Lincoln-Douglas Debates Preview

Video clips from the first two debates and new footage reviewed the first two and previewed the last five debates. At the third annual Lincoln-Douglas Celebration Conference in Ottawa, Illinois, Mr. Holzer and Mr. Meyer spoke about the so-called “anti-Lincoln” tradition which originated with the partisan press who opposed him. These images from the press coverage of the first debate showed how Lincoln would be ridiculed for the rest of his life, mostly for his awkward appearance. Mr. Meyer spoke about the pervasiveness of caricature in the mid-nineteenth century press to put the “anti-Lincoln” tradition into context and how historians can analyze how these images affected voters. Mayor Cougill talked about how Charleston made the debate re-enactment a reality and the upcoming activities associated with the re-enactment. Ms. Schick talked about the circumstances surrounding the Charleston debate. close