A letter to the president concerning Confederate “heritage”

“You can’t change history, but you can learn from it.” –Donald Trump, August 17, 2017 Mr. President, Your sentiment about history and our collective ability to learn from it could be the truest thing you’ve ever said. Since you’ve opened the door to history’s teachable qualities, this former U.S. History teacher from Chicago is delivering

Time to give a history lesson to Donald Trump

The man seems to be unaware of what the reason for the Civil War was, so here goes: In 1860, there was a presidential election held. In that election, there were four main candidates: Abraham Lincoln, Stephen Douglas, John Bell, and John C. Breckinridge. Here’s a primer on Breckinridge, in case anyone hasn’t heard the

A Lincoln gallery

One hundred and fifty-three years ago today, Abraham Lincoln began the process of righting America’s greatest wrong. Slavery had existed for centuries, sanctioned by law and practiced by many of the men who spoke of human liberty when they applied it to white folks, but were more than willing to deny it to those who

Remembering the fallen

Yesterday was the 150th anniversary of the heaviest fighting at the battle of Spotsylvania in the Civil War. A century and a half ago, the Civil War was grinding on and on, with no end in sight. A presidential election was coming up in the fall, and the staggering losses were dimming Lincoln’s reelection chances.

Here’s why the Civil War began

With the attention being paid to the battle at Gettysburg–the Civil War’s pivotal moment–it bears repeating why the war started in the first place. It’s really not that complicated, but it cannot be brushed aside, either. In 1858, Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas were running for a seat in the U.S. senate. They agreed

Gettysburg and Lovejoy

There’s an ad campaign for Walgreens pharmacy on the radio that goes something like “at the corner of happy and healthy.” But if that were really the case, they wouldn’t sell cigarettes behind the counter the way that they do. It makes smokers happy, I’m sure, but it’s nowhere near healthy, either. I mention this

No Love for Cooter

When I was a kid, back in the late 1970s and early 1980s, I loved The Dukes of Hazzard. It was probably the TV show that I looked forward to the most, because it made the exploits if the Duke family seem cool, at least to a 12 year-old who had no idea about the

I couldn’t believe what I was seeing

In 1860, there was a four-way presidential election held in America, the likes of which had never been seen before, and will likely never be seen again. The winning candidate–Abraham Lincoln of Illinois–prevailed by getting a majority of the votes in the electoral college. That’s what the Constitution requires, and that’s what he did. But

Go forward without fear

Fear can be a debilitating thing. It can tie you up in knots, and make you afraid of whatever is coming next. And it’s no way to live. I had an example of this after watching “Stand By Me” on DVD (and yes, that is an annoying rhyme. Sorry about that). I hadn’t seen the

Honoring Soldiers, Schuylers, and the the guy who made our piano

On Memorial Day, I made good on a promise that I made in an earlier post in this space. In the early morning, while most of the people in the house were still asleep, I took my little one with me and we went to Rosehill Cemetery in Chicago. It was a beautiful day, and

It’s time for Chicago’s Civil War

Baseball and Chicago are just meant for each other. People sometimes say this is a Bears town, but in reality, there are just eight Bears games played in Chicago every year (ten if we’re really lucky). The Cubs and the White Sox, however, play that many games in a little over a week. And while

A baseball tradition that you’ve never heard about

Today’s story is a bit ribald. Some people would probably rather not have it told, but that rarely stops me from doing anything. So read on if you’re intrigued, and go find something else to do if you’re easily offended. On Belmont Avenue in Chicago, just west of Lake Shore Drive, there’s a statue of

Going to Rosehill

A year ago, I was immersed in a project pertaining to the Civil War. As a history major, and a Lincoln buff, the project was a dream come true for me, and I threw myself into it like nothing I had ever worked on before. The project came to a successful completion, and since then