Gettysburg commemorates with class

It's our last full day in Gettysburg and leaving is hard. In just a few short days, I've grown quite fond of this town where Lincoln's 10 sentences still resonate and the spirits of those who fought and died still radiate.

Why is it, do you suppose, that on the days we turn out to commemorate our veterans or war dead, the sun seems to shut its eyelids and release its tears? It happened last Wednesday at Arlington and again today at Gettysburg. The drizzle didn't stop the ceremony, though, and Gettysburg did it up right. I tweeted during the event, so you can get a flavor of it there. I'll write more in a future blog post.

Thanks to the rain, I had to do a little "hair repair" before going to my next event - the Lincoln Fellowship of Pennsylvania's luncheon at Gettysburg College. Talk about doing something right - this event was so jam-packed and enjoyable that I was nearly an hour late meeting my hubby and didn't even realize how much time had passed. Met some very interesting, very talented, very promising and very well-loved folks. Can't wait to tell you about them, but I'll have to save these stories, too, for another day.

I spent my afternoon in downtown Gettysburg, visiting the newly restored Wills House, the train station and a yummy restaurant the townies choose. We closed our day at the historic Majestic Theatre, where we heard a world-class world premiere of a musical production, a very inspirational talk by author Jeff Shaara, a very, very funny acceptance speech by young author Nick Taylor, recipient of the Michael Shaara award for Civil War Fiction, and a speech by Michael Burlingame that entertains no matter now many times I've heard parts of it. And, Michael, you've got another feather in your hat. You just may have hooked my hubby on Lincoln!

The Amazing Abe Adventure is winding down and I'm starting to feel like an unwound wind-up toy. It's been a long couple weeks, but a time I wouldn't trade for anything in the world. Hope you felt a little of my excitement along the way and share even more of my enthusiasm for Lincoln. If so, the late nights and early mornings were worth it. Come back to visit the blog again. I'll try to tell you more about many of the people I met, talks I heard, things I experienced.

I'll be leaving Gettysburg, but I don't think it will ever leave me. I won't even try to put into words the power of this place. I just don't think it can be done.

Burlingame answers call to teach in Springfield

There's excitement in the air in Springfield today. Michael Burlingame is coming to town, and not just to do research at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum (ALPLM) this time. He's coming to live and teach and, okay, to do research, too. After all, he's Michael Burlingame. He's the guy with the mantra, "Get down and dirty in that primary source material." He's the guy who lives the mantra. His new two-volume Abraham Lincoln: A Life is proof positive those primary sources still hold plenty of unmined treasures.

Since 2007, the University of Illinois (UIS) has been without a Lincoln scholar. Philip Shaw Paludan held the university's Naomi B. Lynn Distinguished Chair in Lincoln Studies until his death that year. Burlingame will fill the post well. He feels fortunate for the opportunity. I've walked into the ALPLM library before and spotted Burlingame sitting at a table doing research. He looks so natural there. And, you can be assured he'll spend plenty of time at those tables, as well as in many other repostitories large and small across the prairie state where newpapers, letters and more hold Lincoln stories yet untold.

Burlingame's not the only one who is lucky. We are, too. For decades, many of the leading Lincoln scholars were on the east coast, including Burlingame. We've been blessed with the brilliant Rodney Davis and Doug Wilson in the Lincoln Studies Center at Knox College, Vernon Burton at the University of Illinois until his recent retirement, and others here and there in the Midwest from time and time, but it seemed a shame that the town where Lincoln spent more years than any other didn't have a scholar of this caliber in recent years. Now, we do. And, this Lincoln buff for one is pretty excited about it. Hope you are, too.

Please join me in congratulating Michael Burlingame on this wonderful new opportunity - and UIS on their wisdom in bringing him here. As Steven Covey would say, it's a win-win. What a birthday present to Abraham Lincoln in his bicentennial year!

Learn more
Please read Pete Sherman's story in today's State Journal-Register to learn more about Burlingame's new opportunity. To learn more about Burlingame and his work, visit his website, too.

© Copyright 2009 Ann Tracy Mueller. All rights reserved.

Jacksonville 2009 continued

We have some unfinished business here. I told you earlier of my first day or so of the 29th Annual Illinois History Symposium at Jacksonville (Ill.), which was held March 26-28, 2009.

An aside from one of my farmer friends: When I told him I'd been to a symposium, he wrote back to ask, "What do you do at a symposium, anyway? I killed a couple posiums once..." I choose friends who make me laugh - and they always come through.

My reply to him was, "No critters killed - possums or otherwise! ;-)"

Lunch with friends and "Strange-rs"
Another of my newer Lincoln buff friends - one who is an old and valued friend to many Lincoln scholars - Michael Burlingame, was the luncheon speaker on Friday, March 27.

I had the pleasure at that luncheon to have among my tablemates another of my newer Lincoln buff friends, Martha Vertreace-Doody, about whom you'll hear more later, and two of my old Galesburg "friends," Dr. Owen Muelder, and his wife, Laurie.

I had an interesting visit with the Muelders about the rich history of Galesburg, Muelder's encounters as a child with Carl Sandburg and others on the occasion of the Oct. 7, 1958 centennial of the Galesburg Lincoln-Douglas debate, the hope we have for a resurrected Galesburg and the nine-way race for mayor there.

Owen Muelder, of the Underground Railroad Freedom Center at Galesburg's Knox College, was to be presenting at one of the afternoon sessions. Laurie was a long-time teacher in Galesburg's District 205, and though both of us were struggling to remember for sure at the luncheon, I learned later she did have at least one of my daughters in her class at Churchill Junior High School.

Unfortunately, I didn't make it to Muelder's session, as I'd already planned to hear Vertreace-Moody and my friend, Dan Guillory, read in a poetry session at the same time. I'm optimistic, though, that our paths will cross again and I'll get to hear Muelder in a future event.

