Author Presentation on September 26
The Lincoln Memorial Shrine presents historian DL Fowler in the Assembly Room of A.K. Smiley Public Library on Saturday, September 26 at 2pm. Fowler will be discussing his 2024 historical fiction novel, Lincoln’s Angel: The Rebecca Pomroy Story.
The novel focuses on Rebecca Pomroy, a Massachusetts philanthropist who volunteered as a nurse during the Civil War, serving in military hospitals in and around Washington, DC. Working from Pomroy’s journal and letters, the novel covers the period in early 1862 when she was called to the White House to tend to Willie and Tad Lincoln in their illness. As Fowler reveals, after Willie’s death, Pomroy nursed Tad back to health and cared for Abraham and Mary Lincoln in their grief. Copies of Lincoln’s Angel will be available for purchase for $39.95 and a book signing will follow the presentation.
This program is free and open to the public thanks to the generous contributions of donors to A.K. Smiley Public Library. Program subject to change.
If you have any questions, contact the Heritage Room at (909)798-7632 or heritage@akspl.org.
About the Author:
DL Fowler is a graduate of the University of Southern California, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Humanities, and the Defense Language Institute in Monterey. He has written thirteen historical fiction novels based in the Civil War-era, including The Turn: A Bond that Shaped History, which focuses on Abraham Lincoln’s relationship with William Johnson, a free African American who served a Lincoln’s personal valet during the Civil War.
Commemorate America250
The Watchorn Lincoln Memorial Association invites you to join us for Liberty’s Legacy: Celebrating 250 Years of Independence, a program that commemorates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Taking place on September 29 and 30, this two-day program will include a keynote address by noted historian Jon Meacham and a symposium featuring scholars discussing the significance of the Declaration of Independence to Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War.
Click here to learn more.
Annual Lincoln Season
OPEN HOUSE
Since 1972, the Lincoln Shrine has honored Lincoln and the Civil War with an annual Open House. Featuring Civil War re-enactors, live music, activities, and much more, the Open House is an event not to be missed! Take a look back at photographs and videos from the Lincoln Shrine Open House in years past. See the Open House photo album to relive old memories or see what you can expect.
LINCOLN DINNER
Starting in 1932, the annual Watchorn Lincoln Dinner has celebrated the anniversary of Lincoln’s birth each year. The largest event of its kind in the United States today, the Lincoln Dinner has featured presentations from dozens of scholars whose work has honored Lincoln’s legacy. In recent years, the event has also included sponsorship opportunities that have raised thousands of dollars for the institution and allowed for the purchase of exceptional items for the Shrine’s collections. Explore the items acquired through the Lincoln Dinner Sponsorship Fund.
On February 12, 2022, the Shrine’s 90th anniversary was feted with a unique Lincoln Dinner. Nearly 200 revelers celebrated the momentous occasion with live music and the premier of “Enduring Legacies: The Lincoln Shrine at 90,” a special documentary produced for the event. The evening concluded with spectacular fireworks presentation! The Lincoln Memorial Shrine thanks the evening’s underwriters Watchorn Lincoln Memorial Association Trustees Bill Hatfield and Dr. Christopher Walker.
If you missed the 90th Lincoln Dinner, or would like to watch the documentary again, visit the Special Collections YouTube Channel.
Lincoln Shrine’s Reproduction Cannon
Thanks to the generosity of the Nies family of Redlands, the Lincoln Shrine now stewards a reproduction Model 1857 Napoleon 12-pounder field gun dated 1864.
The dedication ceremony included the participation of Civil War reenactors and featured an artillery demonstration by the 1st Pennsylvania Light Artillery who instructed donor Dr. Boyd Nies as he fired the inaugural shot.
Come and see the cannon in person in Smiley Park. It’s the perfect selfie location! Make sure to tag @lincolnshine and use the hashtag #lincolnshrine to share your photos.
Learn more about the M1857 Napoleon 12-Pounder.
Juneteenth Becomes a Federal Holiday
From its very founding, the United States had a precarious relationship with freedom. While the Declaration of Independence clearly stated that “all men are created equal”, the actual practice of enslaving people tested whether, in practice, that ideal could ever be a reality. Enslavement was the single most divisive issue of the early republic. When Southern states perceived that Abraham Lincoln’s election threatened what they believed was their “right” to enslave others, those states attempted to break the bonds of the United States to each other. The result was civil war, with some 800,000 or more Americans perishing.
President Abraham Lincoln issued his Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, declaring that all enslaved people located within states in rebellion against the United States “shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free.”
Before that, some enslaved people had already found ways to emancipate themselves, with groups like the Underground Railroad, by finding a detachment of the United States Army, or simply fleeing those who enslaved them and making it successfully to a free state. As the United States Army liberated states in rebellion, enslaved people there were freed. However, not everyone was aware of emancipation, even after the Civil War was over. In Texas, it wasn’t until US General Gordon Grainger issued General Order #3 on June 19, 1865 that:
“The people are informed that in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property, between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them, become that between employer and hired labor.”
From that day, June 19, came a jubilee celebration for the last of the enslaved people of the United States, who finally learned of their new freedom. Juneteenth, as it became known, commemorates this day.
On June 17, 2021, the importance of what Juneteenth represents was recognized by the United States with the designation of June 19, “Juneteenth”, as a federal holiday.
89th Watchorn Lincoln Dinner
Watch the 2021 Watchorn Lincoln Dinner on the Special Collections YouTube channel. The reimagined event includes past Lincoln Dinner speakers, music, and an appearance by President Lincoln!
