johnson. later, a look at media coverage in the trayvon martin case. > she was close to being broken by the time she went to the white house. >> this is the earliest existing house. they lived here in the 1830's and 1840's. >> she was educated and taught school. >> she would work. the north and south fought all over the civil war. it changed hands 26 times. they did have domestic help. >> it was used as a hospital, it was used as a place to stay and it was destroyed. >> eliza wasn't able to get out much. >> she brought home many gifts. >> this is the room she returned to.

>> she is obscure. she's who he needed. >> abraham lincoln's assassination weeks after his second inaugural shocked a war- ravaged nation.it brought andrew johnson into the white house. johnson's wife eliza was 54 years old when she was thrust into the role as first lady. he navigated the end of the civil war, reconstruction in the south and his own impeachment. this week on "first ladies, the life and times of eliza johnson. we learn more, let me introduce you to our two guests. jacqueline burger is in the midst of a biography collection called "love, lies and tears" and joining us from her home in southern california.

and a greenville native and long-time employee of the national park service. and is an joyey of the andrew johnson historic site. the country has lost presidents before, but this was the first assassination. what was it like in washington, d.c., the capitol and white house, was it orderly transition, chaos or something in between? >> it was disbelief. they could not believe that it happened. but secretary stanton took charge immediately. and he decided that the president was going to be a funeral in the east room and he went ahead and had major french set up the funeral and do everything for it. he went to work immediately to elaborate this most beautiful funeral for the president and unfortunately the first lady who was upstairs, constantly in

tears and in mourning, they were building this beautiful setting for the funeral and banging and hammering and all night long she was called downstairs and asked them to please stop because she thought gunshots were going off inside the white house. it was pretty terrifying for her. >> to the transition in government, how is it that a republican president ended up with a southern democrat for vice president? >> it was a unique situation. once abraham lincoln was trying to appeal to the broader segment of the population. in another sense, i think he was making good on his second inaugural to bind up the nation's wounds. so he was trying to bring the north and south back together again. johnson was a southerner, he was a democrat, intensely loyal to the nation and he came to speak

-- retained his seat and he had spent time as a military governor restoring a union government and freeing the slaves in tennessee, so he was a good choice. >> how prepared was he for the job of president? >> he had held nearly every political office that you can hold on the rise to the presidency. it was a completely different situation going in after lincoln's assassination. just a very chaotic time. >> in fact, the new president's graciousness towards mary lincoln made it difficult for him in transition. how did it work? >> it was difficult in the beginning. mary was in total mourning and remained there for six weeks. so the new president was gracious not to give up his office in the white house so he could give her time to make the adjustment. it was difficult on him and in the beginning he was obvious shaken to the core. he got into action very quickly

and prepared to take over the presidency. >> where did he work at that time? >> treasury department in washington and his family was not here. >> what were his early days like? did you have a chance of how adjusted himself and how quickly he assumed control? >> it was two-sided. at one point, it was the grand review, he had the lincoln trial and murders to deal with. on other hand, it was his golden hour because congress wasn't in session, so he jumped in trying to implement the lincoln plan of restoration for the south. >> and there were skirmishes going on from the civil war? >> i'm sure there were and hardly settled in a lot of people's mind. and taking over this job at this particular time in this city, i

mean he had a cabinet that he inherited, what were his challenges? >> he made the decision to keep the cabinet. he said this is what i have and i'm going to live with it the best i can and he discovered it might not have been the best decision for himself, because he was constantly struggling with them. they thought for sure he would go ahead and have a more hasher stance on the stance on the south and he didn't. he had a lenient opinion on how to get the north and south back together. he had a difficult time. >> we have used the word tumultuous, but these four years deserve the description. here is a look at some of the highlights of that time period, the four years he spent in office. 1865, the 13th amendment was ratified. those of you who saw the movie lincoln," that was the great fight.

the veto that led to his impeachment and suspended stanton and 1868, 14th amendment was ratified and reconstruction amendments and it had a citizenship clause that overturned the dred scott decision and his impeachment proceedings were held. that is a look at the kinds of things the family had to deal with. did he have a vice president? >> yes.-- no. >> was there any provision for selecting a vice president? >> the impeachment had resulted in conviction. the presidency would have gone to the president pro tempore important of the senate. >> let's move on to eliza. she arrives when? >> about four months later that she came with her family. they had set up a situation

where she took care of the home, took care of the finances. her life was pretty well set and the fact that her husband became president didn't change things. she did follow and brought her family. two daughters who was married and two children of her own and other daughter was a widow with three children so it's very, very crowded upstairs in the white house. and she was an invalid when she got to the white house and people think she didn't participate much. that isn't true. she was very much involved. started her own bedroom across from the president's office and she was able to hear what was going on. she was very active and read daily newspapers and brought different points of view to the president and able to calm him down and was the grandmother of the house as well as taking care of her daughters and grandchildren. >> her health status is the only known public statement we have from eliza johnson.

which we have on screen. this was her announcement to the press. and after making it, what did she do? >> went upstairs. her face showed interest but no enthusiasm. another quote attributed to her, i do not like this public life at all and i will be happy where we are back to where we belong. >> what was her health problems? >> t.b. her health weakened after the birth of her last son who was 18 years younger. and there are many references to her health. >> first question from a viewer and before i take it, i remind you if you are new to this series, there is your three ways you can do it. call us and put those numbers on the screen and send us a message on the screen using the

#firstladies or go to c-span's facebook page and we have questions coming in and try to mix those in. gary robinson asked the question, was eliza concerned for her husband's safety after the lincoln assassination? >> she was absolutely terrified. his life was in danger as well. when he was a senator, he did not want his state to secedee from the union and oftentimes his life was in danger and when the president was assassinated. -- assassinated, she was absolutely terrified. one of the daughters was about motherrote was deranged. >> there was worry. some of the investigation

suggests that there was in fact part of the overall plot someone assigned to kill johnson. >> he had heavy drinks beforehand and lost his nerve. >> he was stalking him that whole day and planning to assassinate him that night and he did not follow through. >> any historic documentation about how the president reacted to the threats on his life? >> i have never heard of any. we heard grave concerns for lincoln and people did try to tell him not to go to the peterson house that night himself because of all the danger out there, but he went any way. >> the peterson house was the rooming house across the street from the hotel after the president was shot.the cabinet was gathering around.

