John Carter Brown I
| John Carter Brown | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1797 |
| Died | June 11, 1874 Providence, Rhode Island |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Brown University |
| Occupation | Book collector |
| Spouse(s) | Sophia Augusta Brown (m. 1859; his death 1874) |
| Children |
John Nicholas Brown I Harold Brown Sophia Augusta Brown |
| Parent(s) |
Nicholas Brown, Jr. Ann Carter |
| Relatives | Nicholas Brown, Sr. (grandfather) |
John Carter Brown (1797 – June 11, 1874) was a book collector whose library formed the basis of the John Carter Brown Library at Brown University.
John Carter Brown was born in 1797, the youngest of three surviving children born to Nicholas Brown, Jr. (1769–1841), the namesake patron of Brown University, and Ann Carter, daughter of John Carter, a prominent printer in Providence. His grandfather was Nicholas Brown, Sr. (1729–1791), brother of John Brown, Moses Brown, and Joseph Brown, merchants, active in Rhode Island politics, who brought the College of Rhode Island to Providence in 1771.
During his upbringing, he was taught philanthropy and public leadership by his father and his uncles who were involved with such work. He attended Brown University (renamed in honor of a gift made by his father in 1804) and graduated in 1816. His graduation oration was on “The Revolution of Empires.”
In 1822, John Carter Brown was sent to Europe as a super-cargo for Brown & Ives. After being shipwrecked in France, he turned the business trip into a two-year grand tour.Dr. Benjamin Carter, his eriudite uncle, was an important influence in introducing John Carter Brown to “the great subject,” the interaction between the old and new worlds.
After his father's death in 1841, John Carter Brown had the freedom to withdraw from Brown & Ives affairs and to develop his passion for books. In fact, he was continuing a family tradition as his ancestors had been buying books since 1749, helping to found the Providence Library in 1758 and 83 years later, the Providence Athenaeum. In 1846, he bought his elder brother's collection of books on the Americas and began purchasing books in Europe, using Henry Stevens as his agent. The same year, he bought the collection of Frenchman Henri Ternaux. When his collection became too large, he expanded his house The Nightingale-Brown House by adding a modern fireproof library; he also hired a full-time librarian, John Russell Bartlett, to manage the collection and produce its first catalogue.
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