Archive for June, 2007
Next Entries »Flag Day
Thursday, June 14th, 2007Today is “Flag Day.” On this date in 1777 the Second Continental Congress passed the “Flag Resolution:” Resolved, That the flag of the United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation. I like the way George Washington interpreted the [...]
Heavy Fire in the Blogosphere
Wednesday, June 13th, 2007Apparently the new issue of Civil War Times Illustrated has, to put it mildly, upset some folks. I know, I know—it was a special issue devoted to Gettysburg, so what could be the problem? Well, the interview with historian Gary Gallagher, who comments at length about “the battle’s powerful place in the American consciousness, how [...]
Nancy and Thomas Lincoln’s Wedding Anniversary
Tuesday, June 12th, 2007Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Hanks were married 201 years ago today. We know very little about the wedding itself. We know Jesse Head, a minister in the Methodist Episcopal Church, married the couple in Richard Berry’s cabin, close to Beechland in Washington County, Kentucky. The new couple settled in Elizabethtown in Hardin County. Eight months [...]
Lincoln’s Humor
Monday, June 11th, 2007I’m still trying to process the Sopranos finale from last night, so here’s a funny story for Monday morning: On Sunday, June 10, 1849, Lincoln traveled from his home in Springfield to Washington, D.C. to take his seat in the United States Congress. It took him about a week to make the journey, but he [...]
Dreaming about Tad
Saturday, June 9th, 2007I came across this telegram a few years back and got a kick out of it. On this date, 144 years ago, President Lincoln sent his wife a telegram, which can be found in the Collected Works 6:256 To Mary Lincoln [1] Mrs. LINCOLN Executive Mansion, Philadelphia, Pa. Washington, June 9. 1863. Think you better [...]
A "New" Lincoln Document?
Friday, June 8th, 2007It seemed like an easy-enough task. The Discovery Channel wanted the National Archives to track down a few documents for their upcoming documentary on Gettysburg. Archivist Trevor Plante began searching through the documents when he saw something that wasn’t supposed to be there. The letter was old, the handwriting was familiar, the signature…“A. Lincoln.” “I [...]
General Washington on the Iraq War!
Thursday, June 7th, 2007My apologies for being scarce the last few days. Thanks very much for the kind emails inquiring where I’ve been. My trip out of town lasted a few days longer than I expected. But, I’m back in the saddle again this morning. I thought I’d pass along this article from the Onion. For those of [...]
"Ten Times Ten Thousand"
Friday, June 1st, 2007Two days earlier a committee called on President Lincoln, urging him to authorize the recruitment of 10,000 black soldiers with General John C. Fremont in command. The New York Tribune reported Lincoln’s reaction: The President declared that he would gladly receive into the service not ten thousand but ten times ten thousand colored troops; expressed [...]
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