by Bruce Whitaker

Zebulon Brevard Jr. was born in what is now Iredell County, NC on February 21, 1769. He was the son of Zebulon Brevard Sr. (1724-1798) and Ann Templeton (1733–1804). Zebulon’s parents moved to Burke County when he was young. They appear to have lived in what is now southwest McDowell County. According to court and road records, they lived south of Old Fort near Crooked Creek.

Zebulon Brevard Jr. married Isabella Edmundson (Edminston) around 1790. Isabella was born around 1773. She was the daughter of James Edmundson (Edminston) (1730–1806) and his wife Margaret (1744–1803). Zebulon and Isabella Brevard may have moved to Sumner County, Tennessee not long after their marriage, as Zebulon Brevard’s father had received land in Sumner County for his service in the Revolutionary War. In the late 1790s a Zebulon Brevard was listed on the tax rolls of Sumner County. Brevard was not listed on the 1800 Buncombe or Burke County, NC census. He may have lived in Tennessee until his wife Isabella died around 1804.

Zebulon Brevard Jr. was living in Fairview by 1805 or 1806. He then married Phebe McCrary Burton. Phebe was born in Rowan (now Davidson) County, NC around 1780. She was the daughter of Boyd McCrary and Nancy Merrill. Phebe first married Thomas Burton (1771-1802). Thomas Burton was the only child of John Burton, the founder of Asheville, and Jane Forster. Zebulon and Phebe Burton Brevard are listed on the 1810 Buncombe Census. They appear to have been living on the southern side of Fairview near Gap Creek.

Zebulon and Phebe Burton moved to Miami County, Ohio in November 1816.They first lived in Elizabeth Township, then Lost Creek Township and finally Troy Township, where Zebulon Brevard Jr. died in October 1840. Phebe McCrary Burton Brevard died August 28, 1841. They were both buried at Casstown in Miami County, Ohio. Phebe had one son, William Burton, who was born in Fairview December 23, 1799. William Burton died in Miami County, Ohio in 1883. Zebulon and Phebe Brevard had two children, Zebulon Brevard III and Thomas Brevard.

James Brevard was born in 1794. It is not known for certain where his father, Zebulon Brevard Jr., was living at the time of his birth. It was likely in Burke (now McDowell) County. James Brevard remained in Fairview when his father moved to Ohio, and married Ruth Ashworth in Fairview on March 1, 1823. Ruth, born in Fairview on January 15, 1805, was the daughter of John Ashworth Jr. (1775-1827) and Celia Nettles (1778- 1850).

James Brevard became a leading citizen in Fairview, a well-to-do farmer who represented Buncombe County in the State Legislature in 1831. In October 1844 James Brevard, his brother-in-law Joshua Whitaker, Peter Freeman and Lambert C. Clayton secured the $4,000 bond that was required when Brevard’s son Thomas A. Brevard was appointed constable for Cane Creek (Fairview). James Brevard died in Fairview on January 25, 1847. Ruth Ashworth Brevard died on March 5, 1855. Both James and his wife Ruth Brevard were buried in Cane Creek Cemetery in Fairview.

James and Ruth Brevard had ten children.

Thomas Ashworth Brevard was born in Fairview on April 21, 1824. He married Susan Selina Harris, born on January 7, 1830, the daughter of Abel Harris and Elizabeth Mashburn. Thomas Brevard served as constable of Cane Creek (Fairview), and was elected Sheriff of Buncombe County in 1854. He died in Swannanoa on May 31, 1859. He is buried in Cane Creek Cemetery in Fairview. His wife Susan died June 10, 1902 in Shelby, Cleveland County, NC.

Zebulon R. Brevard was born in Fairview in 1826. Duing the Civil War, he was captured by the Yankees and put in prison. He was released and died one day after he returned home, on March 29, 1865. He is buried in Cane Creek Cemetery. He was not married.

Nancy Ann Brevard was born in Fairview on December 9, 1827. She was married on February 10, 1849 to Peter A. Redmon (1816-1884). Nancy died on January 11, 1894. Both were buried in Cane Creek Cemetery.

Joseph Brevard was born in Fairview in 1831. He was a brick mason. Joseph was engaged to marry Mary Hamby when he left to fight in the Civil War. He was a captain in the CSA Army; he became sick and died at a hospital in Atlanta.

David Lafayette Brevard was born in Fairview in 1832. Lafayette moved to Georgia and married Candice (1833-?). He moved back to Fairview just before the Civil War. During the war he worked at a gun factory in Columbia, SC. He came back to Fairview after the war and died soon after. His wife moved back to Georgia.

James Alexander Brevard was born in Fairview on February 13, 1834. He married Julia Matthews. James died on January 29, 1880 in Burleson County, Texas.

Harriet Isabella Brevard was born in Fairview on April 1, 1836. She married Joseph R Reed, son of Eldad Reed III. She moved with her husband’s family to Sullivan County, Missouri. She died there on July 9, 1893.

Celia Brevard was born in Fairview in 1838. She married John Casey (pronounced “Keezey”). Celia died on March 4, 1890 in Fairview.

Margaret E. Brevard was born in Fairview in 1839. She was a schoolteacher. Margaret never married and died on April 1862 in Fairview. She was buried in Cane Creek Cemetery.

Mahalia Brevard was born in Fairview in 1842. She married Thomas Trantham, son of Joseph Trantham and Mary Whitaker. They moved to Missouri soon after the Civil War. They later moved to Arkansas.

Local historian Bruce Whitaker documents genealogy in the Fairview area. Call him at 628-1089 or email him at [email protected].