Congratulations on a well-deserved award
So back to Burlingame, friend and Strange-r. One of the most exciting things about the luncheon was learning that Burlingame was the recipient of the Russell P. Strange Book Award - the third annual, if I'm not mistaken.

According to the release for the 2007 award, the first annual, it's named for Colonel Russell P. Strange, a former vice president of the Society and a lifelong student of history. Col. Strange had an illustrious career as head of the University of Illinois's Air Force ROTC unit and chair of Eastern Illinois University's political science department, his position at the time of his death in 1966.

The award was established by Priscilla J. Matthews, daughter of Colonel Strange. At the time of the 2007 award, Matthews was a Senior Cataloging Librarian at Milner Library and a member of the library faculty at Illinois State University. As far as I can tell, it appears she probably still is.

Burlingame's talk was, as always, entertaining, engaging and humorous - and, even though I heard Burlingame present similar speeches twice on Lincoln's birthday, it never gets old listening to him.

In fact, I was so engaged and so excited about his talk that I had an absent-minded moment once it was over. In my rush to have him sign my copy of his two-volume, 2000-page book, Abaham Lincoln: A Life, I left my camera on the luncheon table. Fortunately, an honest student-worker or catering staff member found it and turned it in to the Illinois Historical Society staff, and Mary Lou Johnsrud, symposium coordinator extraordinaire, kept it safe until I realized it was missing and was able to retrieve it.

He ain't heavy
I'm not surprised I left my camera behind. My backpack, you see, was so full I could barely zip it, primarily due to the magisterial nature of the Burlingame book. It's been a few years since I've carried such a bulging book bag across campus. As I walked to my morning event, stepping back in time and memory to the years of 1970-72, when I traipsed the campus of nearby Quincy College, now Quincy University, I was also reminded of the 1969 song lyrics, "He ain't heavy. He's my brother," and the much earlier Boy's Town theme along the same lines.

All I could think was, "I'll make it across campus with these books. There's no place else I'd rather be right now than with my Lincoln buff brothers and sisters. I can carry Burlingame around. He's not heavy. He's my Lincoln brother."

I got to visit with Burlingame. I got his autograph, and I'm looking forward to the next time we meet on the Lincoln circuit. If my little birdies are correct, I may have that chance later this year in Bloomington. I hope so. I'd love to have my novice Lincoln buff friends and coworkers get to meet and hear him.

But, wait ... there's more
Come back to my blog again soon. I've still got lots to share about the rest of the symposium and other happenings in the Lincoln world.

On the road again

This history buff has always wanted to attend the Illinois History Symposium . Once again, wishes can come true. Tomorrow morning, I head to Jacksonville (Ill.) for the 29th Annual Illinois History Symposium, “Abraham Lincoln in Ante-Bellum Illinois: 1830-1861."

The schedule is very full, so I'm not sure if I'll have much blogging time. I may try to twitter if I can figure out how to make it work from my phone. You'll find me as LincolnBuff2 on Twitter. Here are just a few of the symposium highlights: Luncheon lectures with Wayne Temple and Michael Burlingame and a production of "Lincoln Seen and Heard" with my friend Harold Holzer and Academy Award winning actor, Richard Dreyfuss.

Now, I'm just trying to figure out how to drop enough hints to get Holzer to introduce me to Dreyfuss. I've admired that guy since Jaws. Getting down on my knees and begging is not an option!

Don't forget to watch Burlingame tonight

--Updated 5:25 p.m. March 5, 2009

Michael Burlingame will be joining Daniel Weinberg of the Abraham Lincoln Book Shop for a Virtual Book Signing this evening, March 5, at 6 p.m. Central Time. Be sure to join and watch online as Burlingame talks about his new two-volume, 2,000-page* biography, Abraham Lincoln: A Life.

These are really nice events. Weinberg has such a knack for interviewing. You'll really feel as if you're all just sitting around in his living room chatting about the book. Burlingame is quite personable himself - and funny, too. Be sure to watch for his quip about the size of the book.

*Thanks to Bjorn of the Abraham Lincoln Book Shop, who noticed that I originally said 2000-word instead of 2000-page. That's what I get for trying to blog before my first cup of morning coffee!

Coming this weekend – another Virtual Book Signing

One of the highlights of my bicentennial pilgrimage to Springfield was having the opportunity to meet Lincoln scholars and experts I’ve covered in my blog. The first Lincoln author/expert I ran into on Sunday, Feb. 8 was Daniel Weinberg of the Abraham Lincoln Book Shop in Chicago.

Weinberg and I had exchanged emails a time or two and I’d promoted some of his Virtual Book Signings in my blog, but we’d never met. He was just as pleasant in person as he had been by email and seemed in the online book signings. This man just has an aura about him that puts his interviewees at ease and elicits some powerful discussion.

You’ll get a change to see Weinberg at work this weekend and again in early March if you tune in to his next two Virtual Book Signings.

David Leroy on Feb. 21
Be sure to log on to your computer at 12 noon Central Time on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2009, as Weinberg interviews David Leroy, Idaho Lincoln Bicentennial Commission chair and chairman of the Governors Council of the United States Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission. Leroy will be speaking about his book, Mr. Lincoln’s Book: Publishing the Lincoln-Douglas Debates.

Remember, you can order your book for this and other Virtual Book Signings ahead of time through the Abraham Lincoln Book Shop BookBlast page.

Unfortunately, Mr. Leroy is one Lincoln buff I haven’t yet met. I remember reading about him last year in an online news story about the Lincoln Forum symposium at Gettysburg. I’m planning to attend this year, so I hope meet him there. In the meantime, we can all meet him in cyberspace, thanks to Weinberg’s book event.

Michael Burlingame on March 5
On Thursday evening, March 5 at 6 p.m. Central Time, join Weinberg and Michael Burlingame, as Burlingame talks about the most grandiose Lincoln biography since Sandburg finished his six-volume Lincoln bio 70 years ago.

