Paul A. Brown
Encyclopedia
Paul Aaron Brown was only the second Republican
since Reconstruction to have served as mayor
of the small north Louisiana
city
of Minden
, (population 13,000) the seat of Webster Parish. Brown served an unexpired term (1989–1990) created by the recall
of Democratic
Mayor Noel "Gene" Byars (born 1939). Brown was defeated for a full term on November 6, 1990, by the city's still serving Democratic mayor, Billy Henry "Bill" Robertson
(born 1938).
near New Orleans. He joined the U.S. Air Force when he was seventeen and was assigned to the U.S. Signal Corps in a job involving surveillance
. He was stationed for a time in Panama City, Panama. He lived in several cities before he came to Minden in 1987. On discharge from the Air Force, Brown worked for a detective
agency in Houston
. In the middle 1960s, he joined the staff of Motorola in Shreveport. He was thereafter transferred to other locations, including Biloxi
, Mississippi
, the seat of Harrison County
, where he sold two-way radio
s.
While on call for Motorola in Meridian
, the seat of Lauderdale County
, he met his future wife, the former Shirley Carter (November 13, 1942 - November 14, 2006), originally from Natchez
, Mississippi. They were married in June 1971 and celebrated their 25th anniversary just days before Brown's death. Motorola brought the Browns to Jackson
, Mississippi, then New Orleans, and thereafter Tulas
, Oklahoma
.
Brown left Motorola and went to work for a law enforcement supply company. In March 1978, he began treatment for alcoholism
in the Baptist
Hospital in New Orleans. In 1979, he became a counselor to alcoholics. After promotion through various positions, he became director of a counseling center in Greenville
, Mississippi. His career as a counselor brought the Browns to Minden, where he was the director of a newly-opened alcohol treatment center at the Minden Medical Center.
Brown then became the executive director of the Minden-Webster Parish Chamber of Commerce
, his last position until he was elected as his adopted city's mayor.
Democratic city councilman, Robert T. Tobin
(1911–2007), also a retired educator, was appointed by the council as acting mayor pending a special election for the year remaining in Byars' term. Byars, also an educator, thereafter left Minden and relocated to Beaumont
, the seat of Jefferson County
in southeastern Texas
.
Though a newcomer to the city, Brown entered the mayoral contest to finish out Byars' term. His chamber of commerce work endeared him to much of the city's business community. Similarly, another former chamber of commerce director, Tom Colten
, like Brown a Republican, was elected mayor in 1966 and served until 1974. Tobin's candidacy raised the possibility that he would become the city's first ever elected black mayor. By the time of the 2000 census
, Minden had become 52 percent black. Businessman Bill Robertson, an Arkansas
native and a former member of the Webster Parish Police Jury, the parish's governing board, also ran for mayor, as did real estate
woman Peggy J. Staples (1933–2009), who was also a member of the city council (1978–1990).
In the first round of the special election, Tobin led with 1,545 votes. Brown trailed slightly with 1,509 ballots. Robertson and Miss Staples followed with 1,028 and 452, respectively. Brown went on to defeat Tobin in the second round of balloting in November 1989.
for a full four-year term. A third candidate, Billy Sherman Cost (born 1948), a local businessman who later relocated to Anahuac, Texas
, also ran. Cost and another Minden businessman, Thomas Lee Hathorn (born 1951), had together led the successful recall against Byars in 1989. The primary tallies were as follows: Brown, 2,630 (48 percent); Robertson, 1,728 (32 percent), and Cost, 1,064 (20 percent).
On September 28, eight days before the primary, Brown was seriously injured in an accident on the Minden High School
sports field. He was carrying the football
chain markers and was knocked into a bench. He lay in a coma
for a week and spent thirty-seven days in intensive care at the Schumpert Medical Center in Shreveport. A traumatic brain injury deprived him of his long-term memory, balance and motor functions on his left side, and his once articulate speech. He spent six months in rehabilitation
.
When it became apparent that Brown could not physically resume his mayoral duties, Robertson won the second balloting, 2,529 (59 percent) to 1,758 (41 percent). Brown's support decreased by more than 800 votes since the primary, presumably from concerns about his health.
Robertson hence won the first of his thus far six terms as mayor, having benefited from the injury of his Republican opponent. Elected again in 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, and 2010, Robertson is the longest-serving mayor in Minden history.
. A week later he was confined to the Integrated Health Services Nursing Home in Minden. His last days left him frail and malnourished. He lost weight and ran a high temperature.
