Book Review: The Calculus of Violence by Aaron Sheehan-Dean
by Burrus M. CarnahanSheehan-Dean, The Calculus of Violence: How Americans Fought the Civil War For decades, historians have debated whether the American Civil War was the first modern, total war, foreshadowing the World Wars of the 20th Century, or whether it was more akin to the limited wars of the 18th Century. In his thorough study, The […]
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Book Review: Lincoln in Private by Ron White
by E. Phelps GayLincoln in Private: What His Most Personal Reflections Tell Us About Our Greatest President By Ronald C. White, 2021 Book Reviewed by: E. Phelps Gay In this short, highly readable volume, Ronald C. White examines “fragments” left behind by our 16th President, who made a lifelong habit of writing notes to himself. These thoughts and […]
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SANDRIDGE: Lincoln’s Home Away from Home during the New Salem Years
by Guy FrakerSANDRIDGE: Lincoln’s Home Away from Home during the New Salem Years By Guy Fraker The seminal role of New Salem in Abraham Lincoln’s maturation and development is well known. The concurrent influence of the nearby Sandridge area and its people during these formative years is not as well known. Sandridge encompasses approximately 10 square […]
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The “Great Emancipator” and the “Grim Chieftan”
by Jason H. SilvermanThe “Great Emancipator” and the “Grim Chieftain” Jason H. Silverman Abraham Lincoln was in trouble – and the fate of the United States tenuously hung in the balance. The firing on Fort Sumter, five weeks after Lincoln took office, ominously signaled the start of civil war. This act, the President proclaimed, “forced upon the country […]
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Memories: An Interview with Harold Holzer
by Harold Holzer, Sara GabbardMemories: An Interview with Harold Holzer Sara Gabbard: Recent questions about the fate of various Civil War memorials raise several obvious questions. Is there a profound difference between possible sites for statues; e.g. public vs. private property? Harold Holzer: To me, yes, there is a difference: private sites can display what their owners want to […]
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An Interview with Richard Etulain
by Richard Etulain, Sara GabbardAn Interview with Richard Etulain regarding his new book Abraham Lincoln: A Western Legacy Sara Gabbard: Please explain the series on South Dakota history which this book represents: Richard Etulain: This book is part of the South Dakota Biography Series published by the South Dakota Historical Society Press. In 1997, the ambitious and diligent editor, […]
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Book Review: “Abraham Lincoln: Philosopher President”
by Burrus M. CarnahanJoseph R. Fornieri, (Carbondale, Southern Illinois University Press, 2014). In the preface to Abraham Lincoln: Philosopher President, Joseph Fornieri recounts President Lincoln’s response to a group of serenaders after his 1864 reelection. Recalling the events of the bitter, divisive campaign, the president reflected that human nature did not change. “In any future great national […]
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Lincoln and Democracy
by Allen C. GuelzoLincoln and Democracy By Allen C. Guelzo The word democracy occurs only 137 times in the collected writings of Abraham Lincoln. But no other word described what he saw as the most natural, the most just, and the most progressive form of human government in existence. Nothing, he said, could be “as clearly true as […]
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An Interview with Michael Burlingame regarding the Lincoln Cottage Project
by Michael BurlingameAn Interview with Michael Burlingame regarding the Lincoln Cottage Project Sara Gabbard: What is the “Lincoln Cottage?” Michael Burlingame: Lincoln’s Springfield Cottage (not to be confused with the Lincoln Cottage at the Soldiers’ Home in Washington, D.C.) is a replica of the Lincoln Home that the family moved into in 1844 (namely, a six-room, one-and-a-half […]
Read MoreThe Hedgehog and the Fox: Lincoln’s Lyceum Speech for the Ages
by Jason EmersonThe Hedgehog and the Fox: Lincoln’s Lyceum Speech for the Ages By Jason H. Silverman The Sangamo Journal, on Saturday, January 27, 1838, advertised a lecture for that evening by the local lawyer “A. Lincoln, Esq.” Lincoln was little more than two weeks shy of his twenty-ninth birthday. He was single, sharing living quarters with […]
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An Interview with Harold Holzer, Author of Lincoln: President-Elect
by Harold HolzerAn Interview with Harold Holzer, Author of Lincoln: President-Elect Sara Gabbard: As we face a new presidency in the United States, it seems an appropriate time to discuss your 2009 book, which focuses on the time between Abraham Lincoln’s election in November 1860 and his inauguration on March 4, 1861. First of all, did he […]
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An Interview with Lucas Morel regarding his book Lincoln and the American Founding
by Lucas E. MorelAn Interview with Lucas Morel regarding his book Lincoln and the American Founding Columbia’s Noblest Sons LN1110 Sara Gabbard: I have always been fascinated by the fact that Lincoln’s “four score and seven” years spoken at Gettysburg referred back to 1776. I would have thought that bringing “forth a new nation” would have been […]
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Every Drop of Blood—The Momentous Second Inauguration of Abraham Lincoln
by E. Phelps GayEvery Drop of Blood—The Momentous Second Inauguration of Abraham Lincoln By Edward Achorn (Atlantic Monthly Press, 2020) Book review by E. Phelps Gay Do we need another book about Lincoln’s Second Inaugural? After all, didn’t Ronald C. White, Jr. cover this ground in his excellent 2002 book, Lincolns Greatest Speech? Having read Edward Achorn’s […]
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The Convoluted and Controversial Journey of a Lincoln Statue
by Charles HubbardThe Convoluted and Controversial Journey of a Lincoln Statue By: Charles Hubbard The journey began with the idea of presenting a Lincoln statue as a gesture of friendship and peace between the United States and Great Britain in 1910. The International Commission to Celebrate the Hundred Years of Peace between two nations was established to […]
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An Interview with Burrus M. Carnahan
by Burrus M. CarnahanAn Interview with Burrus M. Carnahan regarding His Book Act of Justice: Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation and the Law of War (University Press of Kentucky, 2007) By Sara Gabbard Sara Gabbard: Much has been written about the Emancipation Proclamation and Lincoln’s decision to issue it. How is your book different and what does it add? Burrus […]
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