and he was warned to stay away. >> news was coming in. and they knew this was a full- fledged attack on high-ranking government officials. >> wasn't first time. there was an attempt on washington's life and many other presidents. they lived with that fact. harry truman made the comment that it goes with the territory and can't think about it and go about your business and do what you need to do. >> before we leave the relationship with the lincolns, did eliza johnson have a relationship with mary lincoln? >> not to my knowledge. once again, she stayed at home quite a bit. not that she traveled to washington. oftentimes other wives did travel to washington and spent times with their husbands. eliza didn't.

to the boig, she did not have a relationship at all. >> is that your understanding? >> it is. eliza did come to washington for a couple of months. but health forced her back home. >> you were describing this private floor in the white house even though the public didn't see her, there was lots of family going on. a centerpiece room was what is called the yellow oval room which is turned into a library. do we have a photograph of what it looks like today? how did they use this and what was their personal life like? >> they were an extremely close- knit family. martha was always watching out for their mother and the grandchildren adored their grandparents and they were very close. and they would always come back in and visit their grandmother. the president spent his mornings visiting with her before he went off to business and everything evolved around eliza.

>> on facebook, can you tell us about her two daughters who helped her with her role. did they serve as official hostesses? >> martha was the official hostess and mary supported her. mary was back and forth to greenville and was like her mother and preferred to be with the children. she was responsible for a lot of their education and a lot of their training. she did step in with her sister, but she didn't like the public life. the entire family didn't care for it. by that time, she was a widow and lost her husband in the civil war, so that was difficult on her having three children and being a widow. >> what did it mean to be a hostess in the white house? >> eliza, even though it was a

state of mourning and the war had totally ravaged the white house completely. i can't describe what disarray it was in. there was mold in the state dining rooms. the carpeting was filthy and gave congress a couple of months to get the house cleaned up and she scrubbed it down from top to bottom. and then they had their weeklies on thursday nights. >> a tradition we have seen from the washington administration. >> and that is the way it is. martha washington set the role and many first ladies followed long. and johnson's intention to have the common man and common people come to the house. he didn't want to have formal dinners like by written invitation but inviting people to come in and see the

president's home. >> just on that note, to capture johnson's approach, this quote from martha johnson, we are plain people from tennessee, called here for a little time and i hope too much will not be expected of us. >> in fact, how did the -- mary lincoln was criticized in the press for her spending especially during the time of a war. how did the nation respond to the folks who said we are plain folks and going to approach this job this way? >> in many ways, they loved it. one said there was a homelyness in that statement and people were craving that after the war to know that these are people who had suffered like they had and who were not going to be -- going to be respectful of the position in the white house. >> did she bring two cows? >> martha would go downstairs

and supervise the dairy operation the and would come back into the house and have an inspection of the estate floors and make sure everything was in order. yes, they did. the first family that brought animals with them. but brought cows. >> on twitter, were the johns ons very religious and did their -- johnson's very religious, and did their view change over time? >> mrs. johnson attended church. johnson did not because i think there were vague lines between politics and religion a lot of times. >> at that time period, we do have a letter when he thought he was dying in the 18 70's where he is at peace. so it shows that while not practicing at a church in particular, he was still a religious man.

>> and before we leave this life in the early days in the white house, tell us more about how the white house ended up in such a state. mrs. lincoln spent a lot of money and was criticized. >> that is very true. after the president passed away, she went upstairs and was there for six weeks and the white house was open to the public. as soon as the doors were open in the morning, people were constantly coming through. there was a tremendous amount of traffic. and there was a lot of vandalism also. they wanted pieces of the carpeting or drapery or pieces of fabric, china was missing and it was in disarray. there's a lot of people coming through the white house. >> where was the security? >> the security wasn't paying much attention. they didn't know or maybe didn't have enough support to go in and say something about it.

they didn't feel like they had enough control or they chose not to and that's where the confusion came in. mrs. lincoln was upstairs and the president was not in the white house. so for about six weeks it was run amuck. >> congress recognized this and gave the family a $30,000 appropriation, which is a lot more money than the lincolnsgot. how did they use that money? >> martha oversaw every penny. she refurbished furniture. she would take carpets cleaned and have a smaller section that was still good, put it in a different area. she took down the wallpapers and had decor put up that was simple but elegant. >> the official washington, maybe the larger country reacted well to this after the lincolns? >> they did. they were very simple people.

and washington society appreciated that. they said that they were dressed simply but elegantly. martha did a lot with flowers and she made slip covers for the furniture. they respected her thriftiness. >> and one of the rooms she overdid was the state floor and which one was referenced, the blue room and the famous east room. one of the traditions i understand that she created was by finding portraits of past presidents and bringing them into the white house. what did she do there? >> families come into the private floors or public places and martha went down into the basement and found portraits and her father thought it was a great idea to frame the portraits and hang them up.

and president johnson liked to walk the halls of framed presidents and tell stories. margaret did get that from her mother because it was eliza who said and her husband kept going off, he said i remained at home caring for the children. i said margaret, it's martha. >> those presidential paintings have remained there and one of the more iconic if you see movies about the white house, you see the first family walking down the presidential portraits it is called the cross hall and that began with the johnson you will seeon. videos from the johnson national park and the national historic site in greenville, tennessee where our guest has worked for quite a long time.

and we are going to start with one that shows the white house artifacts from the museum. how many do you have in the collection? is it a big white house collection? >> i would say a dozen, two dozen things from the johnson administration. they were allowed to bring them home in those days and qualify that. >> family collection? >> three generations of the family lived in the house after andrew and eliza and great theyddaughter lived there. realized its importance. so we have 85% of the original belongings. >> we are going to see some of the white house collection and our guest will be in this video in her uniform. so we'll take a look. >> in this case, we have artifacts relating to johnson's presidency and beyond. we have one of eliza's necklaces

which is a plain black cross which shows her simplistic taste. another one is her sewing case and three of her favorite past times being as reclusive as she was was embroidry, reading poetry and scrapbooking. they did receive political gifts and this came from queen emma from the sandwich islands, which is the hawaiian islands and first time that a queen came to visit the white house. andrew johnson was the first president to have an easter egg roll. previously it was held on the capitol. it stopped during the civil war but he brought it back and held it on the white house lawn so eliza could watch and being invalid and had t.b. and couldn't get out much.

