Henry Sweetser Burrage (January 7, 1837,

Fitchburg, Massachusetts Fitchburg is a city in northern Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The third-largest city in the county, its population was 41,946 at the 2020 census. Fitchburg is home to Fitchburg State University as well as 17 public and private e ...

– March 9, 1926) was a United States clergyman, editor and author.

Biography

Burrage graduated from

Brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing or painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors orange and black. In the RGB color model used ...

in 1861, entered the 36th Massachusetts Regiment as a private, rose to the rank of captain, was wounded at

Cold Harbor The Battle of Cold Harbor was fought during the American Civil War near Mechanicsville, Virginia, from May 31 to June 12, 1864, with the most significant fighting occurring on June 3. It was one of the final battles of Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S ...

and brevetted major of volunteers, and became an assistant adjutant general on the staff. He was captured at Petersburg in November 1864, and held as a prisoner at

Libby Prison Libby Prison was a Confederate prison at Richmond, Virginia, during the American Civil War. In 1862 it was designated to hold officer prisoners from the Union Army. It gained an infamous reputation for the overcrowded and harsh conditions. Prison ...

until February 22, 1865. He resumed his studies at the close of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, graduated from

Newton Theological Seminary Newton Theological Seminary or Newton Theological School may refer to: * Newton Theological Institution (1825–1965) * Andover Newton Theological School (1965–2017) * Andover Newton Seminary at Yale Divinity School Andover Newton Seminary at Y ...

in 1867, spent a year abroad, and from 1869 to 1873 was pastor of the First

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

Church in

Waterville, Maine Waterville is a city in Kennebec County, Maine, Kennebec County, Maine, United States, on the west bank of the Kennebec River. The city is home to Colby College and Thomas College. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census the populatio ...

. This was his only pastorate. Beginning in 1873 he edited ''Zion's Advocate'', a Baptist religious journal based in

Portland, Maine Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropol ...

. He edited the journal for 32 years. Beginning 1876 he was recording secretary of the American Baptist Union. He was chancellor of the Maine commandery of the

Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States The Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS), or simply the Loyal Legion is a United States patriotic order, organized April 15, 1865, by three veteran officers of the Army. The original membership was composed of members ...

. Brown gave him the degree of D.D. in 1883. He was a trustee of

Colby College Colby College is a private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine. It was founded in 1813 as the Maine Literary and Theological Institution, then renamed Waterville College after the city where it resides. The donations of Christian philanthr ...

, Newton Theological Seminary, and Brown University. He was chaplain for the National Soldiers Home in

Togus, Maine Togus, formally known as the Togus VA Medical Center, is a facility operated by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs in Chelsea, Maine. The facility was built as a resort hotel, and housed Union veterans of the American Civil War prior ...

. He was a member and president of the

Maine Historical Society The Maine Historical Society is the official state historical society of Maine. It is located at 489 Congress Street in downtown Portland. The Society currently operates the Wadsworth-Longfellow House, a National Historic Landmark, Longfellow Ga ...

, and wrote much on Maine's colonial history. In 1907 he was appointed Maine State Historian, a post he held for the rest of his life. Burrage was the father of painter Mildred Burrage.

Publications

Burrage edited: * ''Brown University in the Civil War'' (Providence, 1868) * ''

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include "Paul Revere's Ride", ''The Song of Hiawatha'', and ''Evangeline''. He was the first American to completely transl ...

's Seventy-fifth Birthday'' (Portland, ME, 1882) * ''History of the Thirty-sixth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteers'' (Boston, 1884) * ''Early English and French Voyages: Chiefly from Hakluyt, 1534–1608'' (New York, 1906) He wrote: * ''The Act of Baptism in the History of the Christian Church'' (Philadelphia, 1879) * ''History of the

Anabaptist Anabaptism (from New Latin language, Neo-Latin , from the Greek language, Greek : 're-' and 'baptism', german: Täufer, earlier also )Since the middle of the 20th century, the German-speaking world no longer uses the term (translation: "Re- ...

s in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

'' (1882) * ''Baptist Writers and their Hymns'' (New York, 1888) * ''A history of the Baptists in New England'' (Philadelphia, 1894) * ''History of the Baptists in Maine'' (Portland, ME, 1904)

Notes

References

* Attribution * {{DEFAULTSORT:Burrage, Henry Sweetser 1837 births 1926 deaths Baptist ministers from the United States 19th-century American historians Historians of Maine American non-fiction writers Union Army officers Brown University alumni People from Fitchburg, Massachusetts Writers from Portland, Maine Burials at Evergreen Cemetery (Portland, Maine) American male non-fiction writers 19th-century American male writers 20th-century American historians 20th-century American male writers Historians from Massachusetts Military personnel from Massachusetts