James F. Brown

James F. Brown (1793–1868) is buried in the cemetery of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Beacon, New York. His obituary, published in The Fishkill Standard on January 18, 1868, highlights his deep ties to the community and his remarkable journey to freedom. The paper noted that Brown, “a resident of the village for nearly forty years, died at his residence on the Verplanck estate, on Tuesday. Mr. Brown was well-known to nearly all our citizens. He was formerly a slave in Maryland, who escaped, and by industry accumulated funds enough to purchase the freedom of his wife. For about thirty-six years, he has lived with the Verplanck family, first as a coachman, but for the last twenty years as head gardener. He was, as near as we can learn, about 73 years of age. He assisted in the building of the Episcopal Church.” Beyond his labor as a master gardener on the estate, Brown’s assistance in physically constructing St. Luke’s makes him a foundational figure in the history of the parish.

[Published Winter 2019 ]