It was 1988, and our youngest daughter came home from Batavia Middle School all excited about an author she had met as a guest speaker in her English class. She was telling us about a murder that happened not far from us. As a result, we got in the car and drove to Linden to see where this murder took place. She still has a copy of his book, Linden Murders: UNSOLVED, first published in 1984. This author inspired her to be excited about reading mysteries.
The first time I met the author, Bill Brown Jr., was when we were on the Holland Purchase Historical Society Board. After meeting him, I asked if he would be a guest speaker in my fourth-grade class. That began our friendship. He was an excellent addition to my classroom. He talked about being a writer and answered the children's questions. He then would return weekly to work with the children.
That year, when my class did their Famous Batavian Project, they chose Bill to be their class's famous Batavian. Part of their project was to draw a picture related to their person. The child, who was researching Mr. Brown, drew an image of the home he lived in with his family using an Opaque Projector. I just found out the picture hangs in the house of Bill's daughter, Betsy.
In 2000, I met someone very special to me, Ida Spiotta, a neighbor, and we would talk about what it was like to work on the muck. That gave me the idea to interview people and hear their stories. That was when I contacted Bill, and we worked together to write the book The Story of the Muck As Told by Those Who Worked There.
For those that have not heard of the muck, it was a part of Batavia's history that spanned from 1932 to 1952, when hundreds of men, women, and children worked on the muck, planting and nurturing crops and, months later, harvesting lettuce, spinach, onions, potatoes, and carrots. I presented my idea for a book to Bill, and he said, "You research it, I will write it." That was the beginning of a very special friendship with Bill Brown. I learned so much from him as we created this book together. The book was published in 2003.
These are the books Bill authored:
- The Batavia Downs Story, 1940-1990,
- A Legacy of Opportunity
- The Mancusos of Batavia
- WBTA: My Words are My Own
- Genesee's Rich & Famous
- A History of Notre Dame High School: The First Fifty Years, 1951-2001
- History of St. Joseph's Parish
- The Story of the Muck
- St. Joseph's Church: A History of Genesee Area's Oldest Catholic Parish, 1849-1999
- The First One Hundred Years, 1890-1990: The Story of Crickler & Houseknecht
- The Story of John Brown and Other Irish-Americans
- Three Times is True
- Murder, He Wrote!
- The Linden Murders: Unsolved!
William F. Brown Jr. was born October 25, 1923, in Batavia, the son of William F. Brown Sr. and Monica Sellinger Brown. He graduated in 1941 from Batavia High School and graduated from Canisius College. He also studied at Yale and Fordham Universities. He served in WW II and worked for the Armed Forces Radio Service in Kokura, Japan.
He worked as public relations director for Batavia Downs and Buffalo Raceway for several years before becoming co-owner and manager of WBTA radio in 1968.
He won 16 statewide best editorial awards in his career from the New York State Broadcasters Association. He was a United States Harness Writer Association member for over 55 years, introduced into the Hall of Fame in 1991. He was the first chairman of the Board of Trustees for Notre Dame High School, a Saint Jerome trustee, and a board member of the Catholic Education Diocese of Buffalo. He was a lecturer and Eucharistic Minister at Resurrection Parish.
Mr. Brown married the former Elizabeth Farrell in Stamford, CT in 1947. She died in 1993. He was the father of four children, William F Brown III, survived by his wife Deborah, Elizabeth A. McGee (John), Robert F. Brown (Katie), and Bonny Peacock (Bob).
After a brief illness at 91, Bill passed away on Nov. 29, 2014.
Bill will be remembered by my daughter, my students, and myself as a very special friend. His involvement in many civic organizations, his awards, and the books he authored truly made him a famous Batavian.
