.-- grant first up is the portrait of ulysses s grant. grant arriveses s in washington to receive his promotion from lieutenant first, and this is the he is the first since george washington to achieve that rank. he raises eyebrows when he tries to register at the willard hotel . why? willardhe gets to the having been to washington quite seldom and he asks for a room. the desk clerk gives him the and says we have no room. he sort of implores them and they say we have a room in the attic. he says he will take it. he takes the ledger, in those days you signed a book, and he wrote u.s. grant and son and he twirled around. it andhe clerk looked at if he had had a monocle, it would have popped out of his eye. [laughter] he says we have a wonderful you. for you --suite for i believe it was the same one where lincoln stayed. it goes to show you what a simple [indiscernible] un-ostentatiously he presented himself. even on the people of when he was going to become rank alongside washington. and unkempt.uffy pretensiondverse to that this is, in man

so first up is the landon portrait of grant. so it's 1864. usous ulysses s. grant arrives in washington to receive his promotion from the general. and interestingly enough, he's the first since george washington to achieve that rank. >> right, right. >> but he raises his eyebrows when he tried to register at the willard hotel. why? >> well, he gets to the willard having been to washington quite seldom, and he asked for a room. he's with his little boy, by the way. and the desk clerk gives that desk clerk kind of look like franklin pangbore in the movies if there are any movie buffs out there, we don't have any rooms. he implores them and he said they have a room up in the attic. so he sort of takes. it he takes the ledger and in those days he signed the book, u.s. grant and son and twirled it around on a rotating disk and the desk clerk looked at it if he had a monocle, it would have popped out of his eye. oh, gosh general grant, we have a wonderful suite for you. and i believe they gave him the suite lincoln stayed in on the second floor overlooking 14th str

and he bungled the name and sent it in as ulysses s. grant. his own wife didn't know what it stood for and he wrote back this funny letter and said the "s" stands for absolutely nothing. it's not going to be hip hop musical. shucks, but it will be feature film, and it's going to be directed by steven spielberg, which is very exciting. and produced by leonardo dicaprio which is also exciting, and it looks like i'll again be the historical consultant. >> are there any lessons or big lesson you've learned through studying these you think is worth share something. >> it's a very good question. one thing when people have asked me about a common denominator to these lives is every person i've written about they've had to cope from an early age with a difficult even impossible parent. i know this sound like a strange response to your question, but there was washington with the very self-centered mother, hamilton with the absentee father. grant had this domineering and overbearing father. and i think there's something about coping with a very, very di

he said, ulysses s grant would have attacked the bedroom and the kitchen. i'm not sure what he meant but - - in terms of attacking the kitchen. that goes back to grant the quartermaster. but what he did with lee if he began systematically to cut off every railway line and every canal feeding supplies to lee's army. finally starting it out and forcing them to flee. and forces surrender. that was then the third confederate army that grant captured. robert e. lee never captured a single union army. >> it's the most touching part of the story because he refuses to allow his soldiers to gloat or celebrate. he is very generous. the confederate soldiers are starving. he issues rations to feed them. really i think the most beautiful passage and grants memoir is because grant instead, he was sad and depressed when he met lee. he writes, i felt like anything rather than rejoicing over the downfall of a person who fought with such valor and suffered such hardship for a cause. so the humanity and fairness and balance he brought that i think it will stay with us. >> gra

in this series they talk about artifacts related to ulysses s. grant and benjamin butler. this took place online and the new-york historical society binded the video. >> good evening, and welcome. tonight's topic is modern major generals. first i want to remind everyone tonight's program, which is being recorded, will last approximately 45 minutes. this will include 15 minutes for questions and answers. please submit your question by the q&a on your zoom screen during the time. we will respond to as many possible during the final part of the

