the father of Elizabeth Jane Coale, daughter of William and Eliza Coale, b. 1692, d. 1713, m. Richard Snowden the Youngest]

Garrard (Gerard) "Planter" HOPKINS, son of ___________, b. ___, d. ___, made will 12 Oct 1691 describing property in Anne Arundel Co., m. Tomsin ---, b. ___, d. ___
1. Gerrard HOPKINS b. ___, d. __ Jan 1743/4, m. Margaret JOHNS
2. Ann HOPKINS b. ___, d. ___
3. Thomson HOPKINS (f.) b. ___, d. ___
4. Mary HOPKINS b. ___, d. ___

Francis HUTCHINS, son of _____________, b. ___, d. ___, made will 20 Feb 1698/9 in Calvert County where he was a Burgess, m. Elizabeth ---, b. ___, d. ___
1. John HUTCHINS b. ___, d.___
2. Margaret HUTCHINS b. ___, d. ___, m. Abraham JOHNS
3. Eliza HUTCHINS b. ___, d. ___, m. Roger BROOKE, Jr.
4. Sarah HUTCHINS b. ___, d. ___, m. Nehemia BIRCKHEAD
5. Frances HUTCHINS, b. ___, d. ___
6. Priscilla HUTCHINS b. ___, d. ___, m. Richard JOHNS
7. Mary HUTCHINS b. ___, d. ___, m. Benjamin HANCE

Richard JOHNS, son of __________, b. ___, d. ___, arrived in Maryland from Bristol, England in 1675, settled near Calvert Cliffs, m. Elizabeth KENSEY, widow of Thomas SPARROW (d. 1674/5), daughter of Hugh and Margaret KENSEY, b. ___, d. 1 Feb 1715/16
1. Thomas SPARROW b. ___, d. ___, m1. Ann BURGES, m2. Sophia RICHARDSON
2. Elizabeth SPARROW b. ___, d. ___, m. William COALE
3. Abraham JOHNS b. 24 Jun 1677, d. 10 Dec 1707, m. Margaret HUTCHINS
4. Aquilla JOHNS b. 30 Sept 1679, d. 11 May 1682
5. Priscilla JOHNS b. 21 Mar 1681/2, d. 1 Apr 1725, m. Robert ROBERTS
6. Margaret JOHNS b. 11 Oct 1683, d. ___, m. Gerrard HOPKINS
7. Aquilla JOHNS b. 5 Feb 1684/5, d. 16 Jan 1709, m. Mary HOZIER
8. Richard JOHNS b. 4 Apr 1687, d. 16 Aug 1719, m. Priscilla HUTCHINS
9. Kensey JOHNS b. 12 July 1689, d. 2 Apr 1729, m. Elizabeth CHEW
10. Isaac JOHNS b. 10 May 1692, d. 29 Nov 1728, m. Ann GALLOWAY
11. Elizabeth JOHNS b. 26 May 1694, d. 19 Dec 1772, m1. Henry TROTH, m2. John STEVENS

Sir George SKIPWITH, son of _________, b. ___, d. ___, m. Elizabeth ___________, daughter of ______________, b. ___, d. ___
1. Cassandra SKIPWITH b. 29 Oct 1678, d. ___, m. Philip COALE

Richard SNOWDEN Sr., son of ____, b. ___ 1640, Birmingham, England, emigrated to Maryland in 1659, d. ___ 1711, m1. Deborah ABBOTT b. ____, d. ____; m2. Elizabeth GROSSE b.____, d. __ 1675
1. Richard SNOWDEN, b. __ 1666, d. __ 1720, m. Mary LINTHICUM

Philip THOMAS, son of Evan THOMAS of Swanslea, Glamorganshire, Wales, b. circa 1600, Bristol, England, d. ___, made will 9 Sept 1674, arrived in Maryland from England in 1651, settled near West River, m. Sarah HARRISON, daughter of ___________, b.___, d. __ 1687
1. Philip THOMAS, Jr. b. ___, d. bef. 1688
2. Sarah THOMAS b. ___, d. __ 1675, m. John MEARS
3. Elizabeth THOMAS b. ___, d. __ 1726, m1. William COALE, m2. Edward TALBOT (see Note A)
4. Martha THOMAS b. ___, d. bef 1688, m. Richard ARNELL (or ARNOLD)
5. Samuel THOMAS b. circa 1655, d. bef. 10 Feb 1743, m. Mary HUTCHINS

