On Saturday, September 3, 1864 Abraham Lincoln declared September 5 as a national day of celebration for the Union victories at Atlanta and Mobile. In truth, since July 1863 and the important victories at Vicksburg, Mississippi and Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the Union military had precious few victories, so a grateful president now mandated a national day of celebration. Lincoln also temporarily reaffirmed his support for Postmaster General Montgomery Blair; the Radical Republicans in Congress pressured Lincoln remove Blair from the Cabinet because of his alleged support of the Democrats. Within the month, Lincoln would succumb to the Radicals’ demands to replace Blair, but the Radical Republicans were wrong. After leaving the Cabinet, Montgomery Blair would campaign for Lincoln’s re-election, with Blair and Lincoln remaining close friends until the president’s death in 1865.
00000174-b11b-ddc3-a1fc-bfdbb1a20000The Schreiner University Department of History is honoring the sesquicentennial of the American Civil War with a series of short vignettes focusing on events from 1861 through 1865. The Civil War was the most destructive conflict in American history, but it was also one of our most defining moments as a people and as a nation. Let us know what you think about "This Week in the Civil War." E-mail your comments to Dr. John Huddleston at jhuddles@schreiner.edu.Airs: Weekdays at 5:19 a.m., 8:19 a.m., 4:19 p.m. on KTXI and 4:49 a.m., 9:29 p.m. on KSTX.