during the white house, eliza-- white house years, eliza chose not to assume the role of the first lady. she was very ill at that point, but during the time she received gifts that she brought home with her. one of the most spectacular is this pores lane box that was-- porcelain box that was given to her by the noble frenchman and had 50 pounds of chocolate bonnbonns in it and we have a letter saying they would -- up to mom's house to get a mom's room in the white house to get a treat from the bonbon box. and there was a visit from charles dickens would come visit them at the white house. she returned and brought back one of his books. she was an avid reader and gave her a chance to remember his visit and he is one of the most prolific writers. another item that she brought

back was a gaming table that was given to them by the people of ireland and it's 500 pieces of inlaid wood. it sits up and rolls up and looks like a regular table. the craftmanship is remarkable. another piece is the fruit container and that was a gift from the children of philadelphia when they were in the white house. and eliza brought that back home with her when they returned. >> and on twitter, michael wants to know the queen's visit, did any other royal from the kingdom of hawaii visit the white house? >> not to my knowledge. >> first telephone call is from abraham who is watching in huntsville, alabama. >> thank you for taking my call. i think this program is so great because we study so much about the presidents, hearing about

the presidents' wives is fantastic.my question is, i know that eliza johnson was educated and i wanted to know what kind of books and writings eliza was interested in the most and another question i had, what was the highest level of education that eliza johnson had? >> do you know her education? >> eighth grade. there was a female branch of an academy in greenville at that point. and we still have some of the books that eliza had, one math and one grammar that she used to tutor. >> do you know about her reading? >> she loved reading the newspaper and loved reading the constitutional papers that came out. she read all of her husband's speeches and assisted him with that. she loved poetry.

very broad range. >> she loved to read the newspapers. and clipping service for her husband. >> she loved to clip things out of the newspaper and her husband was a great speaker and she wanted to make sure he had good talking points and she would read multiple newspapers and nothing missed her eye whenever she'd catch something her husband might be able to use. she would bring it to his attention. >> john in tampa, florida. welcome to our conversation. >> good evening and thank you for this program. just listening to what you were saying just now regarding how interested the first lady was in current events apparently from the newspaper reading, how much influence did she have over the president and his policy,

particularly as it relates to two things, like the reconstruction? thank you. >> she clipped things for him and helped him with his speeches and how much influence? >> i think she had a good calming effect and she could touch his shoulder. we know that andrew johnson had a pretty good temper and oftentimes it would show in his conversation and she was able to calm him down. we really don't know what necessarily her opinions were because she only shared them in private, which many first ladies do as you might suspect. but i know she listened to her daughters and asked advice. i don't know how much he listened to it.he would certainly ask their opinion. >> as i mentioned throughout the program, we'll be returning to the johnson national historic site. we have a few different pieces of video and as we look at them, how is this preserved? it's really quite a large place

in the center of a small town. so what do you have there? how are you interpreting it? >> we have four different areas. it includes a museum at the visitor's certainty along with the old tailor shop where he began his political rise, so to speak. the early home which was the home from the 1830s and 1840s, and then the larger homestead a couple of blocks away which they lived in before and after the presidency and the national cemetery where the family is buried. >> how extensive is your collection of papers? so, for example, would you be able to research through their writings whether or not she helped to influence his policies? >> you can.we have a collection. also the andrew johnson museum and library at the college. and there's some papers there as well. and unfortunately, the letters between andrew and eliza were burned later by the family. so we really don't have that interaction.

she visited him every morning in the white house. she would have a tea in her collection, a bite to eat warm for him in the evenings he would come up and sit with her as well. >> how frustrating is it to hear about the burning of letters from administration to administration. >> martha washington started that. >> did eliza make friends outside of the family? >> my understanding is that she did. she was a friendly person. initially historians thought that she only came downstairs two different times in the entire administration. we discovered later on that's not entirely accurate. in fact, it's ulysses s. grant's wife, julia, who wrote and said that after the state dinner that the first lady would, in fact, come downstairs. she didn't stay for the state dinner but she would come down and have coffee and literally walk around and talk to all of the guests. she was extremely gracious.

she was always dressed very eloquently and very appropriately. so i think she did make friends. she was just a very kind person. >> when they left washington, there were people who called on her to say goodbye and they had fond remembrances of her. >> and thanked her, too. >> we've been learning about the role of women and society. so this question comes under that category. would we classify eliza a political equal or superior to her husband? >> well, colonel crook said she had great appreciation for his office and she may have had greater appreciation even than he did being that she was so well read and well learned. >> well, now it's time to learn about how the johnsons became a couple and we're going to return to the johnson historic site and learn about the early years together in this video. >> we are standing inside the memorial building at the andrew johnson national historic site, seeing andrew johnson's old

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eliza supports him as he becomes an alderman of the town and then a mayor. perhaps even though eliza had married a tailor and that's all she was expecting from life, perhaps she did entertaining in this room as he started the political journey. this might have been the kitchen or eating area of the home. andrew and eliza did purchase their first place while they live in this house. they bought dolly in 1842 and a few days later purchased her half brother, sam. so they did have domestic help. they would help eliza with chores such as raising the children, cutting the firewood, and cooking the meals. this is the house where they got their start. this is where they put the roots down in the community. this is where he had a this arriving business at the tailor. -- thriving business as a tailor. this is where he first entertained as he started to politics.

this is a house where the children were born. this place holds a special place in the lives of the couple. >> once again, i'd encourage you if you get to that part of the country, make a visit to greenville, tennessee to see the life of the johnson family as the federal government has preserved it through the national park service. she has the distinction in the history books of being the youngest bride. >> absolutely. >> how old was she? >> 16. >> andrew johnson? >> 18. they were a very, very young couple.as legend has it, i thought her life story would be a wonderful made for tv movie. she was a young girl. she was standing outside school one day talking with some friends and andrew johnson comes in to town and legend is that she is the first person he sees. he's asking for directions and she makes a comment to her girlfriend that that is her beau. within a year, they did, in fact, marry. she was 16. he was 18.

