Frank Paterson Brown

Frank Brown
Photograph of Brown in Native American costume, c. 1910
Personal information
Full name	Francis Paterson Brown
Date of birth	(1887-11-13)13 November 1887
Place of birth	Berwick, Victoria
Date of death	26 November 1928(1928-11-26) (aged 41)
Place of death	St Kilda, Victoria[1]
Original team(s)	Scotch College
Playing career^1
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
1905–06	Melbourne	5 (0)
1907	St Kilda	1 (0)
Total		6 (0)
^1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1907.
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Francis Paterson Brown (13 November 1887 – 26 November 1928) was an Australian sportsman, adventurer and journalist. He was a national champion in the hurdles and represented Australia at the Inter-Empire Championships in 1911. He was also a mining entrepreneur, soldier, and wrestling promoter.

Early life

Portrait of Brown as a child by Arthur Streeton, c. 1891

Brown was born on 13 November 1887 in Berwick, Victoria.[2] He was the son of Mary Jane (née Paterson) and George Brown. His older half-brother Louis Esson was a dramatist.[3] His father died in 1897 and his mother remarried to politician James Gibb.[4]

Brown attended Scotch College, Melbourne.[5] As a child he was painted by Arthur Streeton, an acquaintance of his uncle John Ford Paterson; his cousins Esther and Betty Paterson were artists.[6]

Sporting career

Brown excelled at hurdles. He won the 440-yard and one-mile hurdles at the Victorian public school championships in 1904, and the following year won the 440-yard event at the Australian Athletics Championships in Sydney. He was the Victorian champion in the 120-yard hurdles and the 440-yard dash in 1907.[5]

Brown represented Australia at the Inter-Empire Championships in London in 1911. He competed in the 120-yard hurdles event, where he fell while leading the race. He won an international event in Berlin in 1912 and was reportedly presented with a silver cup by Wilhelm, German Crown Prince.[5]

Outside of athletics, Brown played high-level Australian rules football in the Victorian Football League, making five appearances Melbourne in 1905 and 1906 and one appearance for St Kilda in 1907.[2] He was also a talented boxer, wrestler and golfer.[5]

Other activities

In 1909, reputedly at the instigation of Jack London whom he met in Tasmania, Brown undertook to walk overland from Bourke, New South Wales, through the Outback to Darwin.[7] On his journey he took up four mining leases with silver and lead deposits on the Wilton River near Bulman.[8] After returning to Melbourne he formed a syndicate to develop the project and floated the Mount Maroomba Proprietary Company.[9]

Brown enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force in February 1917. He served with the 8th Brigade, Australian Field Artillery, with the rank of gunner. He was discharged in May 1919.[10]

In 1922, Brown joined the staff of the newly created Sporting Globe as athletics editor.[11] He later wrote a column titled "Frank Brown's Sporting Flashes".[12] He was credited with reviving wrestling as a spectator sport in Melbourne, by encouraging Stadiums Limited to bring prominent American wrestlers on tour. He visited the United States on behalf of Stadiums Limited in 1926 to recruit talent.[13]

Personal life

Brown died suddenly on 26 November 1928 at his home in St Kilda, aged 41. He was survived by his wife and son.[13] His obituary in The Herald was written by C. J. Dennis, who observed that "probably no contemporary Australian had such a varied and picturesque career".[7]

References

1. "Family Notices". The Argus. No. 25, 677. Victoria, Australia. 27 November 1928. p. 1.
2. Holmesby, Russell; Main, Jim (2014). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers: every AFL/VFL player since 1897 (10th ed.). Seaford, Victoria: BAS Publishing. p. 99. ISBN 978-1-921496-32-5.
3. Walker, D. R. (1981). "Louis Esson (1878–1943)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 8. Melbourne University Press.
4. "Mother Of Author and Well Known Athlete Dies". The Sun News-Pictorial. 1 August 1932.
5. "Frank Brown's Death: Notable All-round Athlete". Weekly Times. 1 December 1928.
6. "Mr. James Paterson dies". The Riverine Herald. 24 May 1929.
7. "The Late Frank Brown: A Versatile and Typical Australian". The Herald. Melbourne. 27 November 1928.
8. "Territory Mining: The Silver-Lead Deposits". The Advertiser. Adelaide. 16 May 1910.
9. "Boolman Rush: Interesting Details". Chronicle. Adelaide. 2 July 1910.
10. "Gunner Francis Paterson Brown". Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
11. "'The Sporting Globe'". Weekly Times. 12 August 1922.
12. "Frank Brown's Sporting Flashes". Sporting Globe. 20 October 1928.
13. "Death of Mr. Frank Brown". The Argus. Melbourne. 27 November 1928.

External links

• Frank Paterson Brown's playing statistics from AFL Tables