The Molly Brown House Museum
1340 Pennsylvania Street
Denver, Colorado 80203
303.832.4092
Fax: 303.832.2340

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By 1909, the years in Denver had put a strain on Margaret and J.J.'s relationship. J.J. was uncomfortable with their new lifestyle and preferred to avoid the limelight that was constantly focused on the family. Margaret's social parties were a hot topic in the newspapers, and J.J., believing that a woman's name should appear in the paper at her birth, wedding and death, had a strong distaste for these occasions. During most of Margaret's parties he retired to the basement to smoke cigars.

Additionally, J.J.'s health was poor due to many hard years of mining. He suffered a stroke in 1899 leaving him partially paralyzed and was suffering from rheumatism and heart problems. While his active mining days were now over, J.J. continued to work in mining speculation and real estate. He traveled to Cuba, Arizona, Utah, and California where he found the warmer climate more agreeable to his health. Margaret's adventures, however, had just begun. She traveled extensively to Europe and preferred the lifestyle of Newport, Rhode Island where the Browns rented a summer home. These factors left J.J. and Margaret spending very little time together during the years prior to 1909.

Finally, in 1909, after 23 years of marriage, the Brown's quietly signed a separation agreement and went their separate ways. According to the agreement, Margaret received a cash settlement and maintained possession of the house on Pennsylvania Street. She also received $700 a month allowing her to continue her travels and philanthropic activities.

While the Browns never reconciled, they remained connected and cared for each other throughout their lives. At the time of J.J.'s death in 1922, Margaret remarked to the newspapers, "I've never met a finer, bigger, more worthwhile man than J.J. Brown."

Content from Kristen Iversen's book, Molly Brown, Unraveling the Myth, published by Johnson Books in 1999.