they had four children every two years, i believe, she had four children by the time she was 24 years of age. but she proved to be a wonderful homemaker and a very, very good businesswoman as well. she took care of all of the finances. and it's said, you know, she would read to her husband in the tailor shop. in fact, she herself was a great seamstress. she came from a poor family, by the way.she lost her father when she was quite young. others say when she was early teens. and she and her mother helped to support themselves by making quilts and sewing sandals, things of that nature. she had an appreciation of what her husband did and she would constantly, constantly read to him. >> from these humble roots, they really became rather successful. so where did the entrepreneurial spirit come from? which of the two of them were responsible for it. >> i think it was a combination. the tailor shop soon became the sort of hangout spot for men where they debated students in town after johnson started

attending debating societies called him a demophany, a greek orator who had learned from the great speakers. andrew johnson had a book called the american speaker. one of its desires in the presses was to teach the callow -- in the preface was to teach the callow young to teach the country's call with lips of fire. that inspired him to the point where he just wanted to break away from life as he had known it being such a struggle into something greater. >> he had a gift. he had a gift for oratory. >> very much. >> and there was an interest for oratory which i understand eliza encouraged, found the society for him to take part in so he could polish his skills but that was the forrey to politics, -- the foray into politics, wasn't it? >> exactly. correct.

some people say she taught him how to read and write. that's not exactly true. he knew his abcs but she was very, very helpful in helping him form his letters and improve his writing skills because that is one of the things that she, in fact, learned in school. she did encourage him to go to debating classes and that's something that they did oftentimes, you know. they'd have people come into the taylor shop and talk about politics and debate different issues. >> here is jesse watching us from san diego. you're on. >> yes. i was wondering, after the assassination of lincoln, did they make sure that johnson was heavily protected so something like that wouldn't happen again? and his wife ever go out in public? akin tok you very much. that, ken ruben on facebook. can you describe what role the new secret service played in the johnson white house? is that a response to create a sort of early secret service. >> my understanding is the secret service began with abraham lincoln they were so concerned about his safety. not aware of anything that they

tightened up more stringent than anything else. eliza did get out. there's no question about that. unlike today, she wasn't going shopping or the market. but she did have various travels with her children and to various spots, sometimes it was for her health purposes. and sometimes she was very concerned about her sons. both of her sons had problems with alcohol. so she was very, very worried about that. >> thomas in greece, new york. hi, tom, you're on. oh, you've got to turn the tv volume down. are you there? sorry. we have to move on. ken in homesdale, pennsylvania. you're on, ken. caller: i would like to know how the hamlin white house would have differed from the johnson white house? >> how the hamlin white house would have been different. do you have a sense of how he was as vice president and what happened if he had ascended to the presidency. >> i don't know, i'm sorry. >> interesting question. >> interesting question.

>> yeah. >> how did eliza contract tuberculosis that would eventually have her become an invalid? >> it's hard to know. it was rampant at that time because they didn't realize it was contagious. even the grandchildren visiting her, you know, daily in the white house. it would take its toll on them as well. >> how early in her life did she contract it? >> hard to say. could be after the birth of andrew jr. >> mm-hmm. >> certainly by the beginning of the 1860s, it was clear that she was suffering from consumption. >> and how often was andrew away as he became more interested in politics? >> considerably. he was away quite a bit. that's why -- another reason why so much of the responsibility fell on eliza. but i've also read different stories that she, in fact, was good at selling and buying stocks. here they came from these very, very humble, humble beginnings and they owned real estate, they owned other properties. she would go ahead and collect

the rent from these properties. and basically manage the money very, very effectively. >> and could you walk us through the political career? where did he start in this alderman? >> alderman, mayor. >> yeah. >> served as state representatives, state senators. governors, u.s. representatives, u.s. senator. military governor, vice president. and president and then he's the only president to this day to and what the senate.>> were his -- how would you describe his politics? what did it mean for him to be a democrat at that point? >> well, democrats or republicans are sort of reversed as the years have gone by. he was very much of a fiscal conservative. limited government. more of the decisions being made again, we have no record of, other than a scrap book that she kept

where she was clipping things and what her own politics were? >> no, unfortunately, we don't. we do know that andrew johnson believe in state's rights. no question about that. and he was always putting bills forward for the common man. i know that was very, very important for him. he didn't care for the aristocrats, he didn't necessarily care for the very rich planters as he referred to them. it was the blood, sweat, and tears of the common man that he was trying to help the poor quite a bit. >> bill in san diego? caller: i know ms. berger has written on first ladies. i wonder that mrs. lincoln was so distraught set a precedent for other widows? >> no. no, actually, that's not the case at all. there are a couple of other women who, of course, lost their husbands in the presidency. garfield happened to be one of them. she was just the opposite of mary todd lincoln. she handled herself very graciously. she moved out of the white house

almost instantaneously. we know about jackie kennedy as well. handled herself with great poise and great sophistication. so, no, i wouldn't say mary todd lincoln set that example at all. >> what is known of eliza's parents and did she have any siblings? >> she didn't have siblings. you might be able to address her father more. >> john mccarter was a shoemaker. they have a boot shingle for his business at the andrew johnson museum and library opened a tavern in the town of warrensburg, tennessee as well. >> we referenced scrapbooks. i think we saw one of those in the video. do any of her scrapbooks still exist? how many still do? >> we have one of her scrapbooks. now, on display at the house i pulled it out for the show. and that simulated a lot of --

