in his inaugural address on March 4, 1865, he
affirmed his commitment to healing the nation’s
wounds without penalizing the South beyond
the enormous devastation it had already suf-
fered. Within a month, Lincoln was assassi-
nated. The Thirteenth Amendment was ratified
on December 18, 1865. It made illegal slavery
and involuntary servitude in the United States.
Lyceums
Lyceums were programs for adult education in
which people attended lectures given by people
of note who traveled from one town to another
on what was called the lyceum circuit. This
method for general intellectual development
was the brainchild of Josiah Holbrook (1788–
1854), who lived in Connecticut. Holbrook envi-
sioned a lyceum in every town across the United
States, and, indeed, by 1831, a national organ-
ization, the American Lyceum, had been estab-
lished, and hundreds of towns had begun such
programs. Lecturing on the lyceum circuit was a
way of making a living or at least extra income,
since lecture attendees paid a small admission
price. Such important thinkers and writers as
Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862), Ralph
Waldo Emerson (1803–1882), and Henry Ward
Beecher (1803–1887), participated. In fact, in
1857, Emerson lectured in Amherst and stayed
overnight with Austin and Susan Dickinson.COMPARE
&
CONTRAST 1860s:Men running for political office know
if they are elected, their income is assured for
the length of their term.
Today:Men and women who run for polit-
ical office must have exceptional wealth and
raise great sums of money during their cam-
paign in order pay for advertising and help
them get elected to positions that may pay
less than what they earn in private lives.
1860s:Lincoln’s 1863 Emancipation Procla-
mation frees the slaves owned by masters
who are rebelling against the Union. The
Thirteenth Amendment (1865) prohibits
slavery in the United States. The Fourteenth
Amendment (1868) establishes that all people
born in the United States are citizens. The
Fifteenth Amendment (1868) establishes
that all male citizens have the right to vote
regardless of race or previous involuntary
servitude. Thus, with these amendments,
African Americans born in the United States
gain full status as citizens and the same right
of franchise that is extended to whites.
Today:Hotly debated, the issue of a national
universal health insurance program that
would assure medical services for everyone
is seen by advocates, such as Senator EdwardKennedy (1932–2009), as a way to care for
the invisible members of U.S. society, namely
the poor.
1860s:Edward Dickinson is against slavery
and the creation of new slave states in the
West, but he argues against federal abolition
of slavery because it would violate states’ rights.
Today:States’ rights govern such areas as
the application of the death penalty, legal-
ization of same-sex marriage and medicinal
use of marijuana, and the legal right to med-
ically assisted suicide.
1860s: Edward Dickinson mortgages his
home and borrows against his assets, leaving
his family often in precarious financial cir-
cumstances. The Dickinson Homestead in
the twenty-first century is a national treas-
ure and museum.
Today: Home foreclosures in the United
States reach an unprecedented high as the
economic downturn occurs and subprime
and adjustable-rate mortgages mature and
impose higher interest rates. With increased
unemployment and reduced income, many
people default on their mortgage payments
and lose their homes to foreclosure.I’m Nobody! Who are you?