John Brown LeGrand

b. 8 June 1815, d. 8 August 1864
  • John Brown LeGrand was born on 8 June 1815 in Mt Gilead, Montgomery County, North Carolina.
  • He married Anne Eliza England on 26 January 1846 in McDowell County, North Carolina.
  • John Brown LeGrand and Anne Eliza England appeared in the US federal census of 1 June 1850 in San Augustine District, San Augustine County, Texas. Other members of the household included Margaret Susan LeGrand, John Otis LeGrand and Ann Eliza LeGrand.
  • He was a farmer, according to the 1850 census.
  • On 31 January 1859, Mary Jane LeGrand wrote to John Brown LeGrand:
         Danville Texas - January 31st 59
    My Dear Uncle
         Your letter to my husband has just been received. I was much gratified to hear from you all, and would like to keep up a correspondence with you, and certain it will not be my fault if we do not. When we first moved to this state I wrote to uncle Uncle Edwin, received one letter from him in which he promised me he would make me a visit. I looked for him until we heard of his death 6 years ago. I wrote to Uncle E. twice after the reception of his letter but heard no more from him. It seems to me I wrote to you also, am not certain tho. Tell Uncle E. he has treated me badly not to visit or write either. He must now make amends and come to see me. I have six children, as many as you, 5 boys and one girl. I think I have a very interesting family all good looking and smart. Am glad my informant was mistaken about Uncle E. I suppose he had heard there was a LeGrand dead and took it for granted it was him as he had not known him. Did Uncle James have a family? Who did Aunt Sallie's daughters marry? I do wish some of you would visit me. I am so anxious to see and know some of my own kin. Give much love to them all, and tell them to write. I would gladly receive a letter from any of them. Uncle Henry Wade is the only one of my fathers family I remember ever to have seen, he was at my house in Ala. after I was married. Did he have a family? He told me he married a widow lady, who had a daughter as large as myself. I never knew whether he was in earnest or not. Do you ever hear from him? Has my other Uncle Wade a family? Please write about them. I have long wanted to know my kin. Pa & Ma you know left 5 children, 4 girls and one son. They are all married and doing well except the youngest. She is now grown, 18 years old this month, she only came out as a young lady this winter, has been going to school all the time. Mrs Gindrat the lady that raised her has no children of her own, she treats Willie as though she was her own child. She has had every advantage. The rest have all had the same good luck. I have seen none of them since we moved to Texas 9 years ago. Willie is comming to see me this spring, Mrs Gindrat speaks of coming with her. Happy will be the time when we meet. Brother Milton deserves a great deal of credit. He went out to make a living for himself at 16 years of age. He now owns part of a large drug establishment in Montgomery Ala, his father-in-law and himself are in partnership. Brother is a very steady hard working man, attends very closely to his business. He has only one child, a little girl. Sister Margaret married a Mr Weaver, she has three little daughters. Sister Cornelia married Dr Johnston, a dentist. She has a little boy only a few months old. They are both living in Selma Ala. We all correspond. Do write often Uncle. What are the ages of your children? My oldest is 12 years old to day. Please give my love to all the kin and tell them I would be most happy to see any of them. Tell me your wifes name when you write again. With love to her and the children, believe me your affectionate Niece, Mary J. Wood
         I hope to hear from you again very soon
    Minimal punctuation added by the transcriber to enhance readability.
  • On 23 March 1860, Mary Jane LeGrand wrote to John Brown LeGrand:
              Danville Texas - March 23 60
    My Dear Uncle
         Do excuse my long silence. It has been an effort for me to write for the last five or six months. I need to be fond of it. I am sorry I feel so as it will be the means of my writing less often, and I am so very fond of receiving answers from my relatives and friends. I have written but one letter since I wrote you before. I had a letter from Sister Willie yesterday. She is to be married next month. They speak of making me a visit immediately. Cant some of you meet them here. I would be glad to see you, and she would love to meet an Uncle. Come if you can and let us have a rejoicing. Brother Milton has quit the drug business and bought the place we left in Alabama. I do not know whether he will farm or market. He has not written me himself, am looking for a letter every mail from him. Uncle he is a noble man, I wish you knew him. Farmers are anticipating a fine crop year all bussy preparing and planting. Our neighborhood have all finished planting corn. Some are through planting cotton. That is not our luck however, though Mr Wood is planting. My garden is looking very well. We have Lettuce, radishes, spinage, mustard to eat, peas are blooming, beans tmatoes & cucubers are up. Have transplanted cabage plants, beets will soon be large enough to eat. I will have a quantity of strawberries. They are just begining to ripen. Will have very few peaches, the trees were nearly all killed. Figs were killed to the root, raspberries very much injured, plumbs were not hurt much. Our four oldest are still at school. Tell Uncle Edwin I am still looking for him. Write soon Uncle and tell me all about your family and all the kin. With love to Aunt and the children, I am as ever your niece
              M. J. Wood
    Please write soon.
         Minimal punctuation added by the transcriber to enhance readability.
  • John Brown LeGrand and Anne Eliza England appeared in the US federal census of 1 June 1860 in San Augustine, Texas, enumerated next to John Austin Harvey.. Other members of the household included Margaret Susan LeGrand, John Otis LeGrand, Ann Eliza LeGrand, America Louise LeGrand, James Walter LeGrand, Edwin Osborn LeGrand and William Joseph LeGrand.
  • He was a farmer, according to the 1860 census.
  • John Brown LeGrand died on 8 August 1864 at age 49 in San Augustine County, Texas.
  • His wife Anne Eliza England became a widow at his death.
  • The following is from a letter of James L. Beverly of Wadesboro, North Carolina, written on April 12, 1891, copied in longhand by Aunt Margaret in 1902. "Jane Green Paul married William C. LeGrand on March 10, 1829. They lived near Wadesboro, North Carolina. His brother Edwin O. LeGrand married and moved to Texas. The girls all married. James and John LeGrand were last heard from just before the late war. They were quite thrifty old bachelors, owning valuable mill property and a large whiskey distillery in Burk[e] County, North Carolina. When John LeGrand died he left his children well, but William C. was fond of high life and after he married, went through all his property. They lived with Duncan McRee, his wife's cousin, and his wife in the same house. William failed in business and sold his land to the McRees. He taught school for a while. There is no stain on the character of any of the LeGrands. They are very fine people."
         Quoted from Helen Johnstone Rose's book Our Family History: Johnstone, LeGrand, MacGillivray, Maclaren (1981), kindly shared by her nephew John B. Johnstone.
  • In a letter to her cousin Lizzie Leigh Wood James written about 1933, Margaret LeGrand Johnstone Philbrick wrote: "A letter from A. Lyttle of Wadesboro Oct 13, 1858, says that Wm C. LeGrand's father lived in the fork of the Rocky River and the Pedee, and that a Lyttle once owned part of the same land. John LeGrand the father of Wm C. had Edwin O., William C., James, and John, sons – Mrs. Hall & perhaps other daughters. Buck LeGrand (Homer), James L. & Hampton LeGrand were brothers of John. Mrs. Hall lived in Fayetteville N.C."
  • Last Edited: 9 Aug 2014

Family: Anne Eliza England b. 1828, d. 1894