The Brand family is of German origin and some family researchers believe their name was originally Brandt. The oral history of my line agrees with this theory. However, others believe Brand was the original name and some lines changed it to Brandt. Someone who speaks German told me that a "d" at the end of a word is pronounced "t" in German. This would suggest that it may have been spelled "Brand," pronounced "Brant."

There is evidence that our Brand line may have originated in Switzerland and migrated to Germany sometime between 1679 and 1709. 

Our immigrant ancestor is believed to be Samuel Brand or Brandt. It is known that there was more than one Samuel Brand/Brandt in the Dauphin and Lancaster County, Pennsylvania area at the time. 

Samuel Brand, the grandson of our immigrant ancestor, was born in Dauphin County, PA in 1770, and moved to Maryland with his wife, Mary Ann Long while their children were young. They later moved to Butler County, OH with their family, where Samuel was the proprietor of Seven Mile, which is still a town in Butler County. Some family members, including their son Samuel, moved on to Tippecanoe County, IN around 1835. Many of the lines that married into the Brand family in Indiana appeared to have taken the same path from eastern Pennsylvania, through Butler County, OH to Tippecanoe and Clinton Counties, IN. Samuel and his descendents farmed land in Perry and Sheffield Townships in Tippecanoe County and Madison and Ross Townships in Clinton County. His descendents still live in the area. For more information on Brand properties, click here. 

Samuel Brand's descendents became noted members of the community. Of particular note are his son, Samuel S. Brand, Sr. (my third great-grandfather) and his grandchildren, Eli Brand, John Brand (my second great-grandfather), Michael Brand, Samuel S. Brand, Jr. and Washington Brand. Washington's son, Samuel A. Brand, was also recognized as a prominent farmer in Clinton County. 

A home owned by Sylvester Brand and rented to a tenant farmer burned on December 26, 1925. Sylvester Brand rebuilt the home and later sold it. When I was growing up, I could see the home from my bedroom window. 

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