The Blairs of Ayrshire Scotland

The surname Blair was first used in the Scottish/English borderlands by the Strathclyde-Briton.  The first Blair family lived in the village of Blair, in County Ayrshire Scotland.  In ancient history they were known as the DeBlair Clan, being that they were "of Blair".  Their clan fought alongside Robert the Bruce and William Wallace in the 11th century.  Many genealogists have traced this line back as far as 1033, just prior to the Norman Conquest.  It's reasonable to assume that many lines have no older data.

BLAIR CASTLE
NOW FOR SALE!

A large number of Scottish Blairs, however (like many Scottish border clans), were banished by King James in the early 17th century, and forced to moved to Northern Ireland to help Scotland settle the historically Gaelic land and make it Protestant.  These people were known as the Ulster Scots.

David Blair (1603-1655) my 8th great grandfather, was born in Blair, Ayershire, Scotland, and worked in textiles.  He was part of the Blair clan that was banished to Ulster, Northern Ireland.  He and his wife (Bessie Watson) migrated to Aghadowey, in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland in the mid 1600s, and started a family there that lasted in Aghadowey for only two generations.

David's son James (1644-1732), and his grandson Robert Blair (1684-1775) was born in Aghadowey.  Robert and his wife, Isabella Rankin, had many children, including my 5th great grandfather, Captain William Blair (1718- 1791).  Robert & Isabella and family (including Robert's parents) sailed to the New World in 1733, and landed in Massachusetts.  Robert died at 91 at the beginning of the American Revolution.  Many of his descendants remain in Massachusetts today

His son, Captain William Blair, made extensive purchases of land as early as 1744 in Worcester & Blandford, Massachusetts and also in Voluntown, CT.  He earned the rank of captain and served in many pre-Revolutionary campaigns in New England.  William left Massachusetts with his regiment in the fall of 1759 (also with his new wife, Jane Barnes), and started a settlement by driving the French settlers out.  The settlement occurred in Onslow Township in Colchester County, Nova Scotia, where their son James was born.

GRAVE OF CAPTAIN WILLIAM BLAIR
ONSLOW CEMETERY, NOVA SCOTIA

GRAVE OF JANE BARNES-BLAIR
ONSLOW CEMETERY, NOVA SCOTIA

James Blair (1766-1858) and Isabella Catherwood (1766-1795) were my 4th great grandparents.  They stayed in Onslow Township all their lives, where their daughter Isabel (1795-1868) was born, and where Isabel married a stone mason by the name of John Browning (1799-1868). 

John & Isabel were my 3rd great grandparents, and their children moved to Portland Maine, where their descendants still live today.  John and Isabel lived in Machias Maine toward the end of their lives, and John served time in Maine State Prison.  John died in either Machias or Nova Scotia by 1868, and Isabel died in Salem, Massachusetts of lung congestion in November of 1870.

In doing some research at the Mormon library, I was pleased to see that someone had saved a document that indexed all birth, marriage and death records from Nova Scotia newspapers in the 1800s.  Here is an abstract of the announcements I found as they relate to Blairs living in Nova Scotia, even though I don't know yet how they figure into my family:

-26 Mar 1797, Mr. John Blair died, 43 [grocer]

-27 Jan 1819 at London, Dr. Primrose Blair, Physician to the Fleet
-18 Nov 1819 at Truro by Rev. J. Waddle:  Marriage of Mr. William Blair & Susannah, youngest daughter of James Kent, Esq.

-23 Aug 1830, by Rev. F. Uniacke:  Richard Inglis, Esq. married Jane, daughter of Major Blair.

-9 Sep 1832, at Cornwallis, by Rev. J. Moore:  Adam Gordon Blair, Esq. & Harriette, youngest daughter of late Colin Campbell, Esq.

-4 Dec 1833, James Blair, Esq., died at 75.

-3 Mar 1835, at Truro by Rev. J. Burnyeat:  Marriage of Joseph McLean Dickson and Lavinia, 2nd daughter of James D. Blair

-7 Apr 1835, at Onslow by Rev. J. Baxter:  Marriage of William Elliot & Jane, 3rd daughter of James Blair, Sr.

-14 Jan 1836, at Onslow by Rev. J.J. Baxter:  Marriage of Daniel Cock, Jr., of Truro & Agnes, 2nd daughter of Samuel Blair

-21 Mar 1848, by Rev. R. Arnold:  John Bell, Workington, Cumberland, Eng & Miss Jane Elizabeth Blair, Halifax.

