Lincoln's Boys: John Hay, John Nicolay, and the War for Lincoln's Image

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Lincoln's Boys: John Hay, John Nicolay, and the War for Lincoln's Image Page 45

by Joshua Zeitz


  political views, 8, 183–84, 187–88, 199–201, 213–14, 219–20, 223–24, 225–26

  relationship with Robert Todd Lincoln, 253–56

  Spanish-American War, 325, 327–30

  travels, 1, 213, 319–20, 325, 336

  Washington mansion, 211–12

  Hay, Milton, 13, 14, 20–21, 22, 71, 180, 192, 251

  Hayes, Rutherford B., 206, 207, 219, 222, 323, 334

  Henry, Anson, 162

  Herndon, William, 21, 65, 69, 233–34, 256

  on Lincoln’s “lost speech,” 44

  on Lincoln’s reticence, 3

  and Mary Todd Lincoln, 237, 238, 243, 244–45

  relationship with Lincoln, 247

  as source of information about Lincoln, 234, 245–46

  —AS LINCOLN BIOGRAPHER, 235–45, 251

  Ann Rutledge story, 238–40, 242–43, 244

  geopolitical arguments for Lincoln’s character, 240–41, 242, 281, 284

  interviews conducted for, 235–36, 238–40

  Lamon’s work and, 245–46, 281

  Lincoln family’s displeasure, 242–44, 247

  Lincoln’s image and, 233–34, 243, 244–45, 247, 251, 283

  publication efforts, 303

  requests for access to Lincoln papers, 232

  unflattering and erroneous claims, 244–45, 249, 306

  Higginson, Thomas Wentworth, 93

  Hillard, George, 27

  historiography, 240–41, 256–59, 284, 308–9

  Nicolay-Hay biography as historical narrative, 278–80, 313–14

  See also Civil War historiography; Lincoln biographers and scholarship; specific authors

