Ephraim L. Brown was born around 1830 in Jefferson, Maine. He married a woman named Priscilla, and they had at least four children: Anna, born around 1855; Emma, born around 1856; Eugene, born around 1861; and Alonzo, born around 1870. They lived in Old Town, Maine, and he “work[ed] on lumber.” By 1860, he owned $300 of real estate and $100 of personal property.
He enlisted in the Union army on May 28, 1861, and he mustered in as a private in Company K of the 2nd Maine Infantry. The regiment took part in the First Battle of Manassas, the Peninsula campaign, the Second Battle of Manassas, and the Battle of Antietam. He was discharged for disability on January 28, 1863.
He rejoined the army on December 21, 1863, mustering in as a private in Company I of the 1st Maine Heavy Artillery. He was wounded at Spotsylvania Court House on May 19, 1864, and again at Petersburg on June 18, 1864. He probably mustered out in September 1865.
He settled in Orono, Maine, after leaving the army, and he worked in a sawmill. He applied for a federal pension in October 1865 and eventually received one. By 1870, he owned $175 of personal property. By 1890, he was living in Blue Hill, Maine, and he was suffering from chronic diarrhea and a “kidney complaint.” On June 13, 1900, he was admitted to the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers in Chelsea, Maine. He died there of enteritis on September 22, 1904.