Biographical sketch of JOSEPH BRABAW from the book entitled, "Biographical Memoirs of Saint Clair County, Michigan," published in 1903 by B. F. Bowen Publishers in Indiana.

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JOSEPH BRABAW

This highly respected citizen, ex-soldier and agriculturist of Clay township, St. Clair county, Michigan, was born in Detroit July 14, 1838, the third of the five children that graced the marriage of Anthony and Mary (Parrell) Brabaw, the former a native of Montreal, Canada, and the latter of Detroit. Anthony Brabaw was a farmer by vocation, and in 1857 came to St. Clair county and purchased one hundred and sixty acres of woodland at Pearl Beach, in Clay township, which he cleared up and improved in all necessary respects, making it a comfortable home and a fruitful farm. Although a man of but limited education, he was possessed of strong, good sense, great energy, and an excellent comprehension of business methods, and for nineteen years peddled his products up and down the river, where he was well known, realized a fair competency, and finally settled at Pearl Beach, where he and wife passed the remainder of their days. They had born to them a family of five children, in the following order: Anthony, a farmer at Algonac; Michael, living at Monroe; Joseph, whose name opens this article; Francis, living at St. Clair Flats, and Mary, deceased.

Joseph Brabaw received a fair common school education in his native town, and at the age of eighteen started out in life as a teamster, working by the month. In 1858 he came to Clay township, and here for two years farmed on shares, and here also, in December, 1860, he married Miss Elizabeth A. Hawkins, who was born in England, a daughter of David and Elizabeth Hawkins, natives of Wales. David Hawkins died in his native land, and Mrs. Elizabeth Hawkins came with her children to America and settled in 1850 near Mount Clemens, where she was married to William Lawrence, and where she passed the remainder of her life. To Joseph and Elizabeth A. (Hawkins) Brabaw have been born eleven children, namely: Joseph, Jr., a teamster at Algonac, married Lizzie Row, who has borne him two children, Andrew and Catherine; Michael, living at St. Clair Flats; George, who is married, also lives at St. Clair Flats; Mary is married to Isaac Littleton, who is employed in the salt works at Marine City, and has one child, Lottie M.; William, who married Anna Row and lives in Algonac; Albert, who married Minnie Colward and is living at Port Austin; Fred, an engineer on the steam yacht “Caliph”; Delilah, wife of Captain Charles Ainsworth; Edward, David and Anna.

At his marriage Joseph Brabaw located at Pearl Beach, where he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of farm land, on which he lived eight years. He then sold and bought eighty acres in Casco township, on which he lived one year, and then came back to Pearl Beach and purchased his present farm of eighty-two acres, on which he carried on general farming. Here Mr. Brabaw erected his modern two-story dwelling of thirteen rooms in 1900, at a cost of three thousand three hundred dollars, and all his farm buildings are substantial and commodious, and well adapted for the purpose for which they were built.

Although the military service of Mr. Brabaw was but short, it evinced a patriotism commendable to a marked degree, and consisted of three months service, from March, 1865, in Company G, Twenty-eighth Michigan Volunteer Infantry, from which he was honorably discharged at the expiration of his term of enlistment. Mr. Brabaw may be termed a self-made man in the business sense of the term, and in his family relations is very felicitously situated, all being members of the Catholic church, of which they are all liberal supporters financially, and to their duties as such they are faithful and unwavering, thus gaining the respect of their fellow residents of Clay township, as well as that of the county in general, where they are widely known.

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PLEASE NOTE: I do not have any personal interest in researching the BRABAW surname or the St. Clair county, Michigan location. I am merely posting a select number of the biographical sketches found in the above-referenced book *upon specific written request* as a service to the genealogical community. Therefore, please do not contact me with regard to research interests in the above. Thank you.