BIO-JeremiahBragunier1841-1879

Jeremiah Bragunier 1841 Illinois - 1879 Kansas

A Thumbnail Biography by David C. Procuniar

Copyright 1997-1998-1999-2000-2001

Jeremiah, The son of William Bragunier, son of Daniel & Barbara (Rohrer) Brockunier Sr., son of Peter Brockunier Sr.

Jeremiah married Sarah Roxane Rice September 25, 1866 in Topeka, Kansas. Together they had five children:

Children:

Minnie Lavina Bragunier 1867

Dora May Bragunier 1869

Sarah Estella Bragunier 1874

Nettie Maude Bragunier 1872

Mother of Brittain Bragunier Robinson, a Bragunier family genealogists.

Nina Florence Bragunier 1876

Sources:

The Bragonier Family by Georgiana H. Randall 1969

The Bragunier Family in America by Brittain Bragunier Robinson 1969

First Reformed Church of Hagerstown Maryland church records on LDS micro-film LDS Batch #8223604 0884872 19

Jeremiah was born February 26, 1841 in Lawrence Co., Illinois to William (Procunier) & Caroline (Grumbine) Bragunier.

Jerry as he was called sometimes, served in the 2nd Calvary, Regt. Co. B, Indiana, enrolled 20 September 1861 aged 20. While on courier duty at Nashville Tenn, had a dollar taken from his pay for losing a horse carelessly while on duty. Jerry was captured at Nashville in 1863. He was given an honorable discharged October 4, 1864. He later became a Grocer and General Merchandiser along with brother Thomas D. Bragunier.

The Peabody (Kansas) Gazette December 20, 1923; the Peabody Gazette Herald January 8, 1931 and the Emporia (Kansas) Gazette April 11, 1940 all had lengthy articles on the four Bragunier brothers engaged in the mercantile business in Kansas after the Civil War. Thomas D. and Jeremiah worked in Indianapolis Indiana after they came out of the Army in 1864. They moved to Kansas in early 1866 and with about $900.00 cash capital, opened a grocery and feed store in Topeka. They enjoyed a good business and in February 1867 sent for their younger brother George W. to drive their grocery delivery wagon at $20.00 a month. Their store was on the northeast corner of Sixth and Kansas Avenue. In 1868 Thomas D. made a trip to Emporia and bought three lots on the south west corner of Fifth and Commercial Streets. In 1869 Thomas D. and Jeremiah sold the Topeka store and built on the lots in Emporia. Customers came for a hundred miles as Emporia was the end of the Santa Fe Railroad line. In February 1871 when the Santa Fe reached Strong City Kansas, Thomas D. and Jeremiah started younger brother George W. up in business in Strong City, but by March 1871 he closed the Strong City store and opened one in Florence, Kansas. This was open until July when the store was then moved to Newton. When the Santa Fe reached Wichita in May 1872 and Hutchinson in June 1872, the business in Newton went dead, so the store was sold in June 1872 and George W. went back to Emporia. At that time the youngest brother Charles William joined the group to make four in all. In the fall of 1872 a branch store was opened at Peabody, and in early 1874 business revived in Newton, so Jeremiah left Charles W. at Peabody and opened a store in Newton, where he ran it successfully until he died on 19 November, 1879. An old employee named C.A. Swendson was then put in charge of the Newton store and after several years Swendson eventually bought the store. The Emporia store acted as a supply depot for the branch store as well as retail store locally. Thomas D. and George W. would go to St. Louis every 60 days to buy a carload of supplies. They made money in Emporia, Newton and Peabody and if Thomas D. had retained his health they might not have sold the Emporia business in 1888. ...........

George W. worked for 20 years on the road for the Poehler Mercantile Company after the sale of the Emporia store. Thomas D. was living in September 1908 at P.O. Box 346 W. Bennet Street, Cripple Creek, Colorado, when he furnished a statement for his older brother Daniel's wife's pension claim. It is understood that this business with stores in Emporia, Newton, Peabody and Florence was considered to have established the CHAIN STORE IDEA in Kansas. ...................... Thomas D. married Ann Hazelton Judson in March of 1866 in Peabody Kansas. In 1882 Ann secured a divorce from Thomas D. and she died in Topeka Kansas on October 3, 1892. They did not have any children. ........... Jeremiah married a Shawnee County girl, Sarah Roxana Rice on September 25, 1866 in Topeka Kansas. They had five children, all girls. Jeremiah's grandson is Brittain Bragunier Robinson, who in 1969 compiled 27 years of family research into a book called "Bragunier Family in America". Jeremiah died in 1879 and Sarah died in 1882. ............. George W. married Estell Boxter from New York, in 1874. All of the Bragunier stores were sold by 1888 so George went to work for the Nave-McCord Mercantile Company of St. Joseph, but shortly after that he went to work for the Poehler Mercantile Company when they opened in Emporia in 1900. George traveled almost continuously from 1887 until 1919 when he retired. George died of a stroke in 1940 and his wife Estell died in 1897. George married a second time in 1903 to Eva Xander who was from Olney Illinois at Osage City. George did not have any children. ...............

Charles W. married Sarah Ann Mahood on September 23, 1874. Charles was only one week old when his mother Caroline died from complications after his birth. Charles was given to foster parents, Mr. and Mrs. Plank. Charles & Sarah had five children and Charles died in 1923. Sarah died in 1947. [SOURCE] ..... "Bragunier Family in America" by Brittain Bragunier Robinson.

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