Joseph Brown (December 3, 1733 – December 3, 1785) was an early American industrialist, architect,

astronomer An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, moons, comets and galaxies – in either ...

, and professor at Brown University.

Biography

Brown was born in Providence,

Rhode Island Colony The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was one of the original Thirteen Colonies established on the east coast of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. It was founded by Roger Williams. It was an English colony from 1636 until ...

one of the four surviving sons (known in Providence annals as the “Four Brothers”) of James Brown II (1698 – 1739), a merchant, and Hope Power Brown. Like his father, Joseph Brown engaged in business, and in manufacturing, and acquired sufficient wealth to permit him to follow his natural taste for science. He was greatly interested in the science of

electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as describ ...

, and his knowledge of that subject was remarkable for the time. He left an electric machine of his own construction, an outstanding example of this sort of apparatus for that time. He devoted considerable study to mechanics and was proficient in astronomy. His attention having been directed to the arrangements in course of preparation for the proper observation of the

transit of Venus frameless, upright=0.5 A transit of Venus across the Sun takes place when the planet Venus passes directly between the Sun and a superior planet, becoming visible against (and hence obscuring a small portion of) the solar disk. During a tr ...

in 1769, he sent to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

for suitable instruments, and subsequently an account of the observations made in Providence was published by

Benjamin West Benjamin West, (October 10, 1738 – March 11, 1820) was a British-American artist who painted famous historical scenes such as '' The Death of Nelson'', ''The Death of General Wolfe'', the '' Treaty of Paris'', and '' Benjamin Franklin Drawin ...

, later professor of natural philosophy at College of Rhode Island (now Brown University). Brown was a warm friend of the College of Rhode Island, and was one of its trustees from 1769 until 1785. In 1770 he received the honorary degree of A.M. from the College, and from 1784 until his death held the chair of

natural philosophy Natural philosophy or philosophy of nature (from Latin ''philosophia naturalis'') is the philosophical study of physics, that is, nature and the physical universe. It was dominant before the development of modern science. From the ancient wo ...

, giving his services to the institution without compensation. He was elected a Fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, a ...

in 1781. As an architect, Joseph designed and helped to design a number of residential, educational, religious, and commercial buildings. His desk and bookcase is currently in the

Rhode Island Historical Society The Rhode Island Historical Society is a privately endowed membership organization, founded in 1822, dedicated to collecting, preserving, and sharing the history of Rhode Island. Its offices are located in Providence, Rhode Island. History Found ...

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts ...

. The desk and bookcase is made in the Chippendale style. The primary, outer wood is mahogany, but cherry and pine are used for its interior. Joseph Brown was a member of the First Baptist Church in America. He died December 3, 1785 in Providence.

Family

His brothers, all merchants of

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but it ...

, were: Nicholas Brown, Sr., John Brown (a co-founder of the College of Rhode Island), and

Moses Brown Moses Brown (September 23, 1738 – September 6, 1836) was an American abolitionist and industrialist from New England, who funded the design and construction of some of the first factory houses for spinning machines during the American industr ...

(also a co-founder of the College of Rhode Island). He also had a sister, Mary.

Architectural works

* 1770, University Hall (with Robert Smith), Brown University * 1773,

Market House A market house is a covered space historically used as a marketplace to exchange goods and services such as provisions or livestock, sometimes combined with spaces for public or civic functions on the upper floors and often with a jail or lockup ...

(with Stephen Hopkins), Market Square * 1774, Joseph Brown House, 50 South Main Street * 1774, First Baptist Church in America, 75 North Main Street * 1786, John Brown House, Providence, 52 Power Street

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Joseph 1733 births 1785 deaths American astronomers Baptists from Rhode Island Brown University faculty Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Businesspeople from Providence, Rhode Island People of colonial Rhode Island Joseph Brown