On to the next Abe adventure

The Amazing Abe Adventure 2009 has drawn to a close. In its place, I face the reality of laundry to be folded, bills to be paid, a return to work. My two-week Lincoln adventure in Washington, D.C. and Gettysburg will be replaced with real life, with Lincoln squeezed in between the must-dos.

What will my next Amazing Abe Adventures be? Trips, books, speeches? Yes, I want to. Yes, I plan to. Yes, I'm hoping.

During the Washington, D.C. stint of our trip, I realized there is much more there I need to see and do, including using my new Library of Congress reader card. Having one and "getting the taste a bit" convinces me I've not seen the last of the manuscript room.

The Lincoln Forum Symposium was all I'd hoped it would be and more. It won't be my last. And, now that I know of the other interesting commemorative activities Gettysburg hosts each year, I am convinced I'll want to return there as well.

I'm also looking forward to visiting Lincoln's haunts in Kentucky and Indiana, including making time to see the Library of Congress Lincoln exhibit when Indiana hosts it.

And then there's the blog, Twitter, book reviews, scholarly papers, my planned Lincoln books - three or four, at least - and giving speeches about Lincoln again.

Yep, my next Abe adventures have just begun. Sometimes, as on my recent trip, I'll meet myself coming and going. If, however, I can continue to live my mission of spreading enthusiasm about the life and legacy of Lincoln, it will all be worth it.

Brevity of words served Lincoln well

As my time at the Lincoln Forum ends, I’m reminded of Abraham Lincoln’s brevity of words . I’m also tired, so keeping this short seems fitting and proper.

The Lincoln Forum was magnificent. Everyone who loves history, Lincoln, the Civil War or being among friends should go. Fair warning, though – it’s like a popular brand of potato chips. You won’t be able to stop at just one.

Author Fred Kaplan started this last day with “Lincoln’s Genius with Language” and showed his own genius as well.

Harold Holzer moderated a panel where Catherine Clinton, Jason Emerson and Charles Lachman disussed Lincoln “Family Matters.” From their ancestors to Lincoln’s grandchildren, it was obvious family did matter to Lincoln.

We had free time in the afternoon to explore Gettysburg, starting with the Wills House. I didn’t get my Wills tour in today, though. I had some Lincoln business to attend to in a couple downtown shops.

Our evening speaker was to be Associate Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, but since her husband passed away last week, Richard Dreyfuss filled in as the dinner speaker. His reading of the Second Inaugural Address would have made Lincoln proud. Our sympathy to Justice O’Connor and family.

I’m close to using up my word count and tired to boot, so I’ll be back with more on The Amazing Abe Adventure another day. In the meantime, keep the Lincoln legacy alive in your world.

Long days, short nights, but worth it

As I'm sitting here late at night in a room far from home, I'm reminded of other nights long ago when something kept me up late. Back then it was one of two soft little bundles needing to be rocked to sleep and put to bed. Though the days of staying up late with my young daughters is long gone, I am up late with another of my babies. Even after a long day at the Lincoln Forum Symposium, I can't go to sleep until I've tucked my baby in bed. This time, though, the baby is a blog.

Lincoln Forum XIV
I'm at the 14th Annual Lincoln Forum Symposium in Gettysburg, my first. If you follow me on Twitter, you may already have a pretty good idea of today's activities. If you don't, I'll let you in a little on the fun.

I never get tired of learning new things about Lincoln, and today was no exception. I couldn't have asked for a more engaging lineup:

• Eileen Mackevich filled us in on the accomplishments of the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission and, believe me, they're impressive.
• John Marszaleck reported on the U.S. Grant Papers. After hearing him speak, I know they're in good hands.
• Ron White used Lincoln's eloquence himself in his presentation, "Abraham Lincoln 2009: Wisdom for Today."
• Vernon Burton was as enthusiastic as always as he shared his "Age of Lincoln" talk.
• Catherine Clinton's "Mary Lincoln Reconsidered" entertained as only Clinton can. She's one spunky historian - and one of too few women writing about history.
• Lewis Lehrman hit the mark with his talk about the Peoria speech. "Lincoln at the Turning Point: From Peoria to the Presidency" even attracted a question from one of my Twitter followers.
• Daniel Weinberg led a great panel on Lincoln collecting, with Lewis Lehrman, Frank J. Williams, Norman Boaz and Don McCue
• English Lincoln scholar Richard Carwardine rounded out the evening with "Just Laughter: The Moral Springs of Lincoln's Humor."

