Joseph Renshaw Brown
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Joseph Renshaw Brown (1805–1870) was an American politician, pioneer, fur trader, newspaper editor, businessman, inventor, speculator, and
Indian agent In United States history, an Indian agent was an individual authorized to interact with American Indian tribes on behalf of the U.S. government. Agents established in Nonintercourse Act of 1793 The federal regulation of Indian affairs in the Un ...
who was prominent in
Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
and
Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...
territorial and state politics for over 50 years.


Early life and family

Brown was born in
Harford County, Maryland Harford County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 260,924. Its county seat is Bel Air, Harford County, Maryland, Bel Air. Harford County is included in the Wa ...
, on January 5, 1805. His third wife, Susan Frenier (1819-1904), was a member of the Sisseton tribe of Dakota and the half-sister of
Gabriel Renville Gabriel Renville (April 1825 – August 26, 1892), also known as Ti'wakan (Sacred Lodge), was a US-government appointed chief of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate Sioux Tribe from 1866 until his death in 1892. He opposed conflict with the United Stat ...
, who became his legal ward. At the age of 15, he left his apprenticeship as a printer to join the army, and was sent to Cantonment New Hope to work on the construction of
Fort Snelling Fort Snelling is a former military fortification and National Historic Landmark in the U.S. state of Minnesota on the bluffs overlooking the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers. The military site was initially named Fort Saint An ...
. He was discharged from the army in 1828.


Public service

Brown first came to
Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
in 1820 when the land was
Michigan Territory The Territory of Michigan was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from June 30, 1805, until January 26, 1837, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Michigan. Detroit ...
, traveling throughout what became Minnesota and Wisconsin during this time. In 1857, he was appointed Indian Agent to the Dakota Sioux. Brown served in the House of Representatives of the Wisconsin Territorial Legislature from 1840-1842. He also served in the Territorial Council of the
Minnesota Territorial Legislature The Minnesota Territorial Legislature was a bicameral legislative body created by the United States Congress in 1849 as the legislative branch of the government of the Territory of Minnesota. The upper chamber, the Council, and the lower cham ...
from 1854-1855, representing District 6, and in the Minnesota Territorial House of Representatives in 1857, representing District 10. He also represented District 10 at the Minnesota Constitutional Convention in 1857.


Role in Dakota War of 1862

When the
Dakota War of 1862 The Dakota War of 1862, also known as the Sioux Uprising, the Dakota Uprising, the Sioux Outbreak of 1862, the Dakota Conflict, or Little Crow's War, was an armed conflict between the United States and several eastern bands of Dakota people, Da ...
broke out, his "mixed-blood" family and the white settlers fleeing with them were captured but not killed due to his wife's bravery in standing up to Dakota leaders Stands on Clouds, also known as "Cut Nose," Little Six, Dowanniye and combatant Dakota who surrounded their wagon and threatened them. Their son Samuel J. Brown later wrote, "So she stood up in the wagon, and waving her shawl she cried in a loud voice that she was a Sisseton –– a relative of Waanatan, Scarlet Plume, Sweetcorn, Akipa and friend of Standing Buffalo, that she had come down this way for protection and hoped to get it." One of the men in their party recognized Susan Brown and argued in favor of sparing her life, because she had taken him in one winter and saved his life. When the men said they would kill the whites in their party regardless, she declared, "Remember what I say, if you harm any of these friends of mine, you will have to answer to Scarlet Plume, Akipa, Standing Buffalo, and the whole Sisseton and Wahpeton tribe!" Susan Brown and her children were rescued on August 23 by her stepfather Akipa, a Wahpeton, and her half-brother Charles Renville Crawford, who demanded their release. She spent the rest of the war under the protection of the noncombatant Dakota camp of Akipa,
Gabriel Renville Gabriel Renville (April 1825 – August 26, 1892), also known as Ti'wakan (Sacred Lodge), was a US-government appointed chief of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate Sioux Tribe from 1866 until his death in 1892. He opposed conflict with the United Stat ...
and the Dakota Peace Party, which opposed conflict with the United States. In the final days of the war,
Little Crow Little Crow III ( Dakota: ''Thaóyate Dúta''; 1810 – July 3, 1863) was a Wahpekute Dakota chief who led a faction of the Dakota in a five-week war against the United States in 1862. In 1846, after surviving a violent leadership contest w ...
confided in Susan Brown as he grew increasingly despondent about his options. Joseph Brown was away at the outbreak of the war. Upon his return, desperate to find out what happened to his wife and family, he asked to join the burial expedition which left
Fort Ridgely Fort Ridgely was a frontier United States Army outpost from 1851 to 1867, built 1853–1854 in Minnesota Territory. The Sioux called it Esa Tonka. It was located overlooking the Minnesota River southwest of Fairfax, Minnesota. Half of th ...
on August 31, 1862, and ended up wounded by a ball in his neck on September 2 during the Battle of Birch Coulee. He was finally reunited with his family at Camp Release. He died on November 9, 1870, in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
and was buried in Brown Cemetery,
Henderson, Minnesota Henderson is a town in Sibley County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 960 at the 2020 census. History Henderson was founded in August 1852 by Joseph R. Brown, and was named for his mother's maiden name. By 1855, Henderson had ...
.


House and legacy

The Joseph R. Brown State Wayside Rest is located on Renville County Highway 15, south of Sacred Heart, Minnesota. The site displays the granite ruins of Brown's home, which was destroyed on August 19, 1862, during the
Dakota War of 1862 The Dakota War of 1862, also known as the Sioux Uprising, the Dakota Uprising, the Sioux Outbreak of 1862, the Dakota Conflict, or Little Crow's War, was an armed conflict between the United States and several eastern bands of Dakota people, Da ...
. The three-story home was a considered a mansion when compared with many other pioneer homes of the day. Minnesota's Brown County, Browns Valley in Traverse County, and Brown's Creek near Stillwater in Washington County are named after him.


Personal life

Brown was married three times. His first wife, Margaret, was considered a "
Mixed-blood The term mixed-blood in the United States and Canada has historically been described as people of multiracial backgrounds, in particular mixed European and Native American ancestry. Today, the term is often seen as pejorative. Northern Woo ...
Ojibwe The Ojibwe (; Ojibwe writing systems#Ojibwe syllabics, syll.: ᐅᒋᐺ; plural: ''Ojibweg'' ᐅᒋᐺᒃ) are an Anishinaabe people whose homeland (''Ojibwewaki'' ᐅᒋᐺᐘᑭ) covers much of the Great Lakes region and the Great Plains, n ...
", whom he divorced in December 1839.


References


Further reading

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External links


Joseph Renshaw Brown in MNopedia, the Minnesota Encyclopedia

Joseph R. Brown House Interpretive Sign and Brochure

Forgotten Minnesota: Joseph R. Brown’s Little Castle on the PrairiePetition of Joseph R. Brown asking for a divorce
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Joseph R. 1805 births 1870 deaths Politicians from Harford County, Maryland Members of the Minnesota Territorial Legislature Members of the Wisconsin Territorial Legislature United States Indian agents American fur traders People from Renville County, Minnesota People from Henderson, Minnesota