Civil War Archives - Bonny Miller

Who was William Henry Browne? Part 2

On April 4, 2026

[Continued from Part 1 of this blog]

The New-York Observer honored William Henry Browne after he was wounded at the Battle of Salem Church, Virginia, writing, “Even if crippled for life, he glories in his sacrifices for the Union, and the honor of the national flag.”¹

Bone from a deer leg is shone shattered by a minie ball — Field Hospital, Gettysburg Reenactment, July 21, 2010 (Photo by the author)

Minié balls were among the deadliest weapons on the Civil War battlefields. These bullet wounds accounted for a high percentage of amputations in Civil War hospitals. Months of recovery followed the fighting at Salem Heights for William Henry, but he was unusually lucky to survive the ordeal, when so many soldiers lost a limb through amputation, or died from infection and gangrene in the wound.

Who was William Henry Browne? Part 1

By Bonny Miller

On April 4, 2026

In Posts

Who was William Henry Browne? Some five years younger than his sister Augusta Browne, William Henry left a personal mark in U.S. history as a Union brigadier general in the Civil War, and as the preeminent American authority on trademark law during the nineteenth century. The lives and activities of Augusta and William Henry grew ever more interwoven through their adult years. During the 1870s, the brother and sister worked together on music performances and songwriting, culminating in a series of campaign songs for Rutherford B. Hayes, the Republican presidential candidate in the 1876 election.

Augusta Browne and the 1876 Presidential Election: “The Nation Calls!”

By Bonny Miller

On August 25, 2025

In Posts

Women could not vote in national elections when Augusta Browne Garrett participated in the 1876 presidential campaign.[1] Nevertheless, seventeen songs contributed by Browne Garrett and her younger brother, General William Henry Browne (1825–1900), appeared in the pocket-size Hayes & Wheeler Song Book as part of the 1876 election battle. Although Browne Garrett never advocated for women’s suffrage in her extensive published prose, her contributions to the 1876 presidential race heralded American women’s future political activity.

The Republican National Committee distributed the Hayes & Wheeler Song Bookfrom coast to coast during the contest between the Republican candidate, Governor Rutherford B. Hayes of Ohio, and the Democrat, Governor Samuel Tilden of New York.[2] Victory for Hayes ultimately came down to a single electoral vote, making this contest the most disputed presidential election of the nineteenth century.

Augusta Browne’s American Bouquet, Part 2

By Bonny Miller

On June 29, 2022

In Posts

The early editions (ca. 1841) of Augusta Browne’s American Bouquet bore a dedication to “Miss Sarah E. Wise of Virginia.” Although this flourish disappeared in subsequent imprints by Lee and Walker, the dedication to Sarah Wise presents an interesting connection from composer to consumer. The trajectories of these women’s lives raise questions about their respective actions during the Civil War some two decades later.

Getting to Know Augusta Browne from Old Magazines

By Bonny Miller

On April 18, 2020

In Augusta Browne, Posts

When I began to browse university library shelves in 1983 in search of music published in magazines from the past, I was surprised by how many pieces indicated women as the composers.[1] I saw so many examples that I began to compile the names of women and their music that I found in different periodicals.[2] Augusta Browne was one of the names that turned up most frequently in American magazines. Between 1840 and 1850 she published songs and piano solos in at least six different periodical titles.[3] Browne’s keyboard dance The Columbian Quick-Step—published in the Columbian Magazine in December 1844—was one of the first pieces that I selected for use in lecture-recitals about magazine music.[4]

Music, History, Women, and Heritage

Tag: Civil War

Who was William Henry Browne? Part 2

Who was William Henry Browne? Part 1

Augusta Browne and the 1876 Presidential Election: “The Nation Calls!”

Augusta Browne’s American Bouquet, Part 2

Getting to Know Augusta Browne from Old Magazines