I had the pleasure of meeting Burlingame, author of the two-volume Abraham Lincoln: A Life, at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library last week. I later watched as he moderated a panel for the Abraham Lincoln Association’s Lincoln Roundtable. I also got to hear him speak at a luncheon and at the Abraham Lincoln Association banquet. Burlingame’s good nature and wit make him a pleasant conversationalist and an engaging speaker.

You won’t want to miss this event, either. If you do, though, be sure to check back on the Virtual Book Signing website later, as the book signings are archived so they can be watched again and again.

If you missed White and Clinton
How did you spend your Valentine’s Day? Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln spent their day together on Virtual Book Signing. Okay, they didn’t, but the authors of books about each of them did.

Ronald C. White, Jr., author of A. Lincoln: A Biography, and Catherine Clinton, who wrote Mrs. Lincoln: A Life, teamed up on Feb. 14 to talk with Weinberg about one of the most misunderstood marriages in the history of our country. Just last week, I heard one writer speak of the strength of the Lincoln marriage and another speak of its misery. No one really knows what the marriage was like, of course, but the couple themselves, and they’re not here to tell us.

I’m sure you’ll gain some new insight into the individuals and into their marriage if you watch the archived interview when it’s available on Virtual Book Signing. When this article was written it wasn’t yet ready, but keep checking back. They should have it out there before long.

I had the opportunity to meet White in 2005 at the opening symposium of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum when my Lincoln buff buddy, Karen Needles, who has done research for White, introduced us. She spoke very highly of him and of his work.

Clinton was at that event too, but we didn't really get to meet until this year. Her inquisitive nature and tenacity inspire me. I'll be reviewing her book in the coming months, so be sure to watch for it here.

Be in the know
Afraid you’ll miss out on future Virtual Book Signings? You won't have to if you sign up for the free email mailing list. I joined a few months ago and it’s a great way to keep in the know on who’s on first, what’s on second and I don’t know’s on third in the world of Lincoln literature.

My Lincoln’s birthday adventure – Part Two

Okay, I’m back. I think my bicentennial week is catching up with me. I went non-stop from dawn to midnight nearly every day for a week. As one of my new Lincoln friends, who travelled much farther than I did, said, “I’m decompressing…”

I still need to tell you about the last two-and-a-half days of the bicentennial celebration, though, so I’d best get the fingers to begin again their keyboard dance.

When I ended my earlier blog post about the festivities of Friday, Feb. 12, 2009 – Lincoln’s 200th birthday – I’d just left the Abraham Lincoln Association Roundtable. So, let's continue the adventure.

Off to the Michael Burlingame luncheon
My next event was the Bicentennial Lunch at the President Abraham Lincoln Hotel featuring Michael Burlingame as the speaker. I slipped out of the Roundtable a bit early so I would make sure to find the hotel on time. On the way over, I ran into John Allen of Lincoln Land Community College as he waited on a corner for some of his guests. Allen is involved with the Elderhostel, which has more Springfield Lincoln events on its agenda yet this year. The folks on this one seemed to be having a great time.

Once at the luncheon, I picked an empty table, hoping some interesting guests would join me. I wasn’t disappointed. The first to sit down were a couple from Virginia, who were thankful for the kindness of a Springfield resident. Due to high winds in Chicago that day, it appeared they weren’t going to make it down until late in the day, and would miss the lunch. With true Midwestern hospitality, however, they met someone from Springfield at the airport. He offered to drive them to the capital so they were able to join in the meal and hear Burlingame, too.

We were next joined by a couple from Chicago. It was no surprise that either of the couples were there, as one in each couple was, like Lincoln, an attorney. The next guests to join us were a woman across the table, who I didn’t get a chance to meet and one of the children’s authors, Bob Burleigh. I was excited to have the opportunity to visit with Burleigh and to hear more about his journey as a writer and his writing process. He’s a second career author, coming to children’s literature through an earlier career making educational filmstrips. His journey gives me hope that mine may someday lead to a book of my own.

Burleigh’s book, Abraham Lincoln Comes Home, illustrated by Wendell Minor, is about a boy and his father waiting for Lincoln’s funeral train to pass. I think Burleigh and one of my other Lincoln friends, Chris Vallillo, would have a lot in common, as Vallillo’s musical tribute, Abraham Lincoln in Song, includes a song titled, “Lincoln’s Funeral Train.”

Burlingame’s talk was great – easy for Lincoln buffs to follow, but with enough substance for the scholars in the bunch. He’s also got a pretty cool sense of humor, so it’s great fun to hear him talk.

Getting ready for the really big event
There were several scholarly events on Thursday afternoon, held various places and featuring multiple scholars at each one. I’d originally hoped to attend at least a couple, but with President Barack Obama coming, all that changed.

It was going to be a real challenge to get to the Crowne Plaza, find parking and get inside in time to help distribute tickets for the Abraham Lincoln Association’s Lincoln’s 200th Birthday Banquet, featuring the President and Michael Burlingame. So, I high-tailed it back to my hotel, changed into my banquet attire and headed to the Crowne Plaza. The parking lot was full, so the police officers directed me across the street. I was surely a funny sight trying to cross four lanes of traffic in an evening gown and high heels – and hoping I got across quickly enough to avoid being hit by a passing car or semi.

The wait begins
I was at the hotel by shortly after 2 p.m., but didn’t need to start helping pass out tickets until much later. The time flew, though, as I watched people come and go. An Illinois surveyors’ organization was about to end their convention in the hotel, as people were starting to arrive for the banquet. I thought it was pretty neat that another of Lincoln’s professions was represented in Springfield on his 200th birthday.

