VMHC Lectures

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Richmond's Hollywood Cemetery Feb 18, 2014

Show notes

On december 9, 2010, John Peters delivered the banner lecture "Richmond's Hollywood Cemetery" One of America's great rural cemeteries, overlooking the falls of the James River, Hollywood provides a final resting place for Richmond's—indeed, Virginia's—political, business, and creative leaders, as well as 18,000 Confederate dead. Since before the Civil War, the elaborate ironwork, stone monuments, mausoleums, and natural setting have memorialized the varied lives of the individuals who have populated Virginia’s capital city. In this lecture based on his new book, Richmond's Hollywood Cemetery, author and photographer John Peters brings these stories to life once more. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) The content and opinions expressed in these presentations are solely those of the speaker and not necessarily of the Virginia Museum of History & Culture.

The Jeffersons at Shadwell Feb 18, 2014

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On January 13, 2011, Susan Kern discussed her book, Jefferson's at Shadwell.In her book Susan Kern merges archaeology, material culture, and social history to reveal the fascinating story of Shadwell, the birthplace of Thomas Jefferson and home to his parents, Jane and Peter Jefferson, their eight children, and more than sixty slaves. Kern's scholarship offers new views of the family's role in settling Virginia as well as new perspectives on Thomas Jefferson himself. The story of Shadwell affects how we interpret much of what we know about Thomas Jefferson today. Dr. Kern is a visiting assistant professor of history at the College of William and Mary The content and opinions expressed in these presentations are solely those of the speaker and not necessarily of the Virginia Museum of History & Culture.

Inventing George Washington: America's Founder in Myth and Memory Feb 18, 2014

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On February 24, 2011, Ed Lengel delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Inventing George Washington: America's Founder in Myth and Memory." In Inventing George Washington, Edward G. Lengel shows how the former president and war hero continued to serve his nation on two distinct levels after his death. The public Washington evolved into an eternal symbol as the "Father of His Country," while the private man remained at the periphery of the national vision for successive generations. As some exalted Washington, others sought to bring him down to the earth, thus creating a series of competing mythologies that depicted Washington as every imaginable sort of human being. Dr. Lengel is editor-in-chief of the Washington Papers Project and a professor of history at the University of Virginia. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) The content and opinions expressed in these presentations are solely those of the speaker and not necessarily of the Virginia Museum of History & Culture.

The Real Lost Cause: The Idea of Union in the Memory of the Civil War Feb 18, 2014

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On November 17, 2010, Gary W. Gallagher delivered a talk on "The Real Lost Cause: The Idea of Union in the Memory of the Civil War" at the Alexander W. Weddell Trustees Lecture. 2011 marks the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War. Only through the bloodiest conflict of our history did Americans resolve long-running disputes over Union and slavery. Ever since then, the significance of the war—its advent and its many outcomes—has stirred debate and study. In "The Real Lost Cause: The Idea of Union in the Memory of the Civil War," Gary W. Gallagher addressed the way North and South have reflected on the nature of what it meant to be a part of the United States of America. Dr. Gallagher is the Cavaliers' Distinguished Teaching Professor and Nau Professor of History at the University of Virginia and the author of The Confederate War and Causes Won, Lost, and Forgotten: How Hollywood and Popular Art Shape What We Know about the Civil War. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) The content and opinions expressed in these presentations are solely those of the speaker and not necessarily of the Virginia Museum of History & Culture.

The Diary of a Public Man and Abraham Lincoln Feb 18, 2014

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On March 3, 2011, Daniel Crofts delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "The Diary of a Public Man and Abraham Lincoln." "The Diary of a Public Man," published anonymously in several installments in the North American Review in 1879, claimed to offer verbatim accounts of secret conversations with Abraham Lincoln, William H. Seward, and Stephen A. Douglas—among others—in the weeks just before the start of the Civil War. Despite repeated attempts to decipher the diary, historians never have been able to pinpoint its author or determine its authenticity. Part detective story, part biography, and part a detailed narrative of events in early 1861, A Secession Crisis Enigma presents a compelling answer to an enduring mystery. Dr. Crofts is a professor of history at The College of New Jersey. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) The content and opinions expressed in these presentations are solely those of the speaker and not necessarily of the Virginia Museum of History & Culture.

