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u CONTACT Heidi Wirth New-York Historical Society Director of Museum Administration [email protected] or 212-485-9271 Lincoln and New York, a traveling panel version of the New-York Historical Society’s 2009–10 exhibition. Description Display Configuration Lincoln and New York probes the myths and contro- The exhibition takes shape as a 10-section Vista Panel Display System. Each section, measuring approximately 24” wide by 80” high, includes two panels and a panel header. The lightweight, stackable panels are easy to install and allow for flexible configuration in a range of public spaces. The size of the exhibition when it is installed onesided is approximately 20 feet wide by 80” high. It can also be installed two-sided to measure approximately 10 feet wide by 80” high. versies surrounding Abraham Lincoln. Starting with the iconic Mathew Brady image of Lincoln without his beard, the exhibition follows his earliest efforts to gain the blessing of the political and journalistic leaders of New York for a presidential run. Reproductions of rare period artifacts and caricatures show the political passions of the day, depicting the rising impact of the media and the first racial scare tactics used in a national political campaign. Original research explores New York’s influence on the Civil War, the impact of emancipation, and the promotion of Lincoln’s persona as he evolved from an obscure Illinois politician to a national martyr. Visitors who think they know everything about Lincoln will be startled to see so much that is new. Accompanying Materials Curriculum resources and other information can be downloaded from www.lincolnandnewyork.org. A catalogue is available for sale at venues. Host venues are encouraged to create related public programs and arrange events of local interest. The New-York Historical Society can work with venues to suggest speakers and will supply a bibliography. Shipping The N-YHS will arrange a mutually convenient delivery time for the exhibition based on the display dates. Unpacking, installation, and repacking is the responsibility of the venue. Cost There is no venue fee. Venues are responsible for the costs of round trip shipping (varies based on location) and local costs incurred in presenting the exhibition. The traveling exhibition is made possible by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Traveling Exhibition Lincoln and New York THE SPEECH AND THE IMAGE THE FACE OF POLITICS Let us have faith that right makes might, and in that faith, let us, to the end, dare to do our duty as we understand it. P Abraham Lincoln, February 27, 1860 O Abraham Lincoln, sixteenth president of the United States, the log-cabin born prairie lawyer, orator, emancipator, and eventual martyr, is one of the most celebrated figures in American history. In 1860 he emerged as a contender for the Republican presidential nomination. At that time, New York was the nation’s wealthiest city, mightiest port, and media center. It was also both a center of abolitionist agitation and a Democratic stronghold, sympathetic to the slaveholding South. As a Republican who resisted the radicalism of abolitionism, Lincoln faced a steep challenge in his appeal to New York’s voters. Nevertheless, Lincoln could not have attained the presidency nor won the Civil War without New York City or New York State, though he visited only five times. New York gave Lincoln votes and supplied the Union with the troops, equipment, and financing necessary to win the war. At the same time, New York’s editors, reporters, artists, and publishers helped shape the nation’s perception of Lincoln, and the president’s distinctive likeness became a powerful weapon in the political battles of the Civil War era. top left: Mathew B. Brady (ca. 1823– 1896). Abraham Lincoln (detail), New York, February 27, 1860. Albumen print, carte-de-visite. New-York Historical Society, PR 231. top right: Unidentified artist. “The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art.” Wood engraving, published in Harper’s Weekly, March 30, 1861. New-York Historical Society. bottom left: Abraham Lincoln, The Address of the Hon. Abraham Lincoln. New York: George F. Nesbitt & Co., Printers and Stationers, 1860. New-York Historical Society, CT.L7, Box L. left: Unidentified artist. “Uncle Sam” Making New Arrangements, 1860. Lithograph. Currier & Ives, publisher. New-York Historical Society, Gift of Daniel Parish Jr., PR 010. This image depicts growing confidence among Republican leaders that Lincoln would win the election of 1860. Uncle Sam is shown in front of the White House, removing a sign that reads “Wanted: An honest, upright and capable man to take charge of this house for four years,” and handing Lincoln a notice that he has been hired as president. Lincoln appears in rustic attire, holding an axe, in contrast to the more formal dress of John Bell, John C. Breckenridge, and Stephen