John Y Brown, Sr. papers
Abstract
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- John Y Brown, Sr. papers
- Date
- 1915-1985, undated (inclusive)
- Extent
- 6.31 Cubic Feet
- Subjects
- Kentucky -- Politics and government -- 20th century
- Public policy and politics
- Wendell H. Ford Public Policy Research Center
- Arrangement
- The collection is divided into the following series: Appointment Accounting Books, Audio-Visual, Awards, Certificates, and Honors, Clippings, Constitutional Revision, Correspondence, Legal and Corporate Documents, Personal, Political Materials and Ephemera, Printed Materials, Speeches and Statements. The individual series, exluding the Personal series which is organized alphabetically by subject, are organized in chronological order.
- Preferred Citation
- 1997ms102: [identification of item], John Y. Brown Sr., papers, 1915-1985, undated, University of Kentucky Libraries Special Collections Research Center.
- Repository
- University of Kentucky
Collection Overview
- Biography / History
- John Y. Brown Sr. was born in Geigers Lake, Union County, Ky. His parents, tenant farmers Jesse C. and Lucy K. Brown, named him after former Kentucky governor John Y. Brown. Brown attended Centre College in Danville, Ky., earning a bachelor of arts degree in 1921. He then attended the University of Kentucky, receiving a bachelor of laws degree in 1926. After graduating from the University of Kentucky, Brown was admitted to the bar and began practicing law in Lexington, Ky. In 1929, Brown married Dorothy Inman of Somerset, Ky. First elected to the Kentucky House of Representatives in 1930, Brown quickly rose to prominence within the Democratic party. He served as the Speaker of the Kentucky House of Reprsentatives in 1932. Brown was elected to the United States House of Representatives in a 1932 at-large election. Serving in the U.S. House from 1933-1935, Brown lost his bid for renomination in the 1934 Democratic primary. Brown would go on to make many unsuccessful bids for public office, including seven unsuccessful bids for United States Senator. He lost the 1939 Democratic gubernatorial primary to Keen Johnson, the 1946 United States Senate race to John Sherman Cooper, and the 1966 United States Senate race to John Sherman Cooper. However, Brown was elected to the Kentucky House of Representatives for six terms. He served as the majority floor leader during the General Assembly's 1966 session; this would be his last time holding an elected office.
- When he was not holding political office, Brown practiced law and engaged in business ventures. He was a well respected and capable criminal trial lawyer. Brown fathered five children, Dorothy Ann, Betty Bruce, John Y. Jr., Diane, and Pamela Faris. His daughter Pamela died in 1970 while attempting to cross the Atlantic Ocean with her husband in a balloon. John Y. Brown Jr. was a successful businessman, owning professional basketball teams as well as Kentucky Fried Chicken. Brown Jr. would go on to lead a successful campaign for Governor of Kentucky in 1979, serving from 1979-1983. John Y. Brown Sr. is also the grandfather of former Kentucky Secretary of State John Y. Brown III and newscaster Pamela Ashley Brown. Brown succumbed to pneumonia on June 16, 1985, six months after an automobile accident paralyzed him from the waist down.
- Scope and Content
- The John Y. Brown Sr., Papers (dated 1915-1985, undated; 6.31 cubic feet; 10 boxes) comprise the correspondence, clippings, personal, printed, and political materials of John Y. Brown Sr. Also includes photographs, appointment books, financial and business documents, speeches, and awards. The collection is organized into eleven series: Appointment and Accounting Books, Audio-Visual, Awards, Certificates, and Honors, Clippings, Constitutional Revision Correspondence, Legal and Corporate Documentation, Personal, Political Materials and Ephemera, Printed Materials, Speeches and Statements. The collection documents the personal, professional, and political life of John Y. Brown Sr.
Restrictions on Access and Use
- Conditions Governing Access
- Collection is open to researchers by appointment.
- Use Restrictions
- The physical rights to the materials in this collection are held by the University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.
Contents of the Collection
Appointment and Accounting Books, 1949-1968, undated
Scope and Contents
The Appointment and Accounting Books series comprises books in which the appointments and personal financial transactions of John Y. Brown Sr. were recorded. The series is organized in chronological order.
