Brown, Molly Pender (1912–1997)

1912–1997

Parents: Clifton Stevenson Brown I (1880–1928) and Katherine Boyce Tupper (1882–1978).

Spouse: James Julius Winn (1907–1990).

Children: James Julius Winn (1941–), Katherine Winn (1944–), and Ellene Westmoreland Winn (1948–).

Kinship: The third cousin once removed of the post–World War II Smith generation.

Education and Early Life Molly attended Bryn Mawr in Baltimore and later studied in Florence. She made her social debut at Fort Benning. Her godmother was Mrs. William Randolph Blanchard, in whose home Molly’s mother, Katherine Tupper Brown, met George C. Marshall at a dinner party that would profoundly shape their family’s history. In 1930, while Molly was still at school in Florence, her mother married Lt. Col. Marshall.

Marriage and Family Life In 1940 Molly married Captain James Julius Winn. Her mother, Katherine Marshall, described the event vividly:

“Molly’s wedding on Christmas Day in Quarters Number One at Fort Myer was the first wedding, I believe, ever to take place in that house. She came down the stairway on George’s arm, followed by her maid of honor, Mary Winn. They passed through the drawing-room and were met by Captain Winn and his groomsmen at the altar which had been constructed at the far end of the oval dining room. The bride’s path was flanked on each side by white chrysanthemums and tall standards holding white candles. Her gown was of cream satin with an extremely long train, and her cap and veil were of Rosepoint lace. She kept her eyes steadily on Captain Winn and his were on her. She said afterwards that this was pre-arranged to keep her from trembling. After the ceremony they walked out beneath the crossed swords of the groomsmen, while the orchestra played Lohengrin’s Wedding March. As soon as the reception was over, they left for Panama and I did not see Molly again until she came home a year and a half later with her baby son.”

brown-molly-pender-1912-1997

James, Molly, and Ellene

World War II and Later Years In May 1944, while stationed with her husband at Fort Rucker, Alabama, Molly learned that her brother, Allen Tupper Brown, had been killed in action. After the war, the Winn family returned from Europe in 1949 and settled in Leesburg, Virginia.

Publications and Civic Involvement In 1976 Mrs. Winn edited and published the World War I Diaries of General George C. Marshall under the title Memoirs of My Service in the World War, 1917–1918. She was a member of the Colonial Dames of New York, the Leesburg Garden Club, and the Episcopal Church of Our Savior in Oatlands.