One of my husband's great-grandmothers was Martha "Mattie" Jane Brown, daughter of Dr. William T. Brown, MD and Mary Jane Graves.
The following biographical sketch is from The Goodspeed Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Northwestern Arkansas (1889, reprinted in 1978 by Southern Historical Press), pp. 1227-1228:
"William T. Brown, M.D., one of the leading practicing physicians of Altus, Franklin County, Arkansas was born in Jackson County, Missouri April 9, 1828, and is the son of Halbert E. and Susannah (Burk) Brown. John Brown, grandfather of our subject, came from Ireland and settled in Wythe County, Virginia at a very early date. Soon after Daniel Boone went to Kentucky, he followed and located in what is now known as Wayne County, where his son, Halbert E. Brown, was born in 1804, August 12. The latter lived in Kentucky until after his marriage to Miss Burk, who was born in the same county in 1802, and then in 1824 they moved to Missouri, and were among the first settlers of Jackson County They moved from there to Saline County, Arkansas in 1849, and afterward moved to Lewisburg, where they both died during the war. The father was a dealer in stock while in Missouri, and after moving to Arkansas, he turned his attention to farming. They were both members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and he was a Democrat in politics. They were the parents of six sons and two daughters, two sons now living, the subject of this sketch and Benton L., who is a farmer in Franklin County, Arkansas. Dr. William T. Brown received his education at Independence, Missouri and studied medicine at the same place. In 1855 he commenced the practice of his profession in Saline County, Arkansas and in 1860 he moved to Russellville, Pope Co, of the same state, where he practiced until 1883, and then came to Altus. In 1868 he was elected county Judge of Pope County, and held that position for four years. He was postmaster at Berlin for a time, was justice of the peace, register, etc., and during the war he acted as assistant surgeon at Dardanelle and Little Rock in the Federal Service. At Altus, he has a successful practice, and in fact has all, or more, than one physician can attend to. July 26, 1849, he wedded Miss Mary J. Wills, a native of Saline County, Arkansas, and the daughter of Jesse T. Wills, a native of Alabama, but an earlier settler of Saline County, Arkansas. Mrs. Brown died in her native county, February 8, 1855, and of the two children born to this union, only one, John M. is now living, and is a successful farmer of Franklin County, Arkansas. Jesse was born July 9, 1850 and died August 10, 1863. Then February 18, 1856, Dr. Brown married Miss Mary J. Graves, a native of Saline County, Arkansas, born April 17, 1839, and the daughter of James Graves. To the second union were born two children: Clarissa J., born March 17, 1857, and Martha J., born July 26, 1866. Clarissa J. is the wife of T.J. Morrison, a farmer of Franklin County, Arkansas and Martha J. is the wife of E.R. Lee, agent of the ticket office at Alma, Arkansas. Dr. Brown is a Republican in his political views and is a strict Prohibitionist, is a member of the Masonic fraternity, and he and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church."
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