Douglas, who are spurned by Uncle Sam. Lincoln’s standing as someone who Uncle Sam feels he can “safely trust in the management of my affairs,” is tied to his characterization as a humble rail-splitter. right: Unidentified artist. Storming the Castle “Old Abe” on Guard, 1860. Lithograph. Currier & Ives, publisher. New-York Historical Society, Gift of Daniel Parish Jr., PR 010. With a distinctive hat and cape, Lincoln appears dressed as a member of the “Wide-Awakes.” He has foiled the fumbling attempts of the other candidates to break into the White House, particularly those of Vice President John C. Breckenridge, a Southern Democrat who the incumbent James Buchanan tries to pull through the window, thus implying Buchanan’s sympathy for the secessionist South. Here, Lincoln is a watchman, blocking the inept efforts of the other candidates and the split rail he carries is a source of strength and authority over his opponents. background: Unidentified artist. “Grand Procession of Wide-Awakes at New York on the Evening of October 3, 1860.” Wood engraving, published in Harper’s Weekly, Oct. 13, 1860. New-York Historical Society. n February 27, 1860 at Cooper Union in New York, Abraham Lincoln won national fame with a speech that argued that the founding fathers had intended for slavery to end in the United States. Moral issues, Lincoln contended, lay at the heart of the sectional conflict. The effects of the galvanizing speech made Lincoln a suddenly viable alternative to the Republican frontrunner, New York State’s own Senator William Henry Seward, and won Lincoln the Republican nomination. Hours before speaking at Cooper Union, Lincoln visited the photography studio of Mathew Brady, whose flattering portrait became the iconic image that introduced the unknown westerner to the nation. Following the tradition of the day, Lincoln stayed home and did not campaign in person throughout the election process. Instead, New York’s image-makers marketed “three Lincolns” to the American electorate: the thoughtful orator at Cooper Union; Brady’s dignified statesman; and the self-made frontiersman of political cartoons. In particular, the lithographers Nathaniel Currier and James Merritt Ives produced inexpensive prints—images of Lincoln modeled on the Brady portrait, often highlighting Lincoln’s former work as a rail-splitter—to be displayed at campaign offices, rallies, and saloons. Meanwhile, enthusiastic young Republicans, calling themselves “Wide Awakes,” paraded in the streets bearing torches and lanterns and singing campaign songs in support of Lincoln. SECESSION WINTER T he print media flourished in New York, and train lines swiftly delivered its newspapers and images to the entire nation. At the time of the 1860 presidential election, the city was home to no fewer than 174 daily, weekly, and monthly newspapers. The press was vital in the era of impending secession and war, and local papers such as the Herald and Tribune influenced public opinion nationwide. Horace Greeley’s Tribune introduced Lincoln as an exciting and inspiring candidate. Partisan publications like the Herald characterized the Republican candidate as a coarse and clumsy radical. Illustrated periodicals and inexpensive prints grew in popularity during the Civil War period. Harper’s Weekly or the more satirical Phunny Phellow, for example, thrived on imagery of Lincoln, whose lanky physique and angular features became easy targets for the cartoonist’s pen. Not all caricatures were hostile; imagery supportive of Lincoln’s efforts to stop the spread of slavery and preserve the Union also highlighted the new president’s physical appearance. left: C.D. Fredericks & Co., Horace Greeley (1811–1872), ca. 1861–1865. Albumen print, carte-de-visite. New-York Historical Society, PR 011. right: Unidentified artist. “Dictator Greeley.” Wood engraving, published in Harper’s Weekly, August 10, 1861. New-York Historical Society. This image from early in the Civil War reflects the close relationship between Lincoln and the New York press. After the Union defeat at Bull Run in July 1861, Horace Greeley had charged the Lincoln administration with incompetence and called for the resignation of the entire cabinet. Though images like this characterized Greeley as childish and irate, he and his fellow publishers wielded a great deal of power during the Civil War. top left: Unidentified artist, after Mathew B. Brady. “Hon. Abraham Lincoln, Born in Kentucky, February 12, 1809.” Wood engraving, published in Harper’s Weekly, November 10, 1860. New-York Historical Society. Harper’s Weekly, a popular illustrated journal, published this issue four days after Lincoln’s election on November 6. The cover illustration is a woodcut adaptation of Mathew Brady’s photographic portrait of Lincoln taken just before the speech at Cooper Union. Woodcuts like this were the means by which photographic images were reproduced in publications and distributed to a wide audience in the 1860s. top right: Unidentified artist. “’The Schoolmaster Abroad’ at last,” Strong’s Dime Caricatures No. 4, 1861. Wood engraving, T. W. Strong, publisher. New-York Historical Society, PR 010. bottom right: Michael Angelo Woolf (1837–1899). “Good, my lord; what is the cause of your distemper?” 