Robert's 19th Century History Blog

Newsweek published a web-exclusive article on the upcoming Lincoln Bicentennial this afternoon. The article provides a fairly entertaining overview of upcoming events, which include everything from museum exhibits to symphony concerts to the minting of new pennies.

The article also mentions that Steven Spielberg has committed to directing a biographical film on Lincoln starring Liam Neeson. And of course it mentions a number of upcoming Lincoln books.

The Lincoln Bicentennial Commission site has its own calendar of events, as well as a new Lincoln Bicentennial Blog. And if you want to prepare for the big year by reading some classic Lincoln titles, I've prepared a handy set of links to books recommended by the Bicentennial Commission which can be downloaded on the web.

Tensions in Texas boiled over in April 1846, and within weeks reports reached Washington that Mexican troops had ambushed American dragoons. President James Polk, an expansionist who had his eye on California, quickly implored Congress to declare war, which it did on May 13.

Most of the country gleefully went along, although there were some dissenters, including a young and obscure congressman named Abraham Lincoln, and an equally obscure writer, Henry David Thoreau.

When American forces invaded Mexico, victories followed. General Zachary Taylor became a national hero, and would soon occupy the White House. And when the final peace treaty was signed in 1848, the United States owned California and the southwest.

The Mexican War isn't well remembered today. But when Grant and Lee met at Appomattox in 1865, the two generals, who had been young officers in Mexico, had a pleasant conversation about it.

Image: General Zachary Taylor, courtesy Library of Congress

I can remember visiting Gettysburg as a kid and sitting in a square auditorium and watching a big map covered with little colored light bulbs light up to show how Union and Confederate troops were deployed during the three days of the battle. I loved it! Well, okay, I was a history geek.

Turns out the government officials who administer Gettysburg have decided that the electric map, which was built in the 1960s, doesn't fit into the new high-tech multimedia facility being built for visitors. That's right. The electric map is doomed.

Thankfully, it isn't being demolished, merely put into storage (well, perhaps forever). But some Gettysburg buffs who appreciate the old school brilliance of the electric map are trying to come to the rescue, and have launched an effort to Save the Electric Map. I wish them well!

One member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition did not volunteer. He was York, a slave owned by expedition co-leader William Clark.

York exhibited considerable skills while trekking in the wilderness, and served at times as one of the expedition's hunters. He also fascinated the Indians encountered on the way, most of whom had never met, or even imagined, a black person.

Over the years, a story developed that Clark had freed York as a reward for his exemplary service on the voyage to the Pacific and back. But like many things having to do with slavery, the truth was more complicated.

Charles Stewart Parnell was an unlikely champion of the Irish cause in the late 1800s. As a Protestant landowner educated in Britain, he was essentially a member of the opposing camp. Yet his fervent advocacy for Ireland's struggle against its British rulers made him a hero, hailed as "Ireland's Uncrowned King."

Practicing the politics of obstruction, Parnell agitated for the Irish cause by bringing the British House of Commons to a standstill. But his political career came crashing to a bitter end when he was involved in a notorious scandal.

Image: Charles Stewart Parnell, courtesy Library of Congress

The renowned author Garry Wills has written an informative and insightful essay comparing Abraham Lincoln's speech at Cooper Union with Barack Obama's March 18th speech in Philadelphia. The article is titled "Two Speeches On Race," and it's published in the upcoming issue of the New York Review of Books.

Wills has written of Lincoln before, and his book Lincoln at Gettysburg is a classic (and a personal favorite). His new essay is somewhat reminiscent of that particular book, which provided an enlightening analysis of the Gettysburg Address and Lincoln's subtle yet formidable writing skills.

In the magazine, Wills thoughtfully analyzes the speeches given by Lincoln and Obama, and notes striking similarities in what the speakers had to accomplish. For instance, both men had to deal with "an alleged connection with unpatriotic and potentially violent radicals." For Obama, it was former pastor Jeremiah Wright. And for Lincoln it was the recently executed abolitionist firebrand, John Brown.

I'm tempted to start quoting the essay at length, but it should be enjoyed in full. If you're interested in history, it's a treat.

Meriwether Lewis, William Clark, and the Corps of Discovery helped map the northwest and documented many plant and animal species. During two years of rough travel in the wilderness they navigated river rapids, crossed rugged mountains, and survived harrowing escapes from grizzly bears.

The Lewis and Clark Expedition is a great adventure story and a cherished legend of American history. But just why did President Thomas Jefferson send them to the Pacific Ocean? There were a number of reasons, and the official one might surprise you.

Image: Engraving of Meriwether Lewis in his expedition reglalia courtesy of the New York Public Library Digital Collections.

It was heartening this morning to hear Cardinal Edward Egan of New York pay tribute to Archbishop John Hughes at the beginning of the televised papal mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral. Cardinal Egan noted that the cornerstone of New York's great cathedral had been laid by Archbishop Hughes in 1858.

John Hughes had arrived in America as a poor immigrant from Ireland, worked as a gardener to study for the priesthood, and eventually became a formidable political power broker in New York City. He defended New York's Catholic churches from nativist mobs intending to torch them, and President Lincoln dispatched him as an envoy to Europe during the Civil War.

St. Patrick's Cathedral was envisioned by Archbishop Hughes as a mighty symbol to the Irish who flooded into New York following the Great Famine. And it was fitting to hear a mention of the archbishop on television this morning, as the great cathedral also stands as a symbol of his steadfast leadership during some very turbulent times in the mid-1800s.

Thanks to the HBO mini-series based on David McCullough's biography of John Adams, millions of viewers are becoming fascinated by the brilliant correspondence of Adams and his wife Abigail.

The great interest in their letters is actually rooted in the mid-1800s. Their grandson published a collection, Letters of Mrs. Adams in 1840.

A year later, Charles Francis Adams published a two-volume collection of his grandfather's side of the correspondence. That collection concludes with a letter written in 1800 from the new executive mansion, which was still under construction. The letter contains a famous quote, which Franklin D. Roosevelt later had inscribed into a White House mantel: "May none but honest and wise men ever rule under this roof!"

Those wonderful books, as well as related titles, have been digitized by Google Books and can easily be downloaded. Feel free to create a digital bookshelf of the letters John and Abigail Adams would address to "My Dearest Friend."

Image of Abigail Adams courtesy of New York Public Library Digital Collections.

The shooting of Abraham Lincoln by John Wilkes Booth on April 14, 1865 was a horrendous shock to a nation just emerging from four horrible years of war. The news traveled quickly by telegraph, and newspapers rushed out special editions.

There was also a strong visual component to the tragedy as photographers, magazine artists, and even printmakers such as Currier & Ives showed the nation what had happened. The War Department, to aid its manhunt for Lincoln's assassin, printed wanted posters containing innovations: photographs of the famous actor John Wilkes Booth and two other conspirators.

Image: Library of Congress