-1 Jul 1848, Joseph Howe, died at 6, youngest son of John Blair

-9 Dec 1848 (Friday last at Halifax:  Corporal Samuel Blair & Miss Agnes Blyth, from Aberdeen, Scotland.

-24 May 1849, at Truro by Rev. W. McCulloch:  H.L. Dickey, Cornwallis & Nancy, eldest daughter of James D. Blair

-2 Aug 1849 at Liverpool by Rev. J. McMurray:  John Blair & Miss Letitia R. Burnaby

-5 Dec 1849, at St. John, N.B., by Rev. Mr. Dimock:  John Blair, Onslow & Caroline M., 2nd daughter of late Captain Forsyth

-14 Jun 1851, Adam Gordon Blair, died in Halifax at 46.

***

SOURCES:

• The Blair Family of New England, published 1900 by David Clapp & Son
• Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s-1900s
• UK, Extracted Probate Records

The Mystery of Little Edwin's Grave

Robert Browning, Jr. was owner of merchant seamen's boarding houses on Fore Street (aka houses of ill repute), and was also brother to my 2nd great grandmother, Sarah Jane Browning-Temm.  Robert had purchased for himself a plot in Calvary Cemetery, South Portland.  But he had also purchased a separate lot in Forest City Cemetery, South Portland, where a random mix of people happen to be buried, and it's a mystery I've yet to uncover the answer to. 

FOREST CITY CEMETERY
SOUTH PORTLAND, MAINE
PLOT B-104
PURCHASED BY ROBERT BROWNING 16 DEC 1868

CONTAINING A LOT OF SPACE, BUT FEW BURIAL RECORDS

The three people with burial records for this plot are:

1.  Little Edwin Temm (who would've been Robert Jr.'s cousin) (1900-1900).  Edwin's parents were John & Hattie Temm.  Edwin's grandparents, Marcus & Sarah, were the only Temms to have died prior to him in Maine, and they were reported to have been buried in Forest City, so I suspect that they are also in this grave.  Little Edwin was not given a headstone, and is erroneously listed as Edward Temm.

2.  Augustus Clark (1823-1908), son to attorney Jonathan Clarke of South Berwick, Maine, and Harriet Allen of Sanford, Maine.  Neither of these Clarkes are connected in any way to the Clarke bloodlines I've been researching from my own family.  It's curious to me why this man was buried in little Edwin's grave.

3.  Esther B. Jones (1830-1860), wife to William Jones, died of consumption in 1860.  She was buried in Eastern Cemetery in Portland.  On 20 Nov 1873, Esther's body was removed to Forest City Cemetery, and was one of the first burials in this plot purchased by Robert Browning.  I have no clue why. 

Other potential dwellers:

1.  I'm guessing that Edwin's grandfather Marcus Temm was already buried here (since the lot was purchased just a few weeks after Marcus' death).  So why would Robert Browning Jr. have chosen to move the body so it could lie next to Marcus?


2.  Marcus' daughter, Elizabeth Temm-Smart (1857-1884), died while giving birth to her third child.  Her death record states that she is buried at Forest City as well, and the cemetery was unable to provide proof of burial there.  It's quite possible that this lot is home to Elizabeth as well.

3.  Marcus' daughter, Kate, seems to not have any available death or burial records.  I think she could also be in this lot.

4.  Marcus' wife, Sarah, died in Scarborough in 1892, and it's also unclear where she is buried.  I think this is the likely spot.

This is a mystery that will likely never be solved.  Review of all available records has gotten me only this far.

Robert Browning was buried at Calvary Cemetery, with his wife, Catherine Whalen, and some of their children.

I find interesting that there is a record of "Robo Browrig" having been buried on 29 March 1937 in the Pauper's Lot of Forest City, in Section Y, Lot 246 with no grave marker.

PAUPER'S LOT

FOREST CITY CEMETERY

SOUTH PORTLAND, MAINE

Forest City Cemetery is one of the largest cemeteries in the Greater Portland area, and many times when I've called their offices, I've discovered that the records aren't very well kept.  Anyone buried prior to 1915, for some reason, may or may not be on their list of records.  To boot, when you visit Forest City, it's now a massive burial site with NO markers for the plots of land.  Anyone who is looking to find people buried there may spend many hours looking for them, like my mother and I did last summer.  You must call the offices of Evergreen Cemetery on Stevens Avenue to get the information, or better yet, stop by there and get a map.

