Catherine Clinton looked back at the life of first lady Mary Todd Lincoln. She discussed the Lincoln courtship and marriage as well as Mary’s introduction to Washington as a congressman’s wife. Professor Clinton also talked about the press scrutiny of Mary’s Confederate relatives, and the congressional criticism of her White House spending. She responded to questions from members of the audience.
Clinton teaches at Queen’s University Belfast and is the author of Mrs. Lincoln: A Life. Her talk, “Mary Lincoln vs. Congress: A Thirty Years War,” was the keynote address of the U.S. Capitol Historical Society annual spring symposium, “Congress, the Civil War, and the Military"of the series, "The National Capital in a Nation Divided: Congress and the District of Columbia Confront Sectionalism and Slavery.” It was held at the Dirksen Senate Office Building.