Homesite of Dr. Edgar William Brown

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about this place. Now settle in, because this is a story about a man who never seemed to do anything small. Edgar William Brown was born in Georgia in 1859, and right from the start he was following a path somebody else had already blazed.

His father, Dr. Samuel M. Brown, was a practicing physician, and Edgar followed that same example, becoming a doctor right there in Orange, Texas.

But medicine, it turns out, was only the opening chapter. In 1888, Edgar married Carrie Launa Lutcher. Now, Carrie's father was Henry Jacob Lutcher, one of the successful lumbermen of Orange, and that connection would reshape the whole direction of Edgar's life.

Brown became associated with the Lutcher timber enterprise, working in the development and management of the company's properties. And then came the next move. He took over as manager of the newly established Dibert, Stark and Brown Cypress Company operations, this time over in Louisiana.

The timber industry has a way of either breaking a man or making him, and for Edgar Brown, it made him. His success was significant enough that he became recognized as one of the leading lumbermen in the entire United States. But the man still wasn't finished.

In his later years Brown turned his attention to agriculture, and he was responsible for the clearing and cultivation of much area farmland. He invested in the region's early oil production industry. He directed land development projects.

And through all of it, he served for many years as mayor of Orange. As mayor, he was an advocate for the city's commercial growth, actively supporting construction of a deep water port and the Intercoastal Canal. Those early efforts, the marker tells us, were vital to Orange's development as a major center of shipping and trade.

Edgar William Brown died in 1917. His wife Carrie lived on until 1941. And right here, on this very site, is where their home once stood.

Not a bad footprint for a Georgia doctor's son who came to Orange and decided, quietly but firmly, to help build it into something.

What the marker says

Following the example of his father Dr. Samuel M. Brown, Georgia native Edgar William Brown (1859-1917) became a practicing physician in Orange. In 1888 he married Carrie Launa Lutcher (1861-1941), daughter of the successful Orange lumberman Henry Jacob Lutcher. Brown, whose home was located at this site, became associated with the Lutcher timer enterprise in the development and management of the company's properties. He later took over as manager of the newly established Dibert, Stark and Brown Cypress Company operations in Louisiana. His success in the timber industry soon made him one of the leading lumbermen in the United States. In his later years Brown took an active interest in agriculture and was responsible for the clearing and cultivation of much area farmland. He also invested in the region's early oil production industry and directed various land development projects. Brown served for many years as mayor of Orange. An advocate of the city's commercial growth, he actively supported construction of a deep water port and the Intercoastal Canal. His early efforts were vital to Orange's development as a major center of shipping and trade.