1860. Wood engraving. New-York Historical Society, PR 010. anic gripped New York as news of South Carolina’s secession in December 1860 and fear over the loss of vital Southern markets fed predictions of economic disaster. Yet after the war began in April 1861, New York and Brooklyn would provide significant contributions to the war effort and to the eventual Union victory. By that summer, New York State regiments such as the 69th and the 7th jubilantly marched through the streets. German, Hungarian, Italian, and particularly Irish immigrant men enthusiastically enlisted. New York manufacturers supplied the Union army with uniforms, buttons, and flasks. In an effort to meet the extraordinary military demand, Brooks Brothers produced “shoddy” uniforms made from an artificial cloth that disintegrated in the rain. The Navy’s demand for gunboats led to increased production at Brooklyn and Manhattan shipyards; at its wartime peak, the Brooklyn Navy Yard employed over 6,000 men. New York’s women also rose to the call. The Women’s Central Relief Association (WCRA) trained nurses, collected supplies, and raised funds for war widows and orphans. Though founded in New York, the WCRA expanded to a regional network of nearly 1,500 affiliated societies. The United States Sanitary Commission, a forerunner to the International Red Cross, originated from the WCRA. PROCLAMATION POLITICS left: Unidentified artist. Phoenix Regiment! Corcoran Zouaves! 4th Regiment Spinola’s Empire Brigade! n.d. Hand-colored woodcut and letterpress. Baker & Godwin, publisher. New-York Historical Society, PR 055. right: Thomas Nast (1840–1902). Study for “Departure of the Seventh Regiment for the War, April 19, 1861,” ca. 1865–69. Oil over graphite on brown paper. New-York Historical Society, Gift of George A. Zabriskie, 1946.174. top: P.S. Duval & Son, after R. Morris Swander. Emancipation Proclamations. Allegorical Portrait of Abraham Lincoln, 1865. Lithograph. Art Publishing Association of Philadelphia, Swander Bishop & Co., publisher. New-York Historical Society, PR 068. bottom: Unidentified artist. Freedom to the Slave (detail), ca. 1863. Lithograph. Photographs and Prints Division, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations. Morse. [Abraham Lincoln boxing with Jefferson Davis], 1861. Woodcut. New-York Historical Society, PR 010. top left: Unidentified artist. “Doctor Lincoln’s New Elixir of Life — for the Southern States.” Wood engraving, published in New York Illustrated News, April 12, 1862. New-York Historical Society. top right: Unidentified artist. Freedom to the Slaves…, ca. 1865. Lithograph. Currier & Ives, publisher. New-York Historical Society, PR 052. According to this view from Currier & Ives, emancipation was a personal gift from Lincoln to the slave. This dynamic, in which the slave is still subordinate, ignores the extent to which enslaved people played an active role in their liberation, often crossing into Union territory and working or fighting alongside Union soldiers. Images depicting liberated slaves as docile and submissive were likely used to reassure Northern whites who were fearful about the effects of emancipation. bottom left: Adalbert Johann Volk (1828–1912). Writing the Emancipation Proclamation, Baltimore, 1863. Etching. New-York Historical Society, PR 010. top left: Unidentified artist. WCRA (Women’s Central Relief Association) in Cooper Union, New York City, ca. 1864. Albumen print. New-York Historical Society, PR 164. top right: Entry Ticket for Metropolitan Fair, 1864. New-York Historical Society, Metropolitan Fair Papers. bottom: Unidentified artist. Continental Works, Green Point, Brooklyn, 1865. Hand-colored lithograph. Endicott & Co., publisher. New-York Historical Society, PR 020. The Emancipation Proclamation, January 1, 1863 L ingering questions about slavery and freedom provoked bitter divisions in wartime. Abolitionists and African American statesmen rallied reformers to shape the movement for Emancipation. Leaders such as Frederick Douglass, James McCune Smith, Reverend James Pennington, and Martin Delaney passed resolutions, published political pamphlets, and pressured the president to convert the war to one of emancipation. Nevertheless, a cautious Lincoln had to brace for political opposition as he prepared to issue the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation after the Union victory at Antietam in September 1862. In an ironic twist, Jefferson Davis was inaugurated President of the Confederate States of America before Lincoln took the oath of office in March 1861. In 1864 the WCRA sold nearly 30,000 tickets in just three weeks to their Metropolitan Fair, which displayed Frederic Church’s Heart of the Andes and Emanuel Leutze’s Washington Crossing the Delaware for a steep admission fee. And by virtue of the power and for the purpose aforesaid, I do order and declare that all persons held as slaves within said designated States and parts of States, are, and henceforward shall be free. In this anti-Lincoln view, Lincoln writes the Emancipation Proclamation with his foot on the Constitution, dipping his pen in a diabolical inkwell. This linkage of Lincoln with the devil appears in other imagery emergent from the south at this time, as Confederate ideology and nationalism identified with Christianity and thus equated Lincoln with the devil. The legs on Lincoln’s desk are composed of African American faces with horns and cloven hooves, while a snake head emerges from under the curtains, behind Lincoln’s back. Framed images of “St. Osawatomie” and Santo Domingo, both references to violent anti-slavery insurrections, complete the negative characterization of abolitionism in this scene. A key turning point in the war, Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation provided a new language and motivation for extreme depictions of Lincoln from both sides of the conflict. Proslavery imagery of Lincoln depicted him as a despotic, diabolical figure and made reference to the violent acts of radical abolitionists like John Brown. Later, the figure of Lincoln as a benevolent liberator, elevating a humble slave from his shackles, became a familiar representation of the President after the war shifted from a fight to preserve the Union to a battle for emancipation. bottom right: Ehrgott, Forbriger & Co., after David Gilmour Blythe (1815– 1865). President Lincoln, Writing the Proclamation of Freedom, January 1st 1863, 1864. Chromolithograph. M. Dupuy, publisher. New-York Historical Society, PR 052. In marked contrast to the Southern view of this scene, here Lincoln writes the Emancipation Proclamation with his hand on the Bible, which rests in his lap on top of the Constitution. A bust of Andrew Jackson is a reference to another strongly Unionist President. Conversely, a bust of James Buchanan, who was notably ineffectual in opposing secessionism, hangs from a noose. Lincoln’s cluttered study also contains the scales of justice and a rail-splitter’s maul, which together symbolize his persona as a moral and humble statesman. Organized by: Unidentified artist. Fourth of July in and about New York, “The Regatta” (detail), 1860. Stereograph card. E & H.T. Anthony & Co., publisher. New-York Historical Society, Gift of Mrs. Elihu Spicer, PR 065. Made possible through the generous support of: U.S. Department of Education Underground Railroad Educational and Cultural (URR) Program Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this exhibition do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities. CONTRABAND AND THE LAST OF THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD E arly in the war, one of Lincoln’s generals navigated the issue of slavery by calling the enslaved people “contraband of war.” Later, Congress passed legislation authorizing the Union to confiscate Confederate property, including slaves, and forbidding the Union army from returning runaway slaves to their masters. Thousands of fleeing slaves descended on Union lines, in a final manifestation of the Underground Railroad. This migration altered the racial environment in the South, and Freedmen’s camps served as centers of an emerging, free African American culture, providing schools, churches, and job training. bottom: Unidentified artist. Storming Fort Wagner, 1890. Chromolithograph. Kurz & Allison, publisher. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, LC-USZC4-507. In 1863 Colonel Robert Gould Shaw led the 54th Massachusetts, the first regiment of black troops raised in the North, in an attack on Fort Wagner on the coast of South Carolina. While Shaw and many of his men perished in the attack, the battle was the first action for which an African American would be awarded the Medal of Honor. Although the recruits had been promised pay equal to their white counterparts, it was not until after the men of the 54th refused their pay for over a year that the wages were made equal. above top: Draft cards, 1863. Paper. New-York Historical Society, INV. 7689a-n. above bottom: Draft wheel, ca. 1863. Wood, metal. New-York Historical Society, Gift of Frederic C. Wagner, 1865.6. ongress passed the Conscription (Enrollment) Act in March 1863 implementing the first federal draft. A controversial aspect of the law offered exemption from military service in exchange for $300. New York’s working men grew enraged, while Irish Americans in particular feared that their efforts on the battlefield would liberate men and women who ultimately might compete with them for jobs as well as larger acceptance in American society. On July 13th, two days after New York’s draft lottery began, a mob