Alfred Henry Brown
Alfred Henry Brown | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1818 Brislington, Somersetshire, England |
| Died | 1907-02-20 Tunbridge Wells, England |
| Occupation(s) | Pastoralist, politician |
| Years active | c.1839–1882 |
| Known for | Member of the Queensland Legislative Council, pastoralist in Queensland |
Alfred Henry Brown (1818 – 20 February 1907) was a pastoralist and served as a member of the Queensland Legislative Council.
Early life
Born in Brislington, Somersetshire, England, in 1818, Brown was the son of John Brown and Mary (née Cater).
Pastoralist
Around 1839, Alfred and his three brothers—Dr. Walter Brown, Henry Hort Brown, and Arthur Brown—relocated to Queensland for health-related reasons. They invested their resources in purchasing Gin Gin Station, Junction Station in Wide Bay, along with an additional property in Port Curtis. Alfred took charge of managing these estates and became known among the regional pastoral community as the "British Lion of the Burnett." Together, the siblings controlled leases spanning hundreds of square miles of valuable cattle grazing land on Australia’s northern coast, including Barolin, Fairymeade, and Kolan Stations, as well as the Antigua sugar plantation.
Politics and public life
In 1858, Brown was appointed Magistrate for New South Wales by the Governor General and that same year gave testimony before the Select Committee investigating Murders by Aborigines on the Dawson River. His initial appointment to the Queensland Legislative Council occurred on 26 April 1861; he resigned in May 1863 but was reappointed from January 1874 until January 1882.
During a legislative committee session in 1861, Brown expressed opposition to the Native Police Force. Additionally, he contributed as a founding trustee of Maryborough Boys Grammar School in 1879.
Later life
Brown eventually retired to Sydney before moving back to England, where he passed away in Tunbridge Wells in 1907.