War in the Mountains Symposium this April

The Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum will host the third War in the Mountains Symposium on April 20, 2013.  This event will feature presentations by several notable scholars on Appalachia and the Civil War:

• Dr. Wilma Dunaway, Professor of Sociology in the Government and International Affairs Program at Virginia Tech, whose books include The First American Frontier: Transition to Capitalism in Southern Appalachia, 1700-1860 and Slavery in the Mountain South
  
• Dr. Brian McKnight, Associate Professor of History at UVa-Wise and author of Confederate Outlaw: Champ Ferguson and the Civil War in Appalachia and Contested Borderland: The Civil War in Appalachian Kentucky and Virginia
  
• Dr. Michael Toomey, Associate Professor of History at Lincoln Memorial University and author of a number of publications on East Tennessee history

Dr. Charles Hubbard, Director of LMU’s Abraham Lincoln Institute for the Study of Leadership and Public Policy, will preside over the symposium.

For more information, call 1-800-325-0900 ext. 6439 or (423) 869-6439.

“God Didn’t Choose Sides”: Special Civil War music event coming to LMU

Lincoln Memorial University (LMU) and the Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum (ALLM) will welcome some of the nation’s top bluegrass artists for a special benefit music event at the Sam and Sue Mars Performing Arts Center of the Duke Hall of Citizenship on Friday, February 22.

The historic concert will celebrate the February 12 release of Rural Rhythm Records’ “God Didn’t Choose Sides: Civil War True Stories about Real People” album that coincides with the anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth. The concert and CD features some of today’s top artists including: Steve Gulley, Dale Ann Bradley, Marty Raybon, Carrie Hassler, Brad Gulley, Tim Stafford, Rickey Wasson, Dwight McCall, Dave Adkins, and the Gap Creek Quartet. Supporting musicians include: Sierra Hull (mandolin), Jason Burleson (banjo), Brandon Godman (fiddle), Phil Leadbetter (dobro), Bryan Turner (bass) and Debbie Gulley (vocals). Mark “Brink” Brinkman will also provide a special songwriter segment. 

The proceeds from the concert will benefit the ALLM and help fund a documentary on the project that is currently under development. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the show will begin at 7 p.m. Two ticket options are available. A VIP experience includes a reception at the LMU President’s House before the concert, a copy of the CD, VIP seats at the show and a meet and greet with the musicians after the show. VIP tickets are available for $100. General admission tickets are $35. Tickets can be purchased online here.

The album, “God Didn’t Choose Sides: Civil War True Stories about Real People,” includes 12 original songs inspired by journals, stories and artifacts from soldiers, civilians and politicians during the Civil War. Also included on the recording is the traditional song “There is a Fountain” performed by the Gap Creek Quartet. It’s a collection of songs that focus on the common men and women who were thrown together into the realities and horrors of war; people who displayed amazing acts of kindness, selflessness, faith, love and brotherhood. All but one track, “Legend of Jennie Wade,” on the album were recorded, at least in part, at Steve Gulley’s The Curve Studio in Cumberland Gap, Tenn.

Accompanying the music is an extensive 16-page booklet filled with historical notes, photographs and lyrics. LMU and ALLM archivist Michelle Ganz provided historical content supervision and materials from the ALLM collection. Additional assistance was provided by ALLM Program and Tourism Director Carol Campbell and the historical booklet notes were provided by Jamie Lynn Brinkman.

Rural Rhythm Records has set up a dedicated site for the album that includes interviews, additional content relating to the history behind the songs, songwriters, performing artists and musicians. Visit RuralRhythm.com for more information.

The Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum is located on the historic campus of Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tennessee. Housing one of the top five Lincoln and Civil War private collections in the world, the Museum is open Monday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. For more information about this and other programs at the Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum, call 423-869-6235.

Exhibit explores Lincoln on film

The current temporary exhibit at LMU’s Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum covers the history of Lincoln on film.  Abraham Lincoln and his era have long been popular subjects for filmmakers, and two major productions about Lincoln are slated for upcoming release.  

We asked ALLM Curator and Assistant Director Steven M. Wilson a few questions about the exhibit and the history of Lincoln in the cinema.  In addition to his work as a public historian, Wilson writes historical fiction; his novels include Voyage of the Gray Wolves, Armada, and President Lincoln’s Spy.

Why an exhibit about Lincoln on film?