of angry protestors stormed the draft office on Third Avenue and Forty-seventh Street and burned it to the ground. Four days of rioting ensued. The brutal attacks on African Americans and massive property destruction ended only when Federal troops were called back from the battlefields of Gettysburg to restore order. This lottery wheel was for use in the draft lottery held in the 7th Congressional District on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Cards inside listed the names, occupations, and addresses of potential draftees. The wheel was rescued from destruction after the outbreak of the draft riots in July 1863. It still contained 3,500 draft cards when it was donated to the New-York Historical Society in 1865. right: Unidentified artist. “The Riots in New York, Conflict Between the Military and the Rioters in FirstAvenue.” Wood engraving, published in the Illustrated London News, August 15, 1863. New-York Historical Society, PR 020. left: Unidentified artist. Major Martin Delaney U.S.A. Promoted on the Battle Field for Bravery, n.d. Hand-colored lithograph. Joseph Hoover, publisher. New-York Historical Society, PR 052. top right: Unidentified artist. Colored Pickets on Duty, near Dutch Cap, ca. 1863. Stereograph card, E & H.T. Anthony & Co., publisher. New-York Historical Society, PR 164. bottom right: 24 Men Wanted! 1863. Letterpress poster, Curtz, printer. NewYork Historical Society, PR 055. above: Unidentified artist. Colored Orphan Asylum (detail), 1861. Stereograph card. New-York Historical Society, Purchase, PR 065. This acclaimed school and shelter for African American children was founded by women in 1836. During the draft riots an angry mob destroyed the building as part of a series of vicious attacks that targeted African Americans. Though all 233 children escaped with their lives, eleven black men were lynched or dragged through the streets during the riots. The Orphan Asylum was rebuilt in 1867 and operated into the twentieth century. below: Unidentified artist. “The Naughty Boy Gotham, Who Would Not Take the Draft.” Wood engraving, published in Frank Leslie’s Budget of Fun, November 1, 1863. New-York Historical Society. right: Unidentified artist. Political Caricature No. 2. Miscegenation or The Millennium of Abolitionism, 1864. Lithograph. G.W. Bromley & Co., publisher. New-York Historical Society, PR 010. As part of a larger Democratic strategy, many anti-Lincoln New York publishers produced pamphlets, lithographs and engravings depicting scenes of ‘miscegenation,’ spreading the notion that under Lincoln, the white race would be debased by African blood. Here Lincoln at the far left and Greeley in the center participate in a gathering that, according to their opponents, reflected the impend-ing deterioration of American society. The New York City draft rioters railed against the draft and the repercussions of emancipation, as well as the perception, fomented by the Democratic press, that under Lincoln the federal government had taken on a dangerous level of centralized power. To this day, the draft riots still rank as the largest and bloodiest urban disturbance in American history. Indeed, the Emancipation Proclamation and rising anxieties about the implications of racial integration prompted harsh words and deeds. Lincoln’s opponents discredited Republicans through fear-mongering accusations like “miscegenation,” implying that Lincoln and his supporters endorsed racial integration and equality, a radical concept in its time. “OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN!” right: Daniel Chester French (1850– 1931). Maquette for Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), 1922. Plaster. New-York Historical Society, Gift of Mrs. William Penn Cresson (Margaret French), 1954.79. below: Daniel Chester French (1850– 1931). Preparatory study for Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), 1916. Painted plaster. New-York Historical Society, Gift of Mrs. William Penn Cresson (Margaret French), 1954.164. far right top: Walt Whitman (1819–1892). Manuscript copy of ‘O Captain! My Captain!’ Poem, March 9, 1887. Brown University, John Hay Library. A A s the long war continued, Lincoln faced former General George B. McClellan as his challenger in the election of 1864. As had been the case in the election of 1860, Lincoln’s campaign would be waged in the pages and images of New York’s news and humor publications. Yet by 1864 the extended trauma of the Civil War would dramatically influence the terms on which Lincoln was both praised and assailed. The high cost of the war, in both human and financial terms, dominated the attacks on Lincoln. The New York World falsely reported that Lincoln had toured the battlefield at Antietam with a lighthearted attitude. Thus by late 1864 Lincoln’s opponents depicted him as a distracted jokester, indifferent to the great casualties of war. Cartoonists continued to highlight the shape and size of the