Obituaries Australia

John Brown, n.d.

from Pastoral Review, 16 October 1919

Mr. John Laurence Brown, a well-known New South Wales pastoralist, died last month at the age of 78. Born at Cooerwull, near Lithgow, on the western slopes of the Blue Mountains, in New South Wales, and part of which was purchased some years ago by the Government for a small arms factory, he was educated at The Hermitage, Bowenfels, close to Cooerwull. In 1858 he went to Scotland, studied for two years at the Edinburgh Academy, and then went to the Royal Agricultural College at Cirencester, in Gloucestershire, England. In 1862 he returned to Australia, and took up pastoral work at Caigan, in the Coonabarabran district, N.S.W., under his father's guidance, the late Mr. Andrew Brown, who at that time held the property.

In 1876 Caigan was transferred to Mr. John Brown and his brother, the late W. F. Brown, but on the death of the latter, it was made over to the former entirely, together with Tondeburine, near Gular, in the Castlereagh country, and Cuttabulloo. All this land was originally held under lease, but by degrees over 50,000 acres were acquired by improvement and auction, and from time to time the late Mr. Brown has handed over portions to his sons, the former's residence in recent years until the time of his death being at Bowenfels, where he had a beautiful home called Methven. The well-known Cooerwull Woollen Mills were founded by his father, who in 1838 erected the buildings for flour-milling purposes.

The late Mr. John Brown in 1869 married Caroline, daughter of the late Mr. H. B. Bradley, of Sydney, and had six sons and three daughters.