Abraham Lincoln is an icon in popular culture and has been interpreted in films, stage, and television virtually since his death. Movies are a big part of American society. It seemed appropriate.

How do you go about doing the research for a project like this?

It helps to have a working knowledge of American movies. The stars, directors, composers, and writers who created these movies were actually employees of huge movie factories. There are countless on-line sites (such as Internet Movie Database) that provide an excellent starting point to begin an investigation of the Lincoln films.

 What are some items visitors can expect to see?

Abe Lincoln in Illinois held its southern premiere on the campus of Lincoln Memorial University in 1940. Besides a shooting script signed by the principals, the exhibit features dozens of photographs of the premiere ceremonies and stills from the movie.

We also wanted to expand our investigation to include the wide variety of interpretations Lincoln underwent through the years. The first, of course, is President Abraham Lincoln in D. W. Griffith’s Birth of a Nation. This inflammatory films that paints the newly formed Ku Klux Klan as the avenging instrument of justice. Lincoln’s death at the hands of the heroic John Wilkes Booth is laudable and necessary.  The exhibit also has excerpts from Lincoln commercials, television shows, comedy skits, and cartoons.

We seem to be seeing a resurgence of interest in Lincoln on the silver screen, with projects like The Conspirator, Spielberg’s upcoming movie and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.  Why has Lincoln been such a popular subject when it comes to making movies?

Good drama is based on loss, personal triumph, a struggle of good versus evil, and validation. Lincoln’s personality is so well-defined, and so apparent (not necessarily accurately), that’s it’s possible to tell his story in whatever permutation for a large audience. Draw a picture of a top hat and beard and you have instant recognition of Lincoln.  Talk about the dual themes of tragedy and conflict on a monumental scale, and you have the Civil War. It is a field that has been plowed many times, but it never fails to yield a compelling story.

On balance, how accurately do you think Hollywood has treated Lincoln and his era?  Have Lincoln movies contributed anything positive to public understanding of the man or of history in general?

Like any mythical, iconic, or historical figure Lincoln has had to endure his share of Hollywood poetic license. The artist as director or scriptwriter has a vision, and is not averse to trampling history to get at it. John Ford, director of Young Mr. Lincoln, is a  celluloid Frederick Remington—painting the American historical landscape with an unapologetic varnish of pure Americana. His Lincoln is poetic, humble, brave, troubled, but inherently American through and through. Watch any of these films for their entertainment value only.

Do you have any personal favorites when it comes to onscreen portrayals of Lincoln?

It’s a toss-up between Raymond Massey, Sam Waterston, and Henry Fonda. They all bring qualities of interpretation to Lincoln that enhance the viewer’s experience.  I guess my sentimental favorite is Henry Fonda, mostly because I’m an unabashed fan of John Ford.

Finally, here’s an irreverent question.  What’s the most bizarre or inaccurate Lincoln-related movie you encountered while working on this exhibit?

The Lincoln Conspiracy by Sun International is probably the most ridiculous entry in the Lincoln cinematic field. Falling back on the Otto Eisenschiml theory of Stanton’s role in the assassination of Lincoln, the only thing this turkey lacked was ancient aliens, Nostradamus, and gravy.

Second “War in the Mountains Symposium” this weekend

Lincoln Memorial University’s (LMU) Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum (ALLM) will present a Civil War symposium entitled “War in the Mountains II” on Saturday, April 21, 2012. The event is part of the institution’s ongoing commemoration of the sesquicentennial of the American Civil War.

LMU Professor of History and Abraham Lincoln Historian Charles Hubbard will preside at the event. Dr. John Inscoe, professor of history at the University of Georgia, will present “Guerrilla War and Remembrance.” Dr. Earl J. Hess, professor of history at LMU, will present “Civil War Soldiers and Appalachia,” and Dr. Steven Nash, professor of history at East Tennessee State University, will present “Roguish Yankees and Rascally Freedpeople: The Civil War and Emancipation within Cornelia Henry’s Household.”

