Joseph Tilley Brown (7 February 1844 – 28 September 1925) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

-born Australian politician.

Early life

Brown was born at St. John's, Surrey, England, to marine captain Joseph Brown and Amelia, née Tilley. The family migrated to

Victoria, Australia Victoria is a state in southeastern Australia. It is the second-smallest state with a land area of , the second most populated state (after New South Wales) with a population of over 6.5 million, and the most densely populated state in ...

when young Joseph was seven. He was educated at Geelong Church of England Grammar School before becoming a clerk, eventually joining the

Bank of New South Wales The Bank of New South Wales (BNSW), also known commonly as The Wales, was the first bank in Australia, being established in Sydney in 1817 and situated on Broadway. During the 19th century, the bank opened branches throughout Australia and N ...

. At

Rochester Rochester may refer to: Places Australia * Rochester, Victoria Canada * Rochester, Alberta United Kingdom *Rochester, Kent ** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area ** History of Rochester, Kent ** HM Prison ...

, where he was the bank's first manager, he married Mary Ann Seward on 6 January 1874.

Local politics

Brown resigned from the bank due to a subordinate's irregularities and became a stock and commission agent. In 1878 he was charged with "boss-cockie dummying"; he subsequently admitted that he helped those in his family and circle of friends to exploit the 1869 Land Act. He continued to be active in the area as president of the Rochester Farmers' Union (1879) and the Agricultural Society of Echuca (1881–82), as well as an Echuca Shire councillor from 1876; he was president of the council 1888–89.

State and federal politics

Brown entered the

Victorian Legislative Assembly The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The presidin ...

in 1886 as a moderate

protectionist Protectionism, sometimes referred to as trade protectionism, is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations. ...

in the seat of

Mandurang Mandurang, is a locality in the City of Greater Bendigo, in the Australian state of Victoria. It grew and developed as a goldfield settlement and logging locality, though today mostly consists of small farms and wineries. Mandurang Primary Scho ...

. Defeated in 1889, and unsuccessful in his attempts to return in 1892 (in Gunbower), 1893 and 1894, he was elected to the Assembly again in 1897 for the seat of Shepparton and Euroa as a supporter of Sir George Turner. He was unsuccessful in his attempt to transfer to

Goulburn Valley The Goulburn Valley is a sub-region, part of the Hume region of the Australian state of Victoria. The sub-region consists of those areas in the catchment of the Goulburn River and other nearby streams, and is part of the Murray-Darling Basin. T ...

in 1904. In 1906, Brown entered the federal

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

as a member of the Anti-Socialist Party, and was noted for his opposition to the ministry of Alfred Deakin. He held the seat until 1910 when he was defeated; an attempt to regain the seat in 1913 earned him only 67 votes. In his retirement, Brown managed a rural property at Moyhu until he died at Brighton on 28 September 1925, survived by a daughter.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Joseph 1844 births 1925 deaths Free Trade Party members of the Parliament of Australia Members of the Australian House of Representatives Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Indi Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly Commonwealth Liberal Party members of the Parliament of Australia 20th-century Australian politicians People educated at Geelong Grammar School