From Kentucky to Louisiana - James Brown Supplements Statehood
James Brown was an influential Founder during the early Statehoods of both Kentucky and Louisiana.
James Brown
James Brown was a young Virginia lawyer who joined his brother, John, with a move to Kentucky in an effort to establish a practice in the territory.
Quickly making a name for himself, and becoming a brother-in-law of Henry Clay, Brown was just 26 when Kentucky joined the Union as a State.
He had made such an impression that he was selected to serve as the first Secretary of State.
Louisiana
After the Louisiana Purchase, Brown moved to that territory and briefly served again as Secretary of State before spending several years as Attorney General.
During this time, he accumulated one of the largest slave plantations in the territory. His holdings were strongly involved in the 1811 German Coast Uprisings.
These were the largest slave revolts in US history, and Brown’s plantation was heavily involved in the action.
National Politics
James would survive the riots and was later appointed as one of Louisiana’s earliest United States Senators.
After spending the better part of a decade in Washington, President James Monroe selected Brown to replace Albert Gallatin as Minister to France.
Brown spent five years in Europe during a time of relative peace. He returned and retired to live the remainder of his life in Philadelphia.
Here are some other KENTUCKY Founders:
Daniel Boone - Founding Father on the Frontier
James Wilkinson - America’s Favorite Double Agent
If you’d like to learn more about early Kentucky, check out ‘Settlement and Statehood.’
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