I'll try to come back to some of these in more depth later, but I think I'll turn the baby in tonight and get some shuteye myself. Follow me on Twitter tomorrow. Tomorrow night's speaker is sure to be a crowd pleaser - one of my favorties and one who has brought joy to many others through the years. Tomorrow is another Amazing Abe Adventure. Hope you'll join me.

Blog post 200 celebrates a dream come true

I wonder if Abraham Lincoln ever got frustrated with the telegraph. Where's Tom Wheeler, the Lincoln and the telegraph expert, when you need him? Bet he could tell us!

I just had one of the coolest experiences of my life. I sat down and poured it all out in a blog post sharing why I've just had a dream come true, and lost everything I wrote when my hotel Internet connection cut off. Guess that will teach me to write them in Word first instead of typing directly into the blog publishing tool. And, on top of that, it's my 200th post!

So what's the dream?
I am in Gettysburg, Pa. at the Lincoln Forum Symposium with nearly 300 other Lincoln enthusiasts and/or scholars celebrating the life and legacy of our 16th President. I've wanted to come to a Lincoln Forum Symposium ever since 2005. You can read why in my tribute to the late David Herbert Donald. I took the advice he, Harold Holzer and Matt Pinsker gave me when the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum opened - and I'm not disappointed.

If you're not a Lincoln buff, but you like sports, imagine what it would be like to get all the top athletes into one room at same time - but leave the ego behind. The Lincoln scholars I've met are the most supportive, humble people I know, and the Lincoln buffs here are just as enthusiastic as I am. It's a great place to be.

McPherson on Lincoln
I got to hear James McPherson speak tonight and there are lots more great speakers to come in the next two days. McPherson's talk on "Lincoln and the West" was a fine reminder that the West in Lincoln's day and before was much further east than the West of which we often are reminded. He also spoke on one of my pet Lincoln projects - Lincoln and the railroad. You can bet this talk will be one of my sources as I move forward with my research.

I got to meet Dr. McPherson last night, and told him I'd reviewed one of his books. Unfortunately, that late at night at the end of a very long week and the start of another, I couldn't remember which one I'd reviewed. I looked at the three in front of me and wondered, "Which one did I review, and why don't I have it here?" I later realized it was his neat little 79-page volume, and I didn't have it with me because I'd read a library copy. Guess I'd better get my own before the next time I see him! It's a true gem - a short, easy and delightful read. Here's what I had to say about it.

Don't forget - I tweet, too
I'll try to share the enthusiasm as I can. I won't be blogging during the day, but I will tweet when possible. If you are a Lincoln buff and you want to know what we're up to out here in Gettysburg, follow me on Twitter, too. I'm also LincolnBuff2 on there. I'm almost at 600 Twitter followers. Wouldn't it be cool if we could hit that milestone during the Forum?

Watch out, though. I'll be in the clouds the next few days. Reading this blog and my tweets may elevate your Lincoln enthusiasm to new levels, too.

*Revised Nov. 17, 2009 to add further detail on McPherson talk and my review of his book

See new Lincoln Forum website, check out 2Clicks

The Lincoln Forum launched their new website this week. Be sure to stop in to look at it.

Lincoln Forum Symposium
If you're planning to attend the 14th Annual Lincoln Forum Symposium, the website says registration forms will be available online April 15, 2009. Lincoln buffs with active Lincoln Forum memberships likely received theirs in the mail already and, if they're like me, sent them back by return mail.

Be sure to visit the website to see the schedule. Once again, the lineup is a "Who's Who" of Lincoln experts. You won't want to miss it.

