After Confederates shelled Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861, President Abraham Lincoln called for volunteers to restore order. Many northerners responded and rushed to create volunteer regiments. Yet when African Americans offered to serve, northern officials turned them down. After Ohio Governor William Dennison denied a request, the Cleveland Herald called his decision “eminently proper.” […]
29
Nov
10
Cleveland (OH) Herald & the USCT
Posted by sailerd Published in Civil War (1861-1865), Historic Periodicalsno comment
19
Nov
10
Election of 1860 – William Wilkins Letter
Posted by sailerd Published in Antebellum (1840-1861), Letters & DiariesWilliam Wilkins’ letter to James Webb, editor and publisher of the New York Courier and Enquirer, reveals an interesting view on some of the political perspectives that existed on the eve of the 1860 election. Wilkins, who graduated from Dickinson College in 1802, was a Pennsylvania Democratic politician who also served as Secretary of War […]
17
Nov
10
Election of 1860 – Cumberland County
Posted by sailerd Published in Antebellum (1840-1861), Images, Recent ScholarshipWhile Abraham Lincoln was elected “by one of the largest voter turnouts in United States history,” historian Phillip Shaw Paludan notes that “the Republican victory was entirely sectional.” Lincoln and Hannibal Hamblin did not receive any votes from the Deep South states. Yet divisions also existed within northern states, including Cumberland County, Pennsylvania. The election […]
15
Nov
10
“Beyond the Log Cabin: Kentucky’s Abraham Lincoln”
Posted by sailerd Published in 19th Century (1840-1880), Historic Periodicals, Images, Letters & Diaries“Beyond the Log Cabin: Kentucky’s Abraham Lincoln” is a great online exhibit created by the Kentucky Historical Society. This interactive site includes manuscripts and artifacts from over 40 repositories nationwide and the content is divided into four overall categories – Themes, Timeline, Treasures, and Resources. Themes include topics such as “Frontier World of Abraham Lincoln,” […]
12
Nov
10
Cornelia Peake McDonald Journal
Posted by sailerd Published in Civil War (1861-1865), Letters & DiariesWinchester, Virginia in the Shenandoah Valley was arguably the most contested town of the Civil War. Depending on how you count, the community changed hands over seventy times during four years. Several women kept diaries, wrote remarkable letters or crafted post-war reminiscences. One of the best hybrid collections (part-diary/ part-recollection) comes from Cornelia Peake McDonald […]
9
Nov
10
Kate Stone was twenty-years-old when Fort Sumter fell to Confederate forces. She was thrilled. Stone was an ardent southern nationalist from Louisiana who lived on a large plantation (Brokenburn) with many slaves and an extended family, including at least two brother who would die in the Confederate army. Within a month after Sumter, Stone began […]
8
Nov
10
New York Times Features House Divided Image
Posted by sailerd Published in Antebellum (1840-1861), ImagesA blog post by Jamie Malanowski in the New York Times’ “Disunion” series featured this political cartoon from House Divided’s image collection. In this entry Malanowski explores Abraham Lincoln’s victory in the 1860 election. Malanowski’s post is part of a new series that, as the New York Times explains, “revisits and reconsiders America’s most perilous […]
3
Nov
10
Election of 1860 – Carlisle American Volunteer
Posted by sailerd Published in Antebellum (1840-1861), Historic PeriodicalsWhen Democrats held a rally in Carlisle, Pennsylvania on October 6, 1860, the Carlisle (PA) American Volunteer reported that no one had been ready for the “overwhelming avalanche” of delegates from “every town and township in the county.” Over 8,000 people filled the streets before noon, according to some estimates. The American Volunteer backed Senator […]