that generated a lot of interest from the public. >> what kinds of things did she collect? >> newspaper articles, primarily, about her husband. she would show him some in the evening, some in the mornings, depending on the tone. >> we were also in the age of photography at this point. did she collect photographs? >> no photographs. >> political badges and things of that nature? >> there's a blank pardon that andrew johnson was pardoning people as president. but primarily newspaper articles. >> next up, mary in omaha, hi, mary. caller: thank you for taking the call. we were just wondering. i wonder if the natural surroundings and original area around the homes have been changed. the roads seem to go right up to the door -- were the roads widened at one time or did the homes that time sit that close to the street? >> they sat that close to the street. it was right on main street and i have heard tale that it was very much a scot-irish

follow-through and many of those people were scot-irish dissent. >> to be right on inn the middle of the town and right on the street. how much land did he have on the site? >> he had half an acre with the homestead. about two acres with the yard now. but even as the later family lived there, they would buy pieces as they came up for sale. sort of make a butter around the -- buffer around the property. >> on facebook -- visited the first married home in greenville, tennessee. i was fascinated with eliza teaching andrew to read and write and was influential on his politics. do we have evidence of eliza trying to reform president johnson of his drunkenness. one of the sons died of alcoholism. what was his relationship with alcohol? >> he was not a drunk. he got that reputation when he was inaugurated by president, he

had -- i believe he had typhoid fever at that time. he was pretty down. he was low. he was trying to get himself a little bit of energy. he had some whiskey on that day. by the time he got up to give the speech, he was slurring his words. people thought, in fact, he was drunk. he was not, in fact, president lincoln knew that. the story is people were not willing to let the truth get in of a nasty rumor. so he was not an alcoholic though his sons were. -- leroy in month cello, monticello, kentucky. you are on. caller: appreciate your conversation. it's mighty good. did either one become born again christians before they died and left this world? >> thanks. you talked about the religion earlier. would you prefer to talk about it? >> when johnson thought he was dying of cholera, he did write a letter sort of making his peace.

and eliza was a churchgoer there in greenville. >> next up is janet asking a question from tucson. hi, janet? caller: hi, yes, mary lincoln had such a tragic time with her children and i wonder if you could talk about the johnson's children and if there are any thank you.s now. >> i know she had a wonderful relationship with her children and her grandchildren. i don't know if there's any descendents. >> a few great, great, greats. >> they all come through martha. the only one that has any descendents. >> and before we move into the civil war, in the video, we saw that they were slave holders. >> mm-hmm. >> and essex and orange asking on twitter, is there any indication of how eliza felt about slavery or how she felt

-- what can you tell me about the families' ownership of slaves and what happened to those people? >> the johnsons had a lenient relationship with their slaves. we had a letter that charles, one of the sons wrote, talking about eliza's relationship with sam. he came for payment for a job he had done. she told him he needed to go to o cutrson's wood first.--gi patterson's wood first. he said he'd be damned to cut at the pattersons because he didn't get paid for what he'd done. it shows this lenient relationship, two, they paid their slaves and, three, eliza was in charge of the finances. later on, august 8, 1863, johnson is -- the day johnson freed his slaves. and to this day in tennessee and surrounding states, it's still

celebrated as emancipation day. >> do you know what came of them? >> they all stayed on as paid servants afterwards. >> they all took the last name of johnson? >> they all took the last name of johnson. dolly eventually baked and sold pies out of the tailor shop. she started her own business. sam wrote president johnson at one point asking to buy land for purposes of a church and schoolhouse for the african-american children in greenville and johnson wrote back and said, no, this has the plot of land and i'll give it to you. he started that in greenville. he gave sam land and built his own house. >> the most challenging time for this family had to be the war johnson was in the senate at this point. and you mentioned earlier that he was the only united states senator from the south who supported the union. where does his strong union allegiance come from? >> east tennessee was very much pro union in the civil war. so it was a different mindset, a

different type of infrastructure. a different type of farming community than middle and west tennessee more in line with the confederacy. >> what happened when tennessee voted for secession for the johnson family and tell us about their life then. >> it was very tragic, unfortunately. first of all, they were calling johnson a traitor. they confiscated the johnson home. that was a tragic time for eliza because she was quite ill. it was very difficult for her. there's a couple of different stories that they had given her 36 hours' notice literally to leave the home. she did, in fact, call her daughter -- i believe it was mary that came with her and charles and, of course, her young son who was only 10 years old, andrew jr. who they called frank. the story is they were trying to get through confederate territory and was very difficult because the confederate soldiers were all, you know, calling out to them and saying different things to them that were not very, very pleasant.

one of the stories was that one night they slept by the railroad tracks, it was rather cold. they didn't have much food. they go on various farming communities, knock on the door, ask if they could possibly spend the night there. it was an extremely difficult time. and by the time they did reach nashville where andrew was at that point, poor eliza, she was pretty well bent at that point. -- spent at that point. >> were their lives in daninger? >> sure, sure. >> can you add more color to this story and this period of their lives? >> she has taken refuge to mary's house to the summer months and as she said, we have a letter for charles where he talks about the cold, the rain, the hunger, the danger to their lives. they were travelling with mary and her husband, daniel stover had been a bridge burner in the civil war and had to hide out in the mountains the first winter of the world, they had slipped -- of the war.

they had slipped food to those men. finally made it to nashville. so that johnson wept at the sight of eliza when she finally reached nashville. >> how dangerous was this for her to be slipping food? >> probably very dangerous. yeah. >> we know for a fact that she and mary both prepared the food. there was no question about that. i think there's some question as to who was delivering the food to the warriors, you know, in the hills. i mean, they were hiding out. so how they were able to get to them, i'm not exactly sure. they were able to send messengers, possibly. so they did prepare the food. that's for sure. >> at the andrew johnson historic site, there is evidence of what life was like for the johnson family in the civil war. that video next. >> the north and the south fought over the occupation of greenville all through the civil war. it changed hands over 26 times that we're aware of. so they weren't back here for over seven years, the end of his presidency is when his daughter was asked to come and restore the house for both eliza and andrew's return.