And, the symposium is at a new, larger venue this year. When I saw Harold Holzer in Jacksonville recently, he was quite enthusiastic about the new location. I'm sure the folks pulling this event together put a lot of research and hard work into this change. Since this will be my first, and long-awaited, Lincoln Forum event, I have nothing to compare it to. I'll just be thrilled to be there. My friends in the Lincoln world tell me this event is so popular that in the past, due to capacity restraints, some folks had to be turned away. Especially in this bicentennial year, it's nice to know more folks can attend. Thanks, Lincoln Forum board.

Willard wows with website
In an earlier post, I told you about a valuable resource for Lincoln buffs created by Lincoln enthusiast Bob Willard. Willard has created a website (a portal of sorts, in techie terms) to take seekers of all things Lincoln to online sources with just two clicks of the mouse. Willard just keeps making it better and better.

Please stop by to check it out.

© Copyright 2009 Ann Tracy Mueller. All rights reserved.

Best wishes, Chief Justice Williams

An announcement late Thursday afternoon caught the State of Rhode Island and the Lincoln world off guard. Chief Justice Frank J. Williams of Rhode Island Supreme Court announced his retirement from the Court.

The good news is that Williams is still a leading Lincoln scholar and author, a member of the U.S. Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, chair of the Rhode Island Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, founding chair of the Lincoln Forum, member and former leader in many other Lincoln-related groups, and a recipient of a special Lincoln Bicentennial Order of Lincoln honor.

This man has done phenomenal work in the Lincoln world while working full-time. I can’t wait to see where his career as a Lincoln scholar goes from here. It's late on a Sunday night. I know I’m cutting this story way too short tonight, so I’m adding Frank J. Williams to my list of future topics. I promise to tell you more about his books and his work on Lincoln in an upcoming article.

For now, you can read more about the Chief Justice’s career and retirement in The Providence Journal online articles.

Judge Williams, if you’re reading, I wish you all the best. I look forward to seeing you around the Lincoln circuit – Eighth or otherwise. Ann

Looking forward – Peering back

This past week was a busy one for the Lincoln buff, with Lincoln activities five out of seven days. Let’s take a peek back at the culmination of my Heartland College Lincoln class and at other Lincoln events I attended in Central Illinois. Let’s also look forward to what the Lincoln buff has planned now that my course is completed.

Never too much Lincoln
I began a whirlwind week on Tuesday, Dec. 2, as one of nine students giving oral presentations of our term papers. To learn more about the class, the students and the paper topics, see my article, Lasting Mark Left by Lincoln Class.

Wednesday of last week found me joining hundreds of other Central Illinoisans fighting freezing rain on I-55 as I travelled to Springfield to a Public Relations Society of America meeting where Julie Cellini of the Illinois Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission told us what the commission has done to prepare for the bicentennial, what they’ve accomplished to date and what we have to look forward to. I’ll tell you more in a future article. It’s exciting.

The Lincoln world was well represented at that meeting, with people there from the Bicentennial Commission, the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum and the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. All have great accomplishments behind them and a great task before them in preparing for Lincoln’s 200th birthday. It should be a celebration to remember.

On Thursday, I was accompanied by my young granddaughter to the volunteer and foundation member reception at the David Davis Mansion. What little girl – or big – wouldn’t be excited about seeing a beautiful 19th century showplace dressed up in all its holiday finery – right down to a teddy bears’ tea party? Watch future posts for more information about this architectural and historic treasure in Bloomington (Ill.), which has strong connections to the Lincoln legacy.

On the two days I didn’t have Lincoln events, I was preparing for one. I spent Saturday and Sunday studying for my final exam. Lest I give the questions away to future students of this class, I won’t give you the topics. Let it suffice to say one involved something which touched Lincoln’s entire life – a heavy, but important topic. I absorbed it, though, and made it through my Monday night final, melancholy that this once-a-week intellectual fix was coming to an end.

