-
9. Memorializing and Judaizing Lincoln
- Southern Illinois University Press
- Chapter
- Additional Information
227 9 Memorializing and Judaizing Lincoln The process of memorializing, dignifying, and ultimately transforming Lincoln into a national icon took place incrementally and over the course of many decades. Historians have noted how the American people’s perception of Lincoln has steadily evolved in response to the ever-changing needs, interests, and priorities of the nation. Or, as the distinguished American sociologist Charles Horton Cooley famously observed, “present function, not past” shapes the way in which we perceive significant historical personalities and institutions. Analytical interpretations as to how the “Lincoln legend” evolved over time first began to appear in the early decades of the twentieth century, and historians have continued to identify a wide range of factors that influenced the exaltation of Lincoln’s reputation over the course of time.1 Most scholars agree that it was the shock and grief over Lincoln’s horrific murder that “suddenly lifted [him] into the sky as the folk-hero, the deliverer, and the martyr who had come to save his people and to die for them.” A very real hysteria engulfed the nation in the wake of the president’s assassination and his elaborate funeral, and there arose a “collective impulse” to praise and honor the fallen leader. The historian Merrill Peterson has argued that five large themes have contributed to the apotheosis of Abraham Lincoln over time: Lincoln as the savior of the Union, Lincoln as the Great Emancipator, Lincoln as a man of the people, Lincoln as the first American, and Lincoln as the self-made man.2 The memorialization of Lincoln began practically from the moment of his death. As soon as Lincoln drew his final breath, Secretary of War Edwin Stanton declared, “Now he belongs to the ages.” As we have already seen, eulogies on Lincoln multiplied, and shortly after the first wave of grief had subsided, the process of memorializing Lincoln’s life and career began in earnest. On May 11, 1865—twenty-seven days after the assassination—a National Lincoln Monument Association was formally organized in Springfield, Illinois. The association immediately issued “numerous appeals for aid” and spearheaded a national fundraising drive in order to erect a suitable “Memorial Structure ” to honor the memory of the fallen president. The association reached its goal, and in 1874, the Lincoln Memorial in Springfield was dedicated at the Oak Ridge Cemetery.3 American Jews participated actively in the fundraising efforts for the Lincoln Memorial Fund, one of the first stages in the ongoing process of Lincoln’s beatification. One of Lincoln’s Jewish friends, the haberdasher Julius Hammerslough of Springfield, Memorializing and Judaizing Lincoln 228 Illinois, was charged with the responsibility of raising funds from the American Jewish community. On May 29, 1865, Hammerslough distributed a circular that he hoped would reach all of the “Hebrew Congregations, Corporations, Associations, Schools and Colleges in the United States.” In his communication to Jewish newspaper publishers like Rabbi Isaac M. Wise of Cincinnati, Hammerslough asked the Jewish community to support what he called “the great and holy work” of the Lincoln Monument Association. It was proper for the Jewish community to contribute to this philanthropic endeavor not merely because it would be a fitting “tribute to the merits of our fallen Chief” but also because it would be seen as an act of “the most grateful remembrance.” He wanted American Jews to join with their fellow citizens and contribute a dollar to the cause.4 Appeals for contributions were made in synagogues and in various Jewish organizations , and by the beginning of June 1865, the Jewish Messenger proudly advertised the fact that in New York, nearly 100 Jews had already donated to the cause. In Cincinnati, Jews voted on this matter during a “general meeting of the Israelites of Cincinnati” and decided to establish a committee that would raise funds for the Lincoln monument from that city’s entire Jewish community.5 By the tenth anniversary of Lincoln’s death in 1875, communities all across America had dedicated a cornucopia of Lincoln monuments, shrines, statues, state portraits, historical paintings, and prints.6 In Washington, D.C., for example, the sculptor Lot Flannery (1836–1922) won the commission to produce a life-sized sculpture of Lincoln, which was unveiled by President Andrew Johnson on April 15, 1868. In 1869, the Washington Times informed its readers that the state of Illinois marked Lincoln’s birthday by decorating his tomb with evergreen wreaths.7 It was at this same time that the practice of commemorating...