Andrew Jackson Brawley (1835-1884) - Stock Raiser

 

AI Generated

Born April 14 1835 in Carroll County, Tennessee, Andrew Jackson Brawley was one of eight children fathered by Milton Braley (sic).   His mother was Milton’s first wife, name unknown.  Around 1840, the Braley family moved to Franklin County, Arkansas, and took up land there.  After the first Mrs. Braley died sometime after 1843 (her last child was born then), Milton married a widow, Mary Catherine Green Moffett, in 1847.  They had two more children.

The second Mrs. Braley seems to have brought a considerable amount of property to her new marriage.  But Milton fell ill and died, probably early in 1852.  His estate consisted of 320 acres of farmland, farm implements, quite a number of cattle and one male slave.  Settling Milton’s financial affairs took years as lawyers worked out how to divide the assets between Milton’s heirs and Mary Catherine and the children of her first marriage to Mr. Moffett.

A guardian was initially appointed for Andrew and his younger brother Dennis but, by the time they reached the age of 21, they were living with their older brother Ephraim’s family.

Of the Braly siblings, only Andrew moved west, before the beginning of the Civil War.  By 1865, Andrew—or A. J. Brawley, as he had taken to calling himself--was in Fresno, California, where he married Arza Jane Stroud on September 10th.  Arza was the daughter of Ira Stroud and Rebecca Williams. 

Brawley evidently knew cattle, as he became a successful rancher.  When the 1870 federal census was taken, he was a stock raiser worth $2000.  He and Arza had seven children in quick succession.  Late in 1878, the Brawley family moved to Phoenix, Arizona, and it appears that the Strouds came with them.

Once in Phoenix, Brawley opened a general store and became a butcher.  By 1882, he was supplementing his income by acting as night watchman and special constable.  Mrs. Brawley was busy, too; early in 1884, she and her oldest daughter Alice had opened an ice cream parlor on Washington Street across from the Phoenix Hotel. 

By 1884, Brawley was the proprietor of the Dublin Corral, where he boarded and rented horses.   A little after 6 AM on December 5th, he was going about his work when he was stricken by a sudden heart attack and died at the age of 49.   He was buried in City/Loosley Cemetery.

Brawley’s widow was left with several young children to raise.  Fortunately, her parents were also in Phoenix and she could count on their support.  In 1886, she married Eugene Bridgeman.

Arza died in Los Angeles on July 3, 1910, while visiting her adult children.   Her remains were returned to Phoenix for burial next to her first husband in City/Loosley Cemetery.

-  - by Donna L. Carr. 

Ethel M. Kent (1884-1901) - Twice Unlucky

 

PCA Archives

Ethel M. Kent was born August 1884 in Socorro County, New Mexico.  Her parents were Alexander John Kent and Abigail Dudley.  She had two older sisters and a brother.  Alexander Kent was a quartz miner, and the family moved to Phoenix sometime after Ethel’s birth.

In 1900, when Ethel was sixteen years old, she was stricken with some kind of neurological disorder (possible seizures) resulting from pressure on the brain.  Her doctors feared that it might be a brain tumor and decided to relieve the pressure by removing a 2-inch section of her skull, a procedure known as trepanning. 

The delicate surgery was performed on July 20th by Dr. J. W. Thomas, assisted by three other physicians.  For days thereafter, Ethel lay in a coma, and traffic outside her home was rerouted so that she could have absolute quiet.  To everyone’s amazement, she made a full recovery and was once again able to resume normal activities, the hole in her skull covered by a silver plate.

Frontier towns such as Phoenix had many saloons, where men frequently overindulged in strong drink.  Like many young ladies of the time, Ethel belonged to the Women’s Christian Temperance Union (W.C.T.U)., which advocated abstinence from alcohol.

A year later, Ethel’s health was still a cause for concern, and she was unable to tolerate the summer heat in Phoenix.  For that reason, the family sought relief in July, 1901, by going on a camping trip to Mr. Kent’s mining site in Yavapai County.

