As I was putting together some notes for the Civil War Concert, I came across this nice history of the Battle Hymn
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Battle_Hymn_of_the_Republic
The author was married to Samuel Gridley Howe, who was an interesting person in his own right. He was very involved in the abolishonist movement and was part of the Secret Six that provided funding and support for John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry. He also was reponsible for setting up the Perkins institution to educate the blind in Massachussets. He was the first to provide education in English for a blind and deaf student, Laura Bridgeman. There is a fabulous book about she and Howe's relationship called "The Imprisoned Guest". Helen Keller's teacher Anne Sullivan Macy was also a graduate of the Perkins School, although she was educated there years after Samuel Howe died.
For more on Samuel Howe: