Sawyer was born in
St. Louis, Missouri, to Harriet Adams Hayes and Melville Sawyer. Little is known about her education, although her obituary stated that she "received her musical education in various European cities." In 1897,
George Whitefield Chadwick dedicated his song “The Rose Leans Over the Pool” to Sawyer. She married John Warren Achorn in 1907. In 1913, they were living in Boston. She died in
Pinebluff, North Carolina on 20 May 1934. Sawyer's music was published by
Arthur P. Schmidt and
G. Schirmer Inc. ==List and compositions==