3rd Generation

Roger BROOKE, Jr., son of Roger BROOKE Sr. and Dorothy NEALE, b. 12 Apr 1673, d. ___, m. 23 Feb 1702 Eliza HUTCHINS, daughter of Francis and Elizabeth HUTCHINS, b. ___, d. ___
1. Roger BROOK III b. 3 Dec 1703, d. 28 May 1705
2. James BROOKE b. 21 Feb 1705, d. ___, m. Deborah SNOWDEN
3. Eliza BROOKE b. 23 Nov 1707, d. ___
4. Dorothy BROOKE b. 3 Jul 1709, d. ___
5. Mary BROOKE b. 29 Dec 1710, d. ___
6. Ann BROOKE b. 29 Mar 1712, d. ___
7. Roger BROOKE b. 10 Jun 1714, d. ___
8. Cassandra BROOKE b. 3 Apr 1716, d. ___
9. Priscilla & Basil (twins) BROOKE b. 16 Nov 1717, d. ___

Philip COALE, son of William COALE and Elizabeth THOMAS, b. 6 Sept 1673, officer in British army, d. ___, m. 6 Apr 1697 Cassandra SKIPWITH, daughter of Sir George SKIPWITH and Elizabeth ---, b. 29 Oct 1678, d. ___
1. Cassandra COALE b. ___, d. ___
2. Elizabeth COALE b. ___, d. ___
3. Skipwith COALE b. ___, d. bef. 1759, m. Margaret HOLLAND

William COALE, son of William COALE and _________, b. ___, d. ___, m. Eliza ___________, daughter of ______________, b. ___, d. ___
1. Elizabeth Jane COALE b. ___ 1692, d. ___ 1713, m. Richard Snowden the Youngest

Gerrard HOPKINS, son of Garrard (Gerard) HOPKINS and Tomsin ---, b. ___, d. __ Jan 1743/44, m. Margaret JOHNS, daughter of Richard JOHNS and Elizabeth KENSEY, b. 11 Oct 1683, d. ___
1. Margaret HOPKINS b. ___, d. ___, m. Aquilla JOHNS
2. Elizabeth HOPKINS b. 13 Jun 1703, d. 27 Feb 1772, m. Levin HILL
3. Joseph HOPKINS b. 2 Nov 1706, d. ___
4. Gerrard HOPKINS b. 7 Mar 1709, d. ___, m. Mary HALL
5. Philip HOPKINS b. 9 Aug 1711, d. ___, m. Elizabeth HALL
6. Samuel HOPKINS b. 16 Jan 1713/14, d. ___
7. Richard HOPKINS b. 12 May 1715, d. ___, m. Katherine TODD
8. William HOPKINS b. 8 Aug 1717, d. ___
9. Johns HOPKINS b. 30 Oct 1720, d. ___, m1. Mary GILLISS, m2. Mary RICHARDSON, m3. Elizabeth THOMAS (see Note B)

Richard SNOWDEN Jr., son of Richard SNOWDEN Sr. and ____, b. ___ 1666, d. ___1720, m. Mary LINTHICUM, daughter of _______, b. ___ 1667, d. ___
1. Richard SNOWDEN b. __ 1688, d. __ 1763, m1. Elizabeth Jane COALE, m2. Elizabeth THOMAS
2. Elizabeth SNOWDEN b. ___, d. bef.1749, m. John THOMAS

Samuel THOMAS, son of Philip THOMAS and Sarah HARRISON, b. circa 1655, d. bef. 10 Feb 1743, m. 15 May 1688 Mary HUTCHINS, daughter of Francis HUTCHINS of Calvert Co., b. ___, d. __ Jul 1751
1. Sarah THOMAS b. 31 Mar 1689, d. ___, m. Joseph RICHARDSON
2. Samuel THOMAS b. 1 Feb 1691, d. as infant
3. Samuel THOMAS (2d.) b. 11 Mar 1693, d. as infant
4. Philip THOMAS b. 1 Mar 1694, d. 23 Nov 1762, m1. Frances HOLLAND, m2. Ann CHEW
5. John THOMAS b. 15 Apr 1697, d. __ Feb 1749/50, m. Elizabeth SNOWDEN
6. Elizabeth THOMAS b. 28 Dec 1698, d. ___, m. Richard SNOWDEN
7. Mary THOMAS b. 6 Nov 1700, d. ___, m. John GALLOWAY
8. Samuel THOMAS (3d.) b. 12 Nov 1702, d. ___
9. Ann THOMAS b. ___, d. __ 1743, m. Edward FELL
10. Margaret THOMAS b. __1710, d. ___, m. William HARRIS

4th Generation

James BROOKE, son of Roger BROOKE Jr. and Eliza HUTCHINS, b. 21 Feb 1705, d. __ 1784, m. Deborah SNOWDEN daughter of Richard SNOWDEN and Elizabeth Jane COALE, b. __ 1710, d. __ 1758
1. James BROOKE b. __1731, d. 21 Aug 1767, m. ___
2. Roger BROOKE b. 9 Aug 1734, d. ___
3. Richard BROOKE b. 8 Jul 1736, d. ___, m. ___
4. Basil BROOKE b. 13 Dec 1738, d. 22 Aug 1799, m. Elizabeth HOPKINS
5. Elizabeth BROOKE b. 22 Mar 1740/1, d. ___, m. Thomas PLEASANTS
6. Thomas BROOKE b. 8 Mar 1743/4, d. ___