she came back and she found graffiti written all over the walls. one of the best examples and one of the tragic examples is here on the wall. it says -- andrew johnson -- the old traitor. we've actually found northern soldiers' names and their unit numbers as well as southern and their unit. in that time period, it was used as a hospital, a place to stay, and it was basically destroyed. that explains the importance of this part of east tennessee in the civil war. >> the role of governor of occupied tennessee given to him by lincoln. >> went to restore union government in the state and it was a challenging job. and it was -- he was firing some people and staying in the defense of nashville. he also came in conflict with the generals. he wrote letters to lincoln expecting his concern, also hoping for the liberation of

east tennessee. lincoln often sided with andrew johnson on a lot of the decisions that he makes. >> how old were the sons at this point and were they involve in the conflict? >> older son, charles, charles was as. surgeon, an assistant surgeon in the civil war, he was killed in the civil war. robert was also, as a matter of fact, i understand he was a lawyer but he also signed up and went to war. but that's when his drinking kind of took over. there were stories about him leaving his army of men and things of that nature. he had different difficulties. but absolutely the two older boys did fight in the war. >> robert was colonel of the calvary unit. he was the only family member who was able to attend charles' funeral when charles was kill in -- killed during the war. >> how was he killed, you know? >> fell from a horse and hit his head? >> and where did that happen? >> outside of nashville. and johnson and eliza were gone during that time. eliza was up in louisville and johnson had gone up to

washington for a time. and so robert was the only one able to represent the family. and it's after that that it really seems that the drinking problem started for him. >> there's another mary lincoln comparison. mary lincoln was devastated about the loss of her sons. do we have historic evidence about how eliza johnson reacted -- loss ofs at first? hers? >> we know she, too, was extremely hurt. there were stories that charles was her favorite son. i don't know if that's accurate or not. just like any mother, she weeped for them continuously. but she was proud of her son. the fact that he became a doctor, that was so important to her that her children were, in fact, educated. she was proud of her daughters and the sophistication and class and education that they had received. but she didn't fall apart the way mary did. mary just couldn't seem to handle it. she had a lot of death in her life as well. >> next is kathy in bensalem, pennsylvania. hi, kathy, you are on.

caller: hi. i was just wondering how mrs. johnson felt about her husband's impeachment. >> thanks. we're going to talk about the impeachment a little later on. thanks for that question. we'll work it in as we work our way through the history of the johnson administration. the call is nan in montana. hi, nan. caller: hello. >> do you have a question. caller: my question is, the impeachment of johnson and its associated effect in history. and in the impeachment of our recent president clinton, why is there such a different effect on how he's looked upon by history. >> impeachment, such an important part of the johnson administration. let's move into that. johnson's fight with the radical

republicans in congress. i'm going to have both of you talk about that. but first of all, his big decision was to keep lincoln's cabinet. now, he was of a different party than most of them. so was he in constant turmoil with them? or do they accept him as president? >> some of them did. probably the main ones who didn't disagreed with a lot of one sores said that he wouldn't quit and johnson wouldn't fire him. later on, the decision to suspend him came in particular with one that information had been withheld from him in the clemency. and two, information was withheld from him in regards to the new orleans riots. so he went ahead and suspended stanton. >> how about the relationship with congress.who were the radical republicans? what was their point of view? >> they were the ones to want a harsher reconstruction for the south, break it to military

districts. have commanders in charge of those districts. thadias stevens, charles sumner. i felt like andrew johnson in the washington birthday speech where he started to name people by names. but those were the key players. >> what was the concept of reconstruction? >> well, president lincoln's concept of it was to be as lenient as possible. and basically said that in his inaugural address when he was re-elected. and johnson believed that too. they knew they were still going to be, you know, just because the war had ended didn't mean that people's feelings had changed. and they were very aware of the fact that there were still individuals who disagreed with that point of view. they weren't going to accept things readily. and he wanted to be as lenient as possible. he thought if you just pledged allegiance to the united states that he would then give you a pardon and accept it. with the radicals in the congress and the senate, didn't believe in that at all.

they thought it was treason. they really wanted to punish the southerners, there was a constant battle between them. >> specific question on facebook from cassie meadows, we know if johnson supported the 13th amendment? >> mm-hmm. >> he did? >> mm-hmm. >> so how effective was he? what kind of political capital did he have for his version of reconstruction? >> one of the problems that johnson had that unlike president lincoln, he didn't have the ability to negotiate, okay? he was very hot tempered. he didn't like any kind of small talk whatsoever. for a person that lincoln was able to talk to the man. he would tell various stories. by the time he's ged around, he -- by the time he would get around, he was able to negotiate with individuals, where johnson wasn't as much. he had a point of view and that was it. and he would get angry very quickly and he seemed to antagonize the people that he was debating with. he had a very difficult time even getting the moderates to go along with him because of his particular point of view and the way he presented it.

he certainly was not politically correct, let's put it that way. >> and in the white house, we saw that the first lady, in this case, the active first lady, played an important role, practicing parlor politics bringing both sides together or in some cases going to capitol hill or getting the attention of individual members of congress. did the johnson daughters do any of this? was there any social use of the white house for a political purpose? >> not that i'm aware of. but she did preside over the state dinners and we have the letters that the french had written to mrs. lincoln that he also passed on to martha giving the protocol of where everybody should be seated and who should be seated first. that's how you would pair the people up together so that they probably played it in that manner. >> basically didn't -- >> i'm sorry.

>> they basically didn't. unlike let's say dolly madison, for instance, or louisa adams, they were very politically savvy. yes, they moved their parlor meetings and dinners and things to talk to the various congressmen and senators and get their point of view across. >> interesting, we didn't make this connection. martha came up frequently in polk administration or the other did she notresident. go to school? >> she went to school there. she went to school in washington. >> she didn't go to school off of the way the polk administration did? >> sarah polk was a great one. mrs. polk didn't have children of her own. she often times invited the young girls in the school that were there. she became quite friendly with mrs. polk and harriet lange who was buchanan's niece. so she's kind of -- she came into politics thereupon the back -- through the back

door, let's say. but i don't think she really impressed upon her father or wanted to push her particular point of view. plus she was married to a senator. her husband was a senator. so she was very aware of what was going on. but mainly taking it from the back door, so to speak. >> one of the telling sources says that someone appealed to her for clemency for mary serrot. she said i feel so terribly sorry for you but i have no more right to speak to him about this than any of the servants. she kept it background. >> hi, darla? >> were they the last slave owners or were there more presidents after them? >> no, presidents after that did not. >> that part of our history end with johnson. our 60 and seventh did have

slaves. it basically stopped with taylor. i think he was the last president that brought slaves to the white house with him. after that they didn't. >> after this is a question from tennessee. high carroll. > hello. my husband's mother met martha's daughter which would have been andrew johnson's granddaughter some years ago. she came to jones boro specifically to talk to my mother-in-law at the time saying that her grandmother was husband's that my

"the great gatsby" grandfather home for he johnson the johnson family so if they wanted to go during the war they could have. he was a confederate general that at one time was over the east tennessee area, general lee jackson. his granddaughter was hi mother-in-law. >> thanks for that story. >> do you know any more about that or the general that looked after the family home? >> not in particular. >> thanks for telling us about it. >> can we look at the johnson's impeachment? e of >> his toirns can but the public can't.