  History of Abraham Lincoln, The (Arnold), 235

  History of Civilization in England (Buckle), 240–41

  Hole-in-the-Day, 128

  Holland, Josiah, 234, 246, 268

  Holmes, Oliver Wendell, Jr., 264

  Homestead Act, 215

  Hood, Thomas, 95

  Hooker, Joe, 279

  Howe, Louis, 91

  Howells, William Dean, 63, 193, 219, 269

  and Hay’s literary writings, 191, 199, 224

  on Nicolay-Hay biography, 303

  Huckleberry Finn (Twain), 198–99

  Hunter, David, 103, 113, 118

  Hay’s 1863 travels with, 129–35

  Illinois

  antislavery politics and Republican Party in, 39–41, 43–45, 46, 49, 50, 55–56

  Lincoln in Illinois legislature, 289–90

  Lincoln’s home donated to, 304

  Southern pioneers in, 285–86

  See also Springfield, Illinois

  immigration, 312, 327

  Indians, Sioux rebellion and Nicolay’s political missions, 127–29, 136

  Jackson, Andrew, 24, 47, 91, 138

  Jackson, Thomas “Stonewall,” 274

  Jackson, William, 91

  James, Henry, 269

  Jay, Mary, 118

  Jefferson, Thomas, 91

  “Jim Bludso” (Hay), 196–97

  Jim Crow, 312–13

  Johns Hopkins University, 258

  Johnson, Andrew, 166, 169, 170, 181, 302

  Hay and Nicolay and, 183, 184, 186

  Reconstruction policy and politics under, 181–82, 183

  Johnson, B. T., 262

  Johnson, Robert Underwood, 269, 270

  Johnson, W. P., 262

  Johnston, Joseph E., 269

  Judd, Norman, 80

  Julian, George, 219

  Kansas, 48–49, 190, 216

  Kansas-Nebraska Act and its aftermath, 31–32, 38, 39–42, 50

  King, Clarence, 208

  King, Grace, 268, 269

  Know-Nothing Party, 39–40

  Ku Klux Klan, 199

  labor tensions, 221–24, 326

  laissez-faire capitalism, 220–21, 223

  political views and, 7–8, 213–14, 217–18, 220–21, 226

  See also economics

  Lake Shore Railway bridge accident, 212, 223

  Lamon, Ward Hill, 69, 181

  as Lincoln biographer, 245–47, 251, 281, 283, 303, 306

  Lander, Jean Davenport, 95

  Land-Grant College Act, 215

  land-grant legislation, 218

  Lane, James, 99

  Lawrence, Amos, 27

  Lawrence, Kansas, 42

  Lear, Tobias, 91

  Lecompton Constitution, 48–49

  Lee, Robert E., 121, 135, 165, 273, 276

  1890 Richmond statue dedication, 263

  in Nicolay-Hay biography, 272–73

  Lewis, Meriwether, 91

  Liberal Party, 218–19

  Library of Congress, Lincoln archives at, 295, 338–39

  Life and Public Services of Abraham Lincoln, The (Raymond), 235

  Life magazine, 278–79, 301–2

  Life of Abraham Lincoln, The (Tarbell), 306

  Life of Abraham Lincoln (Holland), 234

  Lincoln, Abraham

  —BACKGROUND AND EARLY LIFE, 235–36

  Ann Rutledge story, 238–40, 242–43, 284

  birth and boyhood, 235–36, 244, 249, 283

  early political service and affiliations, 44, 289–90

  Herndon’s investigations and claims, 235–36, 238–40, 242–43, 244–45, 306

  in Lamon and Black’s biography, 246

  marriage, 242–45, 246, 284–85

  Milton Hay’s clerkship, 21

  in Nicolay-Hay biography, 256–57, 281–85

  in Sandburg’s biography, 306

  unflattering reminiscences, 249–50

  —IMAGE, 242, 300. See also PERSONAL QUALITIES; Lincoln biographers and scholarship

  boyhood and early life, 235–36, 244, 246

  current view of, 314

  as divine figure, 6, 233, 234–35, 316

  Gettysburg Address and, 294–96

  as Great Emancipator, 4, 294, 311–12, 314, 322

  Hay’s and Nicolay’s concerns and aims, 251–52, 254

  Herndon’s version and influence, 233–34, 243, 244–45, 247, 251, 283

  humble origins, 227, 322

  ineptitude, 246, 250, 296, 311

  mid-twentieth century views, 310, 311

  Nicolay-Hay biography’s influence, 4–5, 6–7, 254, 300, 316

  Nicolay-Hay biography’s portrayal, 4–5, 280–81, 291–92

  Robert Todd Lincoln’s notion of, 242

  as rustic frontiersman, 5, 234, 240–42, 281–84

  in Sandburg’s biography, 306

  —PAPERS

  analysis in Nicolay-Hay biography, 304, 338–39

  Collected Works publication, 339

  correspondence, 231

  family control and early requests for access, 4, 231–32, 246, 248–51

  Gettysburg Address manuscript, 295

  Hay’s and Nicolay’s access to, 4, 248, 250–51, 254

  impact of restricted access, 248–49, 306

  later history and new discoveries, 295, 304–6, 307, 336, 338–39

  organization and removal from White House, 168–69, 231–32

  —PERSONAL QUALITIES. See also IMAGE

  connection to ordinary people, 5, 315

  equanimity, 138

  inscrutability, 3–4

  insomnia, 95

  intellect, 232, 233, 281, 283

  melancholy, 240, 242, 283–84

  in Nicolay-Hay biography, 283–84

  political acumen, 55, 124, 162, 255, 280, 299, 315–16

  sense of humor, 96

  —POLITICAL CAMPAIGNS

  1854 Senate campaign, 39–41

  1858 Senate campaign, 47, 49–56

  1860 presidential campaign, 21–22, 56–57, 60–70

  1860 presidential nomination, 61–63, 259

  1864 presidential campaign, 5–6, 138, 146–48, 151–52, 157–58

  —POLITICAL VIEWS

  Lincoln as moderate, 28, 57, 119, 122, 291–92, 310–12

  party allegiance, 40<
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  on slavery and African American rights, 28, 51–52, 56–57, 73, 289–90, 294