and, by the way, this redeposition was the -- this reception was the first time he had met ulysses s. grant. and in a more private scene, lincoln gave him his promotion. >> more and more images proliferated of grant in the final year of the war and he, as you said, found time to pose for photographs and, you know -- in the fields, sometime in the studio. sometimes we saw him in softer, domestic scenes later on, like this one of his family. so this is -- it makes him look a lot softer and more like a home body, i guess. and -- but more typically, we see portraits of him in uniform like this. after the war, every northern hospital, union league club, veterans organization commissioned the grant portrait painting for its walls. and one of the best you say is our first object this evening which is the james reed lamden portrait of u.s. grant. what is so special about the painting? >> i hope everyone sees its relation to the photograph we just had up. he was a portrait painter. he had done john marshal, other celebrities, and studied under thomas sully. he was about to do lincoln. and like

for those of you watching history tv, in episode two, ulysses s. grant watches an african-american laborer shoot a confederate where his owner is shoot and they say this is the way of the future. graham did not think it was a great idea at first to welcome african-americans into his army. his chief lieutenant william sherman didn't like the idea. general burnside wasn't taken as seriously as those two did not like the idea. and general mcclennan, who we saw in a tent with lincoln in october of '62, so four months after that petition, basically told lincoln my soldiers are going to fight to restore the union but don't expect us to fight for black freedom because it is not going to happen. which shows you how long of a road had to be marched to get the country and the military, the racist military, they were pretty racist too, to that point. >> absolutely. >> and frederick douglas helps. >> and here he is very much a part of our second object. a recruitment broadside written by douglas. could we see the image of that, please. so what was this signifi

like the ulysses s grant historical. >> lincoln is a good example, he is everywhere. we have some lincoln, you've got lincoln, the lincoln library has lincoln. >> i think the lady in the green. >> hi. i had a question about staff development. as you continue to shift your priorities toward digitalization, how will your priorities and staff development? both organizations have huge staff. i was just curious to hear your thoughts on priorities and staff development and what you will look for in the staff in the future? >> actually, the library of congress has to have staff development and training, the technology, but also archival message and conservation and preservation. if that balance between that's going on at the same time so that's a big part of it having the technology also retrofitting some staff member skills that started out in helping them with the technology skills. this can be both and i know yours is very constitutional. >> hominy staff? >> 3200 approximately. rebuilding fort meade packard center. okay. here we go. >> we won't go there. >> a lot. >> i he

>> well, we are -- we rely on general ulysses s grant who was a memoirist with a terrific memory for dialogue and battle scenes and events. it's his recording of the battle, of the surrender scene, that we -- we've come to rely on. and he's the best witness we have. horace porter, one of his aides, was also there and wrote about it. but their recollections magically coincided. >> the history is written by the victors, right? >> in this case, absolutely right. lee did not offer any recollections of the surrender scene. >> interesting. so back to lincoln. was his pre-election pessimism at all a function of superstition? was he a superstitious person? >> well, if he had been relying only on superstition, he wouldn't have even worried because in 1860, '61 when he was packing to go to washington for the first time, he looked in the mirror and saw a double image. he saw his face in the mirror and a faded face refracting behind him. for some reason he called in his wife in this morbid wait and said, "mary, look, two images." she says, "what do you think it means?" ly said, "well, i think it

in fact, we see many of those officers actually have roles and occupied positions within ulysses s. grant's administration. we are looking at the american flag of the united states. this flag is from the american civil war. and tradition has that this flag actually hung in jefferson davis' cell to remind him on a daily basis of the crimes he had committed against his former federal government. the history of jefferson davis is a very complex one, and one that we here at the casemate museum try to look at all aspects of. this cell door is probably one of the most important are the facts from jefferson davis' incarceration here at fort monroe. it is from behind this very door that he would look out and realize that the american civil war was over and that the confederacy was no longer part of the historic narrative of the united states. we have taken you on a tour of the casemate museum all the way through the american civil war, but there is so much more to see. in the late 19th and early 20th century, fort monroe becomes a very important training ground for the military. it is here

