Guide to the Obadiah Brown I (1712-1762) Papers, 1719-1776

(bulk 1740-1762)


Rhode Island Historical Society
121 Hope Street
Providence, RI 02906
Tel: 401-273-8107
Fax: 401-751-7930
Email: reference@rihs.org

Published in 2009

Collection Overview

Title: Obadiah Brown I (1712-1762) Papers
Date range: 1719-1776, (bulk 1740-1762)
Creator: Rhode Island Historical Society
Extent: 5 linear feet
Abstract: Obadiah Brown I (1712-1762) was born in Providence. His father was Elder James Brown (1666-1716), a pastor on the First Baptist Church; his mother was Mary (Harris) Brown. Upon reaching adulthood, Obadiah joined his older brother James Brown II (1698-1739) in the mercantile trade, which included traffic in cocoa, rum, molasses and slaves.
Language of materials: English
Repository: Rhode Island Historical Society
Collection number: MSS 315

Scope & content

These papers are almost exclusively records pertaining to Obadiah Brown's many business ventures. A large portion actually relate to partnerships between Brown and his nephews, under the name of Obadiah Brown & Co., or Obadiah & Nicholas Brown. There are very few personal papers in this collection.

The first portion of the collection consists of loose papers, dated from 1733 to 1762, with the bulk coming after 1752. Most of these papers are loose receipts, invoices and other financial memoranda. There are also some business letters, listed at the end of this finding aid. Almost half of the loose papers are from 1758, and relate to trading at Monte Cristi in today's Dominican Republic.

The second portion of the collection consists of bound volumes: ledgers, account books and day books of Obadiah Brown, alone or in partnership. Other noteworthy volumes are two outgoing letter books, and a ship's log kept aboard the sloop Mary en route from Surinam to Rhode Island in 1735.

There is very little directly relating to the slave trade in this collection, as Brown was only involved in two voyages to Africa. There is nothing relating to the 1736 voyage of the Mary, and only a few incidental accounts relating to the fitting out of the Wheel of Fortune in 1758. See "Ledger No. 5", page 122. Of course, Brown was very much involved in the related trade with the West Indies, and with operating a rum distillery as well.

Access Points

Subject Names Subject Organizations Subject Topics Geographical Names Subject Topics

Arrangement

  • Series 1: Loose papers.
  • Series 2: Volumes.

Historical note

Obadiah Brown I (1712-1762) was born in Providence. His father was Elder James Brown (1666-1716), a pastor on the First Baptist Church; his mother was Mary (Harris) Brown. Upon reaching adulthood, Obadiah joined his older brother James Brown II (1698-1739) in the mercantile trade, which included traffic in cocoa, rum, molasses and slaves. His initial role was as master of his brother's vessels in the West Indies trade. In 1736, he shipped out to the African coast as the supercargo of the family's sloop Mary, which thus became the first known Providence slave ship. However, this trip does not seem to have been very profitable, and the Browns apparently had no further direct involvement in the slave trade for over twenty years. After the death of James in 1739, Obadiah retired from the sea himself, but continued the business. During the 1750s, he became the first Providence merchant to trade directly with England, bypassing the traditional mercantile cities of Boston and Newport. He also opened a spermaceti candle factory as early as 1751. He also helped to raise James' young children, later forming a partnership with James' four surviving sons as Obadiah Brown & Co. This firm made another attempt at the slave trade in 1759, when their slave ship Wheel of Fortune was captured by French privateers. Obadiah died in Glocester, R.I. in 1762, probably at the home of his daughter Phebe Fenner.

