Tag Archives: Ulysses S. Grant

fake news?

I admit I’ve been sitting on this story. When I was reading newspapers a few weeks ago at the Library of Congress, I was quite shocked by an article that seemed to contradict a rock-solid assumption I’ve held for over … Continue reading

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“the people’s Thanksgiving”

President Grant’s seventh Thanksgiving Proclamation (from Pilgrim Hall Museum): THANKSGIVING DAY 1875 BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA – A PROCLAMATION In accordance with a practice at once wise and beautiful, we have been accustomed, as the … Continue reading

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Hallowed for how long?

150 years ago May 30th fell on a Sunday, so it appears that many communities observed Memorial Day on either the 29th or the 30th. According to an editorial from Portland, Maine, many people were surprised that ten years after … Continue reading

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banditti busters?

Louisiana’s political affairs were still unsettled in the aftermath of the September 1874 Battle of Liberty Place, in which the white supremacist White League began an insurrection to take control of the state government. At that time federal troops put … Continue reading

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let the good time roll

Are you ready for some jollification? President Ulysses S. Grant’s sixth Thanksgiving Day proclamation (from Pilgrim Hall Museum): THANKSGIVING DAY 1874 BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA – A PROCLAMATION We are reminded by the changing seasons … Continue reading

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Dedicated

After Abraham Lincoln was assassinated his body was buried in Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield, Illinois. 150 years ago today a large monument at the Lincoln grave site was dedicated. In its October 24, 1874 issue Harper’s Weekly described the … Continue reading

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Battle in New Orleans

According to Eric Foner in Reconstruction: America’s Unfinished Revolution, 1863-1877, every election in Louisiana “between 1868 and 1876 was marked by rampant violence and pervasive fraud.” The results of the 1872 Louisiana gubernatorial election were highly disputed. Both carpetbagger Republican … Continue reading

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GAR reunion

Dr. Benjamin F. Stephenson founded the Grand Army of the Republic on April 6, 1866 in Decatur Illinois. The GAR was a fraternal organization for Union soldiers, sailors, and marines who served during the Civil War. Its guiding principles were … Continue reading

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Spirit in St. Louis

July 4, 1874 was a big day in the St. Louis area. People celebrated the official opening of a new bridge that connected Missouri and Illinois. The Eads Bridge was the first bridge to span the Mississippi River after its … Continue reading

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Laurels to the Chief

The Panic of 1873 led to a long-lasting depression in Europe and North America. In early 1874 Congress passed a bill that would expand the supply of paper currency not redeemable in gold. On April 22, 1874 President Ulysses. S. … Continue reading

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