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Joseph W. Brown (November 26, 1793 – December 9, 1880) was an
Joseph W. Brown (November 26, 1793 – December 9, 1880) was an American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
businessman, soldier, and politician.
Brown was born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania
Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the Englis ...
, on November 26, 1793, and moved to Michigan in 1824.
Brown was the brother of major general Jacob Brown
Jacob Jennings Brown (May 9, 1775 – February 24, 1828) was known for his victories as an American army officer in the War of 1812, where he reached the rank of general. His successes on the northern border during that war made him a national ...
, the founder of Brownville, New York
Brownville is a town in Jefferson County, New York, United States. The population was 6,263 at the 2010 census, up from 5,839 in 2000. The town is named after Jacob Brown, an early settler and leader.
Brownville is located in the western part ...
. General Brown (and wife Cornelia), along with his brother-in-law Musgrove Evans (and wife Abi), their cousin Austin Wing and a dozen or so pioneers founded the town of Tecumseh, Michigan
Tecumseh is a city in Lenawee County in the U.S. state of Michigan, near the River Raisin. Tecumseh is about southwest of Detroit, south of Ann Arbor, and north of Toledo, Ohio. The main street of downtown is Chicago Boulevard, also designat ...
in 1824. General Joseph Brown died in 1880 at his daughter's home in Toledo, Ohio
Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and according ...
.
From Tecumseh, General Brown ran a stage coach line which operated under the Western Stage Company and ran from Detroit through Ypsilanti, Saline, Tecumseh, Jonesville, White Pigeon, Niles, and Michigan City ending in Chicago – a total trip of just 4½ days (which frequently took six).
The route of Brown's stage line between Saline and Jonesville – stopping in Tecumseh – was anything but the most direct. However, it required that the passengers have an overnight stay in Tecumseh where Brown also owned and operated a large Inn called the Peninsular House.
General Brown was involved in the Toledo War
The Toledo War (1835–36), also known as the Michigan–Ohio War or the Ohio–Michigan War, was an almost bloodless boundary dispute between the U.S. state of Ohio and the adjoining territory of Michigan over what is now known as the Toledo S ...
, having been appointed to protect the disputed area between Ohio and Michigan by then Michigan Governor Stevens T. Mason
Stevens Thomson Mason (October 27, 1811 – January 4, 1843) was an American politician who served as the first governor of Michigan from 1835 to 1840. Coming to political prominence at an early age, Mason was appointed his territory's ...
. In the spring of 1835 the tensions between Ohio and Michigan escalated when it was reported to that a survey party had encroached on Michigan territory and was camped south of Adrian at Phillips Corners. On April 26, 1835 Deputy Sheriff, Colonel William McNair of Tecumseh led a party to intercept the survey group from Ohio. General Brown went along with the essentially civilian group as “special agent of the Territory to watch the Ohio situation” his official title per gubernatorial appointment.
Shots were fired but it was never clear if they were directed at the Ohio group or if they were for effect to flush them out of the cabins in which they were spending their Sabbath. Some Ohio "invaders" escaped while about a dozen were captured. These were escorted back to Adrian where all but one were released. Engineer, Colonel Fletcher, was retained to “test the validity of the arrest.” Colonel Fletcher spent some months in custody in Tecumseh. Benjamin Baxter's account of the events, found in Clara Waldron's ''One Hundred Years, a Country Town'', states that Fletcher was:
a genial gentleman not suffering apparently from his term of incarceration, but sometimes subjecting us to the inconvenience of hunting him up when we had occasion to use the jail for some counterfeiter or horse thief, as he was likely to be found out riding with one of the sheriff's lovely daughters, having taken the jail keys with him.Later in 1835 General Brown would lead a large group of soldiers to Toledo to protect the rights of the Territory of Michigan. In his memoirs, also quoted in Clara Waldron's book, Dr. M. A. Patterson says of Brown:
As a commander of the Michigan forces in the Black Hawk War, he had acquitted himself to the entire satisfaction of the territorial and national authorities. As commander of the Toledo expedition, he performed his duties equally well and secured all that was desired of the expedition, which was to prevent the Executive of Ohio from trampling upon the rights of the people of Michigan.It is suggested that General Brown's "moderation and good sense helped prevent possible bloodshed." Brown served as the first judge in
Lenawee County
Lenawee County ( ') is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 99,423. The county seat is Adrian. The county was created in 1822, from territory partitioned from Monroe County. Its g ...
in 1826, and on July 1, 1839, he was appointed to replace Seba Murphy on the Board of Regents of the University of Michigan
The Regents of the University of Michigan, sometimes referred to as the board of regents, are constitutional officers of the U.S. state of Michigan who collectively form the governing body of the University of Michigan, comprising the campuses a ...
, though he attended only one meeting before resigning the office himself.
He died in Tecumseh on December 9, 1880.
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