Celebrating Three Years Of The Abraham Lincoln Blog

Today is the third anniversary of The Abraham Lincoln Blog. I began writing about Lincoln on October 31, 2007 not knowing if anyone would ever find this site. Additionally, I had no idea if people would actually enjoy the blog or find it useful should they even stumble upon it. Above all I wanted people to take it seriously as an important source of information about the 16th President of The United States.

Sure enough, people found the blog. Sometime this week, the site will achieve it's 200,000th page view or "hit," which is amazing to me. I had no idea it would receive that much attention. I am grateful for that single measure of success. Since it's inception three years ago the blog has received an average of just over 180 views per day. The average has been nearly 200 hits per day over the past 18 months, so more people are finding it.

Through this blog I've made some wonderful friends, meeting people who share my fascination with Lincoln or my love of American history in general. That's the most thrilling part of this effort I've put in, meeting some great people.

It still remains to be seen just how seriously the blog is taken by the community of Lincoln fans. I'd like to hear from more readers. And I would love to be asked to speak in public about Lincoln. Not because of money or attention, but because I have a passion for Lincoln's story and would love to share it with more people.

Thank you for dropping by, no matter if you're a long-term reader of The Abraham Lincoln Blog, or if you're here for the first time. It's because of you that I keep this blog going.

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Library Of Congress "Gateway To Knowledge" Traveling Exhibit

The Library of Congress (LOC) in Washington, D.C. has recently taken to the road across the United States with a special rolling exhibit called "Gateway To Knowledge." Via this exhibition, the LOC has been bringing facsimiles of many of its top treasures and information about the millions of resources in its unparalleled collections to the heartland of America. This exhibit travels inside a specially equipped 18-wheel truck as it visits small towns.

Founded in 1800, the LOC is the nation's oldest cultural institution (yes, older than the Smithsonian). It houses rare books and maps, even rarer documents pertaining to American and world history, the earliest motion pictures, and priceless photographs.

The LOC also holds incredible items associated with Abraham Lincoln. It holds the original Bible used by Lincoln during his first inaugural on March 4, 1861 (and later used by President Obama). It also contains in its collection the contents of Lincoln's pockets the night of his assassination on April 14, 1865. The hoods that the Lincoln conspirators wore while in prison and on trial are also in the LOC collection. Of course, the Library of Congress has been staging the truly magnificent "With Malice Toward None" Lincoln Bicentennial exhibition, currently entering its final week in Atlanta, Georgia.

The "Gateway to Knowledge" exhibit tells the story of the LOC and features high quality facsimile reproductions of some of its unique treasures. It relates how former president Thomas Jefferson "rescued" the Library when it was burned in the War of 1812 by the British, losing it's valuable collection of books. Jefferson sold his own extensive collection to the LOC, thus permitting it to once more serve as a repository for information for everyone.

Visitors to this exhibit can see reproductions of a 1455 Gutenberg Bible; a 1507 map which is the first known to contain the word "America"; the rough draft of the Declaration Of Independence; videos of the earliest movies; and copies of the original artwork for the first Spider-Man comic book. The originals to these items are held by the LOC in its collection.

The exhibit pulled into Oberlin, Ohio a few weeks ago for a two day visit on the grounds of the liberal arts school Oberlin College. It was there where I went to see it for myself.

Here are some photos from my visit:

I wrote above that the "Gateway To Knowledge" exhibit travels on an 18-wheel truck. Once the truck is parked, the sides of the trailer expand to more than twice it's original width, thus permitting a much larger space for the displays. Quite remarkable. Below is a photo which shows the trailer in its expanded state.

This LOC exhibit is driven around the country by two young docents who are quite knowledgeable about the Library and the exhibit. The husband and wife team of Josh and Abigail Van Gelder are on the road approximately 300 days annually as they tour our nation bringing special exhibits to the masses. I've been fortunate enough to meet them via blogging and am now honored to have them as my friends.

Abigail writes a guest blog for the Library as she and Josh travel through the heart of America. Here's a link to her article about the visit to Oberlin, Ohio. She also blogs about their lives on the road on another blog which you can find here.

"Gateway To Knowledge" is currently in Iowa and will next head to Minnesota. The schedule is maintained on the LOC website. Over the next year, it will make approximately 60 stops in the mid-west and southern U.S.