1949
1950
1951
1952
1957
1958
1959
1960
1961
1962
1963
1964
1966
1967
1968
Undated
Audio-Visual, 1938-1983, undated
Scope and Contents
The Audio-Visual series comprises audio recordings and photographs. The recordings sub-series contains audio recordings and is organized by chronological order. The photographs sub-series contains photographs of various contents and is organized in chronological order.
Photographs
Magraw Hester, John O Hardin Jr., John Y. Brown Sr. Judge L.K. Wood, and Roscoe C. Lile standing in front of a picture of Franklin D. Roosevelt at the Latham Hotel, 1938
Lafayette High School pupils who took "superior" ratings in UK regional speech tournament. Patricia Godfrey, Jo Ann Anderson, Jo Ann Carr and Jerry Werner. Second row, Mary Jo Conrad, Jo Ann Boots, Elmer Purdom and Jimmy Woodward. Third row, George Schrader, J.J. Harber, Betty Gevedon and John Y. Brown Jr., 1950 March 28
Portrait of John Y. Brown Sr., 1953 September
John Y. Brown Sr. with unidentified soldier, 1955 May
John Y. Brown Sr. with unidentified men and women, 1959 March
John Y. Brown Sr. holding and pointing at a bottle on Garvice D. Kincaid Day, 1966
John Y. Brown Sr. standing at a microphone with A.B. "Happy" Chandler, 1966 September
1966 Senate Campaign family photo, 1966
Two unidentified men, Colonel Harland Sanders, John Y. Brown Jr., John Y. Brown Sr., and two unidentified men at a meeting planning luncheon for dedication activities of Sanders-Brown Research Center on Aging, 1977 June
John Y. Brown Jr., Bob Ford (county attorney), Doug West (sheriff), James R. Ford (circuit judge 15th District),and John Y. Brown Sr., 1979 May 25
John Y. Brown Sr. sitting atop a car waving while promoting his son's gubernatorial campaign at the Elliot County Burley Tobacco Festival, 1979 September 1
John Y. Brown Jr. holding grandson Lincoln George Brown, 1980 July 8
Lincoln George Brown in a cradle, 1980 July 8
John Y. Brown Sr. speaking with an unidentified man, 1981
John Y. Brown Sr. speaking with an unidentified man, 1981
John Y. Brown Sr. with three unidentified men at the University of Kentucky Golf Outing, 1982
John Y. Brown Sr. receiving Kentucky Colonel commission and being kissed by an unidentified woman, 1983 November 12
Unidentified man giving a speech behind banner reading "Unhappy with U.S. Economy? Do something about it Buy American!," John Y. Brown Jr. and Phyllis George seated behind the speaker, 1979-1983
John Y. Brown Jr. in Army Uniform, [1959-1965]
John Y. Brown Jr. in U.S. Army uniform, [1959-1965]
Headshot of Pamela Faris Brown, [1960-1969]
John Y. Brown Jr. shaking hands with Jimmy Carter in the Oval Office, [1979]
John Y. Brown Jr. shaking hands with John Y. Brown Sr. behind a podium, [1979]
Bill and Pat Trommater wedding photo, undated
[Dorothy Inman Brown], undated
[Dorothy Inman Brown], undated
[Dorothy Inman Brown] landing in Malaga, Spain, undated
[Dorothy Inman Brown] with three children, undated
Eleanor Clark, Robert Penn Warren, and John Y. Brown Sr., undated
Headshot of [Dorothy Ann Brown], undated
Headshot of John Y. Brown Jr., undated
Headshot of John Y. Brown Sr., undated
John Y. Brown Jr. and Phyllis George with an unidentified man and two unidentified woman, undated
John Y. Brown Jr. as a young man in a suit, undated
John Y. Brown Jr., [Diana Leigh Brown], [Betty Bruce Brown], unidentified man and unidentified woman, undated
John Y. Brown Jr. in Kentucky Military Institute uniform, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. and an unidentified man in a military uniform in a general store, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. and Colonel Harland Sanders, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. and Dorothy Brown landing in Malaga, Spain, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. and Dorothy Inman Brown sitting on a couch surrounded by their four children, unidentified boy on the back, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. and Dorothy Inman Brown with three children on their laps, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. and unidentified man in a general store, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. dancing with Phyllis George, undated
John Y. Brown Sr., Diana Brown, and John Y. Brown Jr., at a horse race, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. family photo, Peck, Eva, mother Lucy Brown, Doye, Martin, Harold, father Jesse, John Y. Brown Sr., undated
John Y. Brown Sr., John Y. Brown Jr., and John Y. Brown III sitting next to a Christmas tree, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. observing products in a general store, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. speaking at a podium, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. standing behind a microphone, undated
John Y. Brown Sr., unidentified man, John Y. Brown Jr., unidentified woman and unidentified man, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. with an unidentified man, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. with an unidentified man and woman, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. with an unidentified woman walking into an event, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. with three unidentified men with golf clubs, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. with umbrella behind a man speaking, undated
Pamela Faris Brown, Dorothy Ann Brown, [Diana Leigh], Dorothy Inman Brown, and [Betty Bruce Brown], undated
Pamela Faris Brown in a pageant or play, undated
Photographic Negatives, undated
Portrait of John Y. Brown Sr. seated, undated
Portrait of John Y. Brown Sr., undated
Portrait of unidentified woman, undated
Seven boys in and around a swimming pool, undated
Slide of John Y. Brown Sr. with unidentified woman and boy, undated
Three children, presumably John Y. Brown Jr. and two of the Brown girls, undated
Unidentified baby, undated
Unidentified man in a cream suit, undated
Unidentified men playing football, undated
Unidentified young boy, undated
Unidentified woman lying down with a newspaper, undated
Young boy and girl sitting together on steps, undated
Recordings
John Y. Brown Jr. and Eleanor Durall wedding, 1961 September 17
Adolph Rupp, Paul Hornung, and B. Nichols giving brief statements encouraging people to vote for John Y. Brown Sr., undated
Unknown Content, undated
John Y. Brown Jr. administration appointees photographs, 1980, undated
Vertner L. Taylor, Personnel Management, Ky. Dept. Education, 1980 January 25
John Wells, Commissioner, Bureau for Manpower, 1980 January 21
George W. Wilson, Commissioner, Bureau of Corrections, 1980 February 26
Win Underwood, Personnel Department, State Employee Advocate, 1980 April 24
Jack H. Segell, Commissioner, Department of Commerce, 1980 January 22
William B. Sturgill, Secretary of Energy, 1980 January 22
Dr. Grady Stumbo, Secretary, Department of Human Resources, 1980 January 21
Patrick W. Lenahan, Department Commissioner of Highways and Henry M. Bennett, State Highway Engineer, 1980 August 5
Jackie Swigart, Secretary, Department for Natural Resources and Environmental Protection, 1979 December 20
Dean Huff, Commissioner of Highways, Department of Transportation, 1980 April 28
H. Foster Pettit, Secretary of Cabinet, Public Protection and Regulation, [1980 January 30]
Paul Patton, Deputy Secretary, Kentucky Department of Transportation, 1980 January 22
Eugene F. Land, Commissioner, Kentucky Department of Labor, 1980 February 25
Bruce Lunsford, Deputy Secretary, Kentucky Development Cabinet, 1980 January 23
Frank Metts, Secretary, Department of Transportation, 1980 January 23
James K. Navolio, Deputy Secretary, Development Cabinet, 1980 January 23
Governor Brown and Mr. Huffmann, 1980-1981
Awards, Certificates, and Honors, 1921-1983, undated
Scope and Contents
The Awards, Certificates, and Honors series comprises awards and certificates given to John Y. Brown Sr. from various organizations both legal and charitable. The series is organized in chronological order.
Bachelor of Arts Degree from Centre College, 1921 June 8
Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Kentucky, 1926 May 31
Appointment to Special Assistant to Attorney General of the United States, signed by Attorney General Homer S. Cummings, 1935 April 10
Community Chest Campaign Chairman Outstanding Service Award, 1937
Certificate of Admission to practice before the Supreme Court of the United States of America, 1941 April 7
Admission to practice before Interstate Commerce Commission, 1942 May 19
Admission as an Attorney of the United States Circuit Court of Appeals for the sixth circuit, 1945 February 9
Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, Oleika Temple of Lexington, Ky., 1947 May 23
Certificate of Appreciation for being a guest speaker at the Rotary Club of Lexington, 1954 February 11
Kiwanis International Legion of Honor Award, 1955 January 18
American College of Trial Lawyers admission plaque, 1962 August 5
University of Kentucky and Alumni Association Half Century Club membership certificate, 1976
Kentucky General Assembly resolution inviting John Y. Brown Sr. to address Kentucky House of Representatives, 1978 February
Kentucky Colonel Commission, 1983 November 12
Newspaper clippings, 1928-1985, undated
Scope and Contents
The Newspaper clippings series comprises newspapers and newspaper clippings concerning the career of John Y. Brown, Sr. The series is primarily organized in chronological order, with the exception of clippings concerned with gubernatorial election of John Y. Brown Jr.
1928-1964
1954-1974
1966-1975
1976-1981
1977-1985, undated
John Y. Brown Jr. gubernatorial campaign clippings, 1979-1980
1981-1982
Constitutional Revision, 1943-1967, undated
Scope and Contents
The Constitutional Revision series comprises research and promotional materials regarding constitutional revision in Kentucky. The series is organized in chronological order.
"A Decade of Change in Kentucky Government and Politics", 1943 June
"Shall Kentucky Have a New Constitution?," Convocation Address of President H.L. Dawson, 1945 October 12
"Amending and Revising State Constitutions", 1947 January
"Kentucky's 1891 Constitution", 1947
Promotional Pamphlets, 1947, undated
"Some Reasons Why The 1892 Constitution of Kentucky ought to be Brought up to date," pamphlet, 1947
"A Report on the Constitution", [1946-1948]
Kentucky's Constitution and Government, 1949 May
"County Reorganization and the State Constitution", 1951
Legislative and Congressional Redistricting in Kentucky, 1951
Kentucky's Inability to Revise Her 1891 Constitution, 1953 April 220
Bibliography on State and Local Government in Kentucky, 1955 June
Election Laws, report by Kentucky Legislative Research Commission, 1957
A Summary of Kentucky Election Laws, 1959, 1961
Legislative Research Commission Staff Memorandum, 1964 September 24
"Transcription of the proceedings of the Constitution Revision Assembly", 1965 November 23
Proposed State Constitution, draft, 1965
Text of Kentucky Constitutions of 1792, 1799, and 1850, 1965
Proposed Revision of the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, 1966 January
Proposed Revision of the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, 1966 March
Duties of Elected County Officials, research report by the Kentucky Legislative Research Commission, 1966 June
A Comparison...the present, the proposed Kentucky Constitutions, report by the Kentucky Legislative Research Commission
Constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, report by Kentucky Legislative Research Commission, 1967
Constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, Legislative Research Commission Report, 1976 November
Constitutional Convention Committee meeting packet, 1977
Correspondence, 1956-1984, undated
Scope and Contents
The Correspondence series comprises John Y. Brown, Sr.'s personal correspondence. The series is organized in chronological order.
1926-1947
1954-1958
1960
1962
1966
1967
1968
1969
1972-1973
1975
1976
1977 January-July
1977 July-December
1978
1979 January-June
1979 July-December
1980-1981
1982
1983-1984
Family Correspondence, 1985, undated
Undated
Legal and Corporate Documentation, 1947-1985, undated
Scope and Contents
The Legal and Corporate Documentation series comprises correspondence, research, and legal documents from legal matters and cases in which John Y. Brown Sr. was involved. The series is organized in chronological order.
Poker Kola, 1947
Brown Bottling Company, 1950-1955
Security Trust and Bottling Company, 1951-1952
Umbaugh-18 aircraft, research materials, photograph, 1957-1959, undated
John Y. Brown Sr. Oil matters, 1959-1984, undated
Kentucky Fried Chicken Legal Documents, 1966-1984, undated
Kentucky Fried Chicken Venezuela, 1969-1976
Sizemore, 1975, undated
C.H. McKinney, 1976-1981, undated
Kentucky National Cooperative Advertising Program Inc. vs. Brown-McCann KFC Inc., 1976-1981, undated
Diagnostic Data Inc., 1976-1982, undated
Edison Pharmaceutical Company Inc., 1977 March 29
John L. Lewis, 1978
John Y. Brown Sr. and John Y. Brown Jr. vs. Bryan and Cora Combs, 1978-1980
Robert C. Roy, 1979-1985, undated
Sexton Valley Coal Corporation, 1980
Design Professional Insurance Company, 1981
Hyperbaric Oxygen, research, promotional materials, 1981
Killie Howard, 1981
Verlora Combs, 1981
Vitus Rodgers, 1981
Buster Gay, 1981-1982, undated
John C. Waddle, 1981-1982, undated
Kenneth Nicely, 1981-1982
Continental Marketing Corporation, 1981-1984
John Moren, 1982
Reeves vs. East-West Mining Co., 1982
Malcom B. Saunier & Company, 1984 January 27
Robert and Joe Tussey, 1984 March
J.B. Marston Jr., 1984, undated
Thomas A. Patterson, 1984
Charles Ransom, 1984-1985
Wilson vs. Speck, 1984-1985, undated
Public Access to Court Electronic Records report, [1983]
Personal, 1929-1982, undated
Scope and Contents
The personal series comprises materials related to members of the Brown family, personal financial documents, recollections of legal experiences, among other personal materials. The series is organized alphabetically by subject.
Betty Brown McCann, report card, children's drawing, 1967-1977, undated
Family Tree Scroll, undated
Financial and Business materials, 1948-1968
Financial and Business materials, 1972-1982, undated
Handwritten stories, undated
Keeneland Club member pin, 1967
Keeneland Association pin, 1971
Keeneland Association pin, 1971
Keeneland Association pin, 1974
Keeneland Association pin, 1974
Lafayette High School 1951-1952 Senior Class poster, 1952
Legend of the Praying Colonels, 1970
Memberships and Organizations, business cards, certificates, 1945-1978, undated
Pamela Faris Brown, scripts, clippings, resume, 1961-1972, undated
Personal Recollections of Legal Cases, 1953, undated
Phyllis George Brown, 1982
Poems and Writings, 1929, undated
Political Materials and Ephemera, 1915-1984, undated
Scope and Contents
The Political Materials and Ephemera series comprises materials from the campaigns of John Y. Brown Sr., John Y. Brown Jr., and other candidates. The series also contains materials from John Y. Brown Sr.'s time as a state representative. The series is organized by chronological order.
B.F. Day campaign card for circuit judge, 1915
The Legislative Digest, Kentucky General Assembly, session of 1932, 1932
Kentucky Legislative Record, 1954 March 22
1962 Kentucky House of Representatives seating chart, 1962
House Resolution No. 12, introduced by John Y. Brown Sr., 1963 December 2
1968 Democratic National Convention, delegate materials, 1968 August
John Y. Brown Jr. and Martha Layne Collins gubernatorial campaign sticker, 1979
John Y. Brown Jr. for Governor stickers, 1979
Kentucky Succession Amendment, correspondence, clippings, promotional materials, 1981
John Sherman Cooper Appreciation Luncheon program, 1983 November 25
John Y. Brown Jr. United States senatorial campaign sticker, 1984
John Y. Brown Senator poster, [1940-1949]
The Case Against Martin Luther King Jr. poster, [1967-1968]
Printing Block for Campaign Poster, undated
Printed Materials, 1951-1974
Scope and Contents
The Printed Materials series comprises articles, books, reports, and journal articles. The Communism sub-series contains printed materials relating to the aims and spread of communism. The Kentucky Government sub-series contains printed materials related to the history and function of government in Kentucky. The series is organized in chronological order.
Communism, 1951-1971
Brief on Communism: Marxism-Leninism, Its Aims, Purposes, Objectives and Practices, report by American Bar Association, 1951 September
Peaceful Co-Existence A Blueprint for Disruption, a report of the Special Committee on Communist Tactics, Strategy and Objectives, 1961 May
Peaceful Coexistence a Communist Blueprint for Victory, 1964
peace or peaceful coexistence?
Communism in Vietnam, A Documentary Study, 1967
The Soviet Doctrine of Sovereignty (The So-Called Brezhnev Doctrine), 1970
Lenin vs. Franklin: Warring Revolutionary Traditions In Contemporary American Journalism, 1971
Vietnamese Communism and the Protracted War, 1971
Kentucky Government and Politics, 1949-1974
Government In Kentucky Cities, report, 1938
"The Process of Government", 1949
Financial Management in Kentucky Counties, report, 1951
Presidential Politics in Kentucky 1952, report, 1954
"The University of Kentucky, Its History and Development, A Series of Charts Depicting the More Important Data 1862-1955", 1956 August
"The Political Process in Kentucky", 1957
Kentucky Government, 1966
"A Citizen View of the County, Report on 11 County Meetings Held by the Jackson County Office of Human Relations and Citizen Complaint", 1974 May, October
Speeches and Statements, 1929-1980, undated
Scope and Contents
The Speeches and Statements series comprises comprises political, personal, and legal speeches and statements. The series is organized in chronological order.
Speech before the Central Labor Union, 1929 October 14
"Speech Delivered Before the Young Men's Democratic Club of the University of Kentucky", 1929 October 24
Campaign speech on taxes and school teachers, 1961 May 18
Announcement speech for United States Senate candidacy, 1968 April 3
"Remarks by Gov. John Y. Brown Jr. on introduction of the 1980-1982 executive budget", 1980 March 6
"Pam's Impossible Dream," eulogy speech, [1970]
University of Kentucky Athletics Violations, statements, undated
Statement by John Y. Brown Sr. on proposing law to prevent rioting, undated
UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center is open Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:00pm. Appointments are encouraged but not required. Schedule an appointment here.
Researchers must have an SCRC Researcher Account to request materials. View account set-up and use instructions here.
Questions? Contact SCRC via our Contact Form.
Table of Contents
- Abstract
- Descriptive Summary
- Collection Overview
- Preferred Citation
- Restrictions on Access and Use
- Contents of the Collection
- Appointment and Accounting Books, 1949-1968, undated
- Audio-Visual, 1938-1983, undated
- Awards, Certificates, and Honors, 1921-1983, undated
- Newspaper clippings, 1928-1985, undated
- Constitutional Revision, 1943-1967, undated
- Correspondence, 1956-1984, undated
- Legal and Corporate Documentation, 1947-1985, undated
- Personal, 1929-1982, undated
- Political Materials and Ephemera, 1915-1984, undated
- Printed Materials, 1951-1974
- Speeches and Statements, 1929-1980, undated
You may come across language in UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center collections and online resources that you find harmful or offensive. SCRC collects materials from different cultures and time periods to preserve and make available the historical record. These materials document the time period when they were created and the view of their creator. As a result, some may demonstrate racist and offensive views that do not reflect the values of UK Libraries.
If you find description with problematic language that you think SCRC should review, please contact us at SCRC@uky.edu.
UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center is open Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:00pm. Appointments are encouraged but not required. Schedule an appointment here.
Researchers must have an SCRC Researcher Account to request materials. View account set-up and use instructions here.
Questions? Contact SCRC via our Contact Form.
Requests
No items have been requested.
You may come across language in UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center collections and online resources that you find harmful or offensive. SCRC collects materials from different cultures and time periods to preserve and make available the historical record. These materials document the time period when they were created and the view of their creator. As a result, some may demonstrate racist and offensive views that do not reflect the values of UK Libraries.
If you find description with problematic language that you think SCRC should review, please contact us at SCRC@uky.edu.