Biographical tidbits about Sam Brown: https://circuitousro...rown/index.html
He lived in Marion, Ohio and was, as the link above states, "reclusive." And quite a curmudgeon too! The late Clifford Spohn, a Marion attorney, amateur astronomer, and ATM, once told me an amusing story about Sam. He was a veritable hermit who spent his waking hours dressed only in a bathrobe, usually with a pipe clenched in his teeth. Once a local lad who had faithfully executed one of Brown's telescope designs in an Edmund Scientific publication appeared on the doorstep of Brown's modest bungalow hoping to proudly display his handiwork and express his gratitude. Brown appeared, but no sooner had the hapless lad uttered the words "Hello Mister Brown, my name is..." promptly closed the door without uttering a word.
I never knew a thing about him before this. I tried to figure out what part of the country he was in by the photos in his section on the principles of photography (a useful thing all by itself). I settled on the Cleveland area, based on my experiece with friends in Cleveland Heights. So that was pretty close!
-drl