I won’t bore you with all the nitty gritty of taking care of last minute details in the banquet room or of ticket distribution or security rigmarole. Let it suffice to say that a Presidential visit is a big thing, and you’ve likely never seen so many law enforcement and Secret Service folks in your life. We were all glad to get past that and to make it to our tables, though I must say, greeting people and waiting on them in the ticket line reminded me how much I miss working with the public – either in a checklane or in a volunteer effort.

The really big deal
To me, the entire Bicentennial week was a dream come true, with one exciting experience after another. But, the banquet topped it all because:

• Hearing “Hail to the Chief” and standing as the President of the United States enters the room is something you just can’t understand until you’ve lived it.


• Getting to meet another tall good-looking Chicagoan, Stedman Graham, was an unexpected surprise.
  
• Being just a few feet away as I reached for the President’s hand and being touched by a short gaze instead is a memory I’ll have forever - and a story my grandchildren can someday pass down to theirs.
  

Watch future articles for more about the banquet and the President’s visit. I’ve also still got to tell you about some really cool experiences I had on Friday and some Lincoln memories I made with my grandkids on Saturday. All I can say, over and over, is “Wow! What a week!”

Absence makes the heart grow stronger – or does it?

Hold on now. Don’t let your mind wander. This isn’t about my personal relationship - or even about my trip to Springfield – not really. It’s about my blog and my relationship with it – or lack of - these past couple days.

Way off track
I have so much to tell you about Thursday afternoon, Friday and Saturday of Bicentennial week, and I had every intention of doing so today … but I got sidetracked. Not just a little bit sidetracked, but totally derailed. Now, for those of you who don’t know, I lived more than 30 years in Galesburg (Ill.), where you can’t drive across town without crossing at least two separate railroads, where Carl Sandburg listened to the rhythms of the trains, where a huge railroad yard sits below a hump-backed bridge. I know what a derailment is, and how massive the equipment looks which is brought in to get the train back on the track. Could someone please call for the equipment?

My problem started just about where the last blog post ended – a coincidence which must have some sort of symbolic meeting. One of my Lincoln friends is quite into technology and very adept at social media. As we stopped to visit for a few minutes after the Abraham Lincoln Association Roundtable and before the Bicentennial Luncheon with Michael Burlingame, we talked for a bit about online communication vehicles.

Four-letter words
I mentioned to my friend that I’d hoped to twitter, but ran into some technical challenges when trying to do it from my phone. I think we talked a little about LinkedIn and about blogging, and then I heard that compound word I’d been avoiding. Perhaps it’s no small coincidence that it’s created by combining two four-letter words. Have you guessed it? Facebook.

I told my LinkedIn Lincoln friend that I’d been avoiding Facebook. He said, “You need to be on it.” I knew that. Lincoln Buff 2 is not just a blog, but it’s also a brand – an online presence, as it were. It’s my way of showing people I care about Lincoln, and I want to help them do the same. The title means just that. It's designed to say, “You’re a Lincoln buff. I am, too (2).”

Facebook is one more way to get the word out. Yes, it is marketing my product – an unending enthusiasm for the legacy of the 16th president.

My blogging takes a tremendous amount of time, but I think it has value. I’m telling people about things they may not know in the Lincoln world, I’m creating enthusiasm for Lincoln and creating awareness about the bicentennial of his birth. There are only so many hours in a day, and I’ve just about maxed out the 24-hour credit card lately.

A broken record
Today was my first day post-Springfield. I had every intention of spending it catching up on the blog. But, I kept hearing my buddy’s words. “You need to be on it.” The echo started, “You need to be on it.” Again, “You need to be on it.” By then, the resistance had worn down…

So now, I’m on it.

The problem, though, is that so are scores of other people I’ve known and loved throughout my life – old college friends, former coworkers, extended family and yes, even Lincoln scholars. So, as evening settles in, my blog is still not caught up.

It’s all relative
But … I’m beginning to catch up with the Jens and the Kates and the Toms of my past – young parents whom I first knew as teens entering the workforce, now parents not a whole lot younger than I was when I first met them. Yes, I came up short on my blogging goal for the day, but I came a little closer to the words of a song I first heard as a Junior Girl Scout at day camp on the shores of a man-made lake:

Make new friends,
But keep the old,
One is silver
And the other’s gold.

Through no small coincidence, one of my Facebook friends is the Senior Girl Scout who taught me those cherished words.

An unproductive day? I’d rather think productivity is relative. More on Springfield soon.

And don’t worry, my dear blog, I haven’t dumped you.

Lincoln news keeps on comin'

I’ve tried very hard to stay on top of the news in the Lincoln world but, my goodness, is the pace picking up the closer it gets to the big 200! Here's the goods from the last two weeks.

In this article you’ll find information:

• From my earlier articles about Lincoln events
• About new Lincoln films
• On articles you won’t want to miss
• Highlighting Lincoln events across the country
• Including Governor Pat Quinn’s reflection on the Lincoln legacy

See earlier articles for even more links
Recently, a couple of my blog posts included links to state bicentennial commission websites and online articles about other events across the country. Be sure to visit those articles and the state links on the left side of my blog for the most current information in each state:

• Lincoln laundry list
• Lincoln happenings – here, there and everywhere

Lincoln in film
Cinematographers across the country have been busy this year sharing the Lincoln legacy through film. I’ve told you about the “Looking for Lincoln” PBS film, and I’ve got another one to share with you in the coming days. Watch for it.

In the meantime, I read this morning in the State Journal-Register of the new film, “Abraham Lincoln: A Journey to Greatness,” at the Lincoln Home National Historic Site Visitor Center. The film features Fritz Klein, who always brings Lincoln to life in unbelievable ways. You’ll want to get down to Springfield to visit the newly renovated home and see the new film.

Articles you won’t want to miss
Nearly everyday now, journalists are writing about Lincoln. Here are the articles I ran across in the last couple weeks – and this doesn’t even include the ones which referenced President Barack Obama and his Lincoln connections!

