Daily AncestorBro.
Bro. means brother; in church minutes and lodge records Bro. before a name is a title for a fellow member, not proof of a blood relationship.
Bro. is short for brother. In wills it can mean a real brother (my bro. Jas.). In some church minutes and fraternal records it was a title for a fellow male member, as in Bro. Wm. Cobb was received by letter.
In the same kinds of records, women members could be called Sister. Read the type of record before assuming a family link.
As seen in a recordMinutes of a Baptist church meeting
Bro. Wm. Cobb was received by letter from Hopewell Church
Sources
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Bro.." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/abbreviations/bro. Last checked 2026-10-01.