1905 History of Crawford County Kansas

B. N. Brown, of Sheridan township, is a resident of Crawford county of over twenty years' standing, having arrived here in 1882. He is a prosperous farmer and stock-raiser, and having made a life work of these industries has gained a leading place among the men of that class in this section of the state.

Born at Jerseyville, Jersey county, Illinois, November 30, 1840, he had just arrived at manhood when the Civil war came on, and in August, 1862, he responded to Lincoln's call and went up to Springfield and enlisted in Company K, One Hundred and Twenty-fourth Illinois Infantry, under Captain Morgan and Colonel S. N. Sanders. The regiment went into camp at Camp Butler; was sent south to Memphis, and thence to Vicksburg, being cut off from the rest of the troops for a time while on the way thither; took part in the battles of Raymond and Jackson, Mississippi, and in other operations around Vickshurg; at the battle of Champion Hills he was wounded, the captain of the company receiving a wound at the same time, but he kept right on with his regiment; after the fall of Vicksburg, July 4, 1863, went south and was in the siege of Spanish Fort and the capture of Mobile; at Montgomery, Alabama, heard of the surrender of Lee and the death of Lincoln, and thence was sent to Memphis and on to Camp Douglas in Chicago, where he received his honorable discharge. The company in which Mr. Brown served had the reputation of being the best drilled infantry company of the Illinois troops, Lieutenant Hall of the old Chicago Zouaves having been their drillmaster, and the company was often exposed to the hottest of the fighting.

Mr. Brown was a son of John Griff Brown, who was a pioneer of Jersey county, Illinois. His wife was Catherine Colean, of French descent, and her family was also one of the first to settle in Jersey county. The father died after the war at the age of sixty-six, and the mother died at the same age. John G. Brown was a farmer all his life, and was a Democrat of the Jackson school, while his wife was a member of the Methodist church. They were the parents of nine children, five sons and four daughters, and two other of the sons were soldIers—F. M. being a member of an Illinois regiment and William M. being a member of the One Hundred and Fourteenth Illinois, and shortly after his discharge was murdered.

Mr. Brown passed his early days on an Illinois farm, attending as far as possible the public schools of his locality. In 1867 he was married to Miss Sarah Webber, who was born at Springfield, Illinois, a daughter of Phillip Webber, whose brother, Richard Webber, was a Springfield editor for many years. In 1882 Mr. Brown came out to Crawford county, and since that year has devoted his efforts successfully to the prosecution of farm enterprises. His farm contains one hundred and sixty acres, and his residence, the barn, orchard and all the equipments indicate better than a further description how progressive and prosperous he is in his work. He raises the general crops and also considerable stock, and has made his business pay well.

Mr. and Mrs. Brown during their happy married life of over thirty-five years have had ten children born into their home, named as follows: Ida; Fannie, who was assistant postmaster for a time; Edith; Harry; Ella; Bertha, who is a very proficient music teacher; Grace; Webber; Bessie, deceased; and Roy, who died in childhood. Mr. Brown is a stanch Republican. He and his wife and all the daughters are members of the Methodist church, and he is a church trustee. He also served on the school board for years, and has been a public-spirited and broadminded citizen, performing his share of the civic duties and taking a deep interest in seeing that his community and county shall progress as rapidly as possible.