In 1863, Albert Gallatin Browne, Sr., an ardent abolitionist who hoped to better his family financially, took a position in Beaufort, South Carolina, as a special agent of the United States Treasury appraising contraband, such as cotton, that fell into Union hands. His family went South to join him and within a few weeks of their arrival, his daughter, Sarah Ellen "Nellie", became engaged to Lewis Ledyard Weld, then a captain in the 7^th U.S. Colored Troops, and nephew of the abolitionist Theodore Dwight Weld.  Tragically, Nellie died of typhoid fever in June 1864, and her “beloved Louie” died from a “severe cold” seven months later near Petersburg, Virginia.  

The full collection of Browne family papers at the Schlesinger Library consists of over seven boxes and additional folders of correspondence and other papers, including accounts of Albert Gallatin Browne's service during the Civil War. Three folders of material, including Nellie's and Lewis' courtship correspondence and family correspondence detailing the illness and death of Nellie and Lewis, have been digitized and are available online.