In 1737, he married his first cousin, Mary Harris (1718-1805), daughter of Toleration and Sarah Harris. They had eight children. All four of the sons died in early childhood. The four daughters were Phebe (b.1738), Sarah (1742-1800), Anna (1744-1773) and Mary (b.1753). Phebe married John Fenner of Glocester, R.I., brother of Gov. Arthur Fenner. Sarah married Lt. Gov. Jabez Bowen (1739-1815). Anna married her first cousin Moses Brown (1738-1836). Mary married Thomas Arnold (1751-1826). March 22, 1698- Birth of Captain James Browne son of Elder James Browne (1666-1732) and Mary (Harris) Browne (1671-1736)

January 4, 1702- Birth of Hope (Power) Browne (1702-1792), daughter of Nicholas and Mercy (Tillinghast) Power

October 2, 1712- Birth of Obadiah Brown, brother of Captain James Browne

December 21, 1722- Marriage of Captain James Browne and Hope (Power) Browne

February 12, 1724- Birth of James Browne, eldest son of Captain James Browne (1698-1739) and Hope (Power) Browne (1702-1792)

July 28, 1729- Birth of Nicholas Brown, second son of Captain James Browne and Hope (Power) Browne

1731- Birth of Mary (Brown) Vanderlight, the only daughter of Captain James Browne and Hope (Power) Browne.

1733- Obadiah Brown begins his mercantile career

Dec. 3, 1733- Birth of Joseph Brown, third son of Captain James Browne and Hope (Power) Browne

January 27, 1736- Birth of John Brown, fourth son of Captain James Browne and Hope (Power) Browne

June 5, 1737- Marriage of Obadiah Brown and his first cousin, Mary (Harris) Brown (1718-1805)

September 12, 1738- Birth of Moses Brown, youngest son of Captain James Browne and Hope (Power) Browne

April 27, 1739-Death of Captain James Browne (b.1698)

1750- Nicholas Brown (b. 1729) reaches his majority; his elder brother James dies at sea

1751- Moses Brown begins to clerk for his uncle, Obadiah Brown

1754- Nicholas and John Brown begin business activities together

September 30, 1759 Joseph Brown marries cousin Elizabeth Power (1736-1806), daughter of Nicholas and Anne (Tillinghast) Power.

1760- Moses Brown and Obadiah Brown enter into partnership.

November 27, 1760 John Brown marries Sarah Smith (1738-1825), daughter of Daniel and Dorcas (Harris) Smith

May 2, 1762- Nicholas Brown weds Rhode Jenckes (1741-1783), daughter of Daniel and Joanna (Scott) Jenckes of Providence

June 17, 1762- Death of Obadiah Brown (b.1712)

August 1762- Formation of Nicholas Brown and Company

1763- United Company of Spermaceti Manufacturers, Plan of Union

January 1, 1764- Marriage of Moses Brown and his first cousin Anna Brown (1744-1773), daughter of Obadiah and Mary (Harris) Brown

1765- Formation of Hope Furnace

July 30, 1767- Hope Brown, daughter of Nicholas (b.1729) and Rhoda (Jenckes) Brown, drowns two days before her fourth birthday

1767/1768- George Benson clerks for Nicholas Brown and Company

June 1768- United Company of Spermaceti Manufacturers incorporates

April 4, 1769- Birth of Nicholas Brown (1769-1841), son of Nicholas (b.1729) and Rhoda (Jenckes) Brown

1772- John Brown withdraws from maritime activities of Nicholas Brown and Company

February 5, 1773- Death of Anna (Brown) Brown, wife of Moses Brown

1774- Moses and Joseph Brown withdraw from maritime activities of Nicholas Brown and Company

1775- George Benson a commission agent in Newport, RI

1776-1782- Nicholas and John Brown supply Continental Congress; Hope Furnace manufactures cannon

1782- Thomas Poynton Ives becomes a clerk for Nicholas Brown (b.1729)

1783- Nicholas Brown (b. 1729) enters into partnership with former clerk George Benson

December 16, 1783- Death of Rhoda (Jenckes) Brown, wife of Nicholas Brown (b.1729)

January 8, 1785- Death of Joanna Brown, daughter of Nicholas and Rhoda (Jenckes) Brown

September 9, 1785- Nicholas Brown weds second wife Avis Binney, daughter of Captain Barnabus Binney of Boston

December 3, 1785- Death of Joseph Brown (b.1733)

May 29, 1791- Death of Nicholas Brown (b.1729)

June 8, 1792- Death of Hope (Power) Browne, widow of Captain James Browne

May 26, 1795- Death of Mary (Brown) Vanderlight, daughter of Captain James Browne and Hope (Power) Browne