• A penny for Abe’s memory started by Louisiana school: The News Star
• Abraham Lincoln is turning 200: How you can send the 16th president a birthday card: Chicago Tribune
• Bicentennial Commission earns grant (Champaign): Daily Illini
• Celebrate the Bicentennial of the Birth of Abraham Lincoln at America's National Parks: MotorHome Magazine
• Details differ on Lincoln's birth: The News-Enterprise
• Dwyer scholar of Lincoln's life: Daily Nonpareil
• Few New York celebrations for planned Lincoln’s 200th: Daily Gazette
• Lincoln, and his time, come to life: San Francisco Chronicle
• Lincoln Bicentennial rifle to be auctioned – Proceeds to charity: PowerHomeBiz.com
• Lincoln logs: On the bicentennial of his birth, a wave of books about the pivotal president yields memorable insights: Boston Globe
• Lincoln’s many faces: 200 years after his birth, there’s more to know: Journal-Sentinel
• Mt. Arlington man creates plaque to commemorate Abe's 200th: Daily Record
• Ode to Abe: Financial Times
• One woman's monument to Lincoln: Boston Globe
• Serious transitional badness: Think Lincoln not Obama: MinnPost
• Son's role in Booth's plot shocked Florida family: Orlando Sentinel
• Tribute to Abe: Exeter to celebrate Lincoln's visit to town 150 years ago: SeacoastOnline
• Western states remembering Abe Lincoln, too: Chicago Tribune
• Why Lincoln matters: USA Today

Don’t miss these Lincoln events
I continue to watch online newspapers and receive Lincoln-related alerts. Here are some of the events I’ve learned about since my last update. When possible, I’ve arranged them by state for your convenience. As I mentioned in my earlier post, some of these articles may be available for a limited amount of time. If so, my article may sprout some broken links. I’ll try to monitor and remove them. My apologies if I don’t catch them right away.

Please try to attend some of the events listed. Remember, Lincoln will only have one 200th birthday, and most of us won’t be around for his 300th. Check out the state websites (on the left) and these articles for an event you can attend. And, even if you can’t go, please don’t forget to send President Lincoln a birthday card!

Here are some of the highlights of events I learned about in the last couple weeks:

Colorado
Estes Park: Advance screening of “Looking for Lincoln” at Estes Park Public Library on Feb. 8

Connecticut
Across the state: Events galore
Wilton: Age of Lincoln Exhibit, Feb. 5 – April 3

District of Columbia
Washington: Library of Congress: “With Malice Toward None” exhibit, Feb.12 – May 9, then traveling
Washington: Ongoing events

Florida
Orange County: Lincoln Bicentennial Celebration

Georgia
Savannah: Savannah Book Festival is Feb. 6-8 with an appearance by Charles Bracelen Flood, author of the new book, 1864: Lincoln at the Gates of History on Feb. 7

Illinois
Bloomington: Founders Day lecture, “Abraham Lincoln: Slavery and the Civil War.” by James Horton, author of ten books including Pulitzer Prize nominated In Hope of Liberty: Culture, Protest, and Community Among Northern Free Blacks, 1700-1860 , Feb. 18
Danville: Bicentennial events
Lincoln: Heritage Days in July
New Salem: Abe the Musical (about the play)
Marshall: Ongoing Bicentennial events
McHenry County: Bicentennial events. Also, see their website.
Northern Illinois: Assorted bicentennial events
Ottawa: Salute2Lincoln: Feb. 12 – June 30
Quincy: Abe the Musical (about the play)
Springfield: A plethora of Bicentennial events

Indiana
Evansville: Lincoln symposium, “Abraham Lincoln’s Life and Legacy”, Feb. 23
Indianapolis: Bicentennial ceremony at Indiana Statehouse

Kansas:
Topeka: Bicentennial events

Kentucky
Bowling Green: Bowling Green Chamber Orchestra presents “Lincoln: A Man for All Times” on Feb. 9
Covington: Lincoln display at Mary Ann Mongan Library
Danville: “Abraham Lincoln, Kentucky African Americans and the Constitution” sympsoia
Frankfort: Read about new Lincoln artifacts and birthday events celebrating the bicentennial in Kentucky including an appearance by Michael Burlingame, author of Abraham Lincoln: A Life on Feb. 16.
Louisville: "Abe Lincoln and Uncle Tom in the White House” play
Various Kentucky locations: Lincoln plays

Massachusetts
Boston: John Stauffer lecture on his book, “Giants: The Parallel Lives of Frederick Douglass & Abraham Lincoln”
Yarmouth: “This Was Not Love Letters” - Feb. 8 play depicting Lincoln and the election of 1860 through the eyes of two newspaper editors

Michigan
Statewide: Ongoing events (also see Sarah Lapshan’s comments on my Jan. 17 article)

New Jersey
Libraries collect Lincoln “Pennies for Peace”

New York
Garden City: James Horton, author of Hard Road to Freedom: The Story of African America and Slavery and the Making of America, will speak at Alephi University on Feb. 19

North Carolina
Raleigh: Lincoln documents on display, Feb. 10-15

North Dakota
Bismark: Bicentennial events

Ohio
Wooster: Wayne County Historical Society exhibit

Oklahoma
Alva: Dr. Aaron Mason will speak on The Private Life of Abraham Lincoln: The Making of a President” at Alva Public Library on Feb. 2

Pennsylvania
Allentown: Lehigh Valley Heritage museum yearlong celebration

Rhode Island
Lincoln: Bicentennial stamp unveiling

Tennessee
Greeneville: Bicentennial events and Lincoln Project videos

West Virginia
Ashland: Four-session discussion of James Swanson’s "Manhunt, the 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer"

Overheard this week
By new Illinois Governor Pat Quinn in his first press conference: “It’s a very important year, the year of Abraham Lincoln’s bicentennial of his birth. The American president most admired of all by far, is Abraham Lincoln, from people from foreign lands. And we want them to come to Illinois, the city of Abraham Lincoln and other places in Illinois to look for Lincoln. You can go to Beardstown and see a courthouse where Lincoln actually practiced in.”

