Brayman, Mason, 1813-1895

Brayman was born in Buffalo, New York on May 23, 1813. Raised with a Calvinist outlook and a hatred of liquor, he was apprenticed to a printer at the age of 17. Five years later he became editor of a local newspaper. In addition to his work with newspapers, he studied law and was admitted to the New York Bar in 1836.

The year after his admission to the bar, Brayman married his wife, Mary. She was a direct descendant of Roger Williams and the union produced two daughters and a son. Following his marriage Brayman began a series of westward moves, working as a city attorney in Michigan and newspaper editor in Ohio before settling in Springfield, Illinois, during the early 1840s.

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