Happy Birthday, Mary Lincoln

No one ever gave up so much for this country. No one was ever so unappreciated for it.

Mary Todd was born this day in 1818 in Lexington, Kentucky. The Todds were well-to-do, well-connected, everything Mary's future husband was not. Without her, he could not have been president. He needed someone with her skills to take the rough edges off of him. To her everlasting credit, she did see potential in this man. Others did as well, but it is one thing to recognize promising qualities; it is quite another to hitch your wagon to that promise.

I have been researching the lives of Mary Lincoln, and her Confederate counter part, Varina Davis, for more than ten years. I am writng a one-woman play based on Mary's life, and a dual biography of the two women. They are endlessly fascinating.

Take a moment today to reflect on Mary Todd Lincoln's gift to the United States -- the life of her husband. She gave up her privacy, her peace of mind, and her family, for this great nation. She did not always give freely, but she sacrificed much. (Above, Sally Field as Mary Lincoln)

Gen. Maxcy Gregg

On this day in 1862, Confederate Gen. Maxcy Gregg of South Carolina died as a result of wounds suffered at Fredericksburg. I have always found him a compelling figure, very bright, outspoken, a man of action. He was portrayed by our friend, Buck Taylor, in the movie, Gods and Generals. Buck will be coming back to Kansas to narrate the film by Ken Spurgeon and Lone Chimney, Road to Valhalla.

April 4, 1865

Abraham Lincoln walked into the smoldering city of Richmond on this day in 1865. His son, Tad, tagged along. (Not with him was his wife, Mary, who had desperately wanted to accompany him on this momentous occasion--but that's another story.) Most of the white citizens who were left retreated behind closed doors and shutters and grieved for all their losses. The Black citizens met his boat at the dock and flocked behind him as he walked up the hill toward the Confederate White House. The smell of whiskey, tobacco, tar, and smoke combined with the warm day made it stifling. Lincoln took a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his forehead.

Surrounded by hundreds if not thousands of people, Lincoln entered the home of his Southern counterpart, Jefferson Davis. He sat at his desk, but he did not gloat. This victory had come at a high price. . . for the North and the South.

In recent years, a statue of Lincoln and his son (above) was placed in the Confederacy's capital. For a city of monuments, there was controversy over this one. There shouldn't be. At that point in time, Lincoln was the best friend the South had. Sadly, he, and his policy of "let them up easy," would soon be gone and the aftermath of this terrible war would become even more divisive.

(For more, see our book The Day Dixie Died: Southern Occupation, 1865-1866. If you can't find it in the bookstore, email me for a copy.)

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The Wonder of Kansas

Last night, my friend Janet and I were invited to attend the annual awards ceremony for the Kansas Association for Conservation and Environmental Education (KACEE). While several educators were honored, the big award went to Rex Buchanan of the Kansas Geological Survey. In every Kansan's library is a book called Roadside Kansas written by Rex and my friend, Jim McCauley, with PHENOMENAL photos by John Charlton. For all you folks who think Kansas is flat and boring, get this book!!!! Both Jim and John were guests on my radio show and their knowledge and experience is endless. ( I nearly fell off my chair laughing when Jim got a question and pulled out his pocket guide to "Geological Eras" or whatever it's called.) You can see more at http://www.kgs.ku.edu/. Visit this site. And again, I say, visit this site! The information and the photographs are priceless. What an incredible world we live in if we just take the time to explore and understand it.

Congratulations to Rex (right) on the John Strickler award last night and keep up the good work.

Abraham and Mary Lincoln Letters

From Antiques and the Arts Online:

R.M. Smythe & Co., Inc, held one of the most successful autograph auctions in its 125-year history on January 17. The sale, featuring the collection of Steven Lee Carson, saw more than 75 percent of the offered lots sell; and, in the end, bidders on the floor, on the phone and at their computers were able to take home a remarkable variety of historical autographs and Americana.

Not surprisingly, the highest hammer price was achieved by a letter written by President Abraham Lincoln, asking Secretary of War Edwin Stanton to approve the resignation of a cavalry captain at the request of the officer's wife. Lincoln, typically a "soft touch" in such cases, makes the argument that "we are rapidly getting an over-proportion of officers." The letter sold for $16,675.

Keeping it in the family, a pair of 1869 letters (one incomplete) from Lincoln's widow, in which she refers to him as having been "from my eighteenth year — Always — lover — husband — father and all, all to me — truly my all," brought $14,950.