candidates. The fact that the notably tall Lincoln was running against one of his more diminutive former generals did not go unobserved. Yet Lincoln took control of his visual identity in 1864. Recognizing that he would have a lasting legacy as an emancipator, Lincoln agreed to allow Francis Bicknell Carpenter unprecedented access to the White House for a six-month period while the painter prepared a life-size portrayal of the first reading of the proclamation for the cabinet. Adapted as an engraving, the painting gained popularity after the great emancipator’s sudden and untimely death. top: Campaign banner, 1863. Lithograph on cotton. New-York Historical Society, Samuel T. Shaw Memorial Collection, 1946.243. bottom: Alexander Hay Ritchie (1822– 1895), after Francis Bicknell Carpenter (1830–1900). The First Reading of the Emancipation Proclamation Before the Cabinet, 1866. Engraving. New-York Historical Society, Gift of Mrs. Harold E. Hoyt, PR 052. from top to bottom: Unidentified artist. The Death-Bed of the Martyr President, Abraham Lincoln. Washington, Saturday Morning, April 15th 1865, 1865. Lithograph. Currier & Ives, publisher. New-York Historical Society, PR 052. Unidentified artist. Lincoln’s Funeral (detail), City Hall, New York City, 1865. Stereograph card. New-York Historical Society, Gift of Mrs. Elihu Spicer, PR 065. Unidentified artist. [Abraham Lincoln’s catafalque] (detail), 1865. Stereograph card. New-York Historical Society, Gift of Mrs. Elihu Spicer, PR 065. Unidentified artist. Lincoln’s Funeral Procession, Seventh Regiment in advance of the catafalque (detail), New York City, 1865. Stereograph card. William Evans James, publisher. New-York Historical Society, Gift of Mrs. Elihu Spicer, PR 065. fter an assassin’s bullet struck down the president just days after Lee’s surrender to Grant at Appomattox Court House, New York became a central site of dramatic national mourning. Despite the extraordinary passions expressed for and against Lincoln in his lifetime, the imagery of his death and martyrdom came as a sudden reversal. Lincoln’s tragic death temporarily erased the fierce conflicts of his presidency. New York’s sophisticated media machine, which had helped propel the obscure western politician to the highest office, now shaped his legacy, highlighting only his great achievements and omitting the controversial struggles of the war. In rapid response to avid public demand, Currier & Ives created and distributed depictions of both Lincoln’s assassination and deathbed. Immediately thereafter, printmakers embarked upon a project of sanctifying the martyred president, frequently pairing him with George Washington, and thereby linking two great American icons, the creator and the defender of the Union. Although the city had been the site of some of the harshest criticism of Lincoln and his policies, within days New Yorkers had draped their homes, businesses, and even ships in the harbor in mourning bunting. When Lincoln’s funeral train stopped in New York en route from Washington to Springfield, Illinois, New Yorkers turned out in massive numbers to witness the funeral procession. Well over 100,000 New Yorkers viewed President Lincoln’s open coffin during the twenty-four hours that he lay in state at City Hall. above: Unidentified artist. “Long Abraham Lincoln a Little Longer.” Wood engraving, published in Harper’s Weekly, November 26, 1864. New-York Historical Society. above: Francis Bicknell Carpenter (1830–1900). The Lincoln Family, ca. 1865. Oil on canvas. New-York Historical Society, Gift of Warren C. Crane, 1909.6. Shortly after Lincoln’s assassination, New York printmaker John Chester Buttre commissioned Francis Bicknell Carpenter to paint this portrait of the Lincoln family for the purpose of creating an engraved print. The family is depicted as they would have appeared in 1861, when both Lincoln and his middle son William, seated in front of the table, were still living. Carpenter painted in black and white to facilitate printmaking, and drew upon photographs and sketches of the Lincoln family and their furnishings, as well as his own recollections from his extended stay at the White House in 1864. far right bottom: Unidentified artist. The Lincoln Statue. In Lincoln Square, Washington, D.C, Unveiled April 14 1876, 1876. Lithograph. Currier & Ives, publisher. New-York Historical Society, PR 052. Funded entirely by donations from free blacks, the Freedman’s Memorial to Abraham Lincoln was the first monument on the topic of emancipation and African American history intended for a national audience. Despite the hopes of its funders and the expectations of the era of Reconstruction, Thomas Ball’s memorial reinforces the dynamics of slavery by depicting a nude slave crouched powerlessly at the feet of a authoritative, formally attired Lincoln. N ational grief over Abraham Lincoln’s death inspired a vast amount of literary and artistic works in the decades following the Civil