Where The Brown Family From Alaskan Bush People Is Really From
Since 2014, The Discovery Channel has chronicled the lives of the Brown family — Ami and Billy Brown and their seven children — as they live off the grid in the remote wilderness. From 2014 to 2017, per Distractify, the show was filmed in Hoonah and Chichagof Island, Alaska. Since then, however, the series has been filmed in Washington. Portions of the show have even taken place in Los Angeles, where Ami received treatment following her 2017 diagnosis of lung cancer.
The question of where the Brown family calls home has been a source of controversy over the past few years. From 2011 to 2013, according to a separate Distractify report, the Browns allegedly lied about being residents of Alaska in order to receive oil revenue checks. During that time period, the family was not actually living in Alaska. Bam Bam and Billy Brown spent 30 days in jail in 2016 for the transgression.
So, where is the Brown family really from, and where do they live today?
Ami and Billy Brown are from Texas
According to IMDb, Ami Brown was born in Texas on August 28, 1963. Billy Brown, meanwhile, was born on December 3, 1952 in Texas as well. In 2015, Radar Online reported that Ami was just 15 when she wed Billy, who was 26 at the time. The family subsequently moved to Alaska, where they raised their children. Ami is presumed to have been 18 when she gave birth to the couple's eldest son, Matthew Brown. She was 19 when she gave birth to their second-eldest (per Radar Online).
The outlet added that between 2009 and 2012, the family lived in Texas and Colorado, in addition to Alaska. Then, in 2017, according to Outsider, Ami was diagnosed with Stage 3 lung cancer and was told that living in the remote wilderness was dangerous and would make medical visits extremely difficult, considering the fact that she needed chemotherapy on a regular basis. The family packed their belongings and relocated to Los Angeles so they could be near the UCLA Medical Center (per Outsider).
The Brown family moves to Washington
Once Ami Brown was in remission, the family moved to Washington State. In their 2018 interview with Monsters and Critics, the family was asked why they decided not to return to Alaska. Billy Brown replied, "It's just too risky now. We really couldn't. I guess it was just time, you know, the Good Lord, it was just time ... you wouldn't believe what he gave us." Ami followed that up by saying, "I do want to add, too, that when we were telling the kids about it, they had already talked about it and told us that they weren't going to let us go back, that we had to stay down here."
When Monsters and Critics jokingly asked if production would rename the show "Washington Bush People," Bear Brown shared, "No way, I'll be an Alaskan no matter where I am." His brother, Gabe later added, "I think we're all so adventurous that we just kind of embrace the newness of everything, and in Washington we're still in the woods and stuff so it's still the same kind of topography and things that we like." Sadly, Billy passed away in February 2021. The family has since remained in Washington, according to Outsider.