A special thanks to the many journalists and public relations gurus who keep the wellspring of Lincoln information coming. Without them, I wouldn't have any of this to share with you.

The ALPLM and more - Bicentennial activity galore

On an April morning almost three years I got up early, drove to Springfield and waited in line for the opening of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum (ALPLM). The early drive was worth it, as I was seventh in line on the first day the museum opened to paying customers. (Some school groups and other visitors had seen the museum free of charge in the preceding days.)

I drove back and forth for four days in a row that April, taking in as many of the ALPLM opening activities as possible and, believe me, it was worth every mile I drove and every minute I waited in line. The museum was all I’d hoped it would be – and more – and the museum, library and scholarly symposium left a lasting mark on this Lincoln scholar-wannabe. If you haven’t visited yet, what better time than now?

Bicentennial events begin Feb. 7
I’ll make a similar trek again in a couple weeks. The Illinois Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, the ALPLM and a number of other organizations and venues in Springfield are joining together to throw one heck of a 200th birthday party for Lincoln. Why not join me? For this party, it’s the more, the merrier!

To learn more about the following events, see the Bicentennial or ALPLM website calendars.

Authors aplenty
You’ll be able to see and hear a who’s who of Lincoln scholars for author discussions and book signings all week. They’re coming from the East Coast, the West Coast and places in between, with a couple of scholars coming all the way from England and Northern Ireland.* The scribes include:

• Bob Burleigh
• Michael Burlingame
• Vernon Burton
• Richard Carwardine
• Catherine Clinton
• David Contosta
• Daniel Mark Epstein
• Eric Foner
• Dan Guillory
• Cheryl Harness
• Daniel Walker Howe
• Charles Hubbard
• Betty Kay
• Karen Kostyal
• Philip Kunhardt
• Bruce Levin
• Russell McClintock
• Edna Green Medford
• Wendell Minor
• Barry Schwartz
• Camesha Scruggs
• Brooks Simpson
• Jack Smith
• Louise Taper
• Wayne Temple
• Elizabeth Varnon
• Jennifer Weber
• Daniel Weinberg
• Judge Frank Williams
• Karen Winnick

Countless celebrations
Springfield will be host to all sorts of birthday celebrations, including:

• First issuance of Lincoln Bicentennial Postage Stamps
• Springfield’s Farewell Address to Lincoln
• Meet Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln
• Now He Belongs to the Ages Overnight Vigil
• Wreath-laying at Lincoln Tomb

Endless exhibits
If you haven’t found anything to interest you yet, how about taking in some of these Springfield exhibits:

• From Humble Beginnings: Lincoln's Illinois
• The Lincoln Project paintings
• Lincoln Portrait in Post-Its
• Lincoln in Illinois sculpture photographs
  

Family fun
I'd wager a bet that if you ask most Lincoln enthusiasts when they became mesmerized by his legacy, they'd say it was as a child, so don't leave the kids at home. There are plenty of family friendly events, such as:

• Children Celebrate: Birthday crafts
• Statewide Reading of The Gettysburg Address
• Children’s Storytelling with Abraham Lincoln
• Children’s Reading Room
• Period Ball
• Mr. Lincoln's Science Fair Free Family Event

A plethora of performances
Want to celebrate with a play or in song? Check out these performances:

• Our American Cousin
• Amazing Grace: A Time of Spirituals
• Program of Spirituals
• One Destiny
• Illinois Symphony Orchestra
• From My Front Porch
• Meet the Lincolns
• The Lincoln Trio
• The Four Sopranos
• Lincoln & Frederick Douglass Emancipation and the Dream of Freedom - From Slavery to the White House
• Music of the Lincoln Era
• Abraham Lincoln: A Biography in Words and Music

These take tickets
Several other events do require reservations and paid tickets. They are:

• Lincoln Academy of Illinois Bicentennial Award Ceremony
• Bicentennial Luncheon
• Abraham Lincoln’s 200th Birthday Party: Abraham Lincoln Association banquet (sold out except overflow seating) with President Barack Obama joining the celebration**

Special thanks to my friends at the ALPLM for an email pulling all this information together in one place so it was easier to list everything here for you. Be sure to vist the Bicentennial and ALPLM websites for times, locations and more.

* Updated Feb. 2, 2009 - My apologies to Catherine Clinton. For some reason, I was thinking she and Richard Carwardine were both in England. I learned just today that Clinton is in Belfast, Northern Ireland. I hope to see both when they speak in Springfield the week of the Bicentennial.

** We learned today President Obama will be joining us. What a special birthday gift for Lincoln!

Happy 200th, Edgar Allan Poe

Did you know 2009 is not only the bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth, but also of the birth of Edgar Allan Poe and Charles Darwin? Today, January 19, 2009, is the 200th anniversary of Poe’s birth.

I went to several of my favorite Lincoln authors – or their books, actually – to see what they had to say about Lincoln and Poe.

Shenk on Lincoln and Poe
I first consulted Joshua Wolf Shenk’s Lincoln’s Melancholy. I heard Shenk speak twice when he was in Peoria ( Ill.) last summer and I thought I’d remembered him mentioning that Lincoln read Poe. If anyone is an authority on Lincoln’s dark side, this is the guy. And as Shenk points out in his book, “Suffering and futility were pervasive themes in American literature of the early nineteenth century.”

I actually expected to find more references to Lincoln and Poe in Shenk’s work. Though he does refer to Poe and his gloomy work several times throughout the book, there is only one reference to Lincoln reading Poe. I’m finding this lack of much information connecting Lincoln to Poe’s work to be the case throughout my research.

