Maine Humanities Council

To close the Lincoln Bicentennial Symposium on March 21, 2009, former Maine Governor Angus King read Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address. He also shared some thoughts about Lincoln, whom he includes in his course on “Leaders and Leadership” at Bowdoin College. Governor King served two four-year terms as Maine’s independent 71st governor. He works as an attorney at Bernstein, Shur, Sawyer and Nelson and is involved with a number of alternative energy development projects.

Governor King’s reading was part of the Legacy of Lincoln symposium co-presented by the Maine Humanities Council, Maine Historical Society, and American & New England Studies Program at USM.

Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address [ 11:55 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (2816)

Thomas J. Brown is Associate Professor of History at the University of South Carolina, where he also serves as Associate Director of the Institute for Southern Studies. He is a Distinguished Lecturer with the Organization of American Historians. In this lecture, Brown examined the ways in which debates over regionalism, race relations and governmental power have influenced how America has remembered Abraham Lincoln, particularly in public monuments. Brown’s research on Civil War monuments has produced a variety of publications, including The Public Art of Civil War Commemoration: An Introduction with Documents (Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2004).

This lecture was part of the Legacy of Lincoln symposium co-presented by the Maine Humanities Council, Maine Historical Society, and American & New England Studies Program at USM on March 21, 2009.

The Afterlife of Abraham Lincoln [ 42:02 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (4905)

Elizabeth D. Leonard is the John J. and Cornelia V. Gibson Professor of History at Colby College, where she has taught since 1992. Leonard is the author of three books on the Civil War era, and she is under contract to write the biography of Joseph Holt, Lincoln’s judge advocate general. In this talk, she explores Holt’s role in the manhunt that followed the assassination. She also delineates the arguments that took place between those who were determined to avenge Lincoln’s death (and the war itself) and those who aimed to forgive the rebel South and forget the plight of the recently freed slaves.

This lecture was part of the Legacy of Lincoln symposium co-presented by the Maine Humanities Council, Maine Historical Society, and American & New England Studies Program at USM on March 21, 2009.

In the Aftermath of the Lincoln Assassination [ 56:30 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (6164)

Before he was the leader of a nation torn apart by a Civil War, Abraham Lincoln was a young man growing up during tumultuous times in Illinois. In the first presentation of the Lincoln Bicentennial Symposium, historian Bruce Chadwick explained Lincoln’s rise to power from his first unsuccessful race for the state legislature to his election as President. Chadwick spent 23 years as a journalist before earning a doctorate in American history in 1994 at Rutgers University. He is a professor, historian, lecturer and author of 28 books, including a lengthy series on baseball history.

This lecture was part of the Legacy of Lincoln symposium co-presented by the Maine Humanities Council, Maine Historical Society, and American & New England Studies Program at USM on March 21, 2009. Victoria Bonebakker of the Maine Humanities Council and Richard D’Abate of the Maine Historical Society introduced Professor Chadwick’s talk.

The Rise of Abraham Lincoln [ 1:08:36 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (7291)

To open the Lincoln Bicentennial Symposium on March 21, 2009, Portland Mayor Jill Duson read Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. Mayor Duson is the Director of Rehabilitation Services, Maine Department of Labor. She is serving her third term on the Portland City Council. She has also served one term on the School Committee, where she was elected Chair.

Mayor Duson’s reading was part of the Legacy of Lincoln symposium co-presented by the Maine Humanities Council, Maine Historical Society, and American & New England Studies Program at USM.

The Gettysburg Address [ 2:15 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (4015)