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Since April 12 is the 150th anniversary of the attack on Fort Sumter, the discussion will focus on the political intrigue leading up the attack, the attack itself and the immediate consequences.
“No one was killed during the Sumter bombardment, but it triggered the final series of events that led to a war in which one in five American males between ages 16 and 40 were either killed or maimed,” according to presenter Phil Smoley.
The roundtable’s last meeting featured Dr. Bill Cornelison, a former Lake County superintendent of schools and a professor of history at Yuba College.
Dr. Cornelison’s presentation contrasted Abraham Lincoln with Jefferson Davis, the little known president of the Confederate States of America.
There were many similarities, including both being born in Kentucky, less than a year and 100 miles apart.
Both of their “first loves” died young, and both later married into well to do families. Lincoln had five children, Davis six, and both experienced the death of a son while serving as president. Both served in the Black Hawk War and in Congress.
Lincoln was opposed to slavery and was firm about not having it expand into the common territories, yet he was willing to preserve slavery wherever it existed because historians say he didn't believe the US Constitution allowed the government to ban slavery. He was a supporter of the colonization movement whereby former slaves would be relocated to areas outside the United States.
Davis believed that slavery was the best for both master and slave, and by most standards of the time, treated his slaves well. His plantation was in Mississippi, near Vicksburg, and by 1849, he owned 72 slaves.
While Lincoln received little formal education, Davis was able to attend some of the best schools, including the academy at West Point. He served with distinction in the war with Mexico, returning a hero.
Davis was elected to Congress, and then to the Senate. President Pierce appointed him secretary of war where he was instrumental in modernizing the army, the construction of the Capitol and the founding of the Smithsonian Institute.
“Many historians credit Davis as being the best secretary of war our nation ever had,” Cornelison said.
Davis was serving in the Senate when Mississippi seceded, so he resigned to return home to serve his native state. Later, he learned that he was made president of the newly formed Confederacy.
“He didn’t want to be president. He saw himself as a military leader and wanted to lead an army in the field,” Cornelison explained. “But he accepted the job and gave it his all for the next four years.”
Cornelison described many events of the war years that contrasted each man’s management style.
Each of their presidencies ended tragically, with Lincoln being assassinated, and Davis having to flee, hunted down like a criminal and thrown into prison in shackles.
He actually looked forward to his treason trial, believing he could prove in court what he lost on the battlefield. But all charges were dropped and he was released a free man. In 1978 his citizenship was restored by Congress.
Cornelison offered an intriguing “what if” scenario regarding the election of 1860.
Lincoln was able to win with less than 40 percent of the vote because the Democrats could not agree on a single candidate and split their vote.
Cornelison speculated that since Davis was considered a moderate prior to the war and had some popularity in some northern areas, if the other candidates pulled out and threw their support to Davis, he very well could have been elected president instead of Lincoln.
Following the presentation, the group had a robust roundtable discussion.
For more information about the roundtable, contact Phil Smoley at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or Zane Jensen at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
