Harvey Brown (officer)

Harvey Brown

Born	(1795-09-06)September 6, 1795 Rahway, New Jersey, United States
Died	March 31, 1874(1874-03-31) (aged 78) Clifton, New York
Place of burial	Hazelwood Cemetery
Allegiance	United States of America Union
Service/branch	United States Army Union Army
Years of service	1818–1867
Rank	Colonel Brevet Major General
Commands held	5th United States Artillery
Battles/wars	Black Hawk War Seminole Wars Mexican-American War American Civil War New York Draft Riots
Relations	Harvey E. Brown, Jr. (son)

Harvey Brown (September 6, 1795 – March 31, 1874) was an American military officer who fought in the Black Hawk and Seminole Wars, the Mexican-American War and the American Civil War. He was also in command of military forces in New York City and later assisted in putting down the New York Draft Riots in 1863. His son Harvey E. Brown, Jr. also had a prominent military career as a surgeon and later historian of the U.S. Army Medical Department.

Harvey E. Brown was born in Bridgetown (part of present-day Rahway, New Jersey). He graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York on July 24, 1818, as a second lieutenant of light artillery. He spent the first years of his military career on garrison duty in Boston, Massachusetts and New London, Connecticut as well as commissary duty in St. Augustine, Florida. Upon the reorganization of the U.S. Army in 1821, Brown was assigned to the 1st United States Artillery and was officially promoted to first lieutenant on August 28, 1821. From 1824 to 1825, he served as an aide-de-camp to Major General Jacob Brown, then commanding general of the U.S. Army, and was assigned to quartermaster duty for three years. In 1831, Brown was made a captain and participated in the Black Hawk War the following year. Brown also took part in the Second Seminole War as a lieutenant colonel, participating in the Battle of Wahoo Swamp, and was brevetted a major for "gallant conduct" on November 21, 1836. Between 1839 and 1841, he suppressed a series of disputes on the Canada–US border.