Category Books
Bound for Canaan
This book by Fergus Bordewich is the story of the Underground Railroad. It begins with an overview of the history of slavery in what would become the United States and takes us through the first resistance to the recapture of fugitives seeking their freedom as well as the beginnings of abolition movements. We eventually get […]
America’s Great Debate
In this book, Fergus Bordewich looks at the Compromise of 1850. “In a larger sense,” he tells us, the book is “about the genesis of the Civil War.” He says, “It will be clear to anyone who unravels the debate of that year that the war was already under way in the psyches of many […]
The Captive’s Quest for Freedom
In this book, Professor R. J. M. Blackett looks at fugitive slaves, the 1850 Fugitive Slave Act, and the political situation surrounding them. “There would have been no need for a fugitive slave law, either in 1793 or 1850,” he writes, “had slaves not escaped regularly, and in such numbers, that their activities came to […]
Savings and Trust
I recently reviewed this book for the “Emerging Civil War” website, which you can read here. There is additional information I’ll provide for readers of this blog. In this book, we learn, “Though Frederick Douglass did serve as the bank’s last president, the trustees, most of whom were white, appointed Douglass knowing that it was […]
2024 Lincoln Forum – Lives and Leadership of Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis
Nigel Hamilton gave this presentation at the 2024 Lincoln Forum. I have to say I think he still doesn’t understand a lot about the American Civil War, George McClellan, Charles Sumner, and several other subjects. The video’s description reads, “Author Nigel Hamilton discussed the lives and leadership of Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis. This event […]
2024 Lincoln Forum: Abraham Lincoln Books for Children
In this panel from the 2024 Lincoln Forum, kicked off by the most adorable introductions ever at a history conference, Jan Jacobi, Karen Winnick, and Professor Jonathan White discuss the children’s books they’ve written about Abraham Lincoln and people around him. The video’s description reads, “Historians discussed children’s books about Abraham Lincoln. This event was […]
2024 Lincoln Forum: The Civil War and Canada
This is Professor Alan Taylor giving a presentation to the 2024 Lincoln Forum on Canada during the Civil War years and the aftermath, based on his book, American Civil Wars: A Continental History, 1850-1873. The video’s description reads, “Historian Alan Taylor discussed the United States’ relationship with Canada during the Civil War. This event was […]
2024 Lincoln Forum: Lincoln and Immigration
In this video, Harold Holzer gives a presentation to the 2024 Lincoln Forum on Abraham Lincoln and Immigration based on his book, Brought Forth on This Continent. The video’s description reads, “Historian Harold Holzer discussed Abraham Lincoln’s approach to immigration. This event was part the 2024 Lincoln Forum held in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.” https://www.c-span.org/program/american-history-tv/2024-lincoln-forum-lincoln-and-immigration/657671
The Rise and Fall of the Second American Republic
We normally date Reconstruction from the end of the Civil War to 1877. In The Reconstruction Presidents, Professor Brooks Simpson begins his study at Abraham Lincoln’s 10% Plan. In this book, noting there were proposals to reconstruct the Union even before secession, Professor Manisha Sinha posits a “long Reconstruction” lasting from 1860 all the way […]
Last Seen – The Enduring Search by Formerly Enslaved People to Find Their Lost Families
In this video, Professor Judith Giesberg discusses her latest book, Last Seen: The Enduring Search by Formerly Enslaved People to Find Their Lost Families. The video’s description reads, “History professor Judith Giesberg spoke about the archival materials that capture the search of formerly enslaved people to find family members stolen during slavery. Harvard Book Store […]
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