The Brownings of Pictou, Nova Scotia

The name Browning is English, coming from Anglo-Saxon origins, meaning a person with brown hair or a dark complexion.  There are many spelling variations for this name, including Brownrigg, Brownrig, and Brownridge.  However, the name Brownrigg/Brownridge has additional roots tied to the ancient Scottish Boernician clan.  I'm not certain which direction to take the research at present, but I can list what I know so far, in the event that other researchers can comment.

My Browning ancestors come from Nova Scotia (New Scotland), so I'm more tied to the idea that their original name was actually Brownrigg.  However, their names and their descendants' names all carry a variety of name differentials, including Brownrick, Brownsby and Brownrig (with one 'r'). 

William Brownrigg, my fourth great grandfather, was born around 1775 in Cumberland England, moved to Truro, Nova Scotia, and died around 1810.  He was a merchant marine and died at sea, according to family legend.  Apparently the Brownrigg family were original settlers of Pictou and Truro Nova Scotia.  Nobody appears to know much more about William, though.  He married Mary Jeffers (of French extraction) in 1797, and had five children:

1.  John Robert Browrigg (1799-abt 1860) (also known as Robert Brownrigg) and his wife Isabel Blair (1795-1869) (these were my third great grandparents), were both born in Colchester, Nova Scotia.  For the 1850 Census, John was serving time at the Maine State Prison in Thomaston for attempting to poison someone.  In the 1860 Census, John & Isabel were living in East Machias, Maine, with their daughter Joanna (aged 30), and her three young children.

2.  Jacob 1799-1864, married Janet Currier

3.  Jane (birth/death date unknown) married William Holstead

4.  Anne 1806-1880 married John Copeland

5. William, Jr. (1809-1895) married to Joanne Kitchin.

John & Isabel definitely had three confirmed children in Truro, Pictou, Nova Scotia, two of whom moved to the Greater Portland area of Maine in 1851:

1.  Isabel Browning (1821-1896) born in Truro, moved to Salem, Massachusetts with her husband, John Brown, and had at least one child (Esther Brown).

2.  Sarah Jane Browning (1825-1892), who married Marcus Temm, a merchant seaman from Hamburg Germany and settled in Scarborough Maine.  These were my 2nd great grandparents.

3.  Joanna Browning (1829- ), who may have had three children (James W., John and Isabella).  I'm only assuming the three children are Joanna's, since they are on a census with her along with John & Isabel in Machias in 1860, and since the children were much too young to be John & Isabel's own children.

4.  Robert Browning (1832-1905), who married Catherine Whalen (1838-1874) from Ireland (whom I believe was related to the Whalen family that intermarried with my Leonard family from Ireland/Portland, but I've yet to prove it).  They married in Portland in 1864.  In 1866, he was working as a provision dealer on 127 Fore Street under the name Robert Brownrig.  In both 1865 and 1866, his name was published in the Portland Daily Press for an unclaimed piece of mail, a practice I was unaware that the post office did.

In 1868, Robert was sued for wine ordered by his servant:

Portland Daily Eastern Argus
Dec. 31, 1868

In July 1869, he purchased several properties on Fore Street for $1,391.00, retained domestic servants, and called them the Brownrig Boarding Houses for Merchant Seamen.  They were located at 103, 125, 299 and 301 Fore Street.  103 & 125 were on the corner of Mountfort Street (125 was torn down to build a ship forge owned by Thomas Laughlin Company.  299-301 was on the corner of Pearl Street, next door to the Hub Furniture building across from the Customs House).  I wonder if Robert's sister Sarah Jane met her future husband Marcus at one of these boarding houses?  I also wonder what went on at these businesses...

101-103 Fore Street (in 1924)

(Corner of Mountfort Street)

299-301 Fore Street

(somewhere in this picture from 1924 City Planning Tax Records Collection)

Robert's niece Lizzie Temm worked as a servant at 103 Fore Street when she was a teenager.  Robert naturalized as "Robert Brownrig" in Portland Superior Court in February of 1876.  

In May of 1876, his business was referred to as "Brownrig's" and "Bob Peel's" in a pleading at Superior Court.  I wonder if Bob Peel was a nickname for him? (Portland Daily Press, 5/12/1876, pg. 3)

In May of 1877, he was tried and discharged at Municipal Court for search and seizure.  Perhaps related to one of his roomers. (Portland Daily Press, 5/3/1877, pg. 3)

In December 1879, he sold off all the Fore Street properties to William Morton.  

In 1880, his name was published in the Portland Daily Press for failing to pay his 1879 taxes.  Interesting to learn that the newspapers routinely embarrassed or shamed folks who were delinquent.

