James Sutherland Brown

James "Buster" Sutherland Brown (June 28, 1881 – April 14, 1951) was a Canadian military officer best known for drafting a contingency war plan in 1921 to invade and occupy several American border cities. The style of the plan was Defence Scheme No. 1. What is much less well known are Brown's substantial contributions in the area of planning and logistics during his service as a senior staff officer in the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) on the Western Front during the First World War.

Family background and education

Brown was born in Simcoe, Ontario, the eldest son among four children.Atholl Sutherland Brown. Buster: A Canadian Patriot and Imperialist. Victoria, BC: Trafford Publishing, 2004. His father, Frank August Brown, was a successful merchant in agricultural products who had close trading ties with the United States, was active in municipal politics and generally supported the reform policies of the Liberal Party. His son, however, became an outspoken Tory supporter of Canada's role within the British Empire and had a deep mistrust of the influence and intentions of the United States towards Canada.

In 1895 at the age of 14, Brown joined the 39th Norfolk Rifles, a local militia regiment, as a boy bugler. When the Anglo-Boer War started in 1899 he was a corporal and wished to join the Canadian Contingent in South Africa, but was persuaded to complete his education as a teacher. He continued his service in the militia after he...
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