- Date Of Birth: January 22, 1929
- Date Of Death: December 18, 2007
- State: Indiana
James H. “Jim” Brown, 78, of 2121 B&O Railroad, died at 10:48 p.m. Tuesday (Dec. 18, 2007) at home.
He was born Jan. 22, 1929, in Marco, Ind., to George W. “Tim” and Mary E. (Harris) Brown. He married Dorthy A. “Bunky” Paterson on Nov. 27, 1953, in Carbondale, Ill. She died in May 2006.
Mr. Brown is survived by one brother, John (Lois) Brown of Marco; and three half-sisters, Rea I. Wolf of West Virginia, and Lois L. Fish and Betty J. Brown, both of Lyons, Ind.
He was preceded in death by one brother, George H. Brown; and one sister, Mary Bovinshin.
There will be no visitation or service. Cremation has taken place. A Masonic service hosted by St. Peter’s Masonic Lodge 106 of Edwardsburg, Mich., will take place at a later date. Billings Funeral Home, 812 Baldwin St., Elkhart, is in charge of arrangements.
Mr. Brown was a history teacher and school board administrator for Oaklawn High School in Oaklawn, Ill., for more than 34 years, retiring in 1986. During this time, he met his wife, a fellow teacher at the same school. After retiring, they moved to Union, Mich., where they began to live full time in their summer home on Indiana Lake. Soon after, Mr. Brown was elected a Cass County Commissioner, representing Porter and Mason townships. He served four terms from 1986 to 1994.
While commissioner, he was involved with restructuring the county’s finances, the Porter Township zoning board and introduced the idea of using C.R. 17 (M-117) as a corridor between the Indiana Toll Road and Michigan’s U.S. 12.
Mr. Brown was a member of the Cass County Conservation Club, a charter member of the Indiana Lake Organization and an active Mason. He was a member of the Edwardsburg St. Peter Masonic Lodge 106, past Worthy Patron of the Order of the Eastern Star “Vandalia” Lodge in Union and a Shriner.
He and his wife were also avid genealogists, and spent many years traveling throughout the U.S. and abroad, collecting family information.