After her husband's death, Mrs. Shirley Brown returned to Natchez, where she ran the Gayosa Avenue Market, which had been previously managed by her late mother. The Browns had a son, Daniel Brown and wife Dee of Natchez, and a daughter, Paula Rae Brown of Bossier City
in Bossier Parish. They were Baptist
. The couple is interred at Gardens of Memory Cemetery in Minden; thus far Brown is the only former mayor of Minden to be interred there.
The Reverend Willie Odom of Minden, described Brown as "a fine person. Whatever you needed help doing, he would help."
Businessman George Elam McInnis (born 1945), the chairman of the chamber of commerce when Brown was hired as the manager, noted Brown's "enthusiasm and vigor. He gave us a great hope of growth for the chamber. At the end of a year, some of us encouraged him to run for mayor even though it would be an uphill run for someone who was not from Minden." McInnis noted that Brown would ride in police cars and on garbage trucks to get a better feel of the job of managing the city.
Dr. Richard Whiteman Campbell (born 1946), a Minden dentist
who supported Brown for mayor, called him "a prince of a fellow with a lot of energy and enthusiasm for his community. . . . Even though he had lived in Minden only a short while, he had more love for his community than many natives. Even though his recovery was anything but complete, he really desired to get back into the mainstream of civic affairs in Minden."
Thelma Sue Sanders Gruber (born 1942), a former chamber of commerce director who also worked in Brown's campaign, described him as "open, honest, and friendly. To sum it up in a word, he was a cheerleader for any cause he believed in.”
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
since Reconstruction to have served as mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
of the small north Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
city
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
of Minden
Minden, Louisiana
Minden is a city in the American state of Louisiana. It serves as the parish seat of Webster Parish and is located twenty-eight miles east of Shreveport, the seat of Caddo Parish. The population, which has been stable since 1960, was 13,027 at the 2000 census...
, (population 13,000) the seat of Webster Parish. Brown served an unexpired term (1989–1990) created by the recall
Recall election
A recall election is a procedure by which voters can remove an elected official from office through a direct vote before his or her term has ended...
of Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Mayor Noel "Gene" Byars (born 1939). Brown was defeated for a full term on November 6, 1990, by the city's still serving Democratic mayor, Billy Henry "Bill" Robertson
Bill Robertson
Billy Henry Robertson, known as Bill Robertson , is the Democratic mayor of the small city of Minden, the seat of Webster Parish in northwestern Louisiana, United States, having served since his initial election on November 6, 1990...
(born 1938).
Early years, military, business
Brown was born in AlgiersAlgiers, Louisiana
Algiers is a neighborhood within the city of New Orleans. It is the portion of Orleans Parish on the West Bank of the Mississippi River.Algiers is also known as the 15th Ward, one of the 17 Wards of New Orleans.-History:...
near New Orleans. He joined the U.S. Air Force when he was seventeen and was assigned to the U.S. Signal Corps in a job involving surveillance
Surveillance
Surveillance is the monitoring of the behavior, activities, or other changing information, usually of people. It is sometimes done in a surreptitious manner...
. He was stationed for a time in Panama City, Panama. He lived in several cities before he came to Minden in 1987. On discharge from the Air Force, Brown worked for a detective
Detective
A detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person. The latter may be known as private investigators or "private eyes"...
agency in Houston
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
. In the middle 1960s, he joined the staff of Motorola in Shreveport. He was thereafter transferred to other locations, including Biloxi
Biloxi, Mississippi
Biloxi is a city in Harrison County, Mississippi, in the United States. The 2010 census recorded the population as 44,054. Along with Gulfport, Biloxi is a county seat of Harrison County....
, Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, the seat of Harrison County
Harrison County, Mississippi
-National protected areas:* De Soto National Forest * Gulf Islands National Seashore - Demographics :As of the census of 2000, there were 189,601 people, 71,538 households, and 48,574 families residing in the county. The population density was 326 people per square mile . There were 79,636 housing...
, where he sold two-way radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
s.
While on call for Motorola in Meridian
Meridian, Mississippi
Meridian is the county seat of Lauderdale County, Mississippi. It is the sixth largest city in the state and the principal city of the Meridian, Mississippi Micropolitan Statistical Area...
, the seat of Lauderdale County
Lauderdale County, Mississippi
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 78,161 people, 29,990 households, and 20,573 families residing in the county. The population density was 111 people per square mile . There were 33,418 housing units at an average density of 48 per square mile...
