Margaret Hunt Brisbane was an American poet. A native of Vicksburg, Mississippi, she came of a literary ancestry. She was married in 1883, and for many years made her home in New Orleans. Brisbane wrote for national magazines and New Orleans newspapers.
Early life and education
Margaret Hunt was born in Vicksburg, February 11, 1858. She was the youngest daughter of Col. Harper P. Hunt, a Southerner, whose wife was Margaret Tompkins, a member of a well-knownKentucky family of that name. Her childhood was passed in the enjoying outdoor sport, amid the trees that surrounded the "old house on the hill," as the Hunt mansion was called. She grew up with a poetic temperament, fully developed by her surroundings.
Career
Early in life, Brisbane began to express her musings in verse, and some of her earliest poems gave evidence of the poetical qualities she revealed in her later and more important work. Mississippians were proud of her achievements in literature. "Easter day" and "With you" were both published in 1905. Her "Silhouettes" describe the Siege of Vicksburg which she experienced in childhood. Brisbane published using pseudonyms including "Johny Hunt" and "Mrs. Johny Hunt Brisbane". She was a member of the Mississippi Press Association, a frequent contributor to the newspapers in Mississippi while she lived in the State, and after her removal to New Orleans, contributed poems to various leading periodicals. Brisbane was a versatile woman who sympathized with women's causes. She was a leader in Vicksburg society. She was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. In 1883, she married Dr. Howard Brisbane, of New York City, a grandson of Albert Brisbane, of Brook Farm fame. After marriage, they moved to New Orleans. Their family consisted of three children, Sherad Brisbane, Miles Brisbane, Mrs. David Comers, Jr.; and an adopted son, Hunt Capers. She died in New Orleans, January 5, 1925. Poems by Margaret Hunt Brisbane were published posthumously by Florence Frances Huberwald.
