Mason Brown (November 10, 1799 – January 27, 1867) was an American politician who served as secretary of state of Kentucky and Kentucky state treasurer.
Mason Brown | |
|---|---|
| 8th Kentucky State Treasurer | |
| In office 1865–1867 | |
| Preceded by | James H. Garrard |
| Succeeded by | James W. Tate |
| 36th Secretary of State of Kentucky | |
| In office 1855–1859 | |
| Governor | Charles S. Morehead |
| Preceded by | Grant Green |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Bell Monroe Jr. |
| Personal details | |
| Born | November 10, 1799 |
| Died | January 27, 1867 (aged 67) |
| Parents |
|
| Relatives | Orlando Brown (brother) John M. Mason (maternal uncle) |
Mason Brown was born November 10, 1799, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to John Brown and Margaretta (Mason) Brown.[1] At the time of his birth, his father was a U.S. Senator from Kentucky. His mother was a sister of John M. Mason, D. D.
Brown was reared at Liberty Hall, his parents' estate in Frankfort, Kentucky.[1] His early education was obtained through private tutors.[1] He joined the Sophomore Class in Yale College in 1817, graduating in 1820. After graduation, he returned to Frankfort and studied law.[1] He entered the law office of John J. Crittenden. He completed his studies in the Law School at Lexington, and began the practice of law in Maysville. After a few years he removed to Frankfort and became the law partner of Benjamin Mills, and subsequently, of Charles S. Morehead.
In 1825, Brown married Judith A. Bledsoe of Lexington, Kentucky.[1] She was the daughter of former U.S. Senator Jesse Bledsoe. The couple had one son, Benjamin Gratz Brown, who went on to become a U.S. Senator from Missouri.[1] Following his first wife's death, Brown married Mary Yoder of Spencer County, Kentucky, in 1835.[1] Brown and his second wife had six additional children: John Mason Brown, Margaretta M. (Brown) Barrett, Mary Yoder (Brown) Scott, Yoder Brown, Knox Brown, and Eliza (Brown) Baily.[1]
Brown and Morehead compiled A Digest of the Statute Laws of Kentucky, also known as Morehead and Brown's Digest, in 1834.[1] In 1839, Brown was appointed to the bench of the Circuit Court of his District, and he served in that capacity until resigning in 1849 to return to his law practice.[1] Morehead was elected governor of Kentucky in 1855 and appointed Brown as his Secretary of State.[1] Both men's terms expired in 1859.[1]
Brown died on January 27, 1867, in Frankfort and was buried in Frankfort Cemetery, which he had helped establish in 1844.[1]
This article incorporates public domain material from the Yale Obituary Record.
References
edit- Kleber, John E. (1992). "Brown, Mason". In Kleber, John E. (ed.). The Kentucky Encyclopedia. Associate editors: Thomas D. Clark, Lowell H. Harrison, and James C. Klotter. Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 0-8131-1772-0. Retrieved June 16, 2015.