Born on this day in New York City, poet and abolitionist Julia Ward Howe (1819–1910) made history by writing the words to the Battle Hymn of the Republic after visiting a Union camp in Virginia.

“As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,” she wrote with deep religious conviction. Published in 1862 by The Atlantic Monthly and set to the tune of John Brown's Body, the anthem inspired the North to win the Civil War and free the slaves.

The music stirred something deep within—a moment of shared humanity, grief, and purpose. It touched Abraham Lincoln’s heart, awakening the part of him that carried the weight of a fractured nation and still believed in healing. Tearfully, he whispered, “Sing it again.”

Championing justice through articulate words and soulful conviction, Howe once observed, “The strokes of the pen need deliberation as much as the sword needs swiftness.”

She also wrote a biography of Margaret Fuller (1883), as well as poetry. Her early volumes—the bold Passion-flowers (1854) and Words for the Hour (1857)—were published anonymously due to their progressive exploration of women's rights.

A passionate suffragist and advocate for peace, Howe was a transcendentalist and powerful speaker. Her keen intellect and fearless pen proved that well-chosen words can challenge injustice, stir hearts, and shape culture. In 1908, she became the first female member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

She believed: “Every life has its actual blanks, which the ideal must fill up, or which else remain bare and profitless forever.”

Julia Ward Howe’s life embodied the soulful unity of heart, spirit, and mind. She spoke with conviction, moved with courage, and lived with a deep devotion to justice and compassion. Her enduring breath of love and purpose continues to inspire generations.