September 20, 1803- Death of John Brown (b. 1736)

August 16, 1807- Death of Avis (Binney) Brown, widow of Nicholas

September 6, 1836- Death of Moses Brown (b.1738)

Access & Use

Access to the collection: There are no restrictions on access, except where microfilm is available.
Use of the materials: Researchers are advised that express written permission to reproduce, quote, or otherwise publish any portion or extract from this collection must be obtained from the Rhode Island Historical Society.
Preferred citation: Obadiah Brown I (1712-1762) Papers , MSS 315, Rhode Island Historical Society.
Contact information: Rhode Island Historical Society
121 Hope Street
Providence, RI 02906
Tel: 401-273-8107
Fax: 401-751-7930
Email: reference@rihs.org

Administrative Information

ABOUT THE COLLECTION  
Acquisition: The provenance of this collection is unknown. The bulk may have arrived as part of the Moses Brown Papers, as Moses Brown was his nephew, protégé and a major heir of his estate.
Processing information: Processed by Pam Narbeth, 1995. One item, a day book kept by Nicholas Brown & Company for the period 1762- 1789, has been transferred to the Nicholas Brown Collection, MSS 314.The John Nicholas Brown Center for the Study of American Civilization at Brown University, in partnership with the John Carter Brown Library at Brown University and the Rhode Island Historical Society, conducted a two year collaborative project starting in1995 to arrange, describe and catalog records relating to the Brown family of Providence, Rhode Island. The Brown Family Papers Project was made possible by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
ABOUT THE FINDING AID  
Author: Finding aid prepared by Rick Stattler.
Encoding: Finding aid encoded by Mark Chepkwony 2009 June 25
Descriptive rules: Finding aid based on Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS)

Additional Information

Bibliography:
  • Buckley, Abby Isabel. The Chad Brown Memorial, Consisting of Genealogical Memoirs of a Portion of the Descendants of Chad and Elizabeth Browne, 1638 - 1888. New York: 1888.
  • The Chad Brown Workbook; A Continuing Family Genealogy of the Descendants of Chad Brown. 2nd edition. Providence: Rhode Island Historical Society, 1987.
  • Hedges, James B. The Browns of Providence Plantations: Colonial Years. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 1952.
  • Rogers, L.E., ed. The Biographical Cyclopedia of the Representative Men of Rhode Island. Providence: National Biographical Publishing Co., 1881.
  • Inventory


    Series 1. Loose papers
    Includes correspondence, receipts, invoices, deeds, agreements, etc. An index of correspondants in this series can be found at the Library of the Rhode Island Historical Society.

    Container Description Date
    Box 1, Folder 1
    1733 - 1749
    Box 1, Folder 2
    1750-1751
    Box 1, Folder 3
    1752
    Box 1, Folder 4
    1753-1753 Apr
    Box 1, Folder 5
    1753 May-1753 Dec
    Box 1, Folder 6
    1754-1754 Jun
    Box 1, Folder 7
    1754 Jul-1754 Dec
    Box 1, Folder 8
    1755
    Box 1, Folder 9
    1756
    Box 1, Folder 10
    1757
    Box 1, Folder 11
    1758
    Box 1, Folder 12
    1758 Jan-1758 Feb
    Box 1, Folder 13
    1758 Mar
    Box 1, Folder 14
    1758 Apr 01-1758 Apr 15
    Box 1, Folder 15
    1758 Apr 16-1758 Apr 30
    Box 1, Folder 16
    1758 May-1758 Jun
    Box 1, Folder 17
    1758 Jul
    Box 1, Folder 18
    1758 Aug
    Box 1, Folder 19
    1758 Sep
    Box 2, Folder 20
    1758 Oct
    Box 2, Folder 21
    1758 Nov-1758 Dec
    Box 2, Folder 22
    1759
    Box 2, Folder 23
    1760-1761
    Box 2, Folder 24
    1762-1763
    Box 2, Folder 25
    Box 2, Folder 26 Estate papers of Obadiah Brown
    1762-1776
    Oversized items from Series I
    Box 1x, Folder 1 Indentures
    1741,1744
    Box 1x, Folder 2 Invoice for ship Smithfield
    1750
    Box 1x, Folder 3 Accounts
    Contents Note: Letter from Sam & William Vernon, 1752