War. Walt Whitman’s elegies, “When Lilacs in the Dooryard Bloom’d” and “Oh Captain, My Captain,” encapsulated this profound sense of national loss. Lincoln’s legacy, his humble persona, and role as emancipator has had a broad and lasting influence on American political and cultural life. At the turn of the twentieth century, recollection of Lincoln as an industrious everyman appealed to an increasingly urbanized and diverse nation. Lincoln’s likeness debuted on the penny in 1909, an era that championed Lincoln as an example for poor children who sought to rise and improve through their own labor. While dedicated in 1922 as a celebration more of unification than emancipation, the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. has served as a symbolic meeting point for generations. Most notably, Lincoln’s figure served as a backdrop for Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech during the 1963 March on Washington. The Lincoln legacy has been expressed in the twenty-first century through the candidacy and inauguration of President Barack Obama. Framing his presidential run as the fulfillment of Lincoln’s ideals, Obama announced his candidacy in Lincoln’s hometown of Springfield, Illinois and took the oath of office in 2009 with the same Bible Lincoln had used nearly 150 years earlier. right: John Sartain (1808–1897). Abraham Lincoln, the Martyr, Victorious., 1866. Mezzotint. W.H. Hermans, publisher. New-York Historical Society, Gift of O.T. Bark Sr., PR 052. top left: C.A.L. The Commander in Chief Conciliating the Soldier’s Votes on the Battle Field, 1864. Etching. New-York Historical Society, PR 010. Lincoln stands with U.S. Marshal Ward Lamon who is disturbed by a landscape of wounded and dying soldiers. Lincoln’s request to “sing us Picayune Butler or something else that’s funny” is reference to a report, later disputed by Lamon, that while touring Antietam, Lincoln had offended General McClellan by asking Lamon to sing a song. Underscoring references to his insensitivity, Lincoln holds a tartan hat, an allusion to an 1861 incident in which he avoided an assassination attempt by dressing in disguise. Subsequent images of Lincoln incorporated Scottish clothing as a visual code to accuse him of timidity. Organized by: VICTORY AND MARTYRDOM C top: Unidentified artist. Fred(erick) Douglass (1817–1895), n.d.. Albumen print, carte-de-visite. New-York Historical Society, Gift of Mr. Rodman Gilder, PR 011. After the Emancipation Proclamation, the approach of freedom seemed closer in both South and North, even though the military measure did not have an immediate impact. Lincoln invited Frederick Douglass to the White House to ask him to encourage more slaves to abandon the South, and forsake all work for Southern masters. The final Emancipation Proclamation authorized the recruitment of African American troops into the Union army. However, black soldiers initially received less pay than their white counterparts and were less eligible for promotion. Yet as black volunteers fought in the same battles as white Northerners, positive news of their achievements sent a strong message to Lincoln-doubters, who feared the consequences of emancipation. THE BATTLE FOR A SECOND TERM NEW YORK AS A BATTLEGROUND bottom left: Unidentified artist. “This Reminds me of a Little Joke.” Wood engraving, published in Harper’s Weekly, September 17, 1864. New-York Historical Society. While referencing Lincoln as a joker, this image also depicts McClellan’s dim chances for election in 1864, as Lincoln holds his opponent in his palm and appears merely amused by his short statured opposition. right: John Cameron (b. ca. 1828), Running the “Machine,” 1864. Lithograph.Currier & Ives, publisher. New-York Historical Society, PR 010. In this scene, Lincoln sits with his cabinet members and Navy secretary Gideon Welles, while Treasury secretary William Pitt Fessenden cranks out greenbacks from a machine. In the midst of this display of wastefulness and ineptitude, Lincoln obliviously leans back and cracks a joke. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy Martin Luther King, Jr., August 28, 1963 top: Thousands of demonstrators with the March on Washington gather around the Lincoln Memorial and its reflecting pools © Flip Schulke/ CORBIS bottom: A reporter interviews civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. at the 1963 Freedom March ©CORBIS The text inscribed in the Lincoln Memorial does not refer to slavery or emancipation, and Daniel Chester French’s colossal, seated Lincoln does not share the stage with a liberated slave. Yet its vast scale and central location have enabled the memorial to serve as a dramatic site of American political history, in particular a seminal moment of the Civil Rights movement. Today a memorial to King himself sits adjacent to the Lincoln Memorial, creating a landscape of commemoration that is a tribute to an evolving commitment to human dignity and civil rights.