Mission Statement
Orestes Brownson Studies Foundation promotes the thought of Orestes Brownson, most profound commentators of the American Experience during the Nineteenth Century. We preserve his legacy and its relevance to contemporary events by conducting an annual Orestes Brownson Essay Contest for undergraduates and organizing an academic conference on his writings. In addition, we are building an online database of his writings to facilitate research.
Orestes Brownson Essay Contest
In the first year of our Orestes Brownson Essay Contest 15 essays were submitted from 88 expressions of intent. For 2026, our goal is 200 expressions of intent and 50 essays submitted.
Annual Brownson Conference
Conferences on Brownson’s writings and thought. In 2024, on American Constitutionalism and in 2026, Brownson’s 1856 essay, The Mission of America.
YouTube Channel and Substack
Watch videos of our past conferences (or download the audio files) on the Foundation’s YouTube channel.
Keep up with us on our substack: Brownson’s Occasional Blog.
Brownson Resources for Research
We will be populating this section with writings, articles, and videos illuminating Orestes Brownson’s enduring influence and thought.
Texts and Writings
A collection of works and essays by Orestes Brownson that form the foundation of his philosophical and political legacy. We will put these documents into a searchable database.
Articles About Brownson
Expert analyses and interpretations that contextualize Brownson’s ideas within nineteenth-century and modern debates. This section will also contain videos of conferences we have sponsored.
Bibliography
A list (with hyperlinks when possible) of the publications about Brownson and his thought: books, PhD theses, journal articles, the works! We are just beginning to collect this material.