It's a fascinating exhibit. If it comes to a town near you, drop by for a visit. Admission is free. And if you do, please tell Abigail and Josh that I said hello!

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Abraham Lincoln Portrait Series

Most works of art depicting Abraham Lincoln are realistic, whether the medium is paint, ink, or sculpture.  This was of course especially true with works done during his lifetime or in the immediate years after his death.  Now one can see the occasional abstract piece, the most famous of which is Salvador Dali's painting which only at a distance of 20 meters becomes a portrait of Lincoln.

I was contacted yesterday by a current "abstract" artist named Lola Dupre' who hails from Glasgow, Scotland, asking me if I would consider featuring her series of Lincoln original portraits here on the blog.  After a look at her work and her description of the pieces, I have decided I will do so.  Disclaimer: I am not being compensated in any way for featuring her works. 

Ms. Dupre' works mainly with paper and scissors, according to her website.  She takes images of the famous, including Lincoln, then distorts them in unique and unusual ways.  As she told me in her email, she enjoys working with images of the famous, who are already known to us and who have achieved some measure of fame.

Before you see her images below, please know that she in no way intends disrespect to Abraham Lincoln.  In fact, I made sure of that before I consented to feature her works in this forum.  She told me that the "abstractions in the features are in themselves meaningless. It is when associated with the emotional in the viewer, that interesting interpretations may be made."  After all, isn't that what "art" is all about?  Some people love works by Picasso, while others adore Gauguin.  Art does affect our emotions and means different things to different people.  Here is the first work of Lincoln from Ms. Dupre':

I admit that when I first saw the above image, I didn't much like it.  But when I re-read her descriptions of her art, and especially how the abstractions can mean different things to different people, I began to understand.  For example, this is a distortion of the famous portrait of Lincoln taken November 8, 1863.  That image is my personal favorite.  It shows his determination, his resolve, and strength.  It also is one of the first portraits which shows how the war was wearing him down. 

Artist Dupre's abstraction (and the others which follow below) speak to me about the numerous "directions" in which Lincoln was being pulled while president.  Abolitionists were angry that slavery had yet to be ended.  He had political rivals within his own party, and of course in his own cabinet.  The war weighed heavily on him.  His wife was most likely bi-polar.  He had lost two children by the time this portrait was taken.  He had yet to find a general who would consistently fight the enemy and fight it well.  Lincoln had so many issues affecting him, that he at times surely felt how these portraits by Ms. Dupre' depict him.

This final portrait in Ms. Dupre's series of five on Lincoln is my favorite one.  To me it appears that poor Mr. Lincoln's head has been placed in a vise.  He must have felt like it at times, if not all the time.

Unfortunately, none of these originals by Lola Dupre' are available as they have each been sold.  Perhaps I and the readers of The Abraham Lincoln Blog can encourage her to create more.  Please check her website for other unique and interesting pieces.  Please do NOT grab her images from the website without her express permission.  I had her permission to share these images in this post.  Respect her work and copyright.  And please do NOT grab these images from this blog, either. 

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Book Review: The First Assassin

One of the things I most enjoy in writing about Abraham Lincoln is the opportunity to inform my readers of new or noteworthy books about him. While most of the books I write about in this forum are nonfiction, I just finished a novel about an assassin stalking President Lincoln in 1861. It's one of the best thrillers I've read in recent years. The following paragraphs do not contain any spoilers as they are taken from the synopsis on the book's back cover.

The First Assassin opens just weeks before Abraham Lincoln is to be sworn in as the nation's 16th president. The southern states have of course begun to secede from the Union, with South Carolina especially a hotbed of anti-Lincoln sentiments. A plantation owner, Mr. Langston Bennett, outraged at Lincoln's election and his strong anti-slavery position, hires an assassin to kill Lincoln before slavery is ended.

Meanwhile in Washington City (as the nation's capital was called then), Colonel Charles Rook is determined to protect the president at all costs. He receives no support from the head of the U.S. Army, General Winfield Scott (of course a real person), in his mission to protect the president-elect. Nonetheless, Rook defies orders and organizes his own small team of spies consisting of U.S. Army soldiers to track various death threats to Mr. Lincoln. As certain murders happen in the city, it gradually dawns on Rook that he is up against a cold-blooded killer who will let nothing and no one get in his way in his attempt to kill Lincoln.