Inscoe has taught southern history at the University of Georgia for over 25 years. A native of western North Carolina, much of his research and writing has focused on nineteenth-century southern Appalachia, specifically on the issues of slavery, race and the Civil War. He is the author of Mountain Masters: Slavery and the Sectional Crisis in Western North Carolina; Race, War, and Remembrance in the Appalachian South; and co-author of The Heart of Confederate Appalachia: The Civil War in Western North Carolina. He has edited or co-edited volumes on Georgia race relations, Appalachians and race in the 19th century, southern Unionists during the Civil War and a volume on Confederate nationalism and identity, produced as a tribute to Emory Thomas. He recently completed a book entitled Writing the South through the Self: Explorations in Southern Autobiography.

Hess holds the Stewart W. McClelland Chair in History at LMU, where he has taught since 1989. He completed his B.A. and M.A. degrees in history at Southeast Missouri State University. His Ph.D. in American Studies, with a concentration in history, was awarded by Purdue University in 1986. Hess has taught at a number of institutions, including the University of Georgia, Texas Tech University and the University of Arkansas. He is the author of more than a dozen books on Civil War military history, the latest of which is Into the Crater – The Mine Attack at Petersburg. The University of Tennessee Press has published his latest work, an engaging history of the University entitled Lincoln Memorial University and the Shaping of Appalachia (UT Press, $45). Hess was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in 2002. More information on books written by Hess can be found at http://www.love-and-learning.info.

Nash is a post doctorate fellow at ETSU. He earned a bachelor’s degree at The Pennsylvania State University, a master’s from Western Carolina University and a Ph.D. from the University of Georgia. Nash’s areas of interest include the 19th Century United States, the Civil War and reconstruction, Appalachia and environmental history.

The symposium will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. with two breaks. The event is open to the public. It is free to LMU faculty, staff and students. Students from other colleges and universities will receive a 50% discount off the $30 registration fee. Civil War-related books will be available for purchase at the event. For more information or to pre-register contact Director of Programs Carol Campbell at 423.869.6439 or by email at carol.campbell@lmunet.edu.

An ironclad anniversary

Today is the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Hampton Roads, in which the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia became the first ironclad warships to meet in combat.  Although Harrogate, TN is a long way from the sea, the Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum does have an interesting claim on the legacy of this battle.  The vault holds a substantial collection of papers and artifacts that once belonged to John Worden, who was in command of the Monitor during the engagement.

Worden himself was wounded during the clash with the Virginia when a shell struck the pilot house, partially blinding him.  Lincoln received a report of the battle during a cabinet meeting on March 10, and then went to visit Worden while the injured officer lay convalescing with his face wrapped in bandages.

You can learn more about the museum’s Worden collection by clicking here.

Battle of Hampton Roads, from a painting by J.O. Davidson via Wikimedia Commons

Lincoln’s Confederate in-laws

The Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum is currently hosting a temporary exhibit from the Mary Todd Lincoln House about Lincoln’s Confederate relatives.  This is an unknown aspect of Lincoln’s life for many people, but it’s also one of the most fascinating; some of his relatives by marriage held important positions within the Confederate military, and they were a political liability for him during the war.

You can see an online version of the exhibit by visiting the Mary Todd Lincoln House website.

Benjamin Hardin Helm, a brother-in-law to Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln, was a brigadier general in the Confederate States Army who was killed at Chickamauga in 1863. His widow, Mary Todd Lincoln's half-sister Emilie, was a guest at the White House. Image from Wikimedia Commons

Sneak peek

The Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum staff is currently at work on a new temporary exhibit.  This display will examine portrayals of Lincoln in film and on television, featuring original posters and other items.  Here’s a sneak peek at one portion of the exhibit under construction; it’s slated to open later this month.

A glimpse of onscreen Lincolns

Two movies about Lincoln are currently in the works, and you can get a visual taste of both of them thanks to a couple of images that have popped up in the news lately.  First up is a photo of Daniel Day-Lewis in costume for Steven Spielberg’s film about Lincoln’s presidency, which you can see by clicking here.  Second is the poster for the film adaptation of the mash-up Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.

Speaking of Lincoln on film, LMU’s Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum has an exhibit in the works about that very subject.  We’ll  keep you posted as work progresses.

Lincoln and the Constitution on exhibit in East Tennessee

“Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War,” the special traveling exhibit created by the National Constitution Center in conjunction with the American Library Association, will be on display at the East Tennessee History Center in downtown Knoxville until January 13, 2012.  LMU’s Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum has provided some special material to supplement the exhibit’s components, including rare archival items from the vault which are usually out of public view, so be sure to visit if you’re going to be in the Knoxville area.