During my lunch time on Tuesday, I attended the dedication for the first of a number of Looking for Lincoln wayside exhibits in the Bloomington-Normal area. The Bloomington exhibits are just a handful of the more than 200 which will grace sites with connections to Lincoln from one end of the Prairie State to the other by the end of 2009. I’ll tell you more about this ceremony, the wayside exhibits and the Looking for Lincoln Heritage Coalition in future articles.

What’s on the horizon?
Although the class is finished, the Lincoln buff is just beginning. In 2009 and beyond, my schedule is ambitious. My first order of business is to complete an industry designation I’ve started for my real job. I’ll begin study this week and continue it through and beyond Lincoln’s February 12 birthday. So, if there are times when you don’t see a post for a day or two, don’t give up on me. Just realize I may have had to take time to study.

As for Lincoln, I won’t let him down. I plan to continue the blog and, to work toward my goal of growing my knowledge – and yours - of the life and legacy of Lincoln, I’ll be spending much of my vacation time attending Lincoln celebrations and scholarly events, including:

• Bicentennial activities and scholarly events in Springfield in February
• The Illinois State Historical Society and Illinois College’s symposium, “Lincoln in Ante-Bellum Illinois” in March
• The Lincoln Forum symposium at Gettysburg in November

In the coming years, I also plan to:

• refine and expand my paper on Lincoln and his mentors,
• continue my work on Lincoln and Sandburg and on Lincoln in Illinois literature, and
• begin an in-depth study of David Davis and his relationship with Lincoln.

The blog lives on
My original intent was to keep the blog active through 2010 to extend more than a year past the bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth. However, a very wise Illinois historian recently reminded me the interest in Lincoln will surely intensify and continue as the commemoration of the sesquicentennial of the Civil War begins in 2011 and extends through 2015. Though that commemoration will likely be somber rather than celebratory like the Lincoln Bicentennial, it will serve as a time to continue to teach and to learn. God willing, I’ll be here and so will the technology so that this forum can continue to share what’s happening, what’s new in Lincoln scholarship and what I’ve learned. I’ll try not to let you down.

C-SPAN offers ongoing Lincoln programming

As a partner with the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, C-SPAN is there to document many of the exciting ongoing Lincoln activities.

Don’t miss these December events
Here are just a few you won’t want to miss:

• Sunday, Dec. 14 – Book TV – 12-1:30 ET - Michael Burlingame talks about his new book, “Abraham Lincoln: A Life,” a 1800 page, 2-volume biography
• Sunday, Dec. 14-20 – White House Week documentary series on C-SPAN with a number of leading Lincoln scholars, including:
  o Harold Holzer
  o Doris Kearns Goodwin
  o Richard Norton Smith
  o Anthony Pitch
  o And others

Watch for future programs
C-SPAN will air Lincoln 200 Years programming the first Saturday of each month from 8-10 p.m. through April 2009. Future events will:

• explore Lincoln’s time in Springfield, Illinois, where he spent more than half of his life,
• offer a view of the recent renovations at the Fords Theatre in Washington, D.C., where Lincoln was shot, and
• give you a look at Lincoln events throughout the United States.

For more information
Information on C-SPAN Lincoln 200 programs are available on their website. While you’re there, be sure to stay a while. There are hours and hours of previously recorded Lincoln programming which will provide a deeper look into the 16th president and his legacy and introduce you to those who study them. What a wonderful opportunity to grow your knowledge of Lincoln. I go there often and still haven’t watched everything.

Be sure to visit the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission (ALBC) website as well for an ongoing calendar of Lincoln-related events across the country.

My home state of Illinois has a great Bicentennial Commission, which is doing a great job of sharing the legacy of Lincoln. I’ll tell you more about what they’re doing and what they have planned in a future article. The calendar of events for the week of Lincoln’s birthday is already jam-packed and the Lincoln buff has her week planned. His birthday, Thursday, Feb. 12, will be a particularly busy day – with something to do in Springfield literally every hour. Be sure to see the calendar to start planning your week.

