Civil War Commemorations

Some special events to consider, for those in the area or willing to travel to partake!

In Dearborn, MI, the Henry Ford Museum is having an assassination commemoration, with Doris Kearns Goodwin speaking.  I got a laugh out of the pricing tiers, which include balcony seats and general floor admission, but no options for participants travelling from the balcony to the floor. Bit of an oversight given the topic on hand 😉

On April 13, as we mark the 150th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s assassination, we will host Lincoln’s Legacy: An Evening with Doris Kearns Goodwin…

More than a commemoration of Lincoln’s death, her talk will show how the experiences faced by Lincoln, one of our most unlikely presidents, carry so much relevance to Americans in 2015.

http://www.thehenryford.org/events/lincoln150.aspx

 

And New Jersey locals, take note! There is a Thomas Nast exhibition on this year at Macculloch Hall Historical Museum, with a special presentation on the 22nd of February.  From this sounds of it, this venue is the premier collection of Nast’s work, so I’m sure they have some excellent art (and history) on display.

Mounted to commemorate the final year of the Civil War Sesquicentennial (2011-2015), this second floor exhibit at Macculloch includes a number of these images. “The Civil War through the Eyes of Thomas Nast” is on exhibit through December 2015.

On Sunday Feb. 22 Macculloch Hall Historical Museum (MHHM) F.M Kirby Curator of Collections Ryan Hyman presents “The Work of Thomas Nast.” During this presentation Hyman will highlight Nast’s most popular political cartoons and a few interesting but lesser known images. During the program Ryan will also discuss some of Nast’s political cartoon work about the Civil War, some of which is currently on display.

via Thomas Nast’s Civil War at Macculloch Hall in Morristown – New Jersey Hills: Morris NewsBee News.

Christmas on the Homefront

An article from The News Leader is more interesting than the weak lede would have you believe. Offering a survey of Thomas Nast’s Santa Claus drawings, it also tacks on an anecdote about Wadsworth Longfellow’s Christmas poem. A nice little read for Christmas Day.

Thomas Nast's Santa Claus

Thomas Nast's Santa Claus

Nast created a character for Harper’s based on a fourth century bishop in Asia Minor named St. Nicholas, who, over time, had become known to the Western world as the patron saint of children and a symbol of Christmas. But until 1862, St. Nick was more often than not portrayed as tall and cadaverous. One artist in 1845 even made him look like a leprechaun with a police record.

Nast took the character, fattened him up and dressed him in a gaudy red suit with white trim. A flowing white beard and bulging bag of toys completed the picture.

I’ve been listening for years to Johnny Cash performing the full poem, without realising it had a Civil War origin!

Merry Christmas.

http://www.newsleader.com/article/20111224/LIFESTYLE22/112240311