GEORGE W. BROWN, Port Jervis, New York
George W. Brown was born in Piermont, Rockland County, New York, November 10, 1859, and in 1862 his father, who worked in the West Shore shops, moved to Jersey City, as the shops were moved there in that year. George went to No. 1 school in Jersey City, graduating from No. 5 High School in Jersey City in 1873. For a while he was assistant bookkeeper for the Hadden Company on Chambers Street, New York, but as the work was too confining, he gave it up and worked for two years on the old John Brown tract, owned by the Browns for 120 years. As this time he wanted to commence railroading, but the superintendent would not employ him, saying that he was not old enough. The young man would not be denied the privilege of engaging in some sort of railroad work, so he entered the shops and helped put on the first air brakes used by the Erie, engine 80 being the first one thus equipped. He then did electroplating on headlights and for ferry boats, tugs, etc., and worked at air and steam fitting. He helped pipe car 469, the first Erie car equipped for Pintsch gas, and was the first one to make this gas in the United States, being tutored at the experimental works on the Weehawken Branch by the agent, Charles Voigh, of Berlin, Prussia.

On January 4 Mr. Brown began firing for Mr. Rounds, his engine being an old broad-gauge Cooke Mogul known as No. 130. He ran on the rounds for a while and then as an extra. In October, 1883, he was assigned as fireman for Dan Kenyon, who was familiarly known as "Old Buttermilk," and possessed the reputation of never being suited with his firemen. Mr. Brown was the thirtieth man put to Kenyon's test, and the fact that he fired for him three years proves how well "Old Buttermilk" was suited with his service. In October, 1886, he was assigned to fire for Ed. Black, and after one year was put into emergency running, which he did for two years, firing for Black in the meantime. On October 24, 1889, he was promoted to engineer, and after running all the different trains on the Northern, Greenwood Lake, and Bergen runs, he was given engine 742, a Class L, in February, 1892, which he ran between Port Jervis and Jersey City. In 1897 he was put in charge of a Baldwin engine, No. 876, which he is now running on freight.

On May 23, 1881, Mr. Brown was married to Miss Alfretta Gray at Stony Point, NY, and they have five children, the eldest of whom is 18 years of age. Mr. Brown joined Lodge No. 3, B of LF of Jersey City, on January 10, 1881, and still retains his membership in this order, although he belongs to Lodge 54, B of LE of Port Jervis. He also belongs to Lodge No. 40, OUAM, the YMCA of Port Jervis, and is interested in local politics.

Excerpted from: "American Locomotive Engineers, Erie Railway Edition," H.R. Romans Editor; Crawford-Adsit Company Publishers, Chicago, IL 1899.

From the June 6, 1881 issue of the Port Jervis Evening Gazette:
WHAT EXPLODED
Considerable excitement was caused just before one o'clock today by a loud report which many supposed was that of a locomotive exploding. A rush was made for the railroad yard, when it was ascertained that the gas in the firebox of engine 272, Chauncey Anderson, engineer, had blown open the door of the firebox. The fireman, George Brown, was at work on the running board, oiling the engine, and thus escaped the injury that would very likely have resulted had he been in the cab. The engine was not damaged. The fire had been banked in the engine since Saturday, and when the locomotive was run out on the track near the water tank and the fire stirred, the explosion followed. This is the second time a similar explosion has taken place in this engine.