    1752-1754
    Box 1x, Folder 4 Agreement to build a vessel for Thomas Walker
    1752
    Box 1x, Folder 5 Invoices, letter to Sam Angell
    1755-1759
    Box 1x, Folder 6 Account of Joseph Potter
    1756-1759
    Box 1x, Folder 7 Accounts of sloops Ann, Deborah, Esther and Speedwell
    1758-1759
    Box 1x, Folder 8 Correspondence from William Stead
    1756-1759
    Box 1x, Folder 9 Estate papers of Obadiah Brown
    1762-1764

    Series 2. Volumes

    Subseries 1. Account Books

    Container Description Date
    Box 2, Folder 27 Spermaceti Manufactury account book
    1756-1758
    Box 2x, Folder 1 Spermaceti Manufactury accounts
    1757-1758
    Box 2x, Folder 2 Spermaceti Manufactury account book
    1757-1764
    Box 2x, Folder 3 Accounts of Obadiah Brown and the Estate of Obadiah Brown to Nicholas & John Brown
    1759-1763

    Subseries 2. Day Books

    Container Description Date
    Box 2x, Folder 4 Day book of rum warehouse
    1749-1750
    Box 3x, Folder 2.2 Day book, (in Oversize Box 3)
    1746 - 1751
    Box 3x, Folder 2.3 Day book, (in Oversize Box 3)
    1752 Jan-1752 Oct
    Box 4x, Folder 2.4 Day book, (in Oversize Box 4)
    1752 Oct-1753 Apr
    Box 4x, Folder 2.5 Day book, (in Oversize Box 4)
    1753 Apr-1753 Nov
    Box 5x, Folder 2.6 Day book, November 1753 - May 1754 (in Oversize Box 5)
    1753 Nov-1754 May
    Box 5x, Folder 2.7 Day book, May 1755 - March 1757 ( in Oversize Box 5)
    1755 May-1757 Mar
    Box 5x, Folder 2.8 Day book, March 1757 - October 1759 (in Oversize Box 5)
    1757 Mar-1759 Oct
    Box 5x, Folder 2.9 Day book, October 1759 - December 1763 (in Oversize Box 5)
    1759 Oct-1763 Dec

    Subseries 3. Ledgers

    Container Description Date
    Folder 3.1 Oversized Ledger
    1719 - 1731, 1752 - 1755
    Folder 3.2 Oversized Ledger No. 2
    1741 - 1750
    Box 3.3 Oversized Ledger No. 4
    Contents Note: Waste book, 1719 - 1731

    1753-1756
    Folder 3.4 Oversized Ledger No. 5
    1757 - 1763

    Subseries 4. Miscellaneous financial records

    Container Description Date
    Box 2, Folder 28 Accounts and letter book
    1740, 1751 - 1752
    Box 2, Folder 29 Letter book
    1752 - 1759
    Box 2, Folder 30 Guide to Book -Keepers According to the Italian Manner by Charles Snell, printed in 1709. Inserted: journal of a voyage aboard the sloop Mary, Jan. - Feb. 1735/6; and ship accounts
    1733-1736
    Box 2, Folder 31 Receipt book, July 1751 - March 1760
    1751 Jul- 1760 Mar
    Box 2, Folder 32 Marine insurance book
    1753-1762
    Box 2, Folder 33 Account book No. 2, 1747-1771
    Contents Note: Indexed (has 2 mutilated pages) contains: Accounts of snow Reprisal, 1747-1748 Accounts of snow Providence, privateer, 1747 Accounts of ship Smithfield, 1748 Obadiah Brown & Co., Nantucket accounts, 1756-1771 Spinning and weaving accounts, 1769-1771

    1747-1771
    Box 2x, Folder 5 Vice Admiralty Court case against brig Prudent Hannah, Virginia.
    1758