His father's ill health precipitated a relocation to Hawaii in 1844, by way of a six-month sea voyage around the Falkland Islands.

At the time of the voyage, Godfrey had an older brother Arthur, and younger siblings Alice, Frank and Malcolm.

All brothers except Cecil were schooled in New England, after which Godfrey worked for a while in New York, followed by employment in British Columbia, and an eventual return to Hawaii.

[3] For the 1878 Legislature of the Kingdom of Hawaii, Brown was Secretary of the Legislative Assembly, an appointed position to record the proceedings.

When Liliʻuokalani ascended to the throne upon the death of Kalākaua, she demanded the resignation of his entire cabinet.