The Lincoln-Douglas Debates: The First Complete, Unexpurgated Text

Front Cover
Harold Holzer
Fordham University Press, Aug 25, 2009 - History - 422 pages

The seven debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas held during the Illinois senatorial race of 1858 are among the most important statements in American political history, dramatic struggles over the issues that would tear apart the nation in the Civil War: the virtues of a republic and the evils of slavery.

In this acclaimed book, Holzer brings us as close as possible to what Lincoln and Douglas actually said, Using transcripts of Lincoln's speeches as recorded by the pro-Douglas newspaper, and vice-versa, he offers the most reliable, unedited record available of the debates. Also included are background on the sites, crowd comments, and a new introduction.

"A vivid, boisterous picture of politics during our most divisive period...This fresh, fascinating examination.... deserves a place in all American history collection."-Library Journal

 

Selected pages

Contents

Introduction
1
A Word on the Texts
34
The First Joint Debate at Ottawa August 21 1858
40
The Second Joint Debate at Freeport August 27 1858
86
The Third Joint Debate at jonesboro September 15 1858
136
The Fourth Joint Debate at Charleston September 18 1858
185
The Fifth Joint Debate at Galesburg October 7 1858
234
Illustrations
269
The Sixth Joint Debate at Quincy October 13 1858
277
The Seventh Joint Debate at Alton October 15 1858
321
Lincoln vs Douglas How the State Voted
371
Notes
375
Index
383
Copyright

Other editions - View all

The Lincoln-Douglas Debates: The First Complete, Unexpurgated Text
Harold Holzer
Limited preview - 2009
The Lincoln-Douglas Debates: The First Complete, Unexpurgated Text
Harold Holzer
No preview available - 2004
The Lincoln-Douglas Debates: The First Complete, Unexpurgated Text
Abraham Lincoln,Stephen Arnold Douglas
No preview available - 2004

Common terms and phrases

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About the author (2009)

Harold Holzer is Roger Hertog Fellow at the New-York Historical Society and one of the nation’s leading authorities on Lincoln and the political culture of the Civil War era. He is chairman of the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Foundation and has written, co-written, or edited forty-seven books, most recently Lincoln and the Power of the Press.

Bibliographic information

TitleThe Lincoln-Douglas Debates: The First Complete, Unexpurgated Text
EditorHarold Holzer
Editionreprint
PublisherFordham University Press, 2009
ISBN0823238504, 9780823238507
Length422 pages
Subjects ›  › 

History / United States / Civil War Period (1850-1877)
Language Arts & Disciplines / Rhetoric
Literary Collections / Speeches
  
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