The Greatest Writer of the 19th Century
Upon his conversion to Catholicism at the age of 41 (1844), Brownson commenced the great bulk of his writing. Assuming editorship of the Boston Quarterly Review, Brownson changed the name of the scholarly review to Brownson's Quarterly Review. He considered himself a book reviewer. There is no doubt that he reviewed books, indeed thousands, as his writings suggest. Brownson is America's most voluminous writer, and we have encountered no author who approaches him in learning. His Review reaches roughly 20,000 words, leading up to his death in 1876, the first cenntenial of America. The late John Cardinal Newman of England once told a visiting priest in Rome that Brownson had no equal. His Excellency, John "The Dagger" Hughes , of New York City, who received Brownson into the Church, later remarked that Brownson, while yet a catechumen, knew more than himself.
We apologize that some of the articles on the website contain typos. We continue to try and fix the problem as many of the articles have been typed by college philosophy students - my students. If they have erred, they are to blame. I am also to blame, as I have uploaded many of the articles without previous review. To get a good taste of Brownson's thought we recommend that you go to the link "Brownson's Views," which was a book published by Benziger Brothers, representing Brownson's thought on various topics. God bless, Bryan Shepherd