A young man at the campsite, Bert Ohmerty, had carelessly left his loaded hunting rifle propped up against a rock.  Apparently, Ethel stumbled against it and it discharged, blowing away half of her foot.  The nearest medical help being in Congress, Arizona, she was bundled into a wagon for the three-hour journey. However, the incessant jolting, pain and loss of blood proved to be too much, and Ethel expired the next morning.  Her body was returned to Phoenix for burial in Masons Cemetery.

Bert Ohmerty, the man whose gun had injured Ethel, was plagued by guilt over her death.  He committed suicide just a week later.

 - by Debe Branning

 

 

Strange but True: Chicago's Ghost Information Company - 1884

 

Bing AI/Val Prompt

In the early 1900s, an enterprising individual in Chicago started a peculiar business venture...a "ghost information" company! Claiming to have access to over 300 working ghosts through a medium, the company sold "ghostly information" as its main product. Amazingly, this unique concept attracted enough interest that people eagerly bought shares in it!

Curious about how this supernatural business unfolded? Read the full article for all the ghostly details! Click to make it larger 👇

Weekly Republican, May, 1884

 

Apple Pandowdy - 1884

 

Photo by Jessica Johnston on Unsplash

A great dessert on the homestead, using items that are readily available. If you have a great apple harvest, or love using organic products, this recipe would be a great addition to your collection.  

Ingredients

6-8 medium apples, peeled, cored, and sliced

1/2 cup brown sugar or cane sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 cup molasses or honey

1/2 cup water

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup butter or lard

1/2 cup milk or water

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°F.  In a large bowl, combine the sliced apples, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and molasses or honey. Toss to coat the apples evenly. Transfer the apple mixture to a greased cast-iron skillet or a deep baking dish. Add the water and spread the apples out evenly.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in the butter or lard using a fork or your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the milk or water and stir to form a soft dough. Drop spoonfuls of the dough over the apples, spreading it out somewhat but leaving some gaps for the apples to peek through.

Bake in the preheated oven for 40-45 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the apples are tender and bubbly. Let it cool slightly before serving. 

Feliciana Baker (1883 - 1884) - Tragic Death - A Short Life

Pioneers' Cemetery Association Archive

Feliciana was the firstborn daughter of Albert Cornelius Baker and Maria de Jesus Alexander. She was born January 3, 1883 in Yuma, Arizona. Thereafter, the family moved to Phoenix.

On May 15, 1884, little Feliciana found a quantity of morphine pills, routinely prescribed at that time, and swallowed a fatal dose. The overdose was not discovered until she fell into a stupor, at which time a doctor was summoned. A galvanic battery was applied for three or four hours in hopes of reversing the effects of the drugs, but to no avail. Feliciana died at 7 AM the following morning.

Feliciana’s funeral took place that afternoon at the Catholic church. Hers was the very first burial in the newly opened Masons Cemetery.

Feliciana’s father, Albert Cornelius Baker, was a lawyer born in Crawford, Alabama on February 15, 1845. He enlisted as a color-bearer during the Civil War and was captured at the fall of Vicksburg. However, instead of sending the youth to a prisoner of war camp, his Union captors kept him to work as a bootblack.

Baker had intended to study for the Methodist ministry after the war; instead, he gravitated toward law and eventually went to San Diego and San Francisco to practice. Although he moved to Phoenix in 1879, he continued to visit friends in Yuma frequently and it was there that he met his future wife at the home of her father, Judge Henry Nash Alexander.

Baker’s law career included a two-year stint as a United States District Attorney, 1882-1884. In 1893, Baker was appointed Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the territory of Arizona; he held that office for the next four years. In 1918, he was elected Justice of the Arizona Supreme Court. -  from original story of Donna Carr 

Come to the PMMP and visit Feliciana, and other "residents" at our park!