president ulysses s. grant play in the mexican-american war? was it quartermaster, sniper, or medic? the answer when we return. we love our new home. there's so much space. we have a guestroom now. but, we have aunts. you're slouching again, ted. expired, expired... expired. thanks, aunt bonnie. it's a lot of house. i hope you can keep it clean. at least geico makes bundling our home and car insurance easy. which helps us save a lot of money oh, teddy. did you get my friend request? uh, i'll have to check. (doorbell ringing) aunt joni's here! for bundling made easy, go to geico.com. hello? ♪ if i could, baby i'd ♪ how can i, when youy, won't take it from me ♪ ♪ you can go your own way ♪ ♪ go your own way your wireless. your rules. only with xfinity mobile. >> so, what role did future army general and u.s. president ulysses s. grant play in the mexican-american war? the answer is "a," quartermaster. grant was in charge of distributing supplies and provisions to the 4th infantry regiment. >> in birmingham, alabama, patrick martin is e

>>host: ulysses s grant is that vicksburg. >> yes he is in command of one of his finest hours. and that is so overshadowed was happening in gettysburg. and then what is called the media center of the day. and it's on - - vicksburg is more important i have to be careful when i say that because i live there but the conquest of the mississippi river changes everything. and from they are going to chattanooga and lookout mountain comments seem to be important so i got very excited about that. but now that being said, i think that's all i can do on the civil war. people say what happens a bunch of things that happened but i'm on to other things right now. i have done seven books of those characters i need to focus on something different for now. >>host: jeff shaara how valuable were the newspapers of the time for your research could you get a hold of diaries? >> a very separate question. the newspapers of the time were not that valuable because one of the great complaints we hear every day you have no idea. but the election of the 18 sixties you have not just taking sides suddenly an

famous scene that would enshrine ulysses s grant as a appomattox on april 9. we can go to the next image , there'sws the men quite a contrast between them. the uncapped grant and the noble looking lee. physicaleir differences used to make a symbolic point about what was going on? the triumphthis was of the common man over dynastic royalty. the descendent of a revolutionary. although he was a drunk. he married into martha washington's family. he was american royalty. confederate loyalty certainly. he looked the part. it was before his white hair. he was considered the handsomest man in the army. he was terrific looking as he neared 60. in this photograph, taken on the back porch of his richmond home after the surrender, he stripped off the military insignia. he did not want to project a defiant image. it is a little less that the respondent see at appomattox where he had a dress sword and he looked fancy. grant arrived in a mud splattered uniform with these boots you see. they did present a did tremendous contrast. valerie: it is interesting, the leebefore the

s grant before it matured. there was a surprise attack for which the union was unprepared. a total route from how the union the routed held back on the first day and lived to fight another day. grant turned to sherman and said to get them tomorrow. i would think -- the messages are to maintain the secrecy of battlefield instructions but they don't ensure they are the right instructions. it is left to the human brain and technical and strategic skills -- grant had his own codes and his own vision. next question. was the wreck of the monitor ever recovered, if so, where is it displayed. ? the ship was followed by many -- >> the ship was followed by many monitors, but the original was pretty famous. it was never tremendously seaworthy. it stayed very close to shore. instead it was dispatched to a -- two cape hatteras, a famous graveyard for naval vessels. and new year's day 1862. just nine months after it became the most famous ship in the union navy. it sank off of cape hatteras. there it remained for 145 years,

i will say, one exception i know first majorthe painting of ulysses s. grant was brought to the capital for display and lincoln was invited to see it. he had not met grant up to that point. i think part of him felt obliged to pay tribute to him, and another part of him set if i don't go pay homage at this painting, people are going to think i am afraid of grant running for president. so he went up to capitol hill to look at it. that may be the only that i know of that he had a gander at during the civil war. he liked the emancipation proclamation painting. he said it was as good as it could get. valerie: were there any american art museums during lincoln's life? yes. 1870 was a very important year for american art. i don't know what the installations were like during the war. the national academy of design was operating during the war, and every season they would hang paintings. we know from the records of from the records these included were paintings. valerie: it is a museum and a library. it is very different from the museums as colossal and encyclope

