Brown Family Timeline | Volunteer Resources

1823: Margaret’s father John Tobin is born in County Fermoy, Ireland

1825: Margaret’s mother Johanna Collins is born in County Roscommon, Ireland

1854: James Joseph Brown is born on September 27 in Wymart Pennsylvania

1867: Margaret Tobin is born on July 18 in Hannibal, Missouri

1880: J.J. moved to Colorado via the Black Hills of South Dakota

1886: Margaret moves to Leadville, Colorado in the spring

1886: Margaret and J.J. are married in Leadville on September 1

1887: Lawrence Palmer Brown is born in Hannibal, MO on August 30

1889: Catherine Ellen Brown is born In Leadville, CO on July 1

1890: Construction on 1340 Pennsylvania Street is completed

1893: Under J.J.’s direction, the Little Johnny strikes gold in October

1894: The Browns purchase 1340 Pennsylvania Street from the Larges

1899: John Tobin dies at 1340 Pennsylvania Street in April at the age of 76

1902: Margaret and J.J. depart on a world tour with stops in India and Japan

1904: Margaret organizes a large Juvenile Aid Society Benefit with Judge Ben Lindsey

1905: Johanna Tobin dies at 1340 Pennsylvania Street in April at the age of 80

1907: Margaret takes Larry and Helen on a trip that includes a stay in Switzerland

1909: Margaret and J.J. are legally separated on August 10

1910: Margaret hosts a large garden party in June

1911: Larry marries Eileen Norton in Denver on January 16

1911: Lawrence Palmer Brown, Jr., is born in Victor, CO in September

1911: Margaret moves to Newport, RI and rents out 1340 Pennsylvania Avenue to the Cosgriff family

1912: Margaret and Helen join John Jacob and Madelaine Astor on a tour of the Mediterranean

1912: Margaret is on board the Titanic when it strikes an iceberg and sinks in April

1913: Helen marries George Benziger in Chicago, IL in April

1913: Eileen Elizabeth Brown is born in California in July

1914: James George Benziger is born in New York in March

1914: Margaret starts planning her US Senate bid in February

1914: Margaret returns to CO in the aftermath of the Ludlow Massacre in April

1914: Margaret participates in the Marble House Conference in Newport, RI in July

1914-24: Margaret assists in WWI relief efforts in France and in the U.S. in multiple capacities

1915: Larry and Eileen Brown divorce in July, reconciling in 1917

1915: Larry enrolls at the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, CO

1917: George Peter Benziger is born in New York in December

1917-19: Larry serves as an U.S. Army Officer in France during WWI; helps break the Hindenburg Line

1922: J.J. Brown dies in New York at the age of 68 on September 5

1925: Margaret vacations at the Breakers Hotel in FL when it catches fire for the second time

1925: Larry and Eileen divorce for the second time

1926: J.J.’s estate is settled in court without Margaret’s presence; she receives $100,000

1927: Margaret returns to Egypt

1927: Margaret, along with others, petitions President Coolidge to pass the Equal Rights Amendment

1927: Larry marries actress Mildred Gregory in California

1929: Margaret receives the Palm of the Academy in France for her Sarah Bernhardt interpretations

1932: Margaret receives the French Legion of Honor award for her humanitarian activities in April

1932: Margaret dies at the Barbizon Hotel in New York City at the age of 65 on October 26

1948: George Benziger dies in New York in January after falling

in their home

1949 Larry Brown dies in Leadville, CO at the age of 62 on April 2

1969 Helen Brown Benziger dies in New York at the age of 80 on October 17

1978 Larry Brown items donated to the Colorado Historical Society are unsealed in January

Brown Family Timeline