Isham Browder (1762-1830) is but one of many, many men with the same name; several were contemporary with him -- cousins. Many more were his descendants and desendants of his courins! Isham Browder (1762-1830) was born in Dinwiddie County VA. Although many genealogies record his parents to be another Isham Browder who married his cousin Martha Browder; this has been strongly questioned by Nathaniel Clenroy Browder and others, including myself. This Isham served in the 2nd Virginia Continental Line; from age 14 in 1776 to age17 in 1779. He was wounded in the arm at the Battle of Monmouth, but served his term. He was granted 100 acres in Ohio for his service. Records are sparse from that time until 1795 when records show him in Henderson County KY with a family of his wife Rachael (Slayton) Browder and six children. During his early times in KY, Isham prospered, increased their family and became a land owner and tobacco warehouse operator and inspector. He was appointed to the Hopkins County KY Court when the county was formed in 1806 and later served as sheriff of the county. Rachael died in 1808 and Isham married Elizabeth Scearce in 1810; they had two children. Isham was a strong supporter of the Methodist Church, serving as lay exhorter and providing places for meetings and worship. He and Elizabeth deeded land for the Browder Methodist Church and an adjacent cemetery in 1821. of his descendants are buried in that cemetery. Difficulties had begun earlier when Isham Browder disputed Duncan McArthur's rights to some 300 acres in Ohio. This acreage included Isham Browder's Revolutionary War service grant which he had sold to Nathaniel Randolph and later bought back along with another 200 acres. This dispute resulted in a long-term court battle with Isham losing both in a suit brought to the U.S. Supreme Count by McArthur and an appeal of the ruling by Isham. Isham ultimately lost the court battle and apparently much of his financial resources. His land and debts were sold to his son Isham Jr. in 1826. Isham Sr. later moved to newly opened Hickman County KY in the Jackson Purchase. He moved to be with his two youngest living sons Augustine and David. Isham Sr. died in 1830 and was buried in the garden of one of his sons using a hollowed-out log as a casket. David and Augustine were also active in the Methodist Church and served in the Palestine Methodist Church where they and many of their descendants are buried in the adjacent cemetery. Another of Isham's sons, John, is also buried in Palestine Methodist Church Cemetery although he lived in Hopkins County.
Sources:
1. Browder, Nathaniel Clenroy. 1984. Isham Browder, Revolutionary War Soldier, Man of Mystery. Addendum to: Blanche Penland Browder. 1984. Notes on the Browder Family of Tidewater Virginia, 1695-18--. Privately Published; available in Library of Congress.
2. Beadles, Mary M. (Mary Elizabeth Mottley). 1978. A history of four Jackson Purchase families. (Baltimore [Maryland]: Gateway Press,∼* Private