Shenk writes of the early 1940s when Lincoln was serving as a lawyer, riding from town to town on the Eighth Judicial Circuit in Illinois. It was during those evenings away from home, according to the Shenk, that Lincoln’s partner John Todd Stuart remembers Lincoln reading Poe’s “The Raven” over and over by candlelight.

Thomas on Lincoln and Poe
I then went to Benjamin Thomas’s 1953 biography, Abraham Lincoln. Though it’s more than half a century old, this succinct volume is still respected by several leading Lincoln scholars and was even recommended by one of them as the text for a high school class on Lincoln. If Thomas’s account is accurate, it may have been Quincy (Ill.) lawyer Andrew Johnston who first introduced Lincoln to Poe’s work.

According to Thomas, Lincoln had sent some of his own poems to Johnston. Johnston, in turn “sent Lincoln a parody of Poe’s ‘Raven,” in which an experience with a polecat replaced Poe’s conversation with his feathered midnight visitor.” Johnston apparently not only gave Lincoln “several hearty laughs” but also prompted him to seek out Poe’s poem just a year after it was written.

Burlingame on Lincoln and Poe
And finally, I consulted Michael Burlingame, whose two volume biography, Abraham Lincoln: A Life, is the largest work on Lincoln since Sandburg’s six-volume set and will likely reign as the definitive Lincoln biography long into the future.

According to Burlingame, Lincoln liked not only “The Raven,” but “also liked Poe’s short stories, notably ‘The Gold Bug’ and ‘The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar.”

Special thanks to my Poe-authority
I’d be remiss, however, if I were not to give credit where credit is due for remembering Poe’s birthday so I could share it with you. A few weeks ago, when I told my friend Dr. Robert T. Rhode that I was doing a Lincoln blog, he reminded me that it was also Poe’s bicentennial. Rhode is one of several authorities on the 19th century who has served as a mentor to me. For his nurturing, sharing of knowledge and encouragement, I will always be grateful.

I know Rhode as an authority on steam powers and the owner of a really neat 1923 65-horsepower Case steam engine, which I’ve had the privilege to ride. Yet, he’s also an authority on Poe - teaching his works, writing about him and acting in more than two hundred productions as the poet. In 1988, Rhode performed as Poe for the Baltimore Poe Society, which named his one-person play the authorized stage version of Poe's life.

According to Rhode, the best Poe biography is Arthur Hobson Quinn’s 1941 Edgar Allan Poe: A Critical Biography, which, unfortunately, doesn’t even mention the Lincolns. Rhode cautions those researching Poe to beware of some online sources. He says the authoritative website is that of the Poe Society of Baltimore’s. Thanks, Dr. Rhode, for pointing me to the information showing:

• Lincoln owned an 1845 copy of the booklet that contained “The Raven.”
• A listing of articles by Poe scholar Burton R. Pollin, including one he wrote on polecat parody in the The University of Mississippi Studies in English in 1989 (#100).
  

After the bicentennial, please watch my blog for more information about Dr. Rhode. Not only is his work on the steam era and Walt Whitman relevant to the study of Lincoln, he’s also the author of some pretty nifty reference books for all students and writers. More on that later …

Excerpts and information taken from:

• Burlingame, Michael, Abraham Lincoln: A Life, Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 2008.
• Rhode, Robert T., email correspondence, Dec. 2, 2008.
• Shenk, Joshua Wolf, Lincoln’s Melancholy, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 2005.
• Thomas, Benjamin, Abraham Lincoln: A Biography, Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 1953.

Research isn’t always easy

If I’ve learned nothing else in these past few months, it’s that research isn’t always easy. In fact, maybe it’s never easy – especially when you’re dealing with history and even more so in this electronic age.

History is objective, right?
In my previous scholarly pursuits, the research was easier. I majored in English and specialized in regional and non-fiction literature. As I do with my Lincoln studies, I always consulted a number of sources, but writing about literature can be pretty subjective. Writing about history isn’t, is it? Isn’t history and biography supposed to be objective - cut and dried – crystal clear? This happened or it didn’t. The sources will support it, right? Wrong!

Little did I realize until this fall when I really became a student of Lincoln and the history surrounding him how subjective things in the past can be. As I learned when doing my term paper, myth plays into things, and so do the many different memories people have – often two conflicting mental pictures of the same event. And, in this day and age, when anyone can publish anything on the Internet, there’s a lot of wrong information out there.

The real story of the missions
Early in my recent California visit, my daughter suggested we visit Mission San Juan Capistrano mission. We were barely inside the grounds when she directed me to a plaque which she knew would make my day. It stated that Abraham Lincoln had returned this mission to the Catholic Church in 1865.

Later on our tour, we learned more about Lincoln and the mission at an exhibit inside one of the mission buildings. We even saw a copy of the proclamation Lincoln had signed on March 18, 1865, less than a month before his death.

While at the mission, I bought a very nice book, California Missions and Presidios: The History and Beauty of the Spanish Missions by Randy Leffingwell and Alastair Worden. I’d hoped to consult the book for my blog entry and to share information about each of the missions and the dates Lincoln returned them to the Church.

Unfortunately, even though this volume is written from a more scholarly angle than many of the other books on the mission and is indexed, it still didn’t discuss Lincoln’s involvement with the missions to the extent I’d hoped – nor did it list the dates the proclamations were signed for all of the California missions. I then thought I’d supplement by finding details online. Oh, there were details alright, but often two different sources listed conflicting dates for the return of the same mission.

Opportunity knocks
If this weren’t the bicentennial year and if I didn’t have so much I need to communicate in the coming weeks, I would have taken the time to dig deeper into this subject. Maybe someday I will.

In the meantime, do we have a Lincoln scholar or California history authority out there who can point readers to a good source? Can you tell us – what was Lincoln’s role in this whole mission story? Why did he get involved? What are the specifics and the timeline? I find it interesting that he was dealing with San Juan Capistrano and other missions in the last month of his life with everything else he had going on at the time.

