Few images in American political history have carried as much meaning as the log cabin. Long before television commercials, campaign websites and carefully staged photo opportunities, a candidate could be presented to voters with a simple picture: a rough-hewn cabin, a split-rail fence, a barrel … [Read more...]
Lucy Lambert Hale and the President’s Assassin
When I throw out the name John Wilkes Booth what comes to mind? Perhaps you think about Booth’s responsibility in ending President Lincoln’s hopes for a kinder Reconstruction. Maybe the words assassin, actor, murderer, or Confederate sympathizer come to mind. If you are a real student of Booth’s … [Read more...]
George Washington’s Overdue Library Books
Growing up I was huge patron of the library at our church, at my school, and the public library near my home. Occasionally, I would love a book so much I would incur a late fine or two – never a huge sum – never more than a dollar or two. Sometimes I would get a bit sidetracked and a book would get … [Read more...]
Millard Fillmore was a Know Nothing
Once upon a time in what seems to be a long time ago in my classroom full of nine and ten-year-old students I wrote on the white board: Millard Fillmore was a Know Nothing. I faced my students and asked them to tell me what the sentence meant. “Well...somebody isn’t too smart,” a student … [Read more...]
