The Lincoln miracle : inside the Republican convention that changed history / Edward Achorn.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Achorn, Edward, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Republican National Convention--(2nd : 1860 : Chicago, Ill.).

Republican National Convention.

Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865--Political career before 1861.

Lincoln, Abraham.

Republican Party (U.S. : 1854- ).

Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865.

Presidents--United States--Election--1860.

Presidents.

United States--Politics and government--1857-1861.

United States.

Abraham Lincoln's political career before 1861.

Politics and government.

Presidents--Election.

Genre:

Biographies.

Physical Description:

viii, 516 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 24 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Other Title:

Inside the Republican convention that changed history

Place of Publication:

New York, NY : Atlantic Monthly Press, an imprint of Grove Atlantic, [2023]

Summary:

"The vivid, behind-the-scenes story of perhaps the most consequential political moment in America's history -- Abraham Lincoln's epochal nomination as the Republican Party's candidate for president in 1860. Illinois lawyer Abraham Lincoln had a record of political failure. In 1858, he had lost a celebrated Senate bid against incumbent Stephen Douglas, his second failed Senate run, and had not held public office since one term in Congress a decade earlier. As the Republican National Convention opened in mid-May 1860 in Chicago, New York Senator William Seward was the overwhelming favorite for the presidential nomination, with Salmon Chase and Edward Bates in the running. Few thought Lincoln stood a chance -- though Illinois judge David Davis had come to fight for his friend anyway. Such was the political landscape as Edward Achorn's The Lincoln Miracle opens on Saturday, May 12, 1860. Chronicling the tense political drama as it unfolded over the next six days, Achorn explores the genius of Lincoln's quiet strategy, the vicious partisanship tearing apart America over racism and slavery, and booming Chicago as a symbol of the modernization transforming the nation. Closely following the shrewd insiders on hand, from Seward power broker Thurlow Weed to editor Horace Greeley, Achorn brings alive arguably the most important political turning point in our history. From smoky hotel rooms to night marches by the Wide Awakes, the new Republican youth organization, to fiery speeches on the floor of the giant convention center called The Wigwam, Achorn portrays a political climate even more contentious than our own today, out of which the seemingly impossible long shot prevailed. As atmospheric and original as Achorn's previous Every Drop of Blood, The Lincoln Miracle is essential reading for any Lincoln aficionado as it is for anyone who cares about our nation's history"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Friday, October 29, 1858. Prologue: Such a sucker as me

Saturday, May 12, 1860. Unconscious strength ; The irrepressible conflict ; Temple of liberty

Sunday, May 13, 1860. Star after star ; The man in the white coat ; The taste is in my mouth

Monday, May 14, 1860. River of iron ; Deutsches Haus

Tuesday, May 15, 1860. Moving Heaven and Earth

Wednesday, May 16, 1860. Things is working

Thursday, May 17, 1860. For want of tally sheets

Overnight, Thursday, May 17, to Friday, May 18, 1860. Lincoln ain't here

Friday, May 18, 1860. Yonder goes Lincoln ; The dirty-shirt ticket

Saturday, May 19, 1860. Six feet four

Aftermath. The people decide

Epilogue: Unconscious instruments.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 451-462) and index.

Other Format:

Online version: Achorn, Edward. Lincoln miracle

ISBN:

9780802160621

080216062X

OCLC:

1344546204

Publisher Number:

40031704154