If I’m correct, Lincoln never made it to California. Yet, according to information I found on one of The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History’s websites, Mr. Lincoln’s White House, on the day he was assassinated Lincoln spoke with Schuyler Colfax of his interest in California and Colfax’s upcoming trip there.

It seems to me we’ve got a topic for further exploration here – Lincoln and California. Has anyone ever studied this subject in depth? If not, it sure does sound like an opportunity for a scholarly paper - or maybe a thesis or dissertation or book. Any takers?
I’ve got my hands full here in Illinois, but the more I study Lincoln, the more topics grab my interest. Oh, if only time and distance were no object!

More than 70 years ago, Lincoln scholar J. G. Randall asked “Has the Lincoln theme been exhausted?” Nearly 30 years ago, Mark E. Neely addressed Randall’s question in an article in the Journal of The Abraham Lincoln Association. Today, more than ever, even with Burlingame’s definitive two-volume biography and scores of other new books coming out in celebration of the bicentennial, opportunity still knocks in the Lincoln world. Fortunately, bright inquisitive minds continue to answer the door, willing to undertake the challenge of research even though it isn't easy.

Holidays, California trip provide new blog topics

Thanks, Lincoln buffs, for your patience as I left my blog unattended recently. Although I wasn’t writing about Lincoln regularly, he was with me much of the time. I already had a long list of blog topics planned in anticipation of the February 12, 2009 bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth. The holidays and a long-awaited trip to California gave me even more things to write about.

Wantin' nothin' but Lincoln for Christmas
In lieu of Christmas gifts this year, I asked for and received the opportunity to attend a number of Lincoln-related scholarly events in the coming year. I've got plans beginning in Springfield in February and ending with The Lincoln Forum at Gettysburg in November. What a gift that keeps on giving – not only for me, but for what I can share with you.

I also received Michael Burlingame’s two-volume biography, Abraham Lincoln: A Life. Later in the year I’ll share my thoughts on that monumental piece of Lincoln scholarship. Due to the bicentennial and an industry course I’ll be taking for my real job, I fear Burlingame will remain unread for a few months.

Watch for these topics soon
Travel time and a totally unscheduled day did provide some reading time on my vacation, though. Watch for my thoughts on Harold Holzer’s Lincoln President-Elect before long. I’m closing in on the end of it.

Here are some of the other vacation-related Lincoln items I wish to share with you in the coming days:

• Lincoln’s role in returning California missions to the Catholic Church
• Squashed pennies
• Lincoln images at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
• Lincoln memorabilia at the Richard Nixon Library and Birthplace
• A Lincoln sighting in a Chicago suburb

I also got to go to the pier at Huntington Beach, the Tournament of Roses Parade and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Unfortunately, I couldn't find Lincoln connections for any of those, but they were all sure a lot of fun! If only I could say that for California traffic...

Lincoln celebrations across the land
As I followed the Lincoln world during my time off work, I did learn of bicentennial events throughout the country. Believe me, there will be no shortage of things to blog about in the coming weeks. It will be a juggling act to find time to share all I’d like and still complete my industry course.

If you stop to visit the blog and find I haven’t updated it, please return. I’ll try to get to it as often as I can.

Thanks for sharing my passion
Several of you have let me know that you visit the blog regularly and enjoy it. Thanks for your kind words and encouragement. I’m hoping we’ll all learn a lot about Lincoln in 2009. It’s nice to have you along for the journey.

Happy New Year and Happy Bicentennial Year!
Ann

News in the Lincoln world

Last week and this coming week there's a lot of activity in the Lincoln world and in the Land of Lincoln. Since the Lincoln Buff was away from the computer for a couple days, I’ll give you a high level overview of the things you may have missed – and direct you to other news sites for more information.

Don’t miss the C-SPAN White House features
From Dec. 14-20, C-SPAN is featuring an in-depth look at where Lincoln and other American Presidents lived and worked. The Lincoln Buff family just finished watching the first episode. We learned tons and can’t wait to see the rest. Tonight’s program not only featured clips from President and Mrs. Bush, but also footage from a number of former Presidential families. Several of our well-known Lincoln and presidential historians, including Doris Kearns Goodwin, Harold Holzer and Richard Norton Smith provided commentary, as well as people who have day-to-day connections with the White House operations. Please join us in watching the rest of the programming at 9 Eastern, 8 Central each night this week.


Michael Burlingame talks about his new book
I wasn’t near a television during the day today, so I missed the Book TV interview with Michael Burlingame concerning his new two-volume Lincoln biography, which is heralded by most as the next most valuable Lincoln work. Abraham Lincoln: A Life is published by The John Hopkins University Press. I may not get a chance to read it right away myself, but I’ll try to point you to more information on the book as it becomes available. Be sure to see Abraham Lincoln Online website, too, for their interview with Burlingame.

Indiana collection has a home – but not at ALPLM
In case you haven't heard it by now, the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum won't be getting the vast collection of Lincoln memorabilia from the recently closed Lincoln Museum in Fort Wayne, Indiana - sad for us in Illinois. Instead, the $20 million collection will go to the State of Indiana and be housed in the Indiana State Museum in Indianapolis and the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne. It will be interesting to hear what Lincoln scholars and collectors have to say about this. Lincoln buff will try to follow this story and share what I read. In the meantime, you can read more in the IndyStar.com article.

Hope for Illinois historic sites?
I doubt that anyone reading this blog is immune to the news from Illinois about the arrest of Governor Rod Blagojevich. If this current governor steps down or is impeached, next in line for the office is Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn. The good news is that Quinn’s already giving us hope about reopening the recently closed historic sites if he moves into the office. Hurray, Lt. Gov. Quinn! Although we’re watching this whole drama play out on many levels, we Lincoln buffs are especially interested in watching what happens to the sites which have connections to Lincoln. We’re glad to hear you’ll do the right thing.