Lincoln College celebrates 140th anniversary with Charter Day celebration

[FEB. 12, 2005]  Lincoln College will observe its 140th anniversary with a celebration beginning at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Johnston Center for Performing Arts on the college campus. The Charter Day celebration will include granting an honorary degree to well-known history guide and Civil War scholar Edwin C. Bearss (pronounced Bars) and hosting a panel of Lincoln historians who will discuss the topic "Lincoln and the American Dream." Charter Day activities honor the founding of Lincoln College.

The celebration is open to the public, and a reception will immediately follow in the Meyer-Evans Student Center.

On the panel of noted historians are Edwin C. Bearss, former chief historian of the National Park Service; Dr. Ronald C. White Jr., professor of intellectual and religious history at San Francisco Theological Seminary and author of “Lincoln' Greatest Speech” and “The Eloquent President”; Ralph G. Gary, retired federal government attorney and author of “Following in Lincoln's Footsteps”; and Dr. Cullom Davis, former director of Lincoln Legal Papers and professor of history emeritus from the University of Illinois-Springfield.

Edwin C. Bearss is an independent scholar and historian whose career began at the National Park Service in 1955. In 1991, he became chief historian of military sites for the National Park Service. Bearss is the author of many books about the Civil War, including “Smithsonian's Great Battles & Battlefields of the Civil War,” “Nine Months to Gettysburg” and “A War of the People.” He received the Harry S. Truman Award for meritorious service in the field of Civil War history and was a commentator for Ken Burns' PBS series “The Civil War.”

Dr. Ronald C. White Jr. is the author and editor of seven books, most recently “Lincoln's Greatest Speech,” which was a Washington Post best seller, a San Francisco Chronicle best seller and a New York Times “notable book.” White earned his Ph.D. at Princeton and has taught at UCLA, Princeton Theological Seminary, Whitworth College and Colorado College. He is currently professor of American intellectual and religious history at San Francisco Theological Seminary and a Huntington Library Reader in San Marino, Calif. He has lectured at the White House, the Library of Congress and Gettysburg on the subject of Lincoln's eloquence.

Ralph G. Gary is a lifelong historian and frequent traveler to sites that are associated with U.S. history. He is the author of “Following in Lincoln's Footsteps” and is currently working on a new book, “Following in the Footsteps of the Presidents.” Mr. Gary has bachelor of arts and juris doctor degrees from Baylor University. He has practiced law in Waco and Dallas, Texas, and worked for the U.S. Treasury Department. He has spoken at many conferences on tax issues and has developed technical and training material in Washington, D.C.

Dr. Cullom Davis is a native of central Illinois and is well-known for his work on The Lincoln Legal Papers, which features over 100,000 legal records associated with Abraham Lincoln's career as a lawyer. He earned his bachelor's degree from Princeton University, his master's and doctorate in American history from the University of Illinois. He was awarded an honorary doctor of history at Lincoln College, an honorary degree from Knox College in Galesburg and received the Studs Terkel Award from the Illinois Humanities Council in 2002 for his work in preserving history. Davis has been awarded the Lincoln Diploma of Honor from Lincoln Memorial University and is a past president of the Abraham Lincoln Association. He is professor of history emeritus from the University of Illinois-Springfield.

[Lincoln College news release]