Joseph E. Brown

Joseph Brown was governor of Georgia from 1857 to 1865. As the agitation for secession intensified, he became an ardent proponent for Southern independence. Brown prodded the legislature to strengthen the unprepared militia and to make other military preparations. After President Abraham Lincoln’s election, Brown called on Georgia to follow South Carolina out of the Union. A hallmark of his wartime administration was his resistance to the authority of the central Confederate government (a policy soon copied by some other Southern governors), which helped undermine the overall war effort. After the war, Brown served in the U.S. Senate from 1880 to 1890.

The Old Governor’s Mansion, a part of Georgia College and State University, is located at 120 S. Clarke St. in Milledgeville. A National Historic Landmark, it was completed in 1839 and served as the home of Georgia’s governors until 1869. In 1864, it served as Sherman’s headquarters during his March to the Sea. Recently the mansion underwent an award-winning, $9.5 million restoration, returning it to its circa 1850 appearance.