Watercolorist, architect, surveyor, civil engineer, schoolmaster and entrepreneur who was born in London. After training as an architect and civil engineer he worked on the London to Birmingham railway. He then had a practice in Manchester 1848-53 and London 1854-62. He married and had a large family.
Browne was convicted of forging money orders in 1862 and sentenced to ten years transportation arriving in Australia in 1863 on the Lord Dalhousie. Years later he claimed he was only guilty of shielding his wife.
His black hair, sallow complexion and lean visage engendered the nickname 'Satan’ to distinguish him from all the other Tom Browns. He was employed in the office of works of the Convict Establishment. At the time they were building the Lunatic Asylum. He painted a sketch of it soon after completion about 1865. He received his ticket of leave that year and was self-employed. He became a schoolmaster at Ferguson until his conditional pardon was granted in 1869. He then set himself up as an architect and land agent in Fremantle. He was a supervisor of a gang working on the Geraldton Northampton Railway but fell foul of the new Director of Public Works James H. Thomas in 1876.
In 1872 Browne became a free man. He designed schemes for harbour works and railways in the colony but had trouble getting any accepted because of the stigma of bond class and the animosity of Thomas who wrote to backers to discredit him. Browne had an office in Hay Street, Perth. He restored the old mill on the Hamersley Estate in South Perth and developed it as a pleasure resort with hotel facilities and gardens. Alta Gardens was opened in April 1880. The Inquirer of 21 April 1880 has a full description. Alta Gardens Hotel became Perth’s most fashionable social centre. Browne however was in financial difficulties and tried for criminal activities over land transactions. He committed suicide in prison before being sentenced.
- Writers:
- Dr Dorothy Erickson
- Date written:
- 2010
- Last updated:
- 2011
