John "Red" Brown (1787 – August 19, 1852) was an American politician that served in both chambers of the

Alabama Legislature The Alabama Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of Alabama. It is a bicameral body composed of the House of Representatives and Senate. It is one of the few state legislatures in which members of both cham ...

, as a representative in the

Republic of Texas The Republic of Texas (), or simply Texas, was a country in North America that existed for close to 10 years, from March 2, 1836, to February 19, 1846. Texas shared borders with Centralist Republic of Mexico, the Republic of the Rio Grande, an ...

and later as a state representative for

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. He served briefly as the second

Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives The speaker of the Texas House of Representatives is the speaker (politics), presiding officer of the Texas House of Representatives. The Speaker's main duties are to conduct meetings of the House, appoint committees, and enforce the Rules of the ...

in the

First Texas Legislature The 1st Texas Legislature convened from February 16 to May 13, 1846, in regular session. Members of the House of Representatives and Senate were elected in December 1845, after an election on October 13, 1845, that ratified the proposed state cons ...

. Brown was also one of the founders of the Democratic Party in Texas and is the founder and namesake of

Brownsboro, Texas Brownsboro is a city in Henderson County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,212 at the 2020 census, up from 1,039 at the 2010 census. The city is on Texas State Highway 31. History Brownsboro was first settled in 1849 by John "Red ...

. He had one of the shortest terms as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives, with only 7 days in office.

Early life

Linda S. Hudson wrote that Brown was likely born in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

and that early Texas census records list him as an Irishman and a farmer. However Willis Brewer and the Research Division of the Texas Legislative Council have written that John "Red" Brown was born in

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

in 1787. He was commonly known as Red due to his ruddy complexion, to distinguish himself from the other John Browns in the county. Brown moved to

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

from South Carolina in about 1818.

Political career

On September 17, 1822, Brown was appointed as the presiding judge of

Jefferson County, Alabama Jefferson County is the List of counties in Alabama, most populous county in the U.S. state of Alabama, located in the central portion of the state. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 674,721. Its county seat i ...

. He held the judicial office until January 1, 1823. He succeeded Peter Walker in county court, now known as the

probate court A probate court (sometimes called a surrogate court) is a court that has competence in a jurisdiction to deal with matters of probate and the administration of estates. In some jurisdictions, such courts may be referred to as orphans' courts o ...

, and was succeeded by

Walker Keith Baylor Walker Keith Baylor (–1845) was an American jurist and attorney. He was a politician who served in both chambers of the Alabama Legislature, a county judge of Jefferson County, and judge of the Third Judicial Circuit Court of Alabama. While ...

. He was a member of both houses of the

general assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...

and moved to

Tuskaloosa Tuskaloosa (less commonly spelled as ''Tuskalusa'', ''Tastaluca'', ''Tuskaluza'') (birthdate unknown, - 1540) was a paramount chief of a Mississippian chiefdom in what is now the U.S. state of Alabama. His people were ancestors to the several s ...

in 1834. He was the steward of the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, the Capstone, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of ...

until he moved to Texas two years later. He moved to Texas in 1836, settling in the

Nacogdoches Nacogdoches ( ) is a city in East Texas and the county seat of Nacogdoches County, Texas, United States. The 2020 U.S. census recorded the city's population at 32,147. Stephen F. Austin State University is located in Nacogdoches and specia ...

district. Brown represented

in the 6th

Congress of the Republic of Texas : ''For the current Texas legislative body, see Texas Legislature.'' The Congress of the Republic of Texas was the national legislature of the Republic of Texas established by the Constitution of the Republic of Texas in 1836. It was a bicameral ...

from 1841 to 1842. Brown was elected to the First Texas Legislature after the

annexation of Texas The Republic of Texas was annexed into the United States and admitted to the Union as the 28th state on December 29, 1845. The Republic of Texas declared independence from the Republic of Mexico on March 2, 1836. It applied for annexatio ...

into the United States. On March 3, 1846, Speaker William Crump was given a leave of absence, and Brown was elected Speaker of the House ''pro tempore''. On March 9, 1846, Brown resigned as Speaker ''pro tempore'', and the House elected

Edward Thomas Branch Edward Thomas Branch (December 6, 1811 – September 24, 1861) was a Republic of Texas legislator and Judge, and after the annexation of Texas to the United States, served briefly as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives Biography Bran ...

. He was a founder of Henderson County when it was formed from Nacogdoches County in 1846. Brown served as a notary public and a ferry operator, and received a license to operate a toll-bridge over Kickapoo Creek near Old Normandy (present-day Brownsboro, which was named for John Brown). On 27 April 1846, Brown helped to found the

Texas Democratic Party The Texas Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Texas and one of the two major political parties in the state. The party's headquarters are in Austin, Texas. President Lyndon B. Johnson was a Texas Democ ...

Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...

. Brown served as a commissioner to help locate the state penitentiary in 1848. He served as a

notary public A notary public ( notary or public notary; notaries public) of the common law is a public officer constituted by law to serve the public in non-contentious matters usually concerned with general financial transactions, estates, deeds, powers- ...

in Henderson County the same year. Brown established the town of Brownsboro in 1849, now the oldest town in Henderson County. In 1850, Brown was one of the county commissioners that selected

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

as the seat of Henderson County. Brown was a member of the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. There are no Term limits in the United States, term limits. The ...

from the 17th district for 4 days. He was sworn in on November 3, 1851, and was unseated on November 6 following a contested election. He served until a vote recount proved that his opponent,

Jonathan Russell Jonathan Russell (February 27, 1771 – February 17, 1832) was a United States representative from Massachusetts and diplomat. He served the Massachusetts's 11th congressional district, 11th congressional district from 1821 to 1823 and was the ...

, won the election.

Personal life

Brown was married to Margaret Hodges Brooks. After her death in 1849, he married Elizabeth Ann (''

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

'' Rainer) Holland in 1851. In the

1850 census The 1850 United States census was the seventh decennial United States Census Conducted by the Census Office, it determined the resident population of the United States to be 23,191,876—an increase of 35.9 percent over the 17,069,453 persons ...

, he was recorded as living in

Van Zandt County, Texas Van Zandt County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas, in the northeastern part of the state. As of the 2020 census, its population was 59,541. Its county seat is Canton. The county is named for Isaac Van Zandt (1813–1847), a mem ...

Notes

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, John (Red) 1787 births 1852 deaths Speakers of the Texas House of Representatives Democratic Party members of the Texas House of Representatives Political office-holders in the Republic of Texas 1st Congress of the Republic of Texas Democratic Party members of the Alabama House of Representatives Democratic Party Alabama state senators People from Blount County, Alabama People from Jefferson County, Alabama People from York, South Carolina People from Henderson County, Texas People from Nacogdoches County, Texas Irish-American history and culture in Texas 19th-century members of the Texas Legislature 19th-century members of the Alabama Legislature