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PAST EXHIBIT: Discover the Emancipation Proclamation at the Cottage
President Lincoln’s Cottage will be the first public venue to display a rare, signed copy of the Emancipation Proclamation recently purchased by David Rubenstein. This historic document will be on display at the Robert H. Smith Visitor Education Center from September 22, the date Lincoln issued the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, through the end of April 2013. Image source: Seth Kaller, …
Read MoreCivil War D.C.
Arid hill, and sodden plain showed alike the horrid trail of war. Forts bristled above every hill-top. Soldiers were entrenched at every gate-way. Shed hospitals covered acres on acres in every suburb. Churches, art-halls and private mansions were filled with the wounded and dying of the American armies. The endless roll of the army wagon seemed never still. The rattle …
Read MorePresidential Work at the Soldiers’ Home
While life at the Soldiers’ Home offered some degree of privacy and relief from the pressure of running a country at war, President Lincoln bore the burden of his leadership constantly. The captain of the company assigned to guard the President at the Cottage reported that Lincoln carried work with him to and from the Soldiers’ Home. I usually went …
Read MoreThe Emancipation Proclamation
The Development of Lincoln’s Views on Slavery Among President Lincoln’s many great acts and accomplishments, one of the most significant was the issuing of the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863. By this act, he legally and formally initiated a profound shift in moral perception. The document was developed during the months that Lincoln spent at the Soldiers’ Home.
Read MoreThe First Reading of The Emancipation Proclamation: July 22nd, 1862
By Scott Ackerman As we move through the sesquicentennial of the Civil War, 2012 has already seen the anniversary of the bloodbath at Shiloh, and of the meat-grinder known as the Seven Days Battles. This fall, Antietam and Fredericksburg will effect commemorations worthy of the soldiers who fought and died there 150 years ago. Inextricably linked to the events at …
Read MoreJewish Participation in the Civil War
By John R. Sellers This is the second year in a four year sesquicentennial celebration of the American Civil War. Across the nation, libraries, museums, historical societies, and numerous related organizations are honoring the participants in this momentous event through publications, exhibitions, lectures, symposia, and the reenactment of individual battles and skirmishes. The Shapell Manuscript Foundation (http://www.shapell.org/) is contributing to …
Read MoreLincoln 2012: Vampire Hunter and (international) Box Office Slayer
By Catherine Clinton My obsession with action adventure films and my status as a Lincoln scholar, I decided, would make me a perfect candidate to enjoy Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. The fractional truth — a concept Lincoln alludes to in the film’s voiceover — can become a dangerous thing, but it also allows for complex, entertaining eccentricities. Especially in this souped-up …
Read MoreJuneteenth: The Emancipation of Enslaved Texans
The U.S. and Juneteenth flags flying (c/o Flickr user 2011 Juneteenth Celebration) As a nation we can celebrate January 1, 1863, as the day Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation took effect and declared freedom for 3.5 million of America’s slaves held in rebellious areas. December 6, 1865 is an occasion worthy of celebration, too. That is the day Georgia ratified …
Read MoreLincoln’s Own Flag Day
By Zachary Klitzman Let’s face it: Flag Day — which commemorates the official adoption of the Stars and Stripes by the Continental Congress on June 14, 1777 — is not the most widely celebrated holiday in America. An informal survey of the staff calendars at President Lincoln’s Cottage revealed that only 50% of the calendars listed the “holiday” (Father’s Day, …
Read MoreThe Lincolns’ First Move to the Cottage
President Lincoln and his family moved to the cottage at the Soldiers’ Home for the first time 150 years ago this week. The family decided to move for a number of reasons – to mourn the loss of their second son, Willie, to escape the unhealthy conditions of downtown Washington, DC , and to try to find some solitude from …
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