In 1891, his name was listed in the paper as living at 299 Fore Street, and some kind of registrant for vital records (birth/marriage/death).  Unclear what this was 

By 1900, he was renting property and working as a day laborer, at 67 years of age.  I wonder how he lost all his money? 

Robert & Catherine had five children in Portland, and they chose the "Brownrig" spelling at some point after 1871, dropping one of the g's at the end.  Three of their children died in infancy (Isabella, John & Gertie), and the two who survived to adulthood were:

-Mary Elizabeth "Minnie" Brownrig (1865-1925).  Minnie also grew up on 103 Fore Street.  She never married, but lived with her brother Thomas for a time on 267 Congress Street (corner of India Street).  Each census showed her as having no occupation.  I wonder how she filled her days.

-Thomas A. Brownrig (1868-1950).  Thomas also never married, and was frequently mentioned in the local papers, as will be shown below.  He was a saloon keeper and beer retailer at 39-49 Commercial Street (where the AutoEurope building is as of 2011) and 342 Fore Street (currently Paragon Barber Shop as of 2024).  He grew up in his father's boarding house on 103 Fore Street, and later lived and helped manage one of the other boarding houses on 299 Fore Street.  He also lived on 45 Commercial Street and 267 Congress Street.  In 1887-1888, his name was regularly listed as being members of the Dirigo Boat Club (Portland Daily Press 11/9/1887, Page 4).  Similar announcements in this same publication from 1889-1891 show him as a member of the Argonauts.  He apparently was a rower and participated in regattas and scull races, when he was young, but was known for his liquor consumption as he got older.

Also in 1889, Thomas A. Brownrig's name was featured in this publication as a prominent member of the city supporting the Industrial Exhibition, which movement later led to the Exposition Building being erected on Park Avenue in 1914.  

In January 1892, at age 24, Thomas was indicted for "liquor nuisance."  Interesting article above.  This was one of five different postings in this publication during that month.  It's interesting to think that you could be arrested simply for drinking inside a building.  The Maine Law only existed between 1855-1856.

In subsequent years, Thomas had more run-ins with the law for liquor nuisance, including being arrested in 1894 for simply having liquor at his place of business at 42 Fore Street.  (Portland Daily Press, 6/1/1894, pg. 8), and multiple search and seizure trials through 1896, because he cops kept taking his booze.

By 1897, Thomas was the manager of the Gaiety Theater, a burlesque dance hall (owned by Alderman Edgar Rounds) at 382 Congress Street (where the firehouse currently sits), which had angered the parishioners of the Second Parish Church across the street, as it was apparently distracting the boys attending Sunday School, who were more interested in watching the bawdy shows. Thomas applied for a business license in order to legitimize the theater, and it was rejected due to the immorality of the shows witnessed by parishioners who dared enter, and because Thomas had a criminal record.  The Alderman separately applied for this business license, promising that the shows would become more family friendly, but he too was rejected, and then sold the theater.

Thomas' own father Robert appeared in a search and seizure trial over booze yet again being illegally seized by police in 1899, and testified that his son lived there and he himself was just a boarder, and that Thomas should be held liable.  (Portland Daily Press 2/11/89, pg. 8) Father of the year there...

Also in 1899, Thomas was credited for alerting the fire department of a blaze occurring on Fore Street (Thomas Laughlin's machine shop) across the street from his own business.  Later that year, he appeared in the paper for being on the winning team of a final game of bowling for the season.

In 1900, Thomas' shop on 45 Commercial Street was burglarized (currently this is where the parking garage for the Maine Street Pier sits).  Later that year, he suffered multiple more search and seizures for liquor by the police at his place of business, as well as a flood of his basement based upon a November downpour (Portland Daily Press, 11/9/1900, pg. 7)  

There are many dozens of citations in the paper for liquor nuisance attributed to Thomas Brownrig, from 1892-1910.  I find it curious, because he wasn't indicted for any serious crimes, other than possession itself.  He was a liquor retailer, it would stand to reason that he would be in possession of this, and legally, so I can't make heads or tails of the charges that were routinely against him.  By all other accounts in the paper, he was a trusted member of society and involved in local groups.

In 1901, Brownrig's business at 45 Commercial was known as a restaurant, and he was burgled yet again with the vagrants running off with a slot machine, according to article in Portland Daily Press 9/17/1901, pg. 10.  They were jailed for five months for the act.