Along the way, the reader is introduced to Mrs. Violet Grenier, a resident of Washington City, who harbors strong pro-Southern sympathies. She uses her feminine wiles and standing as a dame of society to spy on Lincoln and help in the conspiracy against him.

The key to saving the president is a runaway slave named Portia who holds vital information about the assassin's identity. It remains to be seen if she can provide it to the authorities in time.

As I wrote earlier, this book is historical fiction, a crime thriller. It's serious, as opposed to the recent "mash up" novel Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. While this account in Assassin is fictional, it is based on real-life death threats Lincoln faced upon his election to the presidency. Lincoln continued facing threats throughout his presidency, of course falling to the final conspiracy.

I found The First Assassin to be very enjoyable. It is well-written with excellent character development. The female spy, Violet, is based on real-life women who spied for the Confederacy, who were not beneath using their "charms" (including sex) to obtain information they sought. It's easy to understand the frustrations and tension Colonel Rook feels as the killer draws closer to Lincoln. When the assassin's movements are followed by the reader, a chill occasionally rises as his cold-blooded murders take place. All quite gripping.

Some of the book is a tad predictable, especially a certain disguise the potential assassin uses. But that is the only quibble I have. I read the book (446 pgs) in just a few days, because I couldn't wait to see how it ends.

Lincoln himself does appear briefly in the novel, as does his private secretary, John Hay. Lincoln's actions of not wanting a lot of security are factual, as are some of the words he speaks.

The First Assassin is authored by John J. Miller, a frequent writer for Wall Street Journal, the National Review, and other publications. He has written books of nonfiction, but Assassin is his debut novel. The book was published just last week by AmazonEncore (yes, that Amazon as in the giant online seller). According to its site, AmazonEncore "identifies exceptional yet overlooked books and works with the authors to introduce or re-introduce their books to readers." Mr. Miller originally self-published The First Assassin and it was readers of that edition who brought attention to AmazonEncore about the novel. The book may be ordered here.

I agree with those early readers and AmazonEncore. This is indeed an exceptional debut novel.


My rating:







5.0 out of 5.0 "Rebel Rose" Greenhow, a real-life female spy for the Confederacy.

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Abraham Lincoln and Egypt?

I've been home for just a few days now from a trip to Egypt to see the wonders of the pyramids, the Sphinx, the temples at Luxor, and the great temple of King Ramesses II at Abu Simbel. The trip was a surprise gift from my wife this past Christmas, and it fulfilled a lifelong dream of mine to see the splendors of ancient Egypt.

Of course, this blog is not about my travels to the Middle East; it's about Abraham Lincoln. So I had to do a bit of research to find out what connections, if any, Mr. Lincoln might have had to Egypt either before or during his presidency. There of course aren't many, but I did learn about some dealings his administration had with Egypt during the Civil War.

Egypt in those days was technically still part of the Ottoman Empire, which was based in Constantinople (Istanbul). However, thanks to an invasion of Egypt by Napoleon III in the early 18th Century, that country was more or less autonomous of the Ottomans. Lincoln's Secretary of State, William H. Seward, realized at the outbreak of the Civil War that it would be important to assure the neutrality of the Ottomans, just as it was important to keep France and England neutral.

Seward's efforts resulted in a treaty signed with the Ottoman Empire in 1862 which guaranteed continued trade between the U.S. and the empire. Even more importantly, it guaranteed to the U.S. that any Confederate pirates preying on U.S. trade vessels would be apprehended and detained.

Lincoln also wrote a letter to the "Wali" of Egypt (similar to a governor) during his presidency protesting the harassment and abuse of a U.S. missionary in that country. In response, Egypt promised to punish those who had abused the missionary and again assured Lincoln that Confederates would not be permitted in Ottoman waters (Mediterranean, Black Sea, Red Sea, etc.) This action by Lincoln had the additional effect of deeply impressing religious Christians in Europe, which further helped to keep England and France out of the Civil War.

This post was based on two different sources. The primary source is a speech titled "Lincoln and The Middle East" given by Mr. Austin Knuppe at Grand Valley State University in Michigan. It's a learned and fascinating look at how America's involvement in the Middle East actually developed in earnest during the Lincoln administration. Very worthwhile reading.

The second source for this posting is The Collected Works Of Abraham Lincoln, an indispensable reference for all of Lincoln's known letters, speeches, and other writings. Lincoln scholars both professional and amateur use this source in their research.