We were on the same seminar schedule with Steven Lee Carson a couple of years ago and enjoyed him so much. Steven Lee has delivered addresses in The White House, The Kremlin, The U.S. Capitol, The Lincoln Memorial, Ford's Theater, The Smithsonian Institution, The National Archives, The Library of Congress, The Belfast (Northern Ireland) Parliament, over the Voice of America and throughout the United States. Most of the famous personalities covered in his speeches include the celebrities he has dealt with at The White House or as a member of The National Press Club. I enjoyed his stories immensely. What an incredible collection he has sold!

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More on Hillbillies

From fellow blogger, Byron, comes this link for Hillbilly Savants, a great site.http://hillbillysavants.blogspot.com/2008/02/whats-in-stereotype.html. Seems lots of folks are in an uproar over the prospective film depicting West Virginians as albino and hunchbacks.

Weather Or Not

Yes, those are mailman tracks. Yes, I finally shoveled the sidewalk about 6 o'clock last evening. . . .

I was up a little after 6 as usual, and had Noel to school by 7. The main roads are okay, but our sideroads never get scraped or salted, and the snow and ice just pack over the winter months. Being as this is flat land, school is never cancelled. Folks just careen into the parking lot and push their parka-ed youngsters out into the blizzard-like conditions. How unlike home. From today's Mount Airy News, and this is verbatim:

BREAKING NEWS
Published: Friday, December 7, 2007 8:40 AM CST
Weather advisory issued for Surry [County, NC], southwest Virginia

The National Weather Service has issued a severe weather advisory for Surry County and parts of southwest Virginia. The advisory, which remains in effect until 9 a.m., calls for the possibility of freezing rain and sleet. That could result in icy spots, especially on bridges and overpasses through mid-morning for Surry, Carroll, Grayson and Patrick counties in Virginia. In higher elevations, freezing precipitation could result in slippery roads and limited visibility.

The severe weather prompted Patrick and Yadkin County schools this morning to delay classes for two hours. For more on this story and other local news, check our Web site, www.mtairynews.com, throughout the day, or pick up a copy of Saturday's The Mount Airy News.

Note that the mere "possibility" of inclement weather caused a delay in schools' opening. My neighbors here think this is ludicrous. We have plenty of snow back home, so most people do know how to drive. However, we also have mountainous, narrow roads, plenty of hills, lots of trees to shade slick spots. I rather think the response to the weather harkens back to our ancestors who settled the mountains. To say that were not industrious would be outright wrong; but, they kept their own time, their own counsel. They were fatalists. If the weather turned bad, it was meant for them to stay home. I knew one lady who took this to such lengths that if she began to bake a cake and found she was out of eggs, she put the other ingredients away and determined, "it just wasn't meant for me to make a cake today."

Mountain people also possess an inate, inherent and incurable distrust of the government--any and all government. While residents of other areas of the country trust that "authorities" will insure our safety and make highways passable, mountain people harbor no such false hopes. Nope, if you can't clear the road yourself best to stay home.

I still struggle with those thoughts when I get out on the icy roads before daylight in a land where my neighbors seem oblvious to the peril before us. There are times when it just wasn't meant for us to challenge Mother Nature.

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Mary Lincoln Society

The Mary Lincoln Society, a newly formed group of local women interested in Mary Todd Lincoln, is seeking new members. The group will follow Mary’s life with talks about social, community, economic and political issues that affected her during her life. Lively discussion, guest speakers and fun will accompany these topics. The first meeting will be held sometime in January. There is no fee to join. Those interested may call 525-1825 or visit Tinsley Dry Goods, 209 S. Sixth St., Springfield, Illinois, during December to register. ___________________________________________
First Friday Artwalk

. . . . tonight in Topeka and your town, too. Take advantage of the talent, companionship, and refreshments in your own neighborhood.

Fast Time

I jumped up and started setting the clocks back this morning until Noel informed me that Daylight Savings Time doesn't end until next week. I grabbed my calendar and said, "See, right here, 'Daylight Savings Time Ends.'" What I failed to see was the fine print underneath that reads, Old. If you turn the calendar to November 4 it says, "Daylight Savings Time Ends New. Who reads the fine print? You see, time was when DST ended the last weekend of October. Now, it has been extended into November. I am so angry I could just spit nails.

