George H. Browne

George Huntington Browne (January 6, 1818 – September 26, 1885) was a U.S. representative from Rhode Island.

Born in Glocester, Rhode Island, Browne attended the public schools. He graduated from Brown University in 1840, where he studied law. He was admitted to the bar in 1843 and commenced practice in Providence, Rhode Island.

During the Dorr Rebellion, in 1842, Browne was elected to both the Charter and the Suffrage legislatures. He accepted the latter seat, aligning himself with the supporters of the People's Constitution. Following the end of the crisis, he served as member of the Rhode Island General Assembly under the 1842 Constitution from 1849 to 1852.

Browne was appointed a U.S. district attorney in 1852 and served until 1861, when he resigned. He was a delegate to the 1860 Democratic National Conventions which resulted in the splintering of the party between supporters of Stephen Douglas and John C. Breckinridge. Following the election of the Republican candidate, Abraham Lincoln, he attended the Peace Conference of 1861, held in Washington, D.C. in an effort to prevent the impending civil war.

Browne declined the appointment as governor of the Arizona Territory in 1861. He was elected as a candidate of the Constitutional Union Party to the 37th United States Congress, serving from 1861 to 1863. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1863. He entered the Union Army as colonel of the 12th Rhode Island Infantry Regiment on October 13, 1862 and served throughout the American Civil War.

Following the end of the war, Browne served as member of the Rhode Island Senate in 1872 and 1873. He was elected chief justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court in 1874, but declined the office. He died in Providence, Rhode Island, September 26, 1885 and was interred in Swan Point Cemetery.