Ambrose Everett Burnside was an American soldier, railroad executive, inventor, industrialist, and politician from Rhode Island. He served as the Governor of Rhode Island from 1866 to 1869, and as a United States Senator for Rhode Island from 1875 until his death.
As a Union Army general in the American Civil War of 1861–1865, he conducted successful campaigns in North Carolina and East Tennessee, as well as countering the raids of Confederate General John Hunt Morgan, but suffered disastrous defeats at the Battle of Fredericksburg and the Battle of the Crater.
His distinctive style of facial hair became known as sideburns, derived from his last name. In 1871, he became the first president of the National Rifle Association, holding the office until 1872.