| Description |
1 online resource |
| Contents |
Cover; Frontis; Book Title; Copyright Page; Contents; Acknowledgments; Introduction; 1860; 1861; 1862; 1863; 1864; 1865; Notes; Index; Author Bio; Back Cover |
| Summary |
Annotation. From the time of Lincolns nomination for the presidency until his assassination, John G. Nicolay served as the Civil War presidents chief personal secretary. Nicolay became an intimate of Lincoln and probably knew him as well as anyone outside his own family. Unlike John Hay, his subordinate, Nicolay kept no diary, but he did write several memoranda recording his chiefs conversation that shed direct light on Lincoln. In his many letters to Hay, to his fiancée, Therena Bates, and to others, Nicolay often describes the mood at the White House as well as events there. He also expresses opinions that were almost certainly shaped by the president For this volume, Michael Burlingame includes all of Nicolays memoranda of conversations, all of the journal entries describing Lincolns activities, and excerpts from most of the nearly three hundred letters Nicolay wrote to Therena Bates between 1860 and 1865. He includes letters and portions of letters that describe Lincoln or the mood at the White House or that give Nicolays personal opinions. He also includes letters written by Nicolay while on troubleshooting missions for the president. An impoverished youth, Nicolay was an unlikely candidate for the important position he held during the Civil War. It was only over the strong objections of some powerful people that he became Lincolns private secretary after Lincolns nomination for the presidency in 1860. Prominent Chicago Republican Herman Kreismann found the appointment of a man so lacking in savoir faireridiculous. Henry Martin Smith, city editor of theChicago Tribune, called Nicolays appointment a national loss. Henry C. Whitney was surprised that the president would appoint a nobody. Lacking charm, Nicolay became known at the White House as the bulldog in the ante-roomwith a disposition sour and crusty. California journalist Noah Brooks deemed Nicolay a grim Cerberus of Teutonic descent who guards the last door which opens into the awful presence. Yet in some ways he was perfectly suited for the difficult job. William O. Stoddard, noting that Nicolay was not popular and could say 'no'about as disagreeably as any man I ever knew, still granted that Nicolay served Lincoln well because he was devoted and incorruptible. Stoddard concluded that Nicolay deserves the thanks of all who loved Mr. Lincoln. For his part, Nicolay said he derived his greatest satisfaction from having enjoyed the privilege and honor of being Mr. Linc |
| Notes |
English |
| Subject |
Nicolay, John G. (John George), 1832-1901 -- Correspondence
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Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865 -- Friends and associates
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Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865.
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| SUBJECT |
Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865. fast (OCoLC)fst00030184 |
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Nicolay, John G. (John George), 1832-1901. fast (OCoLC)fst00169646 |
| Subject |
Private secretaries -- United States -- Correspondence
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Friendship.
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Politics and government.
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Private secretaries.
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United States - General.
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Regions & Countries - Americas.
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History & Archaeology.
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| SUBJECT |
United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Personal narratives.
http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85140261
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United States -- Politics and government -- 1861-1865. http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85140441
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| Subject |
United States.
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| Genre/Form |
History.
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Personal narratives.
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Personal correspondence.
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| Form |
Electronic book
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| Author |
Burlingame, Michael
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| ISBN |
0809326833 |
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9780809326839 |
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080932332X |
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9780809323326 |
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9780809388233 |
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0809388235 |
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9786613673930 |
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6613673935 |
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