Skipwith COALE, son of Philip COALE and Cassandra SKIPWITH, b. ___, became a Baltimore Sheriff in 1742, d. bef. 1759, m. Margaret HOLLAND, daughter of __________, b. ___, d. ___ (birth order is uncertain)
1. Philip COALE b. ___, d. ___
2. William COALE b. ___, d. ___, m. Sarah WEBSTER
3. Skipwith COALE b. ___, d. ___, m. Sarah HOPKINS
4. Samuel COALE b. ___, d. ___
5. Cassandra COALE b. ___, d. ___
6. Sarah COALE b. ___, d. ___, m. Richard THOMAS
7. Susan COALE b. ___, d. ___

Gerrard HOPKINS, son of Gerrard HOPKINS and Margaret JOHNS, b. 3 Mar 1709, d. 3 Jul 1777, m. 7 May 1730 Mary HALL, daughter of _________, b. ___, d. ___
1. Margaret HOPKINS b. 11 Jan 1730/1, d. ___, m. John THOMAS
2. Gerard HOPKINS b. 25 Aug 1732, d. ___
3. Mary HOPKINS b. 11 Nov 1734, d. ___, m. Philip GOVER
4. Sarah HOPKINS b. 20 Sept 1737, d. ___, m. John COWMAN
5. Richard HOPKINS b. 7 Feb 1739/40, d. as infant
6. Elizabeth HOPKINS b. __ 1741, d. 17 Aug 1794, m. Basil BROOKE
7. Rachel HOPKINS b. 30 Dec 1742, d. ___, m. Evan THOMAS
8. Joseph HOPKINS b. 11 Jan 1744/45, d. ___, m. Elizabeth HOWELL
9. Richard HOPKINS b. 20 Mar 1747/48, d. ___
10. Hannah HOPKINS b. 29 Aug 1749, d. ___
11. Elisha HOPKINS b. 15 Oct 1752, d. ___, m1. Hannah HOWELL, m2. Sarah SNOWDEN

Richard "Youngest" "Ironmaster" SNOWDEN, son of Richard SNOWDEN Jr. and Mary LINTHICUM, b. ___ 1688, d. ___ 1763, m1. 19 May 1709 Elizabeth Jane COALE, daughter of William and Eliza COALE, b. ___ 1692, 3 children, d. ___ 1713; m2. 19 Dec 1717 Elizabeth THOMAS, daughter of _________, b. ___ 1697, 7 children, d. ___ Aug 1775
1. Deborah SNOWDEN b. ___, d. ___, m. James BROOKE
2. Eliza SNOWDEN b. ___, d. ___, m. John THOMAS
3. Mary SNOWDEN b. ___ 1712, d. ___, m. Samuel THOMAS
4. Richard SNOWDEN b. ___ 1719, d. 18 Mar 1753, m. Elizabeth CROWLEY
5. Thomas SNOWDEN b. ___ 1722, d. ___ May 1770, m. Mary WRIGHT
6. Ann SNOWDEN b. ___, d. ___, m. Henry Wright CRABB
7. Margaret SNOWDEN b. ___, d. ___, m. John CONTEE
8. Samuel SNOWDEN b. ___ 1728, d. ___
9. Elizabeth SNOWDEN b. ___, d. ____, m. Joseph COWMAN
10. John SNOWDEN b. ___, d. ____

John THOMAS, son of Samuel THOMAS and Mary HUTCHINS, b. 15 Apr 1697, d. __ Feb 1749/50, m. __ Apr 1727 Elizabeth SNOWDEN, daughter of Richard SNOWDEN, Jr. and Mary LINTHICUM, b. ___, d. ___ (predeceased husband)
1. Richard THOMAS b. __ 1728, d. ___, m. Sarah COALE
2. Samuel THOMAS b. ___, d. ___
3. Elizabeth THOMAS b. ___, d. ___, m. Richard RICHARDSON
4. John THOMAS b. __ 1734, d. 15 Feb 1826, m. Margaret HOPKINS

5th Generation

Basil BROOKE Sr., son of James BROOKE and Deborah SNOWDEN, b. 13 Dec 1738, d. 22 Aug 1794, m. Elizabeth HOPKINS, daughter of Gerard HOPKINS and Mary HALL, b. __ 1741, d. 17 Aug 1794
1. James BROOKE b. 5 May 1766, d. ___, m. Hesther BOONE
2. Gerard BROOKE b. 12 Aug 1768, d. __ 1821, m. Margaret THOMAS
3. Deborah BROOKE b. 4 Sept 1770, d. 21 Feb 1835, m. James Brooke PLEASANTS
4. Basil BROOKE Jr. b. 28 Apr 1772, d. 1 Aug 1851, m. Mary PATRICK