In 1902, both Thomas and his former colleague, Alderman Edgar Rounds, were named in a large seizure of liquor, regarding the transport of liquor to and from Portsmouth. (Portland Daily Press, 1/17/02, pg. 6).  The case dragged out for several weeks thereafter, and involved accusations of bribery of sheriffs and fist fights. (PDP, 5/22/02, pg. 1)

He purchased a house on Sebago Lake in 1904.  In 1911 he was bequeathed the Commercial Street properties from the will of William S. Perry of Brunswick (not sure of the relation).  He kept the properties until 1921.  Throughout the 20's and 30's he was a cigar retailer at 115 Center Street while boarding at 122 High Street and 141 Cumberland Avenue, according to Portland City Directories.  In 1940 census, he was still listed as a restaurateur, though.

In 1918, Thomas was pallbearer at Mary Deehan's funeral.  In 1925, his sister Minnie died in his care at 141 Cumberland Ave, with whom she always lived as an adult.

In 1950 Census, he was living at the Wadsworth Hotel on Congress Street, and died that year.

***

Thomas and his sister Minnie share a gravesite at Calvary Cemetery in Plot N 349.

Robert (under the name Browning), his wife, the three deceased infants, and also Catherine's brother, Thomas Whalen, are all buried in Calvary Cemetery, South Portland, in Plot H 8.

However, in 1868, Robert had purchased an additional lot in Forest City Cemetery, South Portland, where a seemingly random mix of people happen to be buried, and it's a mystery I've yet to uncover the answer to...I firmly believe that his sister Sarah Jane's husband, Marcus Temm, was the first buried there, since the date of lot purchase was just weeks after Marcus' death.


****

In doing some research at the Mormon library, I was pleased to see that someone had saved a document that indexed all birth, marriage and death records from Nova Scotia newspapers in the 1800s.  Here is an abstract of the announcements I found as they relate to Brownriggs living in Nova Scotia:

-25 Dec 1829, by Rev. J . Waddell:  Alexander Archibald, Esq. married Ann, only daughter of late William Brownrigg

-27 May 1833, at Helstone:  Gen. Sir Robert Brownrigg

-9 Mar 1837, at Truro by Rev. Mr. Burnyeat:  Marriage of John Copeland of Musquodoboit & Miss Ann Brownrigg

Colchester Historical Museum Archives sent me an email with the following information:

"Hi Scott: The only Isabel Blair that I found in our records that married a Browning was born Jan. 17, 1795 in Onslow Township and died 1868. She was the daughter of James Blair, Esq. and Isabella Catherwood. She had a family of 2 sons, and 6 daughters. However, the Browning she married was not named Robert but John. John Browning apparently died sometime before 1868. If in fact the family we found is the right one then he would have died between 1860- 1868.  On Ancestry.com we looked at the 1850 US census and put in Robert Browning born in Nova Scotia but only John turned up being born in Nova Scotia. He was in the Maine State Prison. It says he was born in Nova Scotia. In the 1860 US census he is in East Machias, Washington , Maine with his wife Isabella age 64 (he is 63) and 4 younger people - a couple could be children and two grandchildren maybe. Says he was a stone mason. Should see if they might be in the 1870 census. They shouldn't be if the above is correct for yours."

Here's a pedigree chart for Sarah Jane Browning.  Sarah was of 100% Scottish descent, and her mother was of a noble Scottish lineage.

The Temm Family of Southern Maine

My immigrant ancestor was named "Wilhelm Marcus Timm", from Hamburg, Germany.  His name changed to Temm upon arrival in America (not before it had changed a couple other times.  Marcus and his many mysteries are the subject of a separate blog page devoted to him here.

Another page devoted to the history of the German Temm migrations to America can be found here.

Anyhow, now for the facts I've discovered from records, regarding the Temm Family history in Maine...

Marriage Notice
Portland Weekly Advertiser
Nov. 16, 1852

Marcus Timm married his wife Sarah Jane "Brownsby" Browning (1825-1892) in Portland on Nov 10, 1852.  Sarah was born in Truro, Nova Scotia in 1825 to John Robert Browning (sometimes known as Brownrigg) & Isabel Blair from Nova Scotia.  Sarah, her sister Bethia, and her brother Robert Jr., had migrated from Nova Scotia around 1851.

For the 1860 Census in Portland, Marcus & Sarah gave fake names "William and Sarah Brown", and all the kids had the last name Brown as well.  It's easy to see they got the name from Sarah's maiden name, Browning.  Why they did this, I'm not sure, but it certainly lends itself to the Temm story of a man escaping authorities.  But he lists himself as the Landlord here.  Check it out at the bottom of the page (click to enlarge):

The 1858 Portland Directory shows a William Brown as living at a boarding house on 128 Fore Street, which would be across the street from the other houses owned by Robert Browning (see below).  They lived in Ward 3, which is the region south of Congress Street and east of Franklin Street.  Sarah's brother Robert Browning Jr also lived in Ward 3, on Fore Street, where he established a row of seamen's boarding houses.  I wonder if Marcus stayed in one of these boarding houses, and that was how he met Sarah...?  These seamen's boarding houses were known back then to be "houses of ill repute", according to my grandfather, Frank Clarke, who, coincidentally, later sold moonshine to the sailors in the current versions of these houses on Fore Street from the 1930s onward.

