Rebecca Brevard

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Rebecca was born on March 20, 1762 and died November 24, 1824 at the age of 62. She married Captain Alexander Brevard in 1784 and moved to Lincoln County. In the Revolution Capt. Brevard had served in the militia in the Snow Campaign, then as an ensign under Col. Thomas Polk in the 4th Regiment of the NC Continental Line. He was promoted to Lieutenant and was in the battles of Brandywine and Germantown. After spending the winter at Valley Forge he returned home as an invalid. After recovering he served as a Militia Captain, as Quartermaster under General Gates and commanded a company at the battle of Eutaw Springs – a thoroughly distinguished military career. In Lincoln County, with his brother-in-law Joseph Graham and his father-in-law Major John he established and operated a blast furnace and foundry which produced pig iron and cast iron goods of various types. He also owned mines for the required iron ore and limestone and land where he produced charcoal for the furnaces. Rebecca and Alexander were the parents of eight children.

Captain Alexander Brevard and Rebecca Davidson Brevard were the parents of eight children. The information below on three of these children is from the journal that Keziah Brevard kept from July of 1860 through April of 1861. The underlined name is the one most commonly used.27 1. Alexander Joseph Maclean Brevard (9/22/1801 – 6/1/1842) married Keziah Goodwyn Hopkins of South Carolina on 4/26/1827. Keziah and Joseph settled in Lincoln County, and he served one term (1827 – 1828) in the Assembly. Then the marriage quickly fell apart. Joseph began drinking heavily, and Keziah left him and fled to her father’s home, Oldfield Plantation, near Columbia, SC. Joseph followed after her, but failed to convince her to come home so he stayed at her father’s plantation. Joseph was admitted to the SC State Hospital, commonly called the “lunatic asylum,” in 1835 for “monomania,” a mental disorder where the mind is focused on a single theme. He was obsessed by jealousy and the idea that Keziah had a paramour. Joseph was released two months later apparently not much improved, as Keziah’s father and brother were appointed by the court as his legal guardians. In September, 1841 Joseph was hospitalized again. According to hospital records he had been deranged for some time, but had been kept at home.

was in poor health, and believed people were trying to poison him. His health seriously declined and he was released in 1842 and died June 1 at Oldfield Plantation. He and Keziah had no children. 2. Theodore (or Theodorus) Washington Brevard (9/24/1804 – 1877) graduated from South Carolina College and began practicing law in Columbia. He married his sister-in-law, Keziah’s younger sister Caroline, in 1826. In their short marriage they had two sons, both of whom died young. Caroline died soon after the birth of her second son in 1828. Three years later Theodore married again, this time to Caroline Mays of Edgefield, SC. In 1833 they moved to Alabama, and then to Florida where he served as state comptroller from 1855 – 1860. Brevard County, Florida, established in 1855, is named in Theodore’s honor. Cape Canaveral and the town of Melbourne are located in Brevard County. 3. John Franklin Brevard (12/5/1788 – 2/13/1827) married Margaret (Peggy) Conner on August 15, 1820. During their brief marriage Peggy had four children, three of whom died in infancy or early childhood. The family genealogy makes her 41 years old when they were married, but this is probably in error since it would have her bearing four children between the ages of 42 and 47. Peggy was left a widow with one child after seven years of marriage. It was two months after Franklin died that his brother Joseph married Keziah Hopkins (see above). The two sisters-in-law became great friends and their exchange of letters is mentioned in Keziah’s diary. A woman named Juliana Conner of Charleston kept a diary in 1827 as a bride. She wrote of visiting her new husband’s family in Mecklenburg, as well as several Alexanders and Brevards in Lincoln County, and Robin and Peggy Davidson at Holly Bend. Her husband’s name was Henry Conner. Peggy had a brother named Henry Connor He lived in Charleston, but his family were North Carolina Presbyterians. Was Peggy’s brother the husband of Juliana Connor? It is an intriguing thought but conclusive proof does not exist. However Juliana’s colorful diary paints a wonderful picture of Mecklenburg and Lincoln during the early summer of 1827. A transcription of her journal is in the Southern Historical Collection at UNC.