  —AS PRESIDENT. See also AS UNION COMMANDER IN CHIEF

  assassination and funeral, 3, 6, 165–68

  communications skill, 117–18

  correspondence, 70, 74–75, 159, 231

  diplomatic appointments, 164, 173, 208

  early months, 86–90

  early setbacks, 100–106

  1861 journey to Washington, 76–81

  first inauguration, 81–82

  habeas corpus suspension and press suppression, 123

  Lincoln’s cabinet in Nicolay-Hay biography, 280

  Mary Todd Lincoln’s White House spending, 108

  Minnesota Sioux uprising and, 127, 129

  Nicolay’s control over access to Lincoln, 70, 94–95

  photographs, 140, 305

  political patronage, 89–90, 147, 153, 154

  as president-elect (1860–61), 70–71, 73, 74–81

  relationship with Hay, 2, 3, 91, 96–97, 154

  relationship with Nicolay, 2, 3, 71, 91, 94–95, 96–97, 154, 155

  reputation among African Americans, 132

  rumored assassination plots, 80, 95

  typical workdays, 87–88

  views on prospect of disunion, 73, 79–80

  weak or nonexistent Republican support, 5–6, 119, 138, 154, 156, 292

  Willie Lincoln’s death, 3, 109–11

  —SPEECHES AND WRITINGS, 315

  antislavery comments, 28, 56–57, 289–90

  Bixby letter, 158–59

  “blind memo,” 333

  on 1861 journey to Washington, 76–77, 78–80

  first inaugural address, 82, 279

  Gettysburg Address, 3, 140–46, 294–96

  Lincoln-Douglas debates, 49–50, 53–55, 56, 57

  “lost speech,” 44–45

  second inaugural address, 7

  Springfield farewell speech (1861), 76–77

  —AS UNION COMMANDER IN CHIEF, 134–36, 137–38, 147–48

  1861 setbacks, 101–6

  1862 campaigns and emancipation decision, 111–15, 118–19, 120–23, 292

  1863 Southern campaign, 130

  image of weakness/ineptitude, 250, 296, 311

  McClellan’s disrespect and dismissal, 103–4, 112, 311

  Minnesota Sioux rebellion and, 127

  in Nicolay-Hay biography, 279

  Ten Percent Plan and Hay’s mission to Florida, 147–52

  visits to the field, 88, 112, 130

  Lincoln, Abraham (Lincoln’s grandfather), 281–82

  Lincoln, Mary Todd, 80, 81, 88, 107–10, 137

  and Lincoln’s death, 165, 166

  in Nicolay-Hay biography, 284–85

  personal enmities, 40, 237, 249

  portrayals of her marriage, 242–45, 246, 284–85

  relationships with Hay and Nicolay, 108–9, 161–62

  White House improvements and their funding, 107–8, 109

  and William Herndon, 237, 238, 243, 244–45

  and Willie Lincoln’s death, 109–10

  Lincoln, Nancy (Lincoln’s mother), 244

  Lincoln, Robert Todd, 57, 81, 82, 108, 120

  career of, 254

  death of, 338

  donation of Lincoln house in Springfield, 304

  and Gettysburg Address manuscript, 295

  Hay and, 3, 137, 165, 204–5

  and Herndon’s work, 236–37, 238, 241–42, 243–44

  and Lincoln biographers, 238, 241–42, 243–44, 246, 247

  and the Lincoln image, 242

  and the Lincoln papers, 231–32, 248–51, 254, 305, 336, 338

  and Lincoln’s assassination, 165, 166

  Nicolay and, 192, 204–5

  and Nicolay-Hay biography, 254–57, 260, 285, 303

  and politics, 255–56

  relationships with Hay and Nicolay, 253–56

  on Tarbell’s work, 306

  Lincoln, Sarah Bush, 236

  Lincoln, Thomas (Lincoln’s father), 244, 256–57

  Lincoln, Thomas Todd “Tad,” 109, 110, 165–66, 254–55

  Lincoln, Willie, 3, 109–11

  Lincoln biographers and scholarship

  Bancroft’s commemoration, 232–33

  Collected Works publication, 339

  early print biographies, 234–35

  Hay’s criticism of, 232–33

  Helen Nicolay, 320

  Howells as 1860 campaign biographer, 63

  Lamon and Black, 245–47, 251, 281, 283, 303, 306

  Lincoln’s Illinois friends as information sources, 235–36, 238–40, 249–50

  after publication of Nicolay-Hay biography, 305–7

  Sandburg, 306–7

  Tarbell, 305–6

  “team of rivals” concept, 5, 280

  See also Abraham Lincoln: A History; Civil War historiography; Herndon, William; Lincoln, Abraham, IMAGE; Lincoln, Abraham, PAPERS

