Page:Encyclopedia of Virginia Biography volume 3.djvu/297

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the well furnished library of his home fur- nished him with the best examples of Eng- lish literature, so that he could follow his natural inclination for reading to his hearts content. He was about to engage in the study of engineering when the civil war broke out, and at the age of seventeen years he enlisted in the Confederate army, serv- ing faithfully until the close of this moment- ous struggle, and was unfortunate enough to completely lose his hearing as a result of the tremendous explosion at Fort Fisher. Handicapped as he was by his deafness, Mr. Brown engaged in the battle of life after the war with a courage which was nothing less than admirable. For three years he was a salesman in a grocery store in Washington, D. C, then removed to Nor- wood, Nelson county, Virginia, which was his place of residence until his death. He lived a quiet, retired life, devoting himself tc literary labors, with a most gratifying result. Not having at hand the necessary books for consultation, he sent to all parts of the world to have old records, etc., copied and forwarded to him, collecting his data at great expense, but the results justified his methods. In 1886 he published "New Views on Early Virginia History;" in 1890 his monumental work. "The Genesis of the United States;" in 1895, "Tlie Cabells and their Kin ;" in 1898, "The History of our Earliest History." He was also the author of articles which appeared in various period- icals, and these always commanded atten- tion. He was a member of many societies. Some 3'ears prior to his death he was elect- ed a member of the mother chapter of Phi Beta Kappa fraternity of William and Mary College, and the same institution con- ferred the degree of Doctor of Laws upon

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him in 1901. He already held the degree of Doctor of Civil Law from the University of the South. Dr. Brown married (first) Caroline Cabell; (second) Sara Randolph Cabell. He had no children.

Thomas, Reuben Smith, born in Madison county, Virginia, March 19, 1843, son of Reuben Thomas and Eliza Carpenter, his wife, is a descendant of an English and Ger- man ancestry, respectively. His father was a successful agriculturist, also a soldier, serving in the war of 1812 and participating ir. the battle of New Orleans in 1814. and was active in the political affairs of Madi- son county, serving as magistrate and pre- siding justice. Reuben S. Thomas spent his early years on his father's farm, and his education was acquired in the schools and academy of the neighborhood. After com- pleting his studies, at the age of sixteen, he went to Charlestown, Virginia, now West Virginia, as a member of the Richardson Guards, to assist in putting down the John Brown raid. In 1861, at the beginning of the war between the states, during his aca- demical course, he enlisted in the Seventn \ irginia Regiment, and participated in all the battles and engagements of that body, being severely wounded at the battle of Gettysburg, captured at the engagement at Sailor's Creek, April 6, 1865, and remained h prisoner at Point Lookout until June 20, 1865, when he took the oath of allegiance rnd was released. Upon his return from the war he studied law in the office of Gen. James L. Kemper, also attended the law school of Judge Brockenbrough, in Lex- ington, and was admitted to the bar in 1866. Mr. Thomas married. May 28. 1867. Ella C. Hamm. daughter of J. C. Hamm and Lucy Hamm, his wife.