A Menu of Historic Proportions

On March 6, 1865, two days after he delivered his second inaugural address to a massive crowd gathered on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol, Abraham Lincoln hosted a “Presidential Inaugural Ball” in Washington, D.C. As evidenced by the event’s “Bill of Fare,” shown below, diners had quite a variety of options to choose from.

Lincoln inauguration menu
Library of Congress

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OAKES: Freedom National (2012)

Freedom National: The Destruction of Slavery in the United States, 1861-1865 by James Oakes. W. W. Norton & Company, 2012. Cloth, ISBN: 0393065316. $29.95. James Oakes has received high praise for…