>> tiss or thians look back on it and understand he had the homestead act. he wanted to set letters to be able to settle on land and build it and intert it. >> unfortunately the public did you want hear that. once again, it's the gossip that keeps being repeated year after year. >> how do they tell the impeachment story at the site? >> we incorporate it into the story because it is a major part of it. you try to show all sides and let the public decide for themselves how they feel about it. >> let's tell a more full story about what led to impeachment. walk us through the steps and i'll ask both of you to tell the story that led to the house charging him with high crimes and misdemeen no, sir. >> i can tell you that the senate had passed an act of congress that said that the

president himself could not fire his cabinet members without congress's approval. and that of course is not constitutional. and president johnson said there is no way he's going to do that. he wasn't going to be a part of it. so when he went ahead and spended the secretary of war, that's when the senate said we're going to push this. and because he did that, he was in fact in violation of this law. and that's basically one of the things that pushed it over the edge for them. >> it was a showdown. tell us more about the politics. >> he suspended stan on the in the fall when congress was not in session. in december when they came back to session he told them what he had done and they basically rejected that and restored him to office in january. and then johnson went ahead and fired him. and that was evidence for them to start impeachment

proceedings. he couldn't fire a member of the cabinet during a term of the president who appointed him. lincoln had appointed him. so they hurt themselves by doing that. proceedings ment first n 1868 and the lady had an active role in all this. >> i was wondering about her reactions to her husband being nominated for president. and the people in tennessee relationship with johnson after his rise to power, if it became more positive or what. >> how did she feel about her husband being tasked by lincoln

for the vice president si? >> she was proud of her husband and she supported all of his decisions. but she was a very private person. so it was fine for her husband to be in politics and fine for him to go to washington and be in the senate and be in congress. but she didn't want to be part of that. and yet she constantly supported hi decision to do it all the time and she was very much a supporter during the impeachment. >> there were things contributed to her, she wished she could be back home but she honestly believed that her husband would be acquited and was very proud when he was. she said she knew that would happen. >> so during the length of the three months that the trial was going on, what was she doing to help support her husband? >> it was very much business as usual fat white house. they went on as nothing else was going on. and that was part of political

posturing. >> it helped a lot to keep their minds off things. >> the attorneys told jonathan not to say anything. to reserve comment, we will handle it. so ms. johnson said we're going ahead business as usual. she didn't have time to comment on it. >> she didn't have time to comment, she was so busy doing so much around the house that needed to be done. >> she was an aveed follower of the press so we can assume she was reading everything every day. in en there were things the newspaper that was good she'd show it to him before he went to bed and if there was something critical she'd wait until the morning to show him. it was his attorneys that said don't do that. >> he had a very well balanced

defense team. and colonel crook who attended there, he rushed in to tell her that he had been acquited and she stood up and her hand took mine and with tears in her eyes said i knew he'd been b acquited. >> on our website each week we have a special feature that you can see and on the website is a ticket for the impeachment. how popular an event was this? >> my understanding it was very opular an event. people in washington, d.c., unlike the rest of the country, very active in politic and what is going on.

the west is somewhat removed from it. they read about it on the news. but people in washington, d.c. want to be right there and partake in it. so very important to them. >> they had different colors for different days. and the gallery was of course full. and a little interesting side note was mark twain was one of the reporters at the impeachment trial. >> how was this playing in the papers? >> columnist started so there were opinion writers not just the reporting of it. >> and political cartoons. we have a whole compilation of just the articles about the impeachment trial. >> and public support behind him? some no. s, >> there was always a divide in the country and the president chose to listen to the people that in fact supported him.

he felt very strongly in his views. he was a constitutionist, he believed in the constitution and his interpretation of it is what was going to be law basically. and that's where it stood as far as he was concerned. >> and as much as he was vilified, he was as passionately liked by others. >> what relationship did the johnson's have with their saves? >> how old are you? ? i'm ten. >> have you been to the johnson home? >> i've been close to it but not in it. >> thank you for your question

about the president from your orne hometown. thank you for the call. she had candies and cookies by her bed when they came up. just as we talked before, the support they gave them and giving land and helping them. san t is a call from diego. land s is kathy chamber and i'm calling to give you my compments. i was born and raised in greenville tennessee. i'm very familiar with andrew johnson and the family. i have learned more tonight than i ever have in years and years and years. so i just want to thank you for this. it's fascinating and i'll be

watching for the other president's wives as well. >> we will be here until president's day next year with a break in the summer with every first lady. a couple of cases we've combined them but 35 programs to tell you about the lives of the first lady. >> you are a greenville, tennessee native? >> yes. >> how did you get interested in the history of the first ladies? >> my mother told me what i needed to do. in i was in high school the anchor club they came and said who would like to work the johnson homestead this weekend. pick me please, pick me. and that really impacted me. i've always loved civil war history and majored in english

and history in college. >> have you interpreted one of the daughters? >> i have done martha on occasion. i have represented mayor mar mary. and one of my first theettri cal roles was eliessa. >> you're interested in first ladies. this say life's work. >> yes. >> you've published two so far. >> yes. >> how did this start for you? >> my name is jacqueline. when i speak i tell them that i didn't know any jackie's when i was a young girl growing up. there were two jackie's that were men and that didn't count. so when jacqueline kennedy walked into the white house, i wanted to be just like her. i thought she was absolutely charming and beautiful. and then the assasination of president kennedy like the rest of the country i was glude to the television for four days

and four nights long before c-span and cnn were 24 hour news, we were all just rivevotted by the assasination and i've been studying them since. >> back to the johnson impeachment. he had ten months to go until he finished office before he was acquited in this process. what kind of political capital did he have and what were the last months of his administration like? >> i don't think he had much. he tried to instill thought for his point of view and the things he wanted to get through. but he had no cooperation from congress whatsoever. and he just didn't know how to do it. that's the sad part of the administration is that the they found him basically -- they thought he might have come off a little nasty so they didn't want to work with him at all. >> did he have thoughts of running for reelection.