for those who may be watching the grant miniseries on the history channel, in episode 2, ulysses s. grant watches an african-american laborer take a gun and shoot a confederate when its owner is shot dead first, its white soldier. and there you see in grant's eyes, oh, this is the way of the future. in fact, grant did not think it was a great idea at first to welcome african-americans into his army. his chief lieutenant william sherman didn't like the idea. general bernstein wasn't taken as seriously as those two by that time did not like the idea. and general mcclellan, who we saw in a tent with lincoln in october of '62, so four months after that petition, basically told lincoln, my soldiers are going to fight to restore the union, but don't expect us to fight for black freedom because that's not going to happen. the racist military, they were pretty racist too to that point. >> yeah, absolutely. >> as you said, frederick douglass helps. >> yeah, and here -- and he is very much a part of our second object, a recruitment broad side written by douglass. can we see the image of that,

s. you can watch all of c-span's public affairs programming on television, online, or listen on our free radio app, and be part of the national conversation through c-span's daily washington journal program or through your social media feeds. c-span, created by america's cable television companies, as a public service, and brought to you today by your television provider. >> next, on the civil war, historian harold holzer and valerie paley talk about artifacts featured in their joint publication, "the civil war in 50 objects". in this program we discuss objects related to military technology. this conversation took place on line due to the coronavirus pandemic and the new york historical society provided the video. >> harold, we've been talking in this series about the power of objects to be touchstones of historical events, to be con duties for understanding the past. it's a thrill and an extraordinary experience to be a historian at new york historical where i work alongside these trea

s. grant. we recorded the program in september of 2018. >> good afternoon. welcome, everybody. i'm david moskowitz. i'm head of government relations and public policy at wells fargo and i'm pleased to be here with you today. we're pleased to serve for the 8th year as a charter sponsor of the book festival and even prouder to watch it grow into the incredibly popular and impactful event it has become. i wouldn't be surprised -- [ applause ] >> thank you. i wouldn't be surprised to see us move the needle on some best seller lists today. but it's even more important to keep the book festival a free event that serves the community. its real purpose is literacy which leads to learning and opportunity which helps our goal in succeeding. learning to love books is what the book festival is all about. in this session, ron chernow will describe his biography and certain other popular founding fathers. one thing i learned from the story of president grant is how people can evolve and through persis

s grant, frederick douglass, and even mr. lincoln himself. lincoln said in -- any nation that does not honor its heroes will not long endure. for republicans our heroes are those who propelled an imperfec nation ever forward, always striving to make life better fo everyone. even as anarchists my mostly tearen up american cities while attacking police and innocent bystanders, we republicans do recognize those who work in goo faith toward peace, justice, an equality. in fact, it was dwight eisenhower, a future republican president, who said democracy i a system that recognizes the quality of humans before the lat . what didhe you the family of breonna taylor or david doing, these are the ideals that won't heal our nation's wounds. republicans will never turn a blind eye to unjust acts, but neither volpi except -- and west and all out assault on western civilization. my values are shaped my by my parents but i worked at this mall cop shop greeting people from all walks of life and i will relate something, no matter who we are, e

s. smith would he make of secretary pompeo coming in from jerusalem. the campaign earlier said it's not his time and his time and the brakes no rules but it is certainly unconventional. >> yeah as long as he's not using our taxpayer resources i think it's fine. i think to the extent he wants to talk about where the second agenda might go i think that's of interest to people and certainly newsworthy. to this point i think he's going to talk about some notable first-term successes may be most of all the recent what i think you would have to say is the real middle east diplomatic triumph for the president ended uae israel accord. >> what do you make of the moments we have seen with the president so far james? they were described as surprise moments that have been given to the media prior to it happening and emphasizing the naturalization sir money for legal immigration. how do you think he is going to lead all this? >> i think so far it's a very effective convention. it's not perfect but i