A number of other states also have their own bicentennial commissions. Links to several of them can be found on the left side of my blog through the links titled, “Celebrate Lincoln at 200 - Bicentennial websites.” If you can’t find your state listed there, see the list on the ALBC website.

* Thanks to Betty Anselmo of The Lincoln Forum for an informative email alerting Lincoln buffs to upcoming C-SPAN events.

First Lady, Lincoln’s Rivals, Ford’s Theatre and Abe’s Home make news

This was a big day in Lincoln news. Plenty of other great scribes penned Lincoln stories today with all kinds of interesting news. Let me direct you to the top four in my book.

First Lady doesn’t let Kentucky down
I was so excited last February 12 when the Abraham Bicentennial celebration was to officially begin at Lincoln’s birthplace in Kentucky. It did get off to a start that day, in spite of a snow storm moving into the area.

Lincoln scholar Harold Holzer and actor Sam Waterston, who portrays the Cooper Union Lincoln, were there to kick things off. You can watch an interview of the two from that day on C-SPAN’s Lincoln Bicentennial website. Unfortunately, First Lady Laura Bush couldn’t make it then because the blizzard conditions got too severe.

She kept her commitment to the bicentennial, though, and today, a little more than eight months later, much to the delight of an eight-year-old who got to introduce her, she was there to kick off the "Give a Lincoln For Lincoln" fundraising campaign for six key Lincoln sites. Thank you, Mrs. Bush.

Be sure to read about her trip to Hodgenville in Bruce Schreiner’s Associated Press article, as featured in the Chicago Tribune.

Matthew Pinsker cautions using Lincoln’s team as model
In my blog and in person, I've stayed away from the whole Lincoln-Obama thing. I'm not a politician. Until this fall, when I started the Lincoln class at Heartland College, my knowledge was of the popular Lincoln, the mythological Lincoln and Lincoln in the literature of Illinois. I had a fairly good grasp of them, but his legal career, his political career, his presidency - those where all overwhelming and foreign to me.

Thanks to the class, my professor, Dr. Scott Rager, David Herbert Donald's book, Lincoln, which we’re using as a text, the scholarly events I'm attending and the independent research I'm doing, those aspects of Lincoln aren’t quite so foreign anymore. Yet still, I leave comments on Barack Obama, Lincoln and politics to those who are more qualified than I am. I know I have miles to go before I'm an authority on those subjects.

I've read some of the Team of Rivals comparisons, but not yet read the book. Yet, as a Lincoln blogger, I’d be remiss if I didn’t draw your attention – and President-Elect Obama’s - to an opinion column by Lincoln scholar Matthew Pinsker today in the Los Angeles Times.

Pinsker reminds us that some of the lessons to be learned from Lincoln’s team were pretty tough ones. And, as I would expect from an accomplished scholar like Dr. Donald’s protégé, he uses diary quotes from Lincoln’s day with which the common reader - and likely Obama - may not be familiar, to substantiate his opinion. May the column serve as food for thought for our president-elect and his advisors.

Ford’s Theatre awarded honors
First Lady Laura Bush wasn’t the only one honoring Lincoln this week.

Her husband, President George W. Bush, named the Ford's Theatre Society a 2008 National Medal of Arts recipient. The award was presented in a White House ceremony yesterday. The Ford’s Theatre, where Lincoln was shot, is one of the sites to be helped by the “Give a Lincoln for Lincoln” campaign.

And, at the Lincoln Forum in Gettysburg, the Volk Lincoln Honor was also awarded to the Ford's Theatre yesterday. This award honors the contributions the theatre makes to the Lincoln legacy. Read more about the theatre’s honors in Adam Hetrick’s Playbill article.

Springfield sites gussy up for company
Back here in Illinois, we’re making news, too. Several of our Springfield Lincoln sites are getting all fancied up for Lincoln’s upcoming birthday. Read about the redecorating at the Lincoln home and at the nearby James Morse house. Thanks to two of our great State Journal-Register journalists, Bruce Rushton and Mike Kienzler, for sharing these stories.