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Enhancing Lincoln's Legacy In Washington, D.C.

The scene of Abraham Lincoln's assassination on April 14, 1865, Ford's Theater in Washington, D.C., has been undergoing an expansion project since 2007. The theater itself reopened last year after months of renovation added a new museum and other features which cost an estimated 35 million dollars.

That was only the beginning. Work continues on the Ford's Theater Center For Education and Leadership, which has the goal of enhancing the Lincoln experience for visitors. A 10-story building located across 10th Street from the theater will house various exhibits about the aftermath of the assassination and will explore Lincoln's continued legacy. The center will be run jointly by the National Park Service and the Ford's Theater Society. The target opening date is February of 2012.

Some of the planned displays include a replica of the barn where John Wilkes Booth was shot at the end of the 12-day manhunt, and the story of the 20 day journey of the Lincoln funeral train from Washington to Springfield. Still another feature will be a 3-story tall sculpture of "books" to help people fathom just how much has been written about the 16th president.

Lincoln was a complicated man and his legacy has continued to evolve in the 145 years after his death. For some, he remains the Great Emancipator. To others, he was a tyrant who began this nation on the path to greatly expanded powers of the federal government. The director of the Ford's Theater Society, Mr. Paul Tetreault, hopes that visitors will be able to draw their own conclusions after touring the center.

This posting was based on the original article from the August 21, 2010 edition of The New York Times.

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Glenn Beck Dishonor At The Lincoln Memorial

By now many, if not most, of you have heard about the "Restoring Honor" rally to be held tomorrow (August 28, 2010) by Glenn Beck at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. In addition to Beck, people who have been invited to speak are former Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin, National Rifle Association president Wayne LaPierre, and gun enthusiast and singer Ted Nugent.

Although Beck claims that this rally is not to be political, news reports are stating that most of the attendees tomorrow will be Tea Party activists. No surprise here, for most of Beck's and Palin's disciples also identify themselves as members of the Tea Party, that loose collection of groups which are simply angry at, well, just about everyone. Well, everyone except for Beck and Palin.

"Restoring Honor" of course implies that this nation has lost its honor. What honor has the United States lost? Honor for the troops? There have been no massive protests against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as the nation experienced in the 1960's against the war in Viet Nam. Soldiers are honored for their service and sacrifice to our nation, unlike when they were called "baby killers" by many people forty years ago. Today when a soldier falls, communities across our nation honors him or her with solemn and mournful services and processions. The honoring of our troops does not need to be restored.

I can help Mr. Beck to recognize some of the honor he and his fellow speakers need to restore. For starters, Beck can find the personal honor (if he knows what that means) to not call the President Of The United States a "racist with deep-seated hatred of white people." He can in the future find all the facts before he runs a person out of government as he did with Shirley Sherrod a few weeks ago, claiming she was racist when she really wasn't. He can further restore his own honor if he quits comparing his rally tomorrow to the rise of Abraham Lincoln.

Sarah Palin can help restore honor to the nation as well by promising to never again quitting an elected position in the middle of her term as she did as Alaska governor. That shows a lack of commitment, dedication, and personal integrity. In short, a total lack of honor.

The Tea Party protesters can aid in the restoration of honor by eliminating the racist overtones of their protests. Yes, the majority of the protesters do not carry signs with vile names, but there have been enough of them to give the movement a threatening tone.

Beck claims that this rally is also to "reclaim civil rights." It is an insult that this rally is being held on the anniversary of the defining moment of the civil rights struggles of the 1950's and 1960's. Tomorrow is the 47th anniversary of the immortal "I Have A Dream" speech given by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. during the March On Washington in 1963. A speech in which he professed the hope that one day his children would be judged "not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."

The location of this rally is especially an insult to the memory and legacy of Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln deeply believed in the words of the Declaration of Independence, especially in the words that "all men are created equal." He spoke of tolerance, equal rights, and freedom. He wrote in his message to Congress in 1862 "Fellow citizens, we cannot escape history.....The fiery trial through which we pass, will light us down, in honor or dishonor, to the latest generation."

Our nation is going through a fiery trial of divisiveness and turmoil. The question is, will this era in our history light us down in honor, or dishonor to the next generation(s)? As long as we have people like Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin holding such sway with their appeal to raw emotions of fear and hatred, I believe that dishonor is in our future.

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