Armand Blackmar (1826-1888) was, with his brother Henry, the founder of a music publishing company in 1860, originally based out of New Orleans, Louisiana, and later Augusta, Georgia. This would become the most successful such company of the American Civil War,[1][2] issuing about half the songs released during that era.[3]
Armand and Henry were music teachers before entering the publishing business. When Northern troops took over the city of New Orleans, Henry Blackmar moved the business to Augusta, while Armand - due to his Northern accent - managed to continue working out of New Orleans for a time, but a Union raid on his business forced him to cease working. He continued to live in Louisiana and published songs of his own, under a pseudonym, through his brother.[3]
Armand's published work included the "Dixie War Song", "Southern Marseillaise" and the "Beauregard Manassas".[4]
Henry Blackmar continued to operate the company out of Augusta, extending his distribution chain throughout the South. Songwriter John Hill Hewitt took over the business after Henry was sent to jail for beating his wife.[3]
In 1881 and 1882, Blackmar analyzed Blackmar's Gambit, a chess opening, and published his work in the July 1882 issue of Brentano’s Chess.[4]