Rufus Everson Brown (December 3, 1854 – June 15, 1920) was a

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

attorney, farmer and politician. He served as

Vermont Attorney General The Vermont attorney general is a statewide elected executive official in the U.S. state of Vermont who is elected every two years. It was created by an act of the Vermont General Assembly in 1790, repealed in 1797, and revived in 1904. The office ...

from 1912 to 1915.

Early life

Rufus Everson Brown was born in Dickinson, New York on December 3, 1854. He attended academies in Lawrenceville and

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before relocating to

Burlington, Vermont Burlington, officially the City of Burlington, is the List of municipalities in Vermont, most populous city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the county seat, seat of Chittenden County, Vermont, Chittenden County. It is located south of the Can ...

to study law.

Legal career

Brown studied at the firm of Wales and Taft, which included Torrey E. Wales and Russell S. Taft, both prominent politicians and judges. He attained admission to the bar in 1880, and operated a farm while beginning a law practice. In 1891 he opened an office in Burlington and began to practice law full-time. In 1897 he started Brown & Macomber in partnership with James H. Macomber. In 1903 he formed a new partnership with Russell W. Taft, the son of Russell S. Taft.

Political career

A Republican, Brown served as Burlington's grand juror (city prosecutor) from 1892 to 1894. From 1894 to 1900 he served as

state's attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

for Chittenden County. From 1900 to 1902 Brown was a member of the

Vermont State Senate The Vermont Senate is the upper house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The senate consists of 30 members elected from multi-member districts. Each senator represents at least 20,300 citizens. ...

. In 1903 he was appointed Burlington's city attorney. In 1912, Brown defeated Frank C. Archibald in the Republican primary for

. He won the general election, and served from 1912 to 1914. His term expired in November 1914; under a new statute, terms for statewide office holders were scheduled to begin in January starting in 1915. To bridge the gap between the end of Brown's term in November 1914 and the start of Herbert G. Barber's in January 1915, Governor Allen M. Fletcher appointed Barber to serve for the month of December 1914. Brown later served as judge of Burlington's city court.

Death and burial

Brown died in Burlington on June 15, 1920. He was buried at

Lakeview Cemetery Lake View Cemetery is a privately owned, nonprofit garden cemetery located in the cities of Cleveland, Cleveland Heights, and East Cleveland in the U.S. state of Ohio. Founded in 1869, the cemetery was favored by wealthy families during the Gil ...

in Burlington.

Family

In 1877 he married Della F. Wood (b. 1860) of

Williston, Vermont Williston is a New England town, town in Chittenden County, Vermont, Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. Originally rural and laid out with many farms, in recent decades it has developed into a thriving suburb of Burlington, Vermont, Burlin ...

. They were the parents of a son, Ralph Earle (b. 1879). In 1902 Brown married Josephine (Josie) Sayles (1875-1944). His third wife was Elizabeth Brownell (1876-1948).

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Rufus E. 1854 births 1920 deaths People from Franklin County, New York Politicians from Burlington, Vermont Vermont lawyers State's attorneys in Vermont Republican Party Vermont state senators Vermont attorneys general Vermont state court judges Burials at Lakeview Cemetery (Burlington, Vermont) 19th-century American lawyers 20th-century members of the Vermont General Assembly