Mike is also a blogger. Check out his cool ALO blog, and don’t forget to add it to your list of “must click” Lincoln sites.

Lincoln’s Home is also a “Give a Lincoln for Lincoln” benefactor.

© Copyright 2008 Ann Tracy Mueller. All rights reserved.

Scholars congregate and letter surfaces

There was plenty of Lincoln news today, and it’s too interesting not to share.

Lincoln Forum symposium opens
The Lincoln Forum symposium opened Sunday in Gettysburg. James R. Carroll of the Louisville (Ky.) Courier-Journal made sure the event was chronicled. You’ll want to read his article to hear what these Lincoln buffs have to say:

• Frank J. Williams, Rhode Island Supreme Court Chief Justice, quintessential Lincoln scholar, chairman of the Lincoln Forum, Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission member, author or editor of more than a dozen books, annual cataloguer of Lincolniana and more
• David Wiegers, an Illinois photographer
• David Leroy, chair of the Idaho Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission
• Daniel Weinberg, owner of Chicago’s famous Abraham Lincoln Book Shop

Like many of the scholars attending the symposium, Leroy, Wiegers and Williams are all in the midst of Lincoln book projects. Carroll tells you a little about a couple of them and why the Lincoln legacy continues to captivate people almost 200 years after his birth.

The Bixby letter (found?)
Even those who aren’t Lincoln buffs remember the famous Lincoln letter featured in the moving “Saving Private Ryan” – the letter the president wrote to a mother whose five sons all were believed to have perished in battle during the War Between the States.

The Dallas Historical Society recently found a document in its archives which it hopes is an honest-to-goodness copy of this famous letter. The letter will be appraised to help determine if it is the real deal. Read Jeff Carlton’s Associated Press story as featured in today’s Houston Chronicle to learn more.

By the way
Did you know that Steven Spielberg, who brought us Private Ryan, also has a Lincoln project in the works – supposedly in 2010? I’m not spreading any rumors about who’ll be filling the roles, but you can get a little info from the Internet Movie Data Base. In the meantime, if Mr. Spielberg wants to let Lincoln Buff 2 know the real scoop, I’ll be glad to share it with the rest of you.

© Copyright 2008 Ann Tracy Mueller. All rights reserved.

I’ll be back…

Thanks to all the visitors who’ve stopped at my blog over the past month. I’ve enjoyed doing it. I hope you’ve learned a thing or two and found value or enjoyment here. I’ve got some other obligations coming up at home so I won’t be blogging for the next couple weeks. That doesn’t mean the rest of you should pull away from the Lincoln world, though. And, don’t worry, I will be back!

Don’t let the bicentennial pass you by
Make the most of your time as a Lincoln buff. There are plenty of new Lincoln books you can get lost in. Lincoln scholars will be doing book signings. Communities will offer Lincoln-related events. You can learn where Lincoln things are happening by visiting Abraham Lincoln Online or the Lincoln Bicentennial website. Remember the celebration of Lincoln’s 200th birthday only comes once – and we’ve got the opportunity to savor it!

Lincoln at Gettysburg – and maybe you, too
If you’re really lucky, you’re already a Lincoln scholar and you’ll be at the 13th Annual Lincoln Forum Symposium in Gettysburg from Nov. 16-18, 2008 and the Town of Gettysburg Remembrance Day Activities on Nov. 19. If, like me, you can’t make it to Gettysburg, you can watch the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission Dedication Day Ceremony on C-SPAN on Nov. 19 (the 145th anniversary of the Gettysburg Address). Check the C-SPAN website or your local program schedule for the time, still to be announced.

Tell me how you’re learning about Lincoln
If you enjoy my blog, I’d love to hear from you. And, if you go to Gettysburg for the Forum, I’d love to hear about it. Please use the comments function. If you don’t see yours posted right away, be patient. When I can get time to review them, I’ll post them for the rest of my readers to see. I really do appreciate your feedback.

Thanks for visiting. Talk to you again soon. Ann

© Copyright 2008 Ann Tracy Mueller. All rights reserved.