Thomas PLEASANTS, son of ___________, b. ___, d. ___, m. Elizabeth BROOKE, daughter of James BROOKE and Deborah SNOWDEN, b. 22 Mar 1740/1, d. ___
1. James Brooke PLEASANTS, b. ___, d. ___, m. Deborah BROOKE
2. Deborah PLEASANTS b. __ 1763, d. 27 June 1845, m. William STABLER
3. Thomas Snowden PLEASANTS b. ___, d. ___
4. William Henry PLEASANTS b. ___, d. ___
5. Mary PLEASANTS b. ___, d. ___
6. Elizabeth PLEASANTS b. ___, d. ___

Thomas SNOWDEN, son of Richard SNOWDEN the Youngest and Elizabeth THOMAS, b. ___ 1722, d. ___ May 1770, m. bef. 1744 Mary WRIGHT, daughter of Henry WRIGHT and Elizabeth SPRIGG, b. ___ 1728, d. ___ 1770
1. Henry SNOWDEN b. ___, d. ___ Apr 1775
2. Richard SNOWDEN b. ___, d. ___, m. Eliza RUTLAND
3. Thomas SNOWDEN (Major) b. ___ 1751, d. ___ 1803, m. Anne Dorsey RIDGELY

Richard THOMAS Sr., son of John THOMAS and Elizabeth SNOWDEN, b. __ 1728, d. ___, m. Sarah COALE, daughter of Skipwith COALE and Margaret HOLLAND, b. ___, d. ___
1. Samuel THOMAS (3d.) b. 2 Dec 1753, d. bef. 1808, m. Mary COWMAN
2. Elizabeth THOMAS b. 28 Oct 1755, d. ___, m. Roger JOHNSON
3. Richard THOMAS Jr. b. 21 Feb 1758, d. 6 Nov 1821, m. Deborah BROOKE
4. John THOMAS b. 27 Sept 1760, d. ___
5. Mary THOMAS b. 12 Mar 1762, d. ___, m. William ROBERTSON
6. Sarah THOMAS b. 26 Nov 1764, d. 29 Apr 1805, m. Bernard GILPIN
7. Henrietta THOMAS b. 17 Feb 1767, d. as infant
8. Margaret THOMAS b. 11 Jun 1769, d. Mar 1797, m. Gerard BROOKE
9. William THOMAS b. 11 Dec 1771, d. 22 Jan 1851, m. Martha PATRICK
10. Ann THOMAS b. 25 May 1774, d. ___
11. Henrietta THOMAS (2d.) b. 7 Mar 1777, d. ___

6th Generation

Gerard BROOKE, son of Basil BROOKE and Elizabeth HOPKINS, b. 12 Aug 1768, d. __ 1821, m. 22 Apr 1789 Margaret THOMAS, daughter of Richard THOMAS and Sarah COALE, b. 11 Jun 1769, d. 5 Mar 1797
1. Richard BROOKE b. 6 Jan 1790, d. ___ 1862, m. Mary BROOKE
2. John Thomas BROOKE b. 12 Nov 1791, d. ___
3. Elizabeth P. BROOKE b. 12 Aug 1794, d. ___, m. Thomas Pleasants STABLER

Major Thomas SNOWDEN, son of Thomas SNOWDEN and Mary WRIGHT, b. ___ 1751, d. ___ 1803, m. Anne Dorsey RIDGELY, daughter of _________, b. ___ 1754, d. ___ 1824
1. Richard SNOWDEN b. ___, d. ___, m1. Eliza WARFIELD, m2. Louisa Victoria WARFIELD
2. Thomas SNOWDEN b. ___, d. ___
3. Mary SNOWDEN b. ___, d. ___, m. John C. HERBERT
4. Nicholas SNOWDEN b. 21 Oct 1786, d. 8 Mar 1831, m. Elizabeth Thomas WARFIELD
5. Caroline Eliza SNOWDEN b. ___, d. ___ (died at the age of 8 years)

William STABLER, son of Edward STABLER and ___, b. ___ 1767, lived at Cherry Grove, d. 24 Jan 1806, m. 4 Jun 1789 Deborah PLEASANTS, daughter of Thomas PLEASANTS and Elizabeth BROOKE, b. ___ 1763, d. 27 Jun 1845
1. Thomas Pleasants STABLER b. 5 Nov 1791, d. 30 Apr 1864, m. Elizabeth P. BROOKE
2. Edward STABLER b. 26 Sept 1794, d. 1 Sept 1883, m. Ann R. ---
3. James P. STABLER b. 14 Sept 1796, d. 13 Feb 1840, m1. Elizabeth GILPIN, m2. Sarah B. BRIGGS
4. Caleb Bentley STABLER b. 24 Jan 1799, d. 26 Oct 1888, m. Anna MOORE
5. William Henry STABLER b. 13 Apr 1802, d. 22 Feb 1883, m. Eliza THOMAS

