G.A.R. Museum & Library Open House IN PERSON
Sunday, September 10, 2023 at 1:00pm
Church Hall
Holmesburg Methodist Church
Andrew Johnson in Philadelphia, August 28, 1866
Description
The city authorities of Philadelphia had vetoed a civic reception and the mayor (Morton McMichael) had ostentatiously departed on a vacation; but a monster welcome had been organized privately. General Meade at the head of a military delegation escorted the commander-in-chief to the Continental Hotel, where Johnson was to speak and remain overnight. The factual Associated Press reported the streets bright with flags and streamers, but The Tribune (New York) insisted they were "bare and destitute of ornament", the sole display at the hotel being "six small and particularly dirty flags...stuck out of a chambermaids' window."
Johnson's speech in Philadelphia was a plea for national unity. "Forget that we have been divided into parties," he urged. "Let the interests of the great mass of people be promoted, and let parties sink into insignificance." And don't worry about politicians, "for when the people get right, the politicians are very accommodating."
Michael Wunsch BIO
Born in Brooklyn, NY, Michael Wunsch has been a resident of Northeast Philadelphia since 1966, having graduated from Northeast High School, and La Salle College (1980, B.S. Business Administration), he currently live in Fox Chase, Philadelphia, and is employed by a Social Services company, Delta Community Supports.
Michael’s presentation is titled 'Andrew Johnson's Swing Around the Circle, August - September, 1866', the talk includes an overview of the 'Union Party' Johnson administrations' post-Civil War Reconstruction policy in relation to the Northern States, and that of the former Confederacy, and the fierce opposition to Johnsons' 'policy' from elements of the 'Radical' Congress, politicians, and the press, Johnson's train tour, the stated purpose of which was to attend the dedication of the Stephen Douglas Monument, in Chicago, Illinois, however, the 'Campaign Swing' quickly took on a different form, one that Andrew Johnson, historians contend, never recovered from politically.
The presentation includes eyewitness and newspaper accounts of this controversial and contentious 'campaign undertaking', between August 27 and September 15, 1866, an arduous trip that stretched rom "Washington, D.C. to New York, including Philadelphia, west to Chicago, south to St. Louis, and east through the Ohio River valley and back to the nation's capital.", as President Johnson tried to gain support for his mild Reconstruction policies and his preferred candidates in the forthcoming midterm Congressional elections.
Michael has been speaking publicly on topics related to Abraham Lincoln, Civil War politics, and Philadelphia Civil War history since 2002, in addition to ‘The Honorable John Paul Verree, A Fox Chase Life, 1817-1889, currently his presentations include ‘The National Union Party Convention, Baltimore, Maryland, June 6-7, 1864, ‘Abraham Lincoln & the Great Central Sanitary Fair, Philadelphia, June 16, 1864’, ‘City of Jubilee, Philadelphia and the Surrender of Robert E. Lee’, and ‘Mob Scene at the Palmetto Flag, A Secessionist Newspaper, Philadelphia, April 13, 1861’.
He is a member of the Delaware Valley CWRT, the GAR Civil War Museum & Library, and the Lincoln Forum, and currently serves (Since 1998) as Corresponding Secretary of the General Meade Society of Philadelphia, an educational 501c3 organization devoted to Major General George Meade’s memory and service to the nation.. www.generalmeadesociety.org
Michael has presented locally at the GAR Museum & Library, in Frankford, the Union League of Philadelphia, the Delaware Valley CWRT, also at the Ryerss Museum & Library, and the Northeast Regional Library, as well as Civil War Round Tables in Gettysburg and York, PA, Cape May Court House, Camden, and Hamilton, NJ, and Wilmington, DE, and others.
This passage is from The First President Johnson, page 486, by Lately Thomas, 1968, there are much more detailed accounts of Andrew Johnson's time in Philadelphia on August 28, 1866 in the newspapers, but this is a good, brief overview.
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A FREE virtual program online via zoom for those who can not attend in person
GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC MUSEUM & LIBRARY
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