s. chris, start with you. a number of speakers, compelling stories, a lobster man from maine. i heard one guy saying what will happen in year 48 of joe biden in washington. >> yeah, that's a big part. it's interesting. here's donald trump. the incumbent president. he has been in office almost 48 months now and yet once again, as in 2016, he's trying to run as an outsider trying to say that joe biden represents the swamp from a half century in washington and that he's the one who tried to begin to clean up the swamp in the first term and would proceed to do it in a second term whether he's able to sell that to the american people, that's one of the challenges. >> brit, moving moments with john ponder who the president gave a pardon to. he was a bank robber. he started a reform program for prisoners. he had a experience speaking with jesus christ in prison. a moving story that goes to that side of the equation. prison reform and the appeal being made to a lot of minority voters as part of

as they tear down the statues of people like ulysses s grant, frederick douglass, and even mr. lincoln himself. lincoln said, "any nation that does not honor its heroes will not long indoor." and for republicans, our heroes are those who propelled an imperfect nation ever forward. always striving to make life better for everyone. even as anarchists mindlessly tear up american cities while attacking police and innocent bystanders. we republicans to recognize those who work in good faith towards peace, justice and equality. in fact, it was general dwight eisenhower, a future republican president who said, "democracy is a system that recognizes the equality of humans before the law. " whether you are the family of breonna taylor or david dorn, these are the ideals that will heal our nation's wounds. republicans will never turn a blind eye to unjust acts but neither will we accept an all- out assault on western civilization. my values were shaped by my faith and by my parents. i worked at their small coffee shop, meeting people from all walks of life. and i realized something. no m

. >> george washington, abraham lincoln, ulysses s. grant. i visited the red cross headquarters to discuss plasma therapies. the plasma. so valuable. when they gaze upon your yosemenites's towering sequoias. if you're in the office of the presidency, we have to be sharp. >> from the majesty of yosemite to the tropics of thyl

. >> george washington, abraham lincoln, ulysses s. grant. i visited the red cross headquarters to discuss plasma therapies. the plasma. so valuable. when they gaze upon your yosemenites's towering sequoias. if you're in the office of the presidency, we have to be sharp. >> from the majesty of yosemite to the tropics of thyland, the president of the united states to take us off the air on a thursday night. thank you so very much for spending some time here with us. on behalf of all my colleagues at the networks of nbc news, good night. >>> this is dr. joseph varone from houston, texas. he is the chief medical officer of united memorial medical center, which is in north houston. >> i'm pretty much fighting two wars, a war against covid and a war against stupidity, and the problem is that the first one,vy some hope about winning, but the second one is becoming more and more difficult to treat. and why do i say that? because people are not listening, whether it's science or just plain old common sense, people are not listening throughout the cou

grant there. grant could have imposed harsh terms and i think that ulysses s. grant's magnanimous gesture there is often overlooked in the reconciliation of the country. i could do a whole lecture on that. maybe we'll do one this summer. but robert e. lee has to stick around appomattox for a few days and he has to shore up paperwork. then three days after he surrenders, on april 12th he sets out from appomattox, riding traveller, his famous horse. eventually three days later he's going to make his way back to richmond, virginia. and when he gets to richmond, this is the sight which he beholds. now, he did not see this personally because he was down in petersburg, but the confederates set the town on fire when they were evacuating it, when richmond failed. you look at all those charred ruins, that's the virginia state capit capitol. three days later on april 15th, robert e. lee is going to pull up at the james river and he's going to look across at this scene of des lagz. as he crosses over, he's not going to have a lot of people, he's going to have one staff of

. >> the other president who ran for a third term was ulysses s. grant. he had been president for two terms, stepped down for a term, and was a candidate at the republican convention in 1880. he lost to james garfield. that was the other president who did seek a third term. >> thank you for the call. teddy roosevelt also ran for a third term after a different -- under a different party after he left the white house. >> coolidge served under harding. harding died. coolidge became president and one of his own right -- won of his own right in the next election. easy call. the democrat always runs again when they are popular incumbent, and he chose not to run. what i am discovering in researching calvin coolidge is that he chose not to run because of george washington. absolute power corrupts absolutely. he thought overtime an executive gets too used to the office. that was a concern the people had over fdr, that you do become too -- you can use that the state is me. -- confuse that the state is me. >> you can learn more on our website and get more on this pr