American City, Southern Place: Richmond on the Eve of War Feb 18, 2014

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On March 10, 2011, Gregg Kimball delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "American City, Southern Place: Richmond on the Eve of War." As a city of the upper South intimately connected to northeastern cities, the southern slave trade, and the Virginia countryside, Richmond embodied many of the contradictions of mid-nineteenth-century America. Gregg Kimball depicts the Richmond community as a series of dynamic, overlapping networks, showing how various groups of residents—immigrants and natives, free people and slaves, those high born and low—understood themselves and their society within this web of experience. Drawing on a wealth of archival material and private letters, Dr. Kimball elicits new perspectives on the nature of antebellum society and the coming of the Civil War. Gregg Kimball is director of education and outreach at the Library of Virginia and the author of American City, Southern Place: A Cultural History of Antebellum Richmond. This lecture is cosponsored with the Richmond National Battlefield Park. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) The content and opinions expressed in these presentations are solely those of the speaker and not necessarily of the Virginia Museum of History & Culture.

Year of Meteors: Stephen Douglas, Abraham Lincoln, and the Election Feb 18, 2014

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On March 24, 2011, Douglas R. Egerton delivered a Banner Lecture entitled Year of Meteors: Stephen Douglas, Abraham Lincoln, and the Election that Brought on the Civil War. In Year of Meteors, Douglas R. Egerton recreates the tumultuous presidential election year of 1860, which upset every conventional expectation and split the American political system beyond repair. At the beginning of the year, Senator Stephen A. Douglas, leader of the Democrats, the only party with a large following in both North and South, seemed poised to win. By fall the Democratic Party had disintegrated, enabling the upstart Republicans to put an untried but canny dark horse candidate in the White House. Year of Meteors tells the story of Abraham Lincoln's rise to power and the series of events that led to secession and ultimately civil war. Dr. Egerton teaches history at Le Moyne College in Syracuse, N.Y.(Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) The content and opinions expressed in these presentations are solely those of the speaker and not necessarily of the Virginia Museum of History & Culture.

The Crooked Road to Civil War, 1861 Feb 18, 2014

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On April 14, 2011, Nelson D. Lankford delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "The Crooked Road to Civil War." When Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated in March 1861, Virginia remained a loyal state within the Union. In the convention that met in Richmond to consider the commonwealth's relationship to the national government, union men held a strong majority. But as events unfolded, their loyalty wavered. Nelson Lankford recounts the dramatic events of that spring, when no one could foretell the future of the country, seemingly poised on the brink of dissolution. Dr. Lankford is vice president for programs at the Virginia Historical Society and author of "Cry Havoc! The Crooked Road to Civil War, 1861." This lecture is cosponsored with the Richmond National Battlefield Park. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) The content and opinions expressed in these presentations are solely those of the speaker and not necessarily of the Virginia Museum of History & Culture.

Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit: Plantation Management, 1607–1763 Feb 18, 2014

Show notes

On April 21, 2011, Lorena S. Walsh delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit: Plantation Management in the Colonial Chesapeake, 1607–1763." In a new account of early English America, Walsh offers an enlightening history of plantation management in the Chesapeake colonies of Virginia and Maryland. Her scope ranges from the founding of Jamestown to the close of the Seven Years' War and the end of the "Golden Age" of colonial Chesapeake agriculture. Walsh's narrative incorporates stories about the planters themselves, including family dynamics and relationships with enslaved workers. An accomplished author of books on early America, Lorena S. Walsh was for twenty-seven years a historian at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. This lecture was cosponsored with The Society of Colonial Wars in the State of Virginia. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) The content and opinions expressed in these presentations are solely those of the speaker and not necessarily of the Virginia Museum of History & Culture.

Lincoln and McClellan Feb 18, 2014

Show notes

On May 12, 2011, John C. Waugh delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Lincoln and McClellan." There was no more remarkable yoking of personalities in the Civil War than Abraham Lincoln and George McClellan. In Lincoln and McClellan, award-winning author John C. Waugh takes an in-depth look at this fascinating pair, from the early days of the conflict to the 1864 presidential election when McClellan ran against Lincoln on an antiwar platform and lost. Waugh weaves a tale of hubris, paranoia, failure, and triumph, illuminating as never before this unique and complicated relationship. John C. Waugh is an independent historian and former correspondent and bureau chief for The Christian Science Monitor. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) The content and opinions expressed in these presentations are solely those of the speaker and not necessarily of the Virginia Museum of History & Culture.

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