William THOMAS, son of Richard THOMAS and Sarah COALE, b. 11 Dec 1771, d. bef. 20 Dec 1799, m. Martha PATRICK, daughter of ___________, b. ___, d. ___
1. Anne Poultney THOMAS b. 14 Apr 1801, d. 5 Mar 1830
2. Eliza THOMAS b. 10 Apr 1803, d. 18 Dec 1883, m. William Henry STABLER
3. Maria R. THOMAS b. 23 Nov 1804, d. ___
4. Henrietta THOMAS b. 21 Feb 1807, d. 14 Oct 1821
5. Richard THOMAS b. 19 Apr 1809, d. 15 Oct 1820
6. Edward THOMAS b. 22 Jun 1811, d. 4 Sept 1882, m. Lydia S. GILPIN
7. William John THOMAS b. 15 Sept 1813, d. 21 Mar 1884, m. Rebecca M. ---
8. Samuel Patrick THOMAS b. 23 Jan 1816, d. 12 Dec 1898, m. Elizabeth Gassaway PORTER
9. Jane THOMAS b. 20 May 1818, d. 8 Dec 1896, m. Charles G. PORTER
10. Martha THOMAS b. 3 Feb 1822, d. 9 Jul 1881, m. Thomas P. HARVEY

Samuel WARFIELD, son of ____________, b. ___, d. ___, m. Anna THOMAS, daughter of ___________, b. ___, d. ___
1. Elizabeth Thomas WARFIELD b. 14 Nov 1790, d. 16 Jun 1866, m. Nicholas SNOWDEN

7th Generation

Joseph E. BENTLEY, son of ______, b. ___, d. ____, m. _____________, daughter of _______, b. ___, d. ___
1. Alice Ann BENTLEY b. ___, d. ___, m. John STABLER

Nicholas SNOWDEN, son of Major Thomas SNOWDEN and Anne Dorsey RIDGELY, b. 21 Oct 1786 at Montpelier, Laurel, MD, d. 8 Mar 1831 at Montpelier, Laurel, MD, m. 7 Oct 1806 Elizabeth WARFIELD, daughter of Samuel WARFIELD and Anna THOMAS, b. 14 Nov 1790, d. 16 Jun 1866, Avondale, MD.
1. Ann Elizabeth SNOWDEN b. 3 Jul 1808, d. ___, m. Francis M. HALL
2. Thomas J. SNOWDEN b. 12 Feb 1810, d. 3 Jul 1835
3. Louisa SNOWDEN b. 3 Jun 1811 , d. 27 Mar 1849, m. Col. Horace CAPRON
4. Juliana Maria SNOWDEN b. 28 Jan 1813, d. 15 Dec 1866, m. Dr. Theodore JENKINS
5. Adeline SNOWDEN b. 9 Oct 1814, m. W. W. W. BOWIE
6. Edward SNOWDEN b. 29 Oct 1816, d. ___, m. Mary Thomas WARFIELD
7. DeWilton SNOWDEN (Dr.) b. 19 Aug 1818, d. ____, m. Emma C. CAPRON
8. Henry SNOWDEN b. 29 Sept 1820, d. ____, m. Mary C. COWMAN
9. Eliza SNOWDEN (Sister Anna Maria) b. 8 __ 1822, entered Georgetown Convent in 1847
10. George SNOWDEN b. ___, d. ___
11. Emily Roseville SNOWDEN b. 24 Jun 1824, d. ___, m. Charles C. HILL
12. Nicholas SNOWDEN (2nd Lt.) b. 7 Apr 1828, d. 6 Jun 1862, m. Henrietta STABLER
13. Arthur Montieth SNOWDEN (Dr.) b. 30 Dec 1830, d. 28 Aug 1869 (drowned), m1. Ella SNOWDEN, m2. Mary VAUX

Thomas Pleasants STABLER, son of William STABLER and Deborah PLEASANTS, b. 5 Nov 1791, d. 5 Nov 1791, m. 2 Jun 1813 Elizabeth P. BROOKE, daughter of Gerard BROOKE and Margaret THOMAS, b. 12 Aug 1794, d. ___
1. Brooke STABLER b. 25 Apr 1814, d. ____
2. Sarah STABLER b. 31 Jan 1816, d. ___, m. Augustus JORDAN
3. George STABLER b. 18 May 1818, d. ___, m. Mary W. PAXTON
4. John STABLER b. 13 Apr 1820, d. ___, m. Alice Ann BENTLEY
5. Deborah STABLER b. 7 Apr 1822, d. ___
6. James STABLER b. 30 May 1827, d. 13 Jan 1909, m. Phebe A. RUSSELL
7. Howard STABLER b. 5 Aug 1829, d. 18 Jul 1876, m. Esther G. MOORE
8. William STABLER b. 11 July 1831, d. 19 Nov 1832
9. William Henry STABLER b. 6 May 1833, d. ___
10. Deborah STABLER b. 27 Jun 1836, d. ___
11. Thomas Pleasants STABLER, Jr. b. 30 Aug 1840, d. ___

