John Brown

     NOTE: The information on this page is my research to date and is subject to change as I become better informed. I very much welcome any corrections or additional info you might have - my email address is at the bottom of this page. Whilst historical facts are not copyright, my writing about these facts are. If you wish to use any text from this site on Ancestry or on any other website, please ask me first - Tim Hill.


John Brown may have been born circa 1789 at Perthshire, Scotland.¹ He may have been baptised in February 1789 at Comrie, Perthshire, Scotland. However, it is not certain that this baptism record pertains to him. On the baptism, his father's name is listed as Donald (the anglicised version of Daniel.)^1,2 He may have been born circa 1790 at Glasgow.³ He was the son of Daniel Brown and Jannet McNab.

He married Margaret Miller, daughter of John Miller and Margaret (?), at St. Ninian's on Saturday, 3 July 1813 at Stirling..⁴

John and Margaret Miller became the parents of Margaret Brown on Thursday, 14 May 1818 at Stirling.^5,6,7 At this time his occupation was given as farm labourer.⁵

John and his wife Margaret emigrated with their six children from Liverpool on 28 February 1839 on the 'Heber'. John age was recorded as being 40 years in March 1838 but other sources suggest that he was as much as 9 years older. The ship embarked with 178 emmigrants. The family was brought out by Donald McIntyre of Invermein, one of a number of private Scottish emigrant operators who had settled in Australia - he brought out 57 emigrants on the 'Heber', nearly all country people from the Highlands; shepherds and labourers and their families.^8,9,10,11,12 After a voyage of nearly 6 months John and his wife Margaret arrived at Botany Bay, New South Wales, on 27 July 1839 with their children. The ship's first port of call had been the Cape of Good Hope, where they embarked a further two passengers. They left the Cape on the 28th of May 1839. The trip was not without tragedy; 5 children died on the voyage.^9,13,8


John, as the father of the bride, along with Margaret may have attended the wedding of Margaret and Donald Nicholson, a Scottish carpenter trained as a boatbuilder, in a Presbyterian ceremony at Free Presbyterian Church in Pitt Street on Friday, 19 March 1841 at Sydney. Margaret was 22 and her husband Donald was 29. It isn't known how they met but perhaps it was through Donald's work. After their marriage Donald and Margaret lived in Parramatta at least until the start of the new year.. Others who may have attended include . Together they were to go on to have 10 children over 18 years.¹⁴

John, as the father of the bride, along with Margaret may have attended the wedding of Jessie and John Chalmers, a stonemason, at St. Andrew's Scots Presbyterian Church on Monday, 7 June 1841 at Sydney.. Others who may have attended include . John and Jessie went on to have four known children together.¹⁵

John, as the father of the bride, along with Margaret attended the wedding of Agnes and John Cameron, a baker, at St. Andrew's Scots Presbyterian Church on Thursday, 31 August 1848 at Sydney.. . John and Agnes went on to have nine known children together.¹⁶ John (and presumably his spouse Margaret) lived in October 1848 at the Sydney area of Balmain.¹⁶

John, as the father of the groom, along with Margaret may have attended the wedding of Alexander and Mary Ann MacKenzie at St. Stephen's Presbyterian Church in Fort Street on Tuesday, 10 August 1852 at Sydney. Others who may have attended include . Mary and Alexander went on to have 12 known children together.^17,18

John, as the father of the bride, along with Margaret may have attended the wedding of Frances and Robert Grigg at St. Andrew's Scots Presbyterian Church on Thursday, 16 November 1854 at Sydney. Frances was 23 and her husband Robert was 24.. Others who may have attended include . Robert and Frances went on to have five known children together.¹⁹

John, as the father of the groom, along with Margaret may have attended the wedding of Donald and Charlotte Whyte at St. Andrew's Scots Presbyterian Church on Saturday, 24 February 1855 at Sydney. Others who may have attended include . Charlotte and Donald went on to have nine known children together.²⁰

There was a John Brown who was a timber merchant in Lane Cove, New South Wales, in 1858 and again 4 years later (who was fined £2 for failing to report as a juror.)^21,22

Their children went on to give them at least 50 grandchildren. John Brown was a sawyer in February 1863.³

John died on 13 February 1863 at the Sydney suburb of Balmain of 'decay of age'.³

John Brown's son Alexander had a funeral notice placed in the paper on 14 February 1863:

His body was interred at South Ground (Old Burial Ground in Devonshire Street) on 15 February 1863 at Sydney.³