John “Red” Brown was a politician in the Republic of Texas

Republic of Texas

The Republic of Texas was an independent nation in North America, bordering the United States and Mexico, that existed from 1836 to 1846.Formed as a break-away republic from Mexico by the Texas Revolution, the state claimed borders that encompassed an area that included all of the present U.S...

 and early statehood Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

 who served briefly as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives

Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives

The Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives is the 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 House...

 during the First Texas Legislature

First Texas Legislature

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

. Brown was also one of the founders of the Democratic Party

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 in Texas.

Brown was probably born in Ireland on 30 August 1786. He moved to Texas in 1836 to near Nacogdoches

Nacogdoches, Texas

Nacogdoches is a city in Nacogdoches County, Texas, in the United States. The 2010 census recorded the city's population to be 32,996. It is the county seat of Nacogdoches County and is situated in East Texas. Nacogdoches is a sister city of Natchitoches, Louisiana.Nacogdoches is the home of...

. Early Texas census records list him as an Irishman and a farmer. Brown represented Nacogdoches County

Nacogdoches County, Texas

As of the census of 2000, there were 59,203 people, 22,006 households, and 14,039 families residing in the county. The population density was 62 people per square mile . There were 25,051 housing units at an average density of 26 per square mile...

 in the Sixth Congress of the Republic of Texas

Congress of the Republic of Texas

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 legislature based on the model of the United States Congress...

 from 1841 to 1842.

Brown was elected to the First Texas Legislature after annexation of Texas

Texas Annexation

In 1845, United States of America annexed the Republic of Texas and admitted it to the Union as the 28th state. The U.S. thus inherited Texas's border dispute with Mexico; this quickly led to the Mexican-American War, during which the U.S. captured additional territory , extending the nation's...

 into the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. On 3 March 1846, Speaker William Crump

William Crump

William Edward Crump was the first Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives following statehood. A representative from Austin County, Crump was a novice in political circles, having held no previous public office in Texas either in the Republic or at the local level...

 was given a leave of absence, Brown was elected Speaker of the House pro tempore. On 9 March 1846, Brown resigned as Speaker pro tempore, and the House elected Edward Thomas Branch

Edward Thomas Branch

Edward Thomas Branch 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 RepresentativesBranch was born 6 December 1811 in Richmond, Virginia...

.

He was a founder of Henderson County

Henderson County, Texas

As of the census of 2000, there were 73,277 people, 28,804 households, and 20,969 families residing in the county. The population density was 84 people per square mile . There were 35,935 housing units at an average density of 41 per square mile...

 when it was formed from Nacogdoches County in 1846. Brown served as a notary public ad a ferry operator, and received a license to operate a toll-bridge over Kickapoo Creek near Old Normandy (present-day Brownsboro

Brownsboro, Texas

Brownsboro is a city in Henderson County, Texas, United States. The population was 796 at the 2000 census. The community is on Texas State Highway 31.-History:...

, which was named for John Brown). On 27 April 1846, Brown helped to found the Texas Democratic Party in Austin

Austin, Texas

Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...

. Brown served as a commissioner to help locate the state penitentiary in 1848. In 1850, Brown was one of the commissioners that selected Athens

Athens, Texas

Athens is a city in Henderson County, Texas, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 12,710. It is the county seat of Henderson County. According to the Texas Legislature, Athens is the "Original Home of the Hamburger"...

as the seat of Henderson County.

Brown was married to Margaret Hodges Brooks. After her death in 1849, he married Elizabeth Holland in 1851. He probably died in 1852.