February 19, 1861 (Tuesday)

On the way to New York City

The ninth day of Lincoln's journey to Washington is recorded in a number of articles at the Library of Congress:  anecdotes including Mrs. Lincoln and children, the arrival in New York City, the ride to the Astor House, and the reception of shaking hands.

Another article by Ted Widmer, "Start Spreading the News" tells the story of the day with a surprise poet in the New York crowd.  Read the story about Lincoln's reception to New York.

"Today, the city that almost gave Lincoln the cold shoulder boasts no fewer than four statues of him, including one in Union Square.  His next parade there would be his funeral procession, four years later, when a six-year old Theodore Roosevelt was photographed in a window paying his respects to his predecessor."

Hat tip from Civil War Daily Gazette:  Jefferson Davis begins to form his cabinet and finds he has a lot of people to please...it is hard for him to choose who he wants in various positions. 

Again, many good quips from the Lincoln Log that give a taste of the activities of the day for President-elect Lincoln.

And finally, a fascinating and informative article written by Susan Eva O'Donovan, New York Times, February 18, 2011:  William Webb's World.   She explores an important aspect of the disunion crisis:  The Blacks where networking all over the South....

"...we need to pose a new set of questions about the disunion crisis, questions that take into account the William Webbs, the Houston Holloways and all the slaves about whom Lyon [a slave holder] fretted.  In fact, perhaps we should ask what really frightened that Georgia planter and his secessionist generation:  Abraham Lincoln and a handful of arch abolitionists, or the hydra that curled beneath slaveholders' feet?"