Prior to moving to Scarborough in 1864 (which is the earliest any Temm lived in Scarborough), Marcus & Sarah had five children in the East End of Portland who survived to adulthood:

-The eldest of their children was my great grandfather, John Henry Temm (1853-1936), born John Henry Brown.

-Elizabeth "Lizzie" Bell Temm (born Elizabeth Bell Brown) (1856-1884) worked as a housekeeper at her uncle Robert Browning's seamen boarding house on 103 Fore Street.  Around 1880, she married a farmer and wheelwright by the name of Thomas M. Smart, and lived near the Temm Homestead in Scarboro.  They had three children (Thomas Franklin Smart, aka "Frank", Isabella and Willard).  She died one day after her 27th birthday, in Scarborough, giving birth to their third child.  The three kids were given over to John Henry to be raised by him, according to Sarah's Will.  Frank ended up being raised by Lizzie's sister, Sadie Temm-Edwards.  It appears that Frank married a Georgia Harding in 1905 and moved to Winthrop, where he died in 1906, with no children.  As for the other two kids, Isabella married a Gardner Edwards (who may have relation to Lizzie's brother-in-law Dennis), and lived in New Gloucester, they had one child, Archie (who had no kids), and Elizabeth's youngest child Willard married a woman named Mamie Hadley, and had five children.  When Mamie and one of their children died tragically in a fire, Willard abandoned his kids and remarried to a much younger woman, leaving his kids to be raised by Isabella.  Willard has several living descendants (who would be the only living descendants of Lizzie Temm).  It states on Lizzie's death record that she is buried in Forest City Cemetery.  They have no record for her, but according to them their records are spotty before 1915 anyhow.  It's likely that she's buried in the lot started by her uncle Robert Brownrig.

-Sarah Jane ("Sadie") Temm (born Sarah Jane Brown) (1858-1935) married Dennis Edwards in Salem, Massachusetts, but settled in Freeport, Maine.  They had three children who survived to adulthood (Pearl, Dana & Pauline).  Dennis was killed in the summer of 1898 by a train while riding his horse in Freeport.  I'm in touch with one of Pearl's descendants, and have learned quite a bit about this family.  Sadie later married a John Brett, and had no further children.  On Sadie's 2nd marriage record in 1903, it stated that Sadie's father William Temm (Marcus) was born in Portland, and that Sarah Jane Brownrigg was born in Machias.  I wonder if Marcus' need to lay low made everyone say he was from Maine, even 35 years after his death.  Also, Sarah Jane's parents had moved to Machias, Maine at one point, so it's likely that Sadie believed Sarah Jane was born in Machias.



-Robert James Temm (1860-1863) (shown as "Infant Brown" listed in the census record above), died at age 3.

-Catherine Mary Temm (1865-after 1905) went by the name Kate Temm, and never married.  She was born just after the Temms' move to Scarborough, and their reversion from Brown to their correct surname "Temm".  Aunt Isabelle stated that she remembers stories about her living in Woodfords area of Portland and working as a waitress.  This sent me looking through the Portland directories, where I found "Katie Timm" living at 112 India Street, and working as a waitress, for the year 1896.  She shows up in the 1900 Census as a waitress and lived at 54 Free Street, in the boarding house of Dennis Kilday.   On this census, she declares her parents to be both from Maine (just like her sister's death record had stated).  On the 1905 City Directory, she's working as a waitress at 10 Moulton Street (John L. Gibbs Restaurant), and roomed at 54 Center Street (just a few blocks away - house is now a parking lot next to Staples School).  Her name vanishes from City Directories after 1905.  No further records found.

Their move to Scarborough was fortuitous, since it was two years prior to the Great Fire of Portland in 1866, although the fire spared Robert Browning's houses.


Chronological review of the extensive real estate records involving Marcus & Sarah Temm and heirs:

-1854, "William Brown" purchases 17 Atlantic Street, in Portland's East End, from John Weeks.