, he met his future wife, the former Shirley Carter (November 13, 1942 - November 14, 2006), originally from Natchez
Natchez, Mississippi
Natchez is the county seat of Adams County, Mississippi, United States. With a total population of 18,464 , it is the largest community and the only incorporated municipality within Adams County...
, Mississippi. They were married in June 1971 and celebrated their 25th anniversary just days before Brown's death. Motorola brought the Browns to Jackson
Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson is the capital and the most populous city of the US state of Mississippi. It is one of two county seats of Hinds County ,. The population of the city declined from 184,256 at the 2000 census to 173,514 at the 2010 census...
, Mississippi, then New Orleans, and thereafter Tulas
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 46th-largest city in the United States. With a population of 391,906 as of the 2010 census, it is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with 937,478 residents in the MSA and 988,454 in the CSA. Tulsa's...
, Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
.
Brown left Motorola and went to work for a law enforcement supply company. In March 1978, he began treatment for alcoholism
Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
in the Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
Hospital in New Orleans. In 1979, he became a counselor to alcoholics. After promotion through various positions, he became director of a counseling center in Greenville
Greenville, Mississippi
Greenville is a city in Washington County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 48,633 at the 2000 census, but according to the 2009 census bureau estimates, it has since declined to 42,764, making it the eighth-largest city in the state. It is the county seat of Washington...
, Mississippi. His career as a counselor brought the Browns to Minden, where he was the director of a newly-opened alcohol treatment center at the Minden Medical Center.
Brown then became the executive director of the Minden-Webster Parish Chamber of Commerce
Chamber of commerce
A chamber of commerce is a form of business network, e.g., a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to advocate on behalf of the business community...
, his last position until he was elected as his adopted city's mayor.
Election as mayor of Minden
Having been elected mayor in 1982 and 1986, "Gene" Byars was recalled in 1989 after a citizens' inquiry revealed that he had charged numerous personal items to his municipal credit card. An African-AmericanAfrican American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
Democratic city councilman, Robert T. Tobin
Robert T. Tobin
Robert Terry Tobin was an African-American educator who became the first and, to date, only member of his race to have served as mayor of Minden, a small city of about 13,000 residents and the seat of Webster Parish in northwestern Louisiana...
(1911–2007), also a retired educator, was appointed by the council as acting mayor pending a special election for the year remaining in Byars' term. Byars, also an educator, thereafter left Minden and relocated to Beaumont
Beaumont, Texas
Beaumont is a city in and county seat of Jefferson County, Texas, United States, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city's population was 118,296 at the 2010 census. With Port Arthur and Orange, it forms the Golden Triangle, a major industrial area on the...
, the seat of Jefferson County
Jefferson County, Texas
Jefferson County is a county located in the state of Texas, United States. As of 2000, the population was 252,051. Its county seat is Beaumont, and it is named for the former U.S...
in southeastern Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
.
Though a newcomer to the city, Brown entered the mayoral contest to finish out Byars' term. His chamber of commerce work endeared him to much of the city's business community. Similarly, another former chamber of commerce director, Tom Colten
Tom Colten
Arthur Thomas Colten, known as Tom Colten , was a Louisiana politician from the 1960s to the 1990s who rose from a small-town mayoralty position to head his state's Department of Transportation and Development under three governors from both parties...
, like Brown a Republican, was elected mayor in 1966 and served until 1974. Tobin's candidacy raised the possibility that he would become the city's first ever elected black mayor. By the time of the 2000 census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
, Minden had become 52 percent black. Businessman Bill Robertson, an Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
native and a former member of the Webster Parish Police Jury, the parish's governing board, also ran for mayor, as did real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
woman Peggy J. Staples (1933–2009), who was also a member of the city council (1978–1990).
In the first round of the special election, Tobin led with 1,545 votes. Brown trailed slightly with 1,509 ballots. Robertson and Miss Staples followed with 1,028 and 452, respectively. Brown went on to defeat Tobin in the second round of balloting in November 1989.
Robertson topples Brown
On October 6, 1990, Robertson challenged Brown in the regular jungle primaryJungle primary
A nonpartisan blanket primary is a primary election in which all candidates for elected office run in the same primary regardless of political party. Under this system, the top two candidates who receive the most votes advance to the next round, as in a runoff election...
for a full four-year term. A third candidate, Billy Sherman Cost (born 1948), a local businessman who later relocated to Anahuac, Texas
Anahuac, Texas
Anahuac is a city in the U.S. state of Texas within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area. The population of the city was 2,210 at the 2000 census. Anahuac is the seat of Chambers County and is situated in East Texas.- History :...