William Henry “Henry” STABLER, of William STABLER and Deborah PLEASANTS, b. 13 Apr 1802, d. 22 Feb 1883, m. Eliza THOMAS, daughter of William THOMAS and Martha PATRICK, b. 10 Apr 1803, d. 18 Dec 1883
1. Martha STABLER b. __ Feb 1826, d. ___, m. Thomas Moore REESE
2. Joseph STABLER b. 24 Jan 1827, d. 3 Jan 1915
3. Henrietta STABLER b. 27 Jan 1829, d. 21 May 1907, m. Lt. Nicholas SNOWDEN
4. Lucy STABLER b. __ Sept 1830, d. 28 Apr 1897
5. William STABLER b. 16 Mar 1832, d. 9 Feb 1867
6. Ellen STABLER b. 16 Feb 1834, d. 6 Jan 1924

8th Generation

George BEALL, son of ______, b. ___, d. ___, m. Margaret BARBER, daughter of ______, b. ___, d. ___
1. William Vernon BEALL b. __ 1857, d. 22 Oct 1931, m. Mary Elizabeth PURDUM

Lieutenant Nicholas N. SNOWDEN, son of Nicholas SNOWDEN and Elizabeth WARFIELD, b. 7 Apr 1828 at Montpelier in Laurel, MD, d. 6 Jun 1862, Harrisonburg, VA, m. 28 May 1850 at Philadephia, PA, Henrietta STABLER, daughter of William Henry STABLER and Eliza THOMAS, b. 27 Jan 1829, Sandy Spring, MD, d. 21 May 1907, Sandy Spring, MD
1. Emily Roseville SNOWDEN b. 7 Apr 1851, d. ___ m. Gerard HOPKINS
2. Marion SNOWDEN b. 28 Jun 1853, d. 7 Jan 1857
3. Lucy SNOWDEN b. 13 Mar 1855, d. ___, m1. ______ LEA, m2. William W. MOORE
4. Helen SNOWDEN b. 7 Apr 1857, d. 18 Sept 1927, m. Augustus STABLER
5. Francis SNOWDEN b. 19 Mar 1859, d. 11 Sept 1936, m. Frances Brooke STABLER
6. Mary Thomas SNOWDEN b. 3 Jun 1861, d. 31 Dec 1932, m. Charles Dorsey WARFIELD

John STABLER, son of Thomas Pleasants STABLER and Elizabeth P. BROOKE, b. 13 Apr 1820, d. ____, m. 8 May 1851 Alice Ann BENTLEY, daughter of Joseph E. BENTLEY b. ___, d. ___.
1. Florence M. STABLER b. 24 Jun 1852, d. ___, m. Charles M. BOND
2. Alice Evelyn STABLER b. 14 Aug 1854, d. ___
3. Cora STABLER b. 6 Oct 1856, d. ___
4. Anna B. STABLER b. 24 Feb 1859, d. ___
5. Frances Brooke STABLER b. 25 Oct 1860, d. 25 Mar 1943, m. Francis SNOWDEN
6. Eliza Brooke STABLER b. 15 May 1863, d. ___
7. John STABLER Jr. b. 15 Nov 1865, d. ___
8. Alice Bentley STABLER b. 8 Jan 1868, d. ___
9. Evangeline STABLER b. ___, d. ___, m. William H. GILPIN (23 Oct 1902)

9th Generation

William Vernon BEALL, son of George BEALL and Margaret BARBER, b. __ 1857 at Cedar Grove, d. 22 Oct 1931, bur. Rockville Cemetery, m. Mary Elizabeth PURDUM, daughter of ________, b. 24 Mar 1859 at Cedar Grove, d. 18 Dec 1920, both bur. at Rockville
1. Infant BEALL – unnamed (bur. at Rockville)
2. Forrest Purdum BEALL b. ___ 1888, d. 21 Aug 1963, m. Flora M. DILL

Francis "Frank" SNOWDEN, son of Lt. Nicholas SNOWDEN and Elizabeth WARFIELD, b. 19 Mar 1859, d. 11 Sept 1936, m. 18 May 1886 at Ingleside in Sandy Spring, MD, Frances "Fannie" Brooke STABLER, daughter of John STABLER and Alice Ann BENTLEY, b. 15 Oct 1860, d. 25 Mar 1943
1. Elsie Brooke SNOWDEN b. 4 Mar 1887, d. 21 Dec 1945
2. Miriam SNOWDEN b. 14 Apr 1891, d. 26 Nov 1950, m1. Samuel P. THOMAS Jr., m2. James H. LAMPTON
3. Edward SNOWDEN b. 13 Dec 1893, d. 15 Oct 1955, m. Nellie KELLY
4. Anna McFarland SNOWDEN b. 27 Jul 1896, d. ___, m. Louis Theodore "Doc" BUSSLER
5. Marjorie SNOWDEN b. __ 1888, d. __ 1970, m. Reuben BRIGHAM