  Lincoln-Douglas debates, 49–50, 53–55, 56, 57

  Lincolniana, 304

  Lincoln Memorial, 281, 299–300

  literature

  Civil War memoirs in Century Magazine, 269–70

  Hay’s literary writings, 17–19, 196–203, 224–25, 261

  literary portrayals of African Americans, 199–203, 265–66, 269

  Southern popular literature, 265–66, 268–69, 308

  See also specific authors and periodicals

  “Little Breeches” (Hay), 196, 198

  Lodge, Henry Cabot, 328, 329, 330, 334

  Loeb, William, 91

  London, Hay in, 324–25

  Longstreet, James, 269

  Louisiana Purchase, 25, 31

  Lovejoy, Owen, 292

  Lowell, James Russell, 246

  Ludlow, Fitz Hugh, 15

  McClellan, George, 100, 101, 106, 269

  dismissal by Lincoln, 112, 311

  1862 campaigns and recommendations, 111, 112–13, 121

  1864 presidential ambitions, 156–57, 158, 333

  in Nicolay-Hay biography, 279, 296–98

  scorn for Lincoln, 103–4

  McClure, Alexander, 302

  McClure, S. S., 321

  McClure’s Magazine, 305–6, 321

  McDowell, Irvin, 100

  McGuire, Hunter, 262

  McKinley, William, 91, 206, 323, 331

  death of, 331–32, 335

  Hay and, 323, 324, 325, 330–32, 334

  and Spanish-American War, 328–30

  McNamar, John (John McNeil), 238–40

  Madison, James, 91

  Madrid, Hay in, 187–88

  Mahan, Alfred Thayer, 327

  Manassas, 101, 103

  Manifest Destiny, 28, 30–31, 39

  masculinity, late-nineteenth-century cult of, 326–27

  Masters, Edgar Lee, 304

  Matteson, Joel, 40

  Meade, George, 135

  Meigs, Montgomery, 166

  Mexico, 24–25, 176–77

  Milwaukee fugitive slave arrest, resistance to, 38

  Mineral Land Act, 218

  mining, 218

  strikes of 1870s, 221, 222

  Minkins, Shadrach, 26

  Minnesota, Sioux rebellion of 1862 and Nicolay’s visit, 127–29

  Missouri

  border ruffians, 41

  Frémont’s emancipation order, 102–3

  Missouri Compromise, 25, 31, 38, 47, 73

  Missouri Republican, 122

  Napoleon III, 174, 176–77, 179–80

  Nast, Thomas, 216

  Nation, 216–17, 220

  Nebraska, 216

  Kansas-Nebraska Act and its influence, 31–32, 38, 39–42, 50

  New England Emigrant Aid Company, 41

  New Hampshire, Hay and Nicolay in, 190, 191, 320, 321

  New Orleans, Union capture of, 111

  newspapers, 35–37, 50

  Hay’s postwar journalism, 193–96, 205, 219, 250, 254–55

&n
bsp; Hay’s wartime journalism, 115–17, 122

  influential Republican papers, 102

  Lincoln-Douglas debate coverage, 54

  Lincoln’s wartime suppression of, 123

  Nicolay at Pike County Free Press, 35, 37–39, 41, 43, 46, 53

  Nicolay’s post–Civil War newspaper endeavors and journalism, 191–92

  See also specific newspapers

  New York City

  1863 draft riots, 135–36, 217

  Lincoln’s funeral cortege in, 168

  Nicolay’s missions to, 153–54

  political corruption in, 216

  New York Herald, 152

  New York Times, 89, 102, 191–92, 208, 235, 237

  New-York Tribune, 155

  Hay at, 193–96, 205, 210, 219, 250, 254–55

  See also Greeley, Horace

  New York World, 145

  Nicolay, Helen (Nicolay’s daughter), 295, 319–20

  birth and childhood, 175, 176, 177–78, 190–91

  on her father’s life and character, 34, 37, 188

  later years, 320–21, 335–36

  Nicolay, Helena, 33, 34

  Nicolay, John George “George”

  —BACKGROUND AND EARLY LIFE, 33–45

  boyhood and education, 33–35

  Hatch clerkship, 46–47, 50

  journalism, 37–39, 41, 43, 46, 50–51

  meeting and early association with Hay, 13, 22, 35, 59

  meeting and early contact with Lincoln, 44, 45, 46–47

  personal qualities, 59, 78

  at Pike County Free Press, 35, 37–39, 41, 43, 46, 53

  political views, 8, 37–39, 43, 44

  relationship with Therena Bates, 37, 59–60

  Republican Party involvement, 44, 46–47, 50, 52–54, 57, 59

  —LINCOLN YEARS, 173–230

  biography plans, 247

  at 1860 campaign and election, 60–62, 69

  1861 journey to Washington and inauguration, 76, 77, 78, 79, 82

  Gettysburg Address, 141–42, 143, 144–46, 294

  health, 125–26, 164

  Kansas farm purchase, 190

  Lincoln’s death, 166–68

  at Lincoln’s “lost speech,” 44–45

  organization and removal of Lincoln’s papers, 168–69, 231–32

  personal qualities, 2–3, 91–92, 174

  photograph of, 140

  political connections, 96–97

  political missions and other trips out of Washington, 102–3, 126–29, 136, 153–54, 164–65

  political views, 8, 124

  as presidential secretary, 90–95

  relationship with Lincoln, 2, 3, 71, 91, 94–95, 96–97, 154, 155

  relationship with Mary Todd Lincoln, 108–9, 161–62

  relationship with Therena Bates, 126, 163

  secretarial appointment and duties, 63, 68, 69–71, 85, 90–95

  Washington social life, 96–97, 107

  —POST–CIVIL WAR YEARS, 8, 253, 319–22. See also Abraham Lincoln: A History

  death and transfer of Lincoln papers, 295, 305, 335–36

 

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