Waymon Brown, a longtime merchant and civic leader in Douglas, Alabama, died peacefully at home with family on Sunday, Nov. 26. He was 92.
Brown and his late wife, Marie Hamrick Brown, started Brown Hardware in 1960. Born July 26, 1931, as the only child of Floyd and Annie Mae Murdock Brown, he followed his father into both the well-drilling and retail business.
In 1972, Waymon and Marie also started Brown Appliance. The hardware and appliance stores both are still being operated by their son Gary and their grandsons.
Waymon was instrumental in the incorporation of the small rural community that became the Town of Douglas in 1978. He served on the Marshall County Industrial Development Authority, the local industrial board and as a board member of the former Community Bank. He helped recruit to the town its first doctor as well as Douglas Pharmacy, which has continued to expand over the years.
After graduating from Douglas High School in 1949, he immediately headed West with a friend, working on a wheat harvest crew traveling from Colorado all the way to the Canadian border. He then worked various jobs at Chevrolet Gear and Axle in Detroit, Michigan, before returning home.
Realizing he was about to be drafted during the Korean War in 1950, he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force and married Marie Hamrick. They celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary Dec. 23, 2020. She died Feb. 5, 2021.
After completing basic training, the couple were stationed in Valdosta, Georgia, before being transferred to Victorville, California. Brown was an airplane mechanic and was 12 days at sea for his deployment to Korea when the truce was called. He served at the base at Taygue for about four months.
He is survived by four children: Sharon Brown-Henry (John) of Kaneohe, Hawaii, Vicki Brown (Chris Klein) of Nashville, Tennessee, Gary Brown (Lisa) of Douglas and Carol Brown of Montgomery, as well as seven grandchildren, seven great-grandchildren, and one great-great grandson.
Visitation will be Wednesday, Nov. 29 from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. at Adams-Brown Service Funeral Home in Albertville with a celebration of life at 1 p.m. in the chapel, Elder Ricky Harcrow officiating. Burial will follow in Douglas Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers the family requests donations to Zion Hill Primitive Baptist Church, c/o Mike Graben, 1006 Bruce Street, Albertville, AL 35950 or Shepherd’s Cove Hospice, 408 Martling Road, Albertville, AL 35951.