Arthur Amber BRIGHAM, son of John Winslow BRIGHAM and Mary Rebecca PUTNAM, b. 6 Oct 1856, Marlboro, MA, d. 12 Nov 1938, Lakeland, FL, m. 6 Oct 1881 Charlotte Warren BRIGHAM, daughter of Dennison BRIGHAM and Sarah WEEKS, b. __ 1857, Marlboro, MA, d. __ 1933
1. Reuben BRIGHAM b. 13 Dec 1887, d. 6 Dec 1946, m. Marjorie SNOWDEN
2. Ruth Putnam BRIGHAM b. 12 Sept 1892, d. ___ (bur. at Woodside)

10th Generation

Forrest Purdum "Blue" BEALL, son of William Vernon BEALL and Mary Elizabeth PURDUM, b. ___ 1888, d. 21 Aug 1963, m. Flora M. DILL, daughter of ____________, b. ___ 1891, d. 13 Jun 1934, both bur. at Rockville
1. Gladys Lucille BEALL b. 7 Oct 1915, d. 29 Dec 2008, m. David Lewis BRIGHAM
2. Dorothy BEALL b. __, still living, m. Vernon SWIGER
3. Anna BEALL b. ___, d. ___, m. Dr. George HOPKINS
4. Miriam BEALL b. ___, d. ___, m. Arthur HORNER
5. Dolores BEALL b. ___, still living, m. Joseph KNOWLAND Jr.
6. Flora BEALL b. 22 Feb 1934, still living, m. Gil MOORE
7. Elaine BEALL (Flora’s twin) b. 22 Feb 1934, d. same day (bur. at Rockville)

Reuben BRIGHAM, son of Arthur Amber BRIGHAM and Charlotte Warren BRIGHAM, b. 13 Dec 1887, Marlboro, MA, d. 6 Dec 1946, Chicago, IL, m. 7 Jun 1915 at Ingleside in Sandy Spring, MD, Marjorie SNOWDEN, daughter of Frances SNOWDEN and Francis Brooke STABLER, b. 1888, d. 1970
1. David Lewis BRIGHAM b. 10 Dec 1916, d. 6 Sept 1999, Olney, MD, m. Gladys BEALL
2. Francis Snowden BRIGHAM, b. ___, d. ___, m. Dorothy LEMON
3. Marjorie Amber BRIGHAM b. 22 Feb 1922, still living, m. 18 July 1944 Robert Whitney MILLER
4. Arthur Putnam BRIGHAM b. 29 May 1928, d. 22 Jan 1992, Bella Vista, AR, m. Helen CASE

References:
1. The Annals of Sandy Spring (1863-1883), by William Henry Fahrquhar, Cushings & Bailey, 1884 (full text and pdf scan of book)
2. The Annals of Sandy Spring Vol. 2 (1883-1895), by Eliza N. Moore, Thomas & Evans, 1902 (full text and pdf scan of book)
3. The Annals of Sandy Spring Vol. 3 (1895-1909), by Rebecca T. Miller, King Brothers, 1909
4. The Annals of Sandy Spring Vol. 4 (1909-1929), by Annie B. Kirk, The Times Printing Company, 1929
5. The Annals of Sandy Spring Vol. 5 (1929-1947), by Herbert O. Stabler, American Publishing Co., 1950
6. Genealogical Notes: containing the pedigree of the Thomas family of Maryland, and of the following connected families: Snowden--Buckley--Lawrence--Chew--Ellicott--Hopkins--Johnson--Rutherford--Fairfax--Schieffelin--Tyson and others .., by Lawrence Buckley Thomas, 1877 (full text and pdf scan of book)
7. The Thomas Book: giving the Genealogies of Sir Rhys ap Thomas, K.G., the Thomas Family descended from him, and some Allied Families, by Lawrence Buckley Thomas, published by The Henry T. Thomas Company, New York, NY, 1896 (Googlebooks scan of book)
8. Burials at The Sandy Spring Friends Meeting Graveyard and at The Woodside Cemetery, 1754 to 2003: A listing of burials and the writing on grave stones of a Quaker Community, published by the Sandy Spring Friends Meeting

Note A: Among the 2nd Generation offspring I have highlighted Elizabeth Thomas (daughter of Philip Thomas and Sarah Harrison) in green to indicate that she is a connection between generations. But she married William Coale who was among the 2nd Generation parents, the same generation as her own parents. Elizabeth Thomas was William Coale’s third wife and must have been quite young at the time of their marriage. They had 3 children together before William Coale’s death in 1678. Elizabeth Thomas went on to marry Edward Talbot. She died in 1726--forty-eight years after the death of William Coale.

