ANDREW JOHNSON

In 2011 we highlighted Bullis Collection books about the Civil War as we recognized the 150th anniversary of that conflict's beginning. This week we fast-forwarded to the end of the war, as we  looked at a book published in 1866: Life and Times of Andrew Johnson, Seventeenth President of the United States. Written from a national stand-point. By a national man. The title reveals a great deal about this book and its author, Kenneth Rayner. And in his preface, Rayner tells the reader why he considers it important that President Johnson's position be thoroughly  understood and appreciated by the public as they dealt with the aftermath of that war.

Whether Rayner's book had any influence at that time, we do not know. However, on February 24, 1868, the House of Representatives impeached President Andrew Johnson following his attempted dismissal of Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton. Johnson was later acquitted by the Senate. However, the president who assumed office when President Lincoln was assassinated was not elected to that office for the following term leaving us to assume that the issues Rayner raised remained unresolved.

This is another Bullis book that you can access on line. However, if you'd like the experience of sitting amidst and breathing the aroma of  classic books while you're enjoying Rayner's book, please pay us a visit in the Bullis Room. We're looking forward to seeing you.