In the early 1800's, what would become Garrett County was sparsely populated wilderness around the headwaters of the Potomac River. Meshach Browning recalled that the few settlers had a hard time maintaining themselves and, without the greatest economy, could not have lived there at all. The settlers lived in cabins and fed their children on bread, meat, butter, honey, and milk, while coffee and tea were almost out of the question. The pioneers of western Maryland were largely self-sufficient, feeding themselves off the land, building their own cabins from local materials, and clothing themselves with homespun textiles. Browning built a cabin on Sang Run near 1828, and James Drane, whose home in Accident was built in the early 1800's, was Browning's second closest neighbor at 5 miles away.