Tune in for this talk today at 12pm ET on the National Archives Ustream channel.
During their presidencies, both Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis suffered the death of a child—a not uncommon event for most American parents in the 19th century. Starting with the death of Willie Lincoln in 1862 and the tragic accident that befell Joseph Davis in 1864, Catherine Clinton explores Victorian mourning and the embrace of rituals of grief and symbols of remembrance during the Civil War.
Join us at noon on March 29 in the McGowan Theater at the National Archives Building in Washington, DC, or watch online at our Ustream channel.
Image: Abraham Lincoln and his youngest son Tad (ARC 52628). While Lincoln was President, Tad’s older brother Willie—the middle child—died of typhoid fever while living in the White House. Tad himself died at age 18 in Chicago in 1871. Only the oldest son, Robert, lived to adulthood.
President Lincoln drafted an emancipation proclamation in July 1862. He delayed issuing it till the Union had a military victory. On Sept 22, 1862, after the victory at the Battle of Antietam, he signed the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. It warned rebel forces that if they did not surrender and rejoin the Union in 100 days, then all slaves in the rebellious states would be freed. Once it was clear that the South would not surrender, Lincoln issued the final Emancipation Proclamation Jan 1, 1863.
Memorial Day
Memorial Day was originally called Decoration Day - a time set aside to honor fallen soldiers of the Civil War by decorating their graves with flowers. The first Decoration Day was observed on May 30, 1868, three years after the end of the Civil War. On that day, the largest known ceremony was held at Arlington National Cemetery, across the river from Washington D.C. Read More
This Memorial Day weekend, we honor and thank all of the men and women who have served our country.
Source: whitehouse.gov
50 teachers, 9 states, 1 President’s Civil War Grandmother
This week the Truman Library is hosting their annual teacher conference with the theme of “Kansas, Missouri, and the Civil War, 1854-1865.” 50 teachers from 9 states are attending. One of today’s speakers will be talking about Truman and his grandparents experience in the Civil War. This photo is of President Truman’s grandmother, Mary Jane Holmes Truman.
Mary Jane Holmes Truman was the daughter of Captain Jesse Holmes and Nancy Tyler Holmes. The original 5 x 7 photo photo is undated.
You can follow the conference on the Discussion Board of the Library’s Facebook page.
What was the world like for your grandmother?