, also ran. Cost and another Minden businessman, Thomas Lee Hathorn (born 1951), had together led the successful recall against Byars in 1989. The primary tallies were as follows: Brown, 2,630 (48 percent); Robertson, 1,728 (32 percent), and Cost, 1,064 (20 percent).
On September 28, eight days before the primary, Brown was seriously injured in an accident on the Minden High School
Minden High School (Minden, Louisiana)
Minden High School is the public secondary educational institution in Minden, a small city of 13,000 and the seat of Webster Parish located twenty-eight miles east of Shreveport in northwestern Louisiana...
sports field. He was carrying the football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
chain markers and was knocked into a bench. He lay in a coma
Coma
In medicine, a coma is a state of unconsciousness, lasting more than 6 hours in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light or sound, lacks a normal sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. A person in a state of coma is described as...
for a week and spent thirty-seven days in intensive care at the Schumpert Medical Center in Shreveport. A traumatic brain injury deprived him of his long-term memory, balance and motor functions on his left side, and his once articulate speech. He spent six months in rehabilitation
Physical medicine and rehabilitation
Physical medicine and rehabilitation , physiatry or rehabilitation medicine, is a branch of medicine that aims to enhance and restore functional ability and quality of life to those with physical impairments or disabilities. A physician having completed training in this field is referred to as a...
.
When it became apparent that Brown could not physically resume his mayoral duties, Robertson won the second balloting, 2,529 (59 percent) to 1,758 (41 percent). Brown's support decreased by more than 800 votes since the primary, presumably from concerns about his health.
Robertson hence won the first of his thus far six terms as mayor, having benefited from the injury of his Republican opponent. Elected again in 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, and 2010, Robertson is the longest-serving mayor in Minden history.
Brown's last days and legacy
Brown remained disabled for the remainder of his life. On June 11, 1996, Brown was diagnosed with incurable pancreatic cancerPancreatic cancer
Pancreatic cancer refers to a malignant neoplasm of the pancreas. The most common type of pancreatic cancer, accounting for 95% of these tumors is adenocarcinoma, which arises within the exocrine component of the pancreas. A minority arises from the islet cells and is classified as a...
. A week later he was confined to the Integrated Health Services Nursing Home in Minden. His last days left him frail and malnourished. He lost weight and ran a high temperature.
After her husband's death, Mrs. Shirley Brown returned to Natchez, where she ran the Gayosa Avenue Market, which had been previously managed by her late mother. The Browns had a son, Daniel Brown and wife Dee of Natchez, and a daughter, Paula Rae Brown of Bossier City
Bossier City, Louisiana
Bossier City is a city in Bossier Parish, Louisiana, United States.As of the 2010 Census, the city had a total population of 61,315. Bossier City is closely tied to its larger sister city Shreveport, located on the western bank of the Red River. The Shreveport-Bossier City metropolitan area is the...
in Bossier Parish. They were Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
. The couple is interred at Gardens of Memory Cemetery in Minden; thus far Brown is the only former mayor of Minden to be interred there.
The Reverend Willie Odom of Minden, described Brown as "a fine person. Whatever you needed help doing, he would help."
Businessman George Elam McInnis (born 1945), the chairman of the chamber of commerce when Brown was hired as the manager, noted Brown's "enthusiasm and vigor. He gave us a great hope of growth for the chamber. At the end of a year, some of us encouraged him to run for mayor even though it would be an uphill run for someone who was not from Minden." McInnis noted that Brown would ride in police cars and on garbage trucks to get a better feel of the job of managing the city.
Dr. Richard Whiteman Campbell (born 1946), a Minden dentist
Dentist
A dentist, also known as a 'dental surgeon', is a doctor that specializes in the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of diseases and conditions of the oral cavity. The dentist's supporting team aides in providing oral health services...
who supported Brown for mayor, called him "a prince of a fellow with a lot of energy and enthusiasm for his community. . . . Even though he had lived in Minden only a short while, he had more love for his community than many natives. Even though his recovery was anything but complete, he really desired to get back into the mainstream of civic affairs in Minden."
Thelma Sue Sanders Gruber (born 1942), a former chamber of commerce director who also worked in Brown's campaign, described him as "open, honest, and friendly. To sum it up in a word, he was a cheerleader for any cause he believed in.”