Alright all you Civil War enthusiasts , summer is just around the corner and its time to get ready for reenactments. Our collections have tons of Civil War materials but one in particular that I wanted to highlight is the Civil War Band Collection: 1st Brigade Band of Brodhead, Wisconsin.


In 1857, a group of citizens of Brodhead, Wisconsin, decided to form a brass band. They purchased a set of brass instruments and became known as the Brodhead Brass Band, or "B.B.B." Under that name, they performed at the debate between senatorial candidates Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas on August 27, 1858 at Freeport, Illinois.

The musical legacy of the 1st Brigade Band presented here consists of a set of twelve, leather-bound partbooks (although one of the twelve has lost its leather cover and some pages) and seven envelopes of other music manuscripts. The partbooks contain about 55 numbered selections and several unnumbered tunes. About half of the pieces in this collection are identified as quicksteps.

This collection has lots of interesting information for anyone who loves Civil War history.

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