Kent Masterson Brown

Kent Masterson Brown is a Civil War historian and constitutional attorney whose career encompasses books, documentary films, and battlefield preservation. Brown graduated from Centre College and earned a juris doctor degree from Washington and Lee University School of Law. He practiced constitutional and administrative law for 45 years in Lexington, Kentucky, and served as counsel to a Washington, D.C. firm for 26 years. Throughout his legal career, Brown maintained a focus on American history, contributing scholarship that established his national reputation in Civil War studies.

Brown was the creator and first editor of the national magazine The Civil War and originated its Civil War seminars. He is the author of six books on the Civil War, including "Cushing of Gettysburg: The Story of a Union Artillery Commander," "The Civil War in Kentucky: Battle for the Bluegrass State," "Retreat from Gettysburg: Lee, Logistics, and the Pennsylvania Campaign," and "One of Morgan's Men: The Memoirs of Lieutenant John M. Porter of the Ninth Kentucky Cavalry." Brown's books have been selections of the History Book Club and Military Book Club and have received national awards. "Retreat from Gettysburg" received the Bachelder-Coddington Award, the United States Army Historical Foundation Award for Distinguished Writing in History, and the Dr. James I. Robertson, Jr. Literary Prize. "Meade at Gettysburg: A Study in Command" was published by University of North Carolina Press.

Brown has also written, hosted, and produced eight documentary films for public and cable television, including "The Long Road Back to Kentucky: The 1862 Confederate Invasion." His films include "Retreat From Gettysburg," "Bourbon and Kentucky: A History Distilled," "Henry Clay and the Struggle for the Union," "Unsung Hero: The Horse in the Civil War," "Daniel Boone and the Opening of the American West," and "I Remember The Old Home Very Well: The Lincolns in Kentucky." These films have received Telly Awards, and "Unsung Hero" was nominated for an Emmy Award. Brown has collaborated with Kentucky Educational Television to create video resource collections on PBS LearningMedia, providing educational materials on American and Kentucky history.

Brown's work in preservation and public service includes serving as the first chairman of the Gettysburg National Military Park Advisory Commission and the first chairman of the Perryville, Kentucky Battlefield Commission, where he oversaw the expansion of the Perryville Battlefield. His appointment as chairman of the Gettysburg National Military Park Advisory Commission was made by President George Herbert Walker Bush. Brown regularly gives speeches and tours at Civil War battlefields and is recognized as a national speaker on American history.