Stephen D. Brown was born in Washington, D.C., on August 20, 1892, but spent most of his early life in Lansdowne, Pennsylvania, where he attended engineering school. On July 13, 1917, he enlisted in the Pennsylvania National Guard. He was denied officer training because of his poor eyesight and became a member of the 103rd Engineer Regiment, Company E. Brown trained in Philadelphia and at Camp Hancock, Georgia, and served in France from May 1918-July 1919. After the war, he returned to Lansdowne, where he married and worked as a chemical engineer. Brown died in Glen Riddle Lima, Pennsylvania, in December 1980.
From the guide to the Stephen D. Brown diaries, Brown, Stephen D. diaries, 1917-1919, (William L. Clements Library, University of Michigan)