I hate the Federal Government more every day. If there is nothing else in your life experience to convince you that conspiracy theories are real, let the time change be a lesson. Eventually, America, if we don't wake up, they will take that hour away and they will not give it back in the fall!

Folks used to refer to Daylight Savings Time as fast time, and Standard Time as slow time. Granny would sit on the porch in the evening, waiting for it to get dark enough to go to bed, and say, "I hate this fast time!"

So do I. And I cannot wait for it to end! I may just leave the clocks an hour behind. I'm never on time anyway.

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The Lincoln Presidential Museum and Library


. . . is phenomenal. As Noel and I walked through this week, I kept asking myself what would I have done differently, and I just can't think of anything. As you step through the stages of the Lincolns' lives, you come to understand how ordinary the family was and what an extraordinary place in history they now occupy. One of my favorite exhibits was "The Permissive Parent" (left). At the far left, stretched out on the sofa, his nose in the paper, is Lincoln the Lawyer. Meanwhile, Tad and Willie busy themselves destroying the office--splattering ink, scattering papers. William Herndon, Lincoln's law partner, was known to drink and who could blame him? He describes Lincoln as oblivious to the boys' behavior.

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Topeka Cemetery Tour

. . . today at 2 p.m., and Halloween Day at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Meet at the cemetery office (pictured right during an earlier tour) at 10th and California. Cost is $10 per person.

Washington's Shadow

This is a holy day in the annals of Virginia history--the birthday of the father of our country. Both countries, if you read your Confederate history.

In this month of Lincoln mania, the name of his fellow Kentuckian, Jefferson Davis, uncomfortably pops up every now and then. Would Lincoln have been as great without Davis? (Now there's a question for Brian Dirck!).

The first and only president of the Confederate States of America, Davis held his second, yes second, inaugural on this day in 1862, in the shadow of Washington's equestrian statue in Richmond (above). The new nation wanted everyone to get the point--the Confederacy was carrying on the ideals of the American Revolution, not the Yankees in the North. Having been installed in Montgomery as the "provisional president," Davis was now the elected and bonafide leader of the fledgling nation.

It was a miserable day. There was a cold, cold rain and Confederate reversals filled the news. Fort Donelson had fallen. Nashville had been captured. The glories and victories of the first days were fading memories as grim reports rolled in.

In the Confederate White House, Varina Davis (left, with her husband on their wedding day), rushed to join the ceremony. A carriage had been dispatched to take her to the square, a short ride. She looked out the coach windows and saw black men with black suits and white gloves walking along beside her. When asked who they were, the driver responded, "Pallbearers." Varina was informed they were normally used for funerals and important events. She dismissed them. This whole day was depressing enough without the escort of pallbearers!

The First Lady of the Confederacy arrived late and stood in the crowd. She saw her husband raise his arms to the heavens, asking for God's blessing. She shuddered. Varina thought he looked like Christ about to be crucified. She turned and walked home alone.
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Sisters in Sorrow

I have been working on a book on Varina Davis and Mary Lincoln (right) for several years. The boxes of notes pile up in my office, the manuscript is written, trashed, and rewritten. I keep plugging, and eventually a book will emerge.

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Civil War News

Virginia has opted out of celebrating the bicentennial of the birth of Abraham Lincoln. Declining to appoint a committee to observe the festivities in 2009, one legislator commented, "He wasn't a Virginian." This decision has created quite the stir, but come on people. Virginia is in the midst of its 400th birthday, there is a national Lincoln celebration planned, and because the nation's capitol is smack dab next to the Old Dominion, Virginians will be well-represented. (I do wonder though, if this means they'll be taking the Virginia flag out of Lincoln's tomb at Springfield?)
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Email

Deb-
I absolutely love both blogs. Keep up the awesome writing. I understand the work involved in maintaining a daily blog. My 5 year old son has a blog that he posts to daily (well, he dictates and I type and post), but it's quite the job. I appreciate the time you and Tom take every day to write. Your writings are truly a respite from present day stress. I read several newspapers every day and its nice to kick back and read your blogs.
By the way, if you get a second and need a laugh, you can find my son's blog at http://www.thedinosaurboy.com.
Clint, Tooele, UT

DG--My Goodness! The competition gets younger and younger! Thanks very much, Clint. It's good to be a respite. And Dinosaur Boy, the photo below is for you.____________________________________________
Twisted History

















In a brilliant plan of attack, use of the Confederate secret weapon had been thwarted.
(Thanks to Mike Epstein and Blair Tarr )