Most people associate Margaret Brown with Denver, Colorado. But did you know she was born in Hannibal, Missouri? She grew up in Hannibal, just a few blocks from the Mississippi River, and stayed there until she was 19 years old. Can you name another famous person from Hannibal who is often “linked” with Margaret in the tall tales about her life? If you guessed Mark Twain, you’d be correct!
Contrary to the stories about Margaret Brown, it is unlikely she ever met Mark Twain. He left Hannibal in 1853, 14 years before she was born. Twain returned to Hannibal shortly after she was born and a second time, many years later, when she was preparing to move to Leadville, Colorado.
She does, however, have several connections to Mark Twain:
Margaret was good friends with Twain’s niece, Matabelle Kettering.
In 1905 Margaret wrote the article “Mark Twain’s Boyhood Home” for the Denver Times.
She helped translate/facilitate Mark Twain’s work into Braille and French during World War One; one of the many reasons she was awarded the French Legion of Honor for her Humanitarian efforts.
In 1927, Margaret dedicated a Tom and Huck statue in Hannibal along with Laura Hawkins Frasier (the inspiration for Becky Thatcher).
