Civil Warriors

… from Springfield, Illinois, in the heart of the Land of Lincoln.

2008 marks the 199th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth; the centennial of the founding of the Abraham Lincoln Association; and the centennial of the Springfield Race Riots.  Among the blacks killed in those riots was a man who had known Lincoln, even if in passing.  That event is critical to Springfield’s history, and deservedly so; so is the founding of the ALA, which has done so much to promote Lincon scholarship.  The juxtaposition of the two events leaves one to ponder Lincoln’s legacy in thoughtful ways.  It was an interesting (if very cold) time.

Perhaps the niftiest part of the annual ALA symposium is that speakers have the opportunity to address the audience in the House chamber of the Old State Capitol … standing at the very spot where Lincoln stood as he delivered the House Divided speech.  I’ve done this several times now (including both last year and this year), and it is quite an experience.  The photograph to the left is of the opening day’s session, which took place on the afternoon of February 11.  That’s Tom Schwartz, the Illinois state historian, presiding over a panel than included Jean Baker, Mark Neely, and Douglas Wilson.  Among those in the audience was fellow blogger Brian Dirck, in the tan shirt and tie, sitting alongside Roger D. Bridges and Mark Plummer. two veterans of the ALA. 

As you can see, while some members of the audience sit in the balcony, others sit at replicas of the legislators’ desks.  I don’t find the desks very comfortable, and it’s easier to whisper when one’s sitting in the balcony.  Other folks should ponder the fact that when they nod off, everyone sees them.  Understandably, if you’re in front of the podium, you have an obligation to appear as if you are completely absorbed by the proceedings.  In truth, I like to take in the whole scene, and I’m aware that in this very room Abraham Lincoln once lay in state upon his return to Springfield in the spring of 1865 … a scene imperfectly rendered at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum (the coffin there is closed, unlike the historically open coffin).

You may recall seeing the Old State Capitol last February.  Standing at the south face of the building, looking towards Lincoln’s old law office, Barack Obama declared that he was a candidate for president.  The building fell into some disrepair before its restoration in the 1960s.  For years it also housed the Illinois State Historical Library, which I first visited in 1985, when Roger Bridges was the boss.  The annual symposium is Roger’s baby, and over the years it has brought many scholars to Springfield and has offered the stage for some first-rate presentations.  What makes this even more interesting is the weather, which is not always ideal.  This year it was very, very cold, and overnight gasoline prices shot up a quarter (literally).  Last year it snowed on the night of February 12, and it was with some difficulty and some luck that my wife and I escaped the following morning.  Others who waited were not nearly so lucky, and they got to enjoy Springfield for a few more days.

My turn to speak came on February 12.  I shared the podium with Brian and Michael Vorenberg, who I have known for some time.  My paper traced the evolution of the literature on Lincoln as commander-in-chief, beginning in earnest with T. Harry Williams’ Lincoln and His Generals, which still stands as the classic work on the topic.  I happen to think it is time for historians to offer a broader understanding of the term “commander-in-chief,” one that incorporates larger issues of grand strategy and political goals (or war aims) and how military means are devised to serve those ends.  I believe one could bring together Lincoln’s actions to mobilize support, raise an army, wrestle with dissent and disloyalty, struggle with slavery and emancipation, and commence reconstruction as part of that larger story.  To be sure, someone could offer a more narrowly focused study of Lincoln and his generals revisited, but I’m not sure that would be enough.  As this was a review of the literature, I offered some comments about several of the books that have explored this issue, with the appropriate (and usually qualifed) thumbs up and thumbs down.  All I will add at this point in time is that Geoffrey Perret’s book, Lincoln’s War, did not fare well, although I chose for my text a rather critical review of it offered by James McPherson. 

In my paper I touched on some themes I’ve developed elsewhere.  Over the years I’ve come to question Lincoln’s handling of George B. McClellan, and, while I still believe that in many instances Little Mac was his own worst enemy, I deplore the double standard employed by historians who quote with horror and distain some of McClellan’s remarks about Lincoln while celebrating as examples of executive wit Lincoln’s equally cutting comments about McClellan (and, to be sure, McClellan was not Lincoln’s only target).  I suggested that Lincoln’s decision to appoint politicians to positions of high command with seniority in rank early in the war had significantly negative consequences in 1864, and that those military shortcomings may have outweighted what remaining political benefit there was to retaining these generals, several of whom were not terribly loyal to Lincoln, anyway.  I reminded listeners that Lincoln did not always steadfastly support Grant during Grant’s rise to prominence, and that the Lincoln-Grant relationship in 1864-65 was far more complex than people such as Williams and John Y. Simon have been willing to admit (Simon’s essay in the 1994 collection of essays entitled Lincoln’s Generals largely echoes Williams’s arguments, sometimes with an edge).  What would interested parties make of such arguments?  I sought out feedback the next day at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.  I hear the coffee there is pretty good, and you never know who you might come across.  

It was a very interesting time at Springfield, and I can assure you there’s fodder enough for a few more posts discussing aspects of my trip … complete with pictures.  At least I wasn’t present for the Kentucky planned commemoration of Abe’s 199th birthday.  Bad weather forced a cancellation of the ceremonies.  Given the fact that the “Lincoln cabin” there isn’t the famed log cabin at all, perhaps it’s just as well.