"Lincoln And The Bluegrass- Slavery and Civil War in Kentucky"

[Anita]

Written by William H. Townsend, this is a must for your Lincoln library. It is a comprehensive detailed account of how Lincoln's first-hand experiences during several visits to Kentucky after marriage to Mary, Mary's knowledge and insights on all sides of the slavery issue, and his personal friendships with Kentucky Whig politicians influenced Lincoln's policies on containing slavery and ultimately to the Emancipation Proclamation. A very well-researched and documented work, Townsend's footnotes and references are a treasure trove.

Townsend explains in detailed examples, how Mary Lincoln had been taught every side of the great slavery question. When Lincoln married Mary she would read the "Lexington Observer and Reporter" aloud to him, sharing her personal knowledge of the key political players and family histories (stories I'd not read before). Then through visits to Lexington over a number of years, Lincoln experienced first-hand intimate knowledge of the horrors and inhumanity of slavery. On these visits Lincoln attended meetings and political rallies supporting Whig candidates and legislation to improve the conditions of slaves and introduce legislation for the gradual emancipation of slaves in Kentucky. When Clay lost his race for the Presidency, Lincoln commented that no candidate supporting emancipation can ever be elected.

On his 3 week visit in 1849 to handle the Todd estate lawsuit he obtained a deeper insight into the problem of slavery than he had up to then. "Slavery, in the very place where it was said to be the most benign, had left etchings on his memory never to be erased...." What Lincoln witnessed in these weeks you'll have to read. Powerful stuff!

Lincoln came away from the Bluegrass realizing that the more agitation in states where slavery already existed caused it to become more entrenched with increased violence toward the slave. The only way to kill it was to contain the spread. A few months later (1850) back in Springfield John Stuart says, "I said "Lincoln, the time is coming when we shall have to be all Abolitionists or all Democrats." He thought a moment and then answered ruefully and emphatically, "When that time comes my mind is made up, for I believe the slavery question can never be successfully compromised."

Townsend discusses in detail the tremendous time, effort and diplomatic skill Lincoln expended to keep Kentucky neutral as the Confederate States were formed and to maintain that neutrality during the war. Also what it was like for Lexington to have Union Troops in the city and when they were routed by Southern forces. He discusses the impact the war had on Mary's family dynamics due to those who chose to support the Confederacy.

Very readable and you may find something new here.

[Gene C]

Thanks for reading and posting about this.
It has been on my internet book reading list for a while.

You can find it in the Internet Archive
https://archive.org/stream/lincolnbluegr...0/mode/2up

It is also available from several internet or walk in bookstores

[RJNorton]

I second Gene, Anita. Thank you for posting the review - well done!

[Donna McCreary]

(06-28-2017 08:59 PM)Anita Wrote:  Written by William H. Townsend, this is a must for your Lincoln library. It is a comprehensive detailed account of how Lincoln's first-hand experiences during several visits to Kentucky after marriage to Mary, Mary's knowledge and insights on all sides of the slavery issue, and his personal friendships with Kentucky Whig politicians influenced Lincoln's policies on containing slavery and ultimately to the Emancipation Proclamation. A very well-researched and documented work, Townsend's footnotes and references are a treasure trove.

Townsend explains in detailed examples, how Mary Lincoln had been taught every side of the great slavery question. When Lincoln married Mary she would read the "Lexington Observer and Reporter" aloud to him, sharing her personal knowledge of the key political players and family histories (stories I'd not read before). Then through visits to Lexington over a number of years, Lincoln experienced first-hand intimate knowledge of the horrors and inhumanity of slavery. On these visits Lincoln attended meetings and political rallies supporting Whig candidates and legislation to improve the conditions of slaves and introduce legislation for the gradual emancipation of slaves in Kentucky. When Clay lost his race for the Presidency, Lincoln commented that no candidate supporting emancipation can ever be elected.

On his 3 week visit in 1849 to handle the Todd estate lawsuit he obtained a deeper insight into the problem of slavery than he had up to then. "Slavery, in the very place where it was said to be the most benign, had left etchings on his memory never to be erased...." What Lincoln witnessed in these weeks you'll have to read. Powerful stuff!

Lincoln came away from the Bluegrass realizing that the more agitation in states where slavery already existed caused it to become more entrenched with increased violence toward the slave. The only way to kill it was to contain the spread. A few months later (1850) back in Springfield John Stuart says, "I said "Lincoln, the time is coming when we shall have to be all Abolitionists or all Democrats." He thought a moment and then answered ruefully and emphatically, "When that time comes my mind is made up, for I believe the slavery question can never be successfully compromised."

Townsend discusses in detail the tremendous time, effort and diplomatic skill Lincoln expended to keep Kentucky neutral as the Confederate States were formed and to maintain that neutrality during the war. Also what it was like for Lexington to have Union Troops in the city and when they were routed by Southern forces. He discusses the impact the war had on Mary's family dynamics due to those who chose to support the Confederacy.

Very readable and you may find something new here.

I agree, it is an excellent book.

[ELCore]

I add my own praise for the book: I just finished it the other day (thanks to Gene's archive.org link) and I enjoyed it very much. Interesting to see a focus on Lincoln's Kentucky connections rather than his Illinois connections.

[Gene C]

I finally got around to reading this, after buying it two years ago, and it was much better than I thought it would be. There are a few slow sections, but overall it is a good book with some interesting information.

Anita gave an excellent review. Some of the parts I enjoyed in this book.....
There is almost a whole chapter about Denton Offutt, who gave Lincoln a job which caused him to settle in New Salem. Offutt was only a few years older than Lincoln. An interesting character, Offutt was fairly well known as an excellent judge and trainer of horses. He grew up on a horse farm in KY and had a special gift. He truly was a horse whisperer. He wrote a book that has been mentioned on this web site, The Educated Horse.

Interesting information on Mary Lincoln's family the Todd's, and the grief they caused Lincoln since most of her brothers and sisters had a strong confederate connection.

Lots of information that was new to me, helped me to get a better understanding of the times Lincoln lived. About 350 pages of text, with good source notes. It didn't seem overly detailed, had decent sized print with topics well organized.

Here is something I found interesting, it's about three pages. It is an incident where a hostile Kentucky newspaper editor asks Lincoln for a favor.
It starts at the top of page 310. You will need to enlarge the print (the little magnifying glass in the lower right corner)
https://archive.org/details/lincolnblueg...0/mode/2up

Available on Amazon. You can find a nice copy for around $20. That's about what I paid for mine, and well worth it.
https://www.amazon.com/Lincoln-and-the-B...oks&sr=1-7

[AussieMick]

I think I've read about a quarter of the book online using your link. Its good.