Exploring Lincoln's relationship with the Jews

Photo: For The Edge Buy photo Photo: For The Edge Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Exploring Lincoln's relationship with the Jews 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

A groundbreaking exhibit on Abraham Lincoln’s relationships with the small but growing Jewish population of Civil War-era America opens at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum on Aug. 3.

“With Firmness in the Right: Lincoln and the Jews” examines Lincoln’s role in paving the way for acceptance and inclusion of Jews in America. It also tells the story of how a number of Jews, as a group and as individuals, affected Lincoln deeply and became his neighbors, friends, colleagues and allies.

The exhibit gathers Lincoln documents, photographs, letters, Bibles and other artifacts from many different sources. The Shapell Manuscript Foundation, the Chicago Historical Society, Brown University, the Library of Congress, the National Archives and the Lincoln Presidential Library all contributed. Some items have never been exhibited publicly until now.

Inspired by the book “Lincoln and the Jews: A History,” by Jonathan D. Sarna and Benjamin Shapell, the exhibit opened at the New-York Historical Society earlier this year. A significantly revised version will open at the Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum on Aug. 3 and run through Nov. 15.

“Abraham Lincoln befriended Jews and would not tolerate bigotry toward them, even from his most vaunted general. His acceptance of Jews set a pattern that made acceptance a bit easier for other minorities coming to America in the years ahead,” said Eileen Mackevich, executive director of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. “We hope this exhibit brings new attention to this part of the Lincoln story.”

By the time of his death, Lincoln had had more Jewish friends and acquaintances than any president before him. They included Julius Hammerslough, who owned a Springfield clothing store; Samuel G. Alschuler, a photographer who produced portraits of Lincoln in 1858 and 1860; Abraham Jonas, a Quincy attorney whom Lincoln described as “one of my most valued friends”; and Issachar Zacharie, a doctor who operated on Lincoln’s feet.

The exhibit will display correspondence between Lincoln and Jonas, photos by Alschuler, and Lincoln’s hand-written praise for the treatment provided by Zacharie. It also includes Lincoln’s appointment of the U.S. military’s first Jewish chaplain, the commissions of Jewish officers and eulogies written by rabbis after Lincoln’s assassination. The exhibition is guest curated by Dr. Ann Meyerson.

“This exhibit does more than shed light on Lincoln’s views of a specific group. It tells us about his heart, his fundamental sense of fairness,” said Daniel Stowell, the Lincoln Presidential Library’s curator for the exhibit. “He was always willing to look past old prejudices. Lincoln’s broader view for America found expression in his Second Inaugural Address, segments of which will appear in the exhibit in Lincoln’s own hand.”

The Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum plans an array of events and activities inspired by the new exhibit.

Gary Zola, professor of the American Jewish experience at Cincinnati’s Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, will speak at the opening night reception for the exhibit.

Daniel Stowell, director of the Papers of Abraham Lincoln, will speak Aug. 23 at the museum. The event will be presented in partnership with the Jewish Federation of Springfield.

On Oct. 3, the presidential library presents an evening of the American songbook. The event will feature Laurence Maslon, from the Graduate Acting Program at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, and Ollie Watts Davis, music professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign.

Jonathan Sarna, co-author of “Lincoln and the Jews: A History,” will speak Oct. 15. Sarna is chair of the Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program at Brandeis University, president of the Association for Jewish Studies, and chief historian of the National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia.

The Lincoln Presidential Library presents a discussion of American Jewish history on Nov. 7 with Hasia Diner, director of the Goldstein-Goren Center for American Jewish History at New York University.

For information about reservations for these events, please visit the ALPLM website: www.PresidentLincoln.illinois.gov.

“With Firmness in the Right: Lincoln and the Jews” is presented with the support of Stephen and Lisa Stone, Robert and Natalie Silverman, Jean and William Soman, and the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation.

The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum recently commemorated the 150th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s assassination and the end of the Civil War; at the same time, ALPLM celebrated its tenth anniversary, with record-breaking attendance, on April 19, 2015. For more about the anniversary, visit www.TenYearsLincoln.com.

The Shapell Manuscript Foundation is an independent educational organization dedicated to the collection, research and exhibition of original manuscripts and historical documents. The Foundation’s focus is on the histories of the United States and the Holy Land, with emphasis on the 19th and 20th centuries. The collection includes original manuscripts and documents from American presidents, Mark Twain, Albert Einstein, Theodor Herzl and more. For more information, visit www.shapell.org