Capital of the Confederacy Remembers Lincoln’s Visit

lincoln-richmond01One hundred and forty-four years ago this weekend, Abraham Lincoln visited Richmond for the first time.  A large crowd of Richmonders welcomed the president in the wake of the Confederate government’s abandonment of the city.  To mark the occasion, the Valentine Museum, Library of Virginia, and American Civil War Museum at Tredegar have scheduled a series of events to mark the occasion.  Choose between talks on Lincoln and emancipation as well as another on Lincoln and the fall of the Confederacy, a photography collection of Richmond in 1865, and a Lincoln walk titled “Step Toward Freedom”.  Click here for information on the weekend’s events.  Don’t expect to see Brag Bowling at any of these events.

Update: The wife and I decided to check out the Lincoln walk. You couldn’t ask for a more beautiful day to submerge yourself in Richmond’s heritage. Check back later for photographs.

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8 comments… add one
  • Jim Apr 10, 2009 @ 11:35

    The Census reports that Richmond’s population in 1860 was about 38K, and I had read that this exploded to maybe around 150K near the end of the CW as people flocked to be near the Confederate government looking for support. In John Boles book “Black Southerners, 1619-1869”, I see that 1860 Richmond was 33% slave and about 7-8% free black for a total of 40% black. So I’m wondering how large was the group “welcoming” Lincoln and what was the racial makeup of this group? How many were left in Richmond after its evacuation?

    Also in Boles book I read that blacks fared better in southern cities than northern ones until about 1900 as northern whites resisted black labor.

  • Jimmy Price Apr 6, 2009 @ 4:06

    Hi Kevin! I was just curious if you attended my lecture at the Lincoln statue? I didn’t see you in the crowd, but if you were there I’d love to know what you thought of it!

    • Kevin Levin Apr 6, 2009 @ 5:25

      I noticed your talk on the calendar, but unfortunately we didn’t have time to make it. Hope it went well.

  • Greg Rowe Apr 4, 2009 @ 6:54

    Why didn’t I think of that? Excellent idea! Maybe I’ve been so engrossed in preparing materials for the class it hadn’t crossed my mind. Good news though. I received a grant yesterday from the local education foundation for supplemental materials to teach the Constitution and Civil War next year!

  • Greg Rowe Apr 4, 2009 @ 6:43

    To quote my 5-year-old daughter’s favorite historian, SpongeBob, “Tartar sauce!” All this good stuff and I’m in Texas. I haven’t even found where the state is doing anything to mark the 150th anniversary of the war or anything else related to the era. Perhaps, I’ll just organize something on my own!

    • Kevin Levin Apr 4, 2009 @ 6:45

      That would make for an excellent class project. You could ask them what they believe is worth commemorating about the Civil War.

  • Marc ferguson Apr 4, 2009 @ 6:31

    What is the source of the above image of Lincoln in Richmond?

    • Kevin Levin Apr 4, 2009 @ 6:34

      Thomas Nast for Harper’s Weekly

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