>> he kind of wanted to but was not chosen. he did have am necessity. on christmas day that last year he imposed a broad amnesty proclamation. >> what did that mean for the people of the south. >> it forgave them and each of his amnesty proclamations got more liberal each time. the first was restrictions was certain amount of weth for land owners. and the last one pardoned jefferson davis. >> how constitutionally important was the impeachment process. did it establish them to be able to fire members? >> obviously a president can fire his own cabinet members which they were just trying to pun ything they could to sh the south and they couldn't

get him to go along with it so they thought they would take him out of office. that was the first time in history that ever occurred. constitutional legacy on the impeachment process? >> one thing i'm aware of -- there was one southern democrat who did not vote for it which is why he was not impeached. he was acquited. and that particular republican senator, he basically lost his ability to go on politically after that. his party just destroyed his political future after that. and it was something that was him to you rages for do and president kennedy wrote about in his book. was overturned in 1926 as

unconstitutional. >> would either of you care to mment on and you are not american historians button legacy of reconstruction on either the south on american lacks? >> we will never know if things would have happened differently. people did have their prejudices there was no question about that. but it was sad that we weren't able to move forward more quickly. the southern states imposed black laws so even though the slaves were free, they had other restrictions on them. they couldn't own land or couldn't is it on a jury trial,

things of that nature. don't really know where it would have gone. >> if there could have been more compromise between the two factions that were so extremely dwerg president, it may have made a difference. >> what would the johnson's have considered their political high point? >> i think going back to the senate was sort of his vindication to go back into the senate, some of the people were still there that presided in the impeachment trial. >> i agree with her on that. but i was thinking when i heard the question of all the things they did at the white house for president johnson's 60th birthday they threw an enormous party and only invited children which fs very interesting. and there were parents and adult that is wanted to come to the party. and she came downstairs and

they had wonderful event ice cream for the kids and cake for the children. and dancing and it was great fun for them. and you could see the johnsons particularly enjoyed that aspect of it. that was probably their high point inside the white house and afterwards when he got re-elected to the senate. > it's a nice take away to our final video. this is life after the white house for the johnsons. >> this is the room she returned to after their years in the white house. we have her bed and she was an invalid we have an invalid's chair n. this chair she could get up during the day and partake in some of her favorite activities and still relax. being an invalid spending most of her time in this room, this

would have been necessary for what she suffered. there say wash base sin and chamber pot. hearse are pink and the president's are blue in his room. embroirdry work and she enjoyed reading poetry. one of the books was entitled the happy life. she and andrew suffered a lot during the civil war and during his presidency and one of the poems she mark sd entitled love and adversity. the stormy skies have drawn our spirits nearer and rendered us each to the other dearer. she was an avid scrapbooker and she kept a wonderful collection of newspaper articles she clipped about her husband. she gathered them here in her

scrapbook and they run from the 1850's until past her and an due's death to the 1880's. we can only assume that one of her daughter's kept the tradition going for her. andrew came and chatted with her and she would share the article that is she had clipped with him. there were some that were particularly good she would show them in the evenings, but if it was something not nice she'd show him in the morning because she knew he'd be in a better mood. we have an article about the retirement. other things are one of her calling cards, a broach and a pin cushion for any sewing shell might have been doing. in many of her portraits you see she's wearing a lace cap. we have them in our collection.

by her bed we have additional books which one is the bible that belonged to her and the grandchildren were a vital part of her life. and there are portraits of her grandchildren. e was too ill to attend an drew's funeral when he died. decpwhrodecpwhr so based whoon you've told us about her being a home body who didn't love the public life, she must have been happy to be back in greenville. the irony of that is she was thrilled to go back home and there were no sooner back home and andrew wanted to get back in police. .he just was not interested very proud that her husband got re-elected to the senate. >> so she supported his run for

public office again. >> did he leave her behind when he went back to washington? >> he did. many letters dwiring how she's doing and how her health is. he said let me know if mother gets worse and i'll come back home. >> we should talk about when the johnson family came back to their home in tennessee, what was the reception at home for them? >> surprisingly it was very very good because remember back during the civil war they were calling him a trader and whatnot. they were very proud to have him come back. and the tone completely changed from being very negative to xtremely positive. let us know what day you'll be here so we can plan a reception and want it to be good. >> the politics had changed and they were more receptive or what?

>> the trader comments came when east tennessee was controlled by the confederacy. the faction had been very supportive of him. >> next is robert in chicago. what is your question? >> i'd like to know if the johnson home is in the original state of franklin which was in eastern tennessee. and is it true that president johnson was buried in a flag nd had the constitution on his head? came later omestead but this is where they attempted to create franklin shortly after the revolution. and andrew johnson is buried with the american flag. it says the constitution was resting under his hand instead of head.

family always regretted that he had been buried with his original caller: of the constitution that had his writings. >> i think we've told this story but did they make a love match. was this a love relationship? >> absolutely. and it was 50 years long. they were married 48 years. it was a tremendous love match. someone once said they were the same mind and soul even though completely different. >> he was a fighter but the one person that he leaned on completely was his wife. >> i am looking for on facebook someone asked what would she wish her legacy to be as first lady? if we don't know what she wished what should history view

her legacy as first lady? >> on andrew's monument is people never wavered and i think hearse would be that her faith in her husband never wavered. >> so many first ladies wanted to be in the white house. mary lincoln was one which sