He was
admitted to the bar and commenced practice in
Jasper, Tennessee, in 1874. Brown served as delegate to the
Republican National Conventions in 1884, 1896, 1900, and 1916, and as attorney general of the fourth judicial district from 1886 to 1894. He moved to
Chattanooga in May 1890 and continued the practice of law. Elected as a
Republican to the
Fifty-fourth Congress representing
Tennessee's 3rd congressional district Brown served from March 4, 1895, to March 3, 1897. He declined to be a candidate for renomination in 1896. After leaving Congress Brown resumed the practice of law until he was appointed attorney general of
Puerto Rico on May 10, 1910. He served in that position until April 20, 1912, when he resigned. He then resumed the practice of law in Chattanooga until his death. ==Personal life==