Note B: Among the 3rd Generation offspring Johns Hopkins born 30 Oct 1720 was the grandfather of Johns Hopkins the Quaker philanthropist born 19 May 1795. Here is the progression: Gerrard Hopkins married Margaret Johns and named their ninth child Johns Hopkins, "Johns" being Margaret's family name. Johns Hopkins and his third wife Elizabeth Thomas named their oldest son Samuel Hopkins. Samuel Hopkins married Hannah Janney, and their second son was called Johns Hopkins. This Johns Hopkins was born 19 May 1795 and died 24 Dec 1873 without issue but left behind a significant legacy.

August 1971

They were both big men and the muscles vibrated in the forearms above the clublike hands. One had just called the other a water witch and I backed up to the honeysuckled fence row. A boy didn't belong too close at that moment.

A kid raised in the country learns some words the city kids never hear. A clodhopper or just a plain clod; a briar jumper or a hick; a hawg jaw or an apple knocker; a slew foot or a hay seed. I knew 'em all and could take each one from the bigger kids who had walked a furrow or jumped a black berry patch while chasing a rabbit. It was routine to slop the pigs and easy to use a long stick to shake the apples off the tree.

You don't mind being a hay seed when you have mowed, raked, loaded, forked and worked hay into the mow of the old barracks. Still fresh in memory are the wheat shocks, the pitch forks, the bundles pitched up to the top of the wagon, and the "first and last snake" tossed up with the last bundle. Tass Carter sailed off that topped out load and was running before he hit the ground. He said something about k-k-killin' the next boy who did that trick. But, he was kidding, or was he?

Anyway, this was country talk and farm boys understood. There was always work and time for fun. The oversized, old felt hat was a trademark. The ever present hound could handle the rabbits, quail, squirrels and even a skunk. The collie brought the cows in for milking and there was always a horse to ride or work as the occasion might demand. There was no real need for parks, golf courses, organized recreation, and planned activities by associations and organizations.

Most of us lived in the country and knew what those folks who drove out to see us on Sunday were called. We whispered about city-slickers with fancy suits and tourin' cars. They needed watching a little but they didn't have the real smarts a county kid comes by kinda natural.

We showed 'em the birds and bees and the stock and the chickens. What was the use of talking about things you lived with every day of your life. If they were half-way with us, we steered them around poison ivy, beggars lice, sumac and chuckle burrs.

It was fun to try the young fellow from town our on corn silk, Indian cigars, grape vine and Brown's Mule. Smokin' and chewin' was all the same, they got white, wobbly and then sick to the stomach. That was good clean fun and recreation the old way. We didn't mean no harm by it and they had something to talk about when they got back to the city.

I guess they talked about Dad rollin' his own and the checked dress Mom had made from some feed sack goods. We got in our licks about the patent leather shoes, the striped pants and the starched collars.

But all of us enjoyed the coming and the going. Those city words that identified a nationality and degraded many first generation Americans were lost on our untrained ears. It was better that way. We walked the country roads and they walked the city streets.

Once in a while the youngsters were afraid of the dark and needed some reassurance. But there was always someone to make you feel safe and not much happened to make newspaper headlines. I guess it happened some but when you have a piece of hay in the corner of your mouth and whistle up your dog a fellow feels mighty comfortable and secure.

So I watched the two big men. You don't call a man a Water Witch, even in the country and get by with it. There had to be the inevitable collision.

The one stood sort of sizing up the antagonist and then fondled the forked peach stick. It looked sort of like a sling shot without the leather cup and rubber innertube strips. I thought of David and Goliath. Perhaps history would repeat. Then the startling first words, "It's a gift, sort of like extrasensory perception."

The forked stick is held in both hands with the bottom of the Y pointed upward. It is known as a Divining Rod and when the gifted carrier walks over a good stream of water the stick turns over and points to the water. Next the "witch" takes a limber twig and holds it over the spot selected by the peach stick.

Like a pump handle the twig dips down and then comes back to the starting position. Each circuit indicates 10 feet and if it bows 8 times you must go 80 feet to strike water. At the end of the measurement the twig will shake sideways before staring over again.

Fantastic? Perhaps it is. But, this same man told me where to drill and that I would need to go down 128 feet to strike water. I believed and hit at 126 feet. We have good water in a country well and if you understand the meaning of the title even a Water Witch can be a mighty regular guy.

If some of my city colleagues feel like being a LFRA Witch, we'll let them use a Diving Rod to find discounts, travel opportunity, recreation and more members. Success is fun!

David L. Brigham
Executive Witch