Neilson Brown

Biographical Information

In the November 1954 General Election, Neilson Brown was elected Senator from Santa Cruz Co., AZ and Robert Hathaway was elected to the Arizona House of Representatives in his place.  Unfortunately, Robert Hathaway was not yet 25 years old and not yet qualified to take the House seat.  Neilson Brown resigned his seat in the Arizona House of Representatives, fearing that he would be forced to serve in the House instead of the Senate until Robert Hathaway came of age to serve.  In December 1954, Mrs. Josephine Bailey was appointed by the Board of Supervisors to replace Neilson Brown in the Arizona House of Representatives.

"Mrs. Bailey Ruled Legal Santa Cruz Representative." Tucson Daily Citizen, January 14, 1955:

...Morrison ruled that Mrs. Bailey's status was established by her appointment to the legislature last December to replace Neilson Brown, not by a later appointment by the board of supervisors in January.

The basis for the ruling is a supreme court decision which holds that a person appointed to fill out the unexpired term of an elected official must hold that office until a successor is elected and qualified....

It was because of this supreme court decision that Brown, elected in November to be a state senator from Santa Cruz, resigned in December so there would be no question of his having to serve in the house this year....

The Arizona Republic, March 2, 2003, p. B6:

...Mr. Brown graduated from St. Paul's School in Concord, New Hampshire, and the University of Arizona, where he was a member of the Phi Delta Theta Fraternity and captained the 1935 Western Collegiate Championship Polo Team.... He... owned and operated Buena Vista Ranch in Nogales.  Representing Santa Cruz County from 1948 to 1962 [1960], he served first in the House of Representatives, where he was Chairman of the Appropriations Committee from 1954 to 1958, and later in the Senate, where he was Vice Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee... and a member of the Legislative Council from 1956 to 1962....

Military Experience

U.S. Army Air Force, World War II veteran:  "He served as a captain in the U.S. Air Force during World War II" (obituary)

Employment

Arizona Legislative Service

Sources

Birth: Arizona Legislative Biography sheet "Neilson Brown" parents:  Alexander and May (Hobson) Brown; Death:  obituary:  The Arizona Republic, March 2, 2003, p. B6