lee and ulysses s. grant... not to mention ancient and medieval warriors. a history of world combat in one jam-packed man cave. your husband must've spent a lot of time putting this together. >> lovingly, over 40 years. >> it's really magnificent. i really did need to see this. you were right to get in touch with us. >> oh, i'm so glad you feel that way. >> i would love to learn more about it. >> i'd love to share that with you. >> can we sit and talk? >> i'd love it. >> carole tells me her late husband, bob postal, was born in 1940 in the gulf coast town of pascagoula, mississippi, where his father ran a garment factory. a shy, intense, and artistic kid, he kept to himself. >> he used to go into his room and draw. and he loved drawing military costumes. and he loved drawing battle re-enactments. >> as a young man, bob stops drawing soldiers and becomes one. he skips college, joins the army reserves, and in 1963, is stationed at fort dix in new jersey as a cook. he's never sent to vietnam. after an honorable discharge in 1969, bob follows in his father's fo

s grant, frederick douglass, and even mr. lincoln himself. lincoln said any nation that doesn't honor its heroes will not long endure. and for republicans, our heroes are those who propelled an imperfect nation ever forward. always striving to make life better for everyone. mindlesslyrchists tear up american cities while attacking police and innocent bystanders. we republicans do recognize those who work in good faith towards peace, justice, and equality. was general dwight eisenhower, a future republican president who said, democracy is a system that recognizes the quality of humans before the law. whether you are the family of breonna taylor or david dorn, these are the ideals that will heal our nation's wounds. republicans will never turn a blind eye to unjust acts. neither will we accept an all-out assault on western civilization. my values were shaped by my faith and by my parents. i worked at their small coffee shop, meeting people from all walks of life. i realized something. no matter who we are, everyone needs a cup

as they tear down the statues of ople like ulysses s. grant, frederick douglass and even mr mrlincoln himself. lincoln said, any nation that does not honor its heroes will not long endure. and for republicans, our heroes are those who propelled an i imperfect nation ever forward always striving to make life better for everyone. even as anarchists, mindlessly tear of american cities while atocking plice and innocent bystanders, we republicans do recognize those who work ingood faith towards peace, justice and equality. in fact, it was general dwight eisenhower a future republican president who said, democracy is a system that recognizes the equality of humans before the law. whether you are the family of brionna taylor or david dorn these are the ideals that will heal our nion's wounds. republicans will never turn a blind eye to unjut acts. but neither will we accept an all-ou assault on western civilization. my values were shaped by my faith and by my parents. i worked at their small coffee shop meeting people from ll walks fe. i realize

s grant, frederick douglass, and even mr. lincoln himself. lincoln said any nation that doesn't honor its heroes will not long endure. and for republicans, our heroes are those who propelled an imperfect nation ever forward. always striving to make life better for everyone. mindlesslyrchists tear up american cities while attacking police and innocent bystanders. we republicans do recognize those who work in good faith towards peace, justice, and equality. was general dwight eisenhower, a future republican president who said, democracy is a system that recognizes the quality of humans before the law. whether you are the family of breonna taylor or david dorn, these are the ideals that will heal our nation's wounds. republicans will never turn a blind eye to unjust acts. neither will we accept an all-out assault on western civilization. my values were shaped by my faith and by my parents. i worked at their small coffee shop, meeting people from all walks of life. i realized something. no matter who we are, everyone needs a cup

s. >> the one which has lasted the longest and you and i have talked about this is once deliberately not in the book but an old one, probably not solely american, but the only good ex, you put your own now in there, is a dead ex, has been with us for a very long time, will probably always be with us, but partly because the function of history is to say who we are. who are we as opposed to them and we're the people who did x, y, z, who did or believe x, y, z and only good is a dead is a perfect example of who's part of we and who isn't. it's the quick and the dead. >> we've talked a lot and you write about slogans in american history. what about overseas, do other cultures do this or don't they need to? >> other cultures do do it. i have asked people, contemporaries in other cultures, you get a few but you don't get the incredible wealth we have here. in england it's everything from we shall fight on the beaches. we are not amused. in france it's [ speaking foreign language ] germany has