John N. BROWN, who is now successfully engaged in the real-estate business at Lamoni [Decatur County, Iowa], was for many years a farmer of Ringgold county, where he still owns four hundred and eighty acres of excellent land. He was born in Louisa county, Iowa, on the 13th of November, 1849, a son of the Hon. N. T. and Elizabeth (GIBBONEY) BROWN. The father served with ability as a member of the state legislature from Louisa county and died April, 1866, while a member of that body. Representatives McNUTT, BURNETT and others paid tribute to him and on the 7th of April at a meeting of Des Moines Lodge No. 133, I.O.G.T., the following resolutions were adopted:

Whereas, In the dispensations of Divine Providence, the Hon. N. T. BROWN has been removed from us by death, in the midst of his usefulness, honored and esteemed by all who knew him;

Resolved, That in the character of the deceased we recognized all the virtures of the Christian gentleman adorning public life;

Resolved, That in the death of Brother BROWN his family has lost a kind and affectionate husband and father, the church a faithful and devoted member, the community in which he lived a worthy citizen, the general assembly an honored member and this lodge and the cause of temperance a true friend;

Resolved, That we ever cherish the memory of his connection with us as a lodge and most cordially tender to his bereaved companion and family our heartfelt sympathy and earnestly commend them to the kind protection of Him who disposes all things for the good of them who love Him;

Resolved, That a copy of the resolutions be furnished the Iowa State Register for publication and also a copy thereof be forwarded to the family of the deceased.

Said preamble and resolutions were unanimously adopted. It was also resolved by the lodge that a page in records of the lodge be inscribed to the memory of the deceased and that the hall of the lodge be draped in mourning for thirty days.

Our subject [John N. BROWN] is one of a family of nine children, of whom two brothers are deceased. Basil G. resides at Kellerton, Iowa, and is now living retired. Mrs. Maggie S. SKINNER is living at Dodge City, Kansas. W. H. is a resident of Hastings, Nebraska. Asa W. died in Indiana, leaving a wife and five children. George L. lives in Santa Rosa, California. Joe and Oscar are residents of Whittier, that state, and a brother died in infancy.

John N. BROWN attended the common schools until he was thirteen years old and resided in Louisa county until he was nineteen years of age when the family removed to Ringgold county, where the mother purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land, paying therefor six dollars and a quarter per acre, although it is now worth more than one hundred dollars an acre. In 1876, Mr. BROWN of this review began farming independently in Athens township, Ringgold county, where he acquired land, and later became the owner of a farm in Riley township. He now has four hundred and eighty acres of land in Ringgold county and also holds title to over three thousand acres in the Panhandle of Texas, two hundred and forty acres in Oklahoma and eighty acres in Nebraska. He removed to Decatur county in 1902 and is well known as a real-estate dealer of Lamoni. He has gained more than a competence and takes the greater pride in his success because it has been achieved through his own industry and sound judgment. He has given much attention to raising stock and has also invested wisely in land, profiting by the great increase in land values in the middle west. He has given four of his children eighty acres of land each and leases the four hundred and eighty acres in Ringgold county which he still owns. He also has two business properties in Lamoni.

Mr. BROWN was married on the 11th of April, 1872, to Miss Mary Ellen MOULTON, who was born on the 8th of December, 1849, near Peoria, Illinois, and who accompanied her parents to Ringgold county when six years of age. The family settled in Athens township, and the father was an extensive and successful farmer, but has passed away, as has his wife also.

To Mr. and Mrs. BROWN have been born seven children, two of whom are deceased, those living being as follows: E. A., a merchant of Eldorado Springs, Missouri, is married and has three children. Perry O., who owns the homestead in Ringgold county and is engaged in the breeding of shorthorn cattle, is married and has one child. Nora B. is the wife of A. J. HAWES, a ranchman of Spray, Oregon, by whom she has two children. O. O., a member of the law firm of Folk & Brown, of Stockton, Missouri, is married and has two children. Effie is the wife of Curtis OLSEN, a pharmacist of St. Joseph, Missouri.

Mr. BROWN is a democrat and is much interested in everything relating to the public welfare. He belongs to the Holiness church, but he and his wife attend the Methodist Episcopal church at Lamoni and take an active interest in its work.

HOWELL, J. M. & CONOMAN, Heman. History of Decatur County, Iowa, and Its People Vol. II. Pp. 40-42. S.J. Clarke Pub. Co. Chicago. 1915.

Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, February of 2009