Brown, Tarleton, 1757-1845

Tarleton Brown was born in 1757 and moved with his family to South Carolina in 1769. During the Revolutionary War, Brown enlisted as a private; he was eventually promoted to captain. After the war, he was active in public service and politics. He later moved to Boiling Springs, S.C., where he built several mills.

Tarleton Brown was born in Albermarle County, Va., on 5 April 1757 to William and Sarah Brown. In 1769, his family moved to South Carolina. In 1775, Tarleton Brown was drafted for a year to fight the British and, in 1776, he voluntarily enlisted as a private in the American Army. He was promoted to captain in 1780. During the Revolutionary War, Brown took part in the First Siege of Savannah, the Battle of Monk's Corner, and the Siege of Augusta. Throughout much of the war, Brown served as a scout in South Carolina and Georgia. His commanders included William Harden, Francis Marion, and Andrew Pickens. During the war, his father and other family members were killed by Tories and their house burned to the ground. Brown himself contracted smallpox during the war and was sick for 40 days.

After the war, Tarleton Brown was a farmer and owned several grist mills and about 20 slaves. In 1788, he married Almedia Matthews, with whom he had three children. Almedia Matthews Brown died in 1800, and, in 1804, Brown married Judith O'Bannon, widow of Wilson Cook, Jr. Together they had four children. Judith died in 1837.

Brown was also very active in public service and a leader in the community. He was county coroner and sheriff, 1788-1792, of Winton County, S.C., and served in the state House of Representatives, 1792-1797, and Senate, 1798-1799. He was elected as sheriff of Barnwell, S.C., in 1799 and held that position until 1804. He eventually moved to Boiling Springs, S.C. At some point in the 1830s or early 1840s, Brown wrote of his Revolutionary War experiences and memories. He died on 4 September 1845.