 

-22 June 1864, Sarah purchased several lots of land in Scarboro from S. Bartholomew Jones of Portland for $600.00, inclusive of access and common area usage to a large barn and cellar and other common areas.  This land appears to be north of the land owned by Sarah at the corner of Dresser and Beech Ridge.  Concurrently with the above deed, George Jewett of Portland sold Sarah a neighboring portion of this property for $100.00.  Together, this makes the "30 Acre Property" referred to below.

-September 1866, "William Brown" sells 17 Atlantic Street to Adeline Hutchinson, two months after the Great Fire of Portland, likely when real estate was lower in price, even though the house (and most all of Munjoy Hill) escaped the fire:

-18 April 1871, two and a half years had passed since Marcus' death, and Sarah purchased and mortgaged from Edward Moses, a neighbor, a 16 acre lot on Beech Ridge Road contiguous with other property owned by her, and was known to be part of the Dresser Farm.  The mortgage was a three year term, for a purchase price of $300.00.

-7 March 1873, Sarah had failed to pay the mortgage, and the property was seized by Wilbur Dresser (whom the Dresser Road was named for), as attorney to George Jewett (assignees of Ed Moses).  The property was seized 'peaceably and with no opposition from Mrs. Temm or any other person'.  The witnesses for the foreclosure were John & Mary McLaughlin, part of the prestigious McLaughlin family (whose graves are situated on Beech Ridge Road just outside Bill Temm Jr.'s house, right across the road from Sarah's Homestead).

-4 September 1875, Sarah officially sold the 16 acre Dresser Farm lot to Jewett.  It's unclear why she was entitled to wait over two years to do so after it had already been seized.

-In 1880, Sarah purchased a 3/4 acre portion of her neighbor Dominicus Libby's property for $10.00.

Portland Daily Press
Feb. 24, 1885

-In 1885, John Henry Temm purchased and mortgaged from A.A. Mitchell of Deering an approximately 16 acre portion of land just north of his mother's land for $320.00.

-January 1891, Sarah failed to pay the delinquent property taxes on the combined land (a whopping $7.12 due from the tax year 1889), so the tax collector claimed to seize the property.  Sarah died exactly one year later of pneumonia in January of 1892, at age 66. 

-In March of 1892, Sarah's estate was probated, with the Administrator being her friend and neighbor, Wilbur F. Dresser, and an abstract of her will was provided:

First, I wish to give one undivided half of all my Real Estate to my beloved son John Henry Timm.  I wish the remainder of my property consisting of one undivided half interest in my Real Estate and all my household furniture except that part already given to my Daughters as above to be divided equally between my beloved son John H. Temm and my beloved daughters Sarah J. Edwards and Catherine M. Temm and the children of Elizabeth Smart now members of my family the three children to have what would be their mother's share and I do hereby appoint my son John H. Temm trustee of these Children of Elizabeth Smart.

-In November of 1892, John H. Temm suffered a foreclosure on his 16 acre property, and it had to be given back to an heir of Mr. Mitchell, the holder of the Note.

-On 23 Jan 1893, the Town of Scarborough tax collector recorded another tax deed against the property, for the same unpaid property tax from 1889 - in the amount of $7.12.   The deed states that a bill for taxes was posted, and nobody from the estate of William Temm, deceased, came forward to resolve the debt, so the 30 acre Temm Homestead Farm was therefore sold to the Town of Scarborough for its payment of the tax arrears.

-On 11 July 1896, John Temm & Hattie (newly married-although I can't find any official record of it...) signed a mortgage deed for the 30 acre, 16 acre, and 3/4 acre collective homestead benefiting Isaac Rogers of Standish for $400.00.  They had one year to pay Rogers back or else lose the property.  This leads me to believe that the Temms must have got the property back from the tax collector and Mr. Mitchell's heir by some method (although I see nothing of record).

-On 8 August 1896, Wilbur Dresser as executor of Estate of Sarah Jane Temm, four years after her death, sold the 3/4 acre property and the 30 acre property held by the Estate to Isaac Rogers of Standish.  I guess the probate deed above had no effect?  And why would a neighbor become the executor to her estate when she already had three surviving adult children capable of this?

-12 April 1898, John & Hattie lost this same property to Isaac Rogers via Court Order, plus attorney fees ($11.25).

-31 Dec 1898, Hattie struck a deal with Lowell Simonds of Old Orchard.  He bought the 3/4 acre property and the 16 acre property from Hattie, and Hattie gave that money to Isaac Rogers to call off the foreclosure proceedings on the 30 Acre Lot.

