The W. A. Brown Family

Facts provided by Betty Brown Ebaugh

W. A. Brown, son of Mr. and Mrs. Edward Francis Brown, was born near Anna, Illinois, July 12, 1841. He served in the Confederate Army four years and was discharged at Greensboro, N. C. His wife, Elizabeth Nelson, was born February 14, 1840, near Raleigh, N. C, and was first married to William A. Dixon.

A son by her first marriage, Alonzo C. Dixon, was born September 1, 1860, near Benton, Ark., and was reared in the home of his step-father, after W. A. Brown married Mrs. Dixon on February 7, 1866. The only child of this couple to survive was J. L. (Lem) Brown, who was born November 5, 1866, at Arkadelphia, Ark.

The Brown family was established in this area when they moved to Larissa in 1871. They lived there only a few months, moving to Jacksonville in 1872, and acquiring a home place, where they lived the remainder of their lives.

Mr. Brown intended to farm the place, which extended from where Patton Street presently is located to near Lon Morris College's site. However, he accepted employment with Clapp & Brown in the retail business in 1872, the store having just been opened as the town was moved to its present location on the I. & G. N. Railroad. William McKinney acquired the. firm in 1874, but soon was called away to other interests, and W. A. Brown became a partner in what became McKinney & Brown. Later, Mr. Brown acquired McKinney's interest and took a new partner, his step-son, A. C. (Lon) Dixon, to establish Brown & Dixon.

J. L. Brown returned from college and joined the firm, the name being changed to Brown, Dixon & Co. The name returned to Brown & Dixon in 1903, when J. L. Brown withdrew from the firm. He had opened his own business next door in 1895. When W. A. Brown died in 1933, Brown & Dixon became the property of J. L. Brown. In 1935, F. W. Ebaugh, j. L. Brown's son-in-law, took over management and the two businesses were combined as J. L. Brown Department Store, which continued until 1954. J. L. Brown remained a partner until his death on February 7, 1944, after which Mrs. J. L. Brown and her daughter, Mrs. Betty Brown Ebaugh, held interest in the firm.

In 1890, a financial crisis halted public education in Jacksonville. W. A. Brown, John H. Bolton, J. A. Templeton and others formed Jacksonville Education Association and established Sunset Institute. In 1894, the Association donated its property as part of the inducement to bring Alexander Collegiate Institute (Lon Morris) from Kilgore to Jacksonville.

W. A. Brown was an active Presbyterian as was Mrs. Brown, who died on March 4, 1927, having preceded her husband in death by six years.

In 1883, Miss Mittie Brown, daughter of one of W. A. Brown's brothers, came to live with the W. A. Browns: She was married on November 26, 1905, to John E. McFarland, publisher of the Cherokee County Banner and Jacksonville Daily Progress.

J. L. Brown attended Trinity University at Tehuacana, and was active in the Presbyterian church as a deacon, elder, teacher, Sunday School superintendent and trustee. lie was president of the organization which staged the 50th Anniversary Celebration of Jacksonville in 1922, was a director of the First National Bank, director of the Chamber of Commerce, a 32nd degree Mason and Odd Fellow. He collaborated with Rev. F. H. Ford in publishing the book, "Larissa," and was one of the founders of Jacksonville Public Library.

Mrs. J. L. Brown was Jewel Newton, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. W. A. Newton. She was born near Reese August 23, 1873, and was eight when the family moved to Jacksonville. She attended Lebanon (Tenn.) College and musical conservatories in Chicago and Cincinnati. She taught music for several years and was organist at First Presbyterian Church for 30 years. She was president of the Presbyterian Women's Association. She died April 9, 1966, at 93, having lived in the family home since her marriage to J. L. Brown on December 18, 1900.

Elizabeth (Betty) Brown was the only child of Mr. and Mrs. J. L. Brown. She holds a B.A. from University of Colorado and M.A. from Columbia University, New York. She was married to Frank W. Ebaugh on February 22, 1930. A member of the board and past president of Jacksonville Public Library, she also is curator and organizer of Vanishing Texana Museum section of the library. She is a member of Cherokee County Historical Survey Committee, the D.A.R., Chi Omega and the Presbyterian Church.

Mr. Ebaugh, a graduate of Tulane University with degree in chemical engineering and a registered professional engineer, is a son of Mr. and Mrs. John Lynn Ebaugh and was born in New Orleans. After ten years in research and management with Texaco, including three years in New York, he and Mrs. Ebaugh came to Jacksonville in 1934. Mr. Ebaugh managed the J. L. Brown Department Store for nearly 20 years and has found time for myriad civic activities, as well as business undertakings. He has served as vice-president and director of the East Texas Chamber of Commerce and president of the Jacksonville Chamber, director of Texas Industrial Development Council. He was instrumental in organizing the Upper Neches River Municipal Water Authority, builders of Lake Palestine, was its first president and a director of Neches River Conservation District. He has been active in Red Cross and Girl Scouts and he and Mrs. Ebaugh are recognized by a plaque in Jacksonville Public Library for their work there. Both have been recognized in various "Who's Who" publications. Mr. Ebaugh is a member of the Rotary Club and his activity with the Presbyterian Church includes elder, deacon and Sunday School teacher.

In 1934, the Ebaughs remodeled the historic W. A. Brown home and have lived in it since. It is marked by plaques, placed by the Texas Historical Survey Committee. The house now is nearly 100 years old.

The Ebaughs daughter, Betty Jane, holds two degrees from Southern Methodist University and her husband, Gordon B. McFarland, Jr. is a graduate of Vanderbilt and Southwestern Medical School. An orthopedic surgeon, he is on the staff of Ochsner Foundation Hospital and Clinic in New Orleans. They are rearing two sons, Gordon III and Wright, only four blocks from where Frank Ebaugh was reared. Mrs. McFarland has a strong interest in literature, libraries, church and civic undertakings.

Mr. and Mrs. W. A. Brown on the occasion of their Golden Wedding Anniversary on February 7, 1916.

W. A. Brown and his wife, Betty, surrounded by their family on their 50th wedding anniversary in 1916.

J. L. Brown & Jewel (Newton) Brown

The W. A. Brown home on Patton Street as it appeared in 1972. The house was built around two rooms and a lean-to kitchen in 1873.

The W. A. Brown home on Patton Street is recognized with an historical plaque being presented by Jack Moore.

The J. L. Brown store on Commerce Street was the ultimate in merchandising when this picture was made in 1913.