Josiah Brown (1816–1875) was an American architect and civil and mill engineer of

Fall River, Massachusetts Fall River is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The City of Fall River's population was 94,000 at the 2020 United States Census, making it the tenth-largest city in the state. Located along the eastern shore of Mount H ...

. Among his major surviving projects are the Union Mill No. 1 (1859) and Border City Mill No. 2 (1873), both in Fall River.

Life and career

Josiah Brown was born July 10, 1816, in

Smithfield, Rhode Island Smithfield is a town that is located in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. It includes the historic villages of Esmond, Georgiaville, Mountaindale, Hanton City, Stillwater and Greenville. The population was 22,118 at the 2020 cens ...

, to Parley and Lucy (Southwick) Brown. Parley Brown was a methodist minister and was later a resident of East Douglas. Brown received some education from his father, but he was mostly self-taught. He was a resident of Fall River by 1847, and was noted as an "Architect" in the first Fall River directory of 1853. In some of his early mill projects, Brown was assisted by the prominent machinist and mill superintendent William C. Davol. Brown was also the first employer of William C. Davol Jr., who would later establish the

Davol Mills Davol Mills is a historic textile mill complex located at the corner of Plymouth Avenue and Rodman Street in Fall River, Massachusetts. It was built in 1867 and expanded in 1871. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983 as ...

. From 1870 to 1875 William T. Henry, a graduate of the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

, was in his office. Brown died July 30, 1875, at which point Henry succeeded to his practice. The cause of death was

Bright's disease Bright's disease is a historical classification of kidney diseases that are described in modern medicine as acute or chronic nephritis. It was characterized by swelling and the presence of albumin in the urine, and was frequently accompanied ...

. In addition to his architectural and mill engineering work, Brown was involved in the

Hoosac Tunnel The Hoosac Tunnel (also called Hoosic or Hoosick Tunnel) is a active railroad tunnel in western Massachusetts that passes through the Hoosac Range, an extension of Vermont's Green Mountains. It runs in a straight line from its east portal, al ...

project, serving as Chief Assistant Engineer under Thomas Doane, Chief Engineer from 1863 to 1867. He was also involved financially in several of his manufacturing projects. He was both organizer and initial president of the Montaup Mills, incorporated in 1871, and a director of the Robeson Mills, incorporated in 1866.Frederick M. Peck and Henry H. Earl, ''Fall River and its Industries: an Historical and Statistical Record of Village, Town, and City'' (New York: Atlantic Publishing and Engraving Company, 1877) At the time of his death, he was also a director of the

,"In Memoriam," ''Fall River'' (MA) ''Daily Evening News'', July 31, 1875, 2. though it is not known if he was the architect. He was the designer of several works listed on the United States

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

Works

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Josiah Architects from Massachusetts Architects from Rhode Island Engineers from Massachusetts Engineers from Rhode Island 1816 births 1875 deaths