-13 Jun 1899, Hattie sold the 30 acre Temm Homestead after all to Lowell Simonds, ending the 35 year period that the Temms actually owned the original Temm Homestead at 99 Beech Ridge Road (NE corner of Dresser Road and Beech Ridge Road, once owned by Sarah Jane Temm).  However, the Temms still lived on that land and rented until 1920, when they moved down the street (see below).

After Simonds, the successor owners of the Temm Homestead were the Waterhouses, Walter Breil, Eugene Brown, Joseph Roy, Ralph Erickson, and Thomas Filieo.

Carl Temm Homestead

-3 May 1920, John & Hattie purchased and mortgaged new property on 75 Beech Ridge Road (unknown acreage) from Wilbur Dresser for $1200.00, for a three year term.  This large property was 'between Dunstan Corner and Gorham', and later became the Carl Temm Homestead.

-27 Sep 1924, John mortgaged the new large property to Albion Perley.  Mortgage was satisfied.

-17 Jan 1930, John signed a deed selling his property at 75 Beech Ridge Road to his sons Clifford & Carl Temm, with stipulation that the property not change hands until his own death.  The deed was recorded on 2 Apr 1936, just one day after John died, and carried with it a $700 unpaid mortgage.

-13 Dec 1941, Clifford and his wife Susie sold off their half interest in the Homestead to Carl Temm.  by then the land was unencumbered by mortgage.

-27 Mar 1975, Carl had passed away, and his probate appeared to pass all property holdings (including the Temm Farm) to June Moon, Alvin Temm (nephew), Charles Temm (nephew), Ralph Temm (nephew) and Nellie Guptill (girlfriend).

In 1935, the old McLaughlin property across the street from the old Temm Homestead was purchased by John Henry Temm's son, William S. Temm from Bridget Sheehy.  The property had been sold by the McLaughlins to the Benjamin Shaw, who sold it to Harriette Harmon, who later sold it to Sheehy.

Benjamin's daughter, Zelia Shaw, was a neighbor and a family friend to William Temm.  The Shaws kept their own farm next door to the Temm Homestead, but in 1932, when Zelia lost her parents and brother all within a 4 year span, Zelia sold the house and moved in with the Temms.

ZELIA SHAW
(1887-1969)

There could be other records.  Indeed there should, to fill in the many gaps.  But the extensive Temm property owned by Sarah at one time is no longer owned by her, but adjacent properties were purchased by John Henry's children Bill & Carl, and many of Bill's descendants live there still.

MARCUS & SARAH TEMM HOMESTEAD (2010)

CORNER OF BEECH RIDGE AND DRESSER ROADS

SCARBOROUGH, MAINE

(NOT THE SAME HOUSE FROM THE 1800's, OBVIOUSLY)

Timm vs. Temm

As for the spelling of the name "Timm" vs "Temm", that's an issue that's rather easy to explain.  All records (marriage, real estate, birth, death, etc.) were handwritten in fancy cursive during the 1800's.  Typing records only came into play at the turn of the century.  Many of the oldest documents for Sarah & Marcus have their names spelled Timm, but not all.  Some have it spelled "Tomm".  Others have spelled the name "Temme".  None of the records were written in Marcus or Sarah's own handwriting, mind you.

I find it interesting that the old address books for Portland in the 1800's have nothing but "Timm" spelled.  It would seem to me that the original name was indeed Timm when it was German, and due to some common misreadings of old penmanship, the name (since it's a soundalike too) gradually became "Temm".  A look at any of the old records would convince you very quickly that if a stenographer wrote out "Timm" and forgot to dot the "i" even once, it could change history. 

Another theory could be that Marcus changed it deliberately from Timm to Temm upon arrival in America (even though he later went by "Brown" after he married Sarah Jane), in order to avoid authorities and perceived enemies.  He went by Marcus in all documents, even though his first name was Wilhelm.  And, all real estate was wholly owned by his wife Sarah.  He never signed off on any of it.  He did, after all, break the law...even though it was German law.

According to Marcus' death record, he was buried at Forest City, just like his son John Henry.  John Henry's grave appears below, and from the inscription and available records, only he, his wife, their son Carlie, and two infant grandchildren are here: 

Marcus might be listed under "Tenna", which is how his death record was misspelled.  His wife Sarah's death record states she was buried in Scarborough, but that seems pretty odd, she is probably buried with Marcus.  I have no clue where Marcus and Sarah's daughters (Lizzie and Kate) are buried.  I do know that Sadie is buried in Burr Cemetery in Freeport, with her children:

Since Temm/Timm is a somewhat unusual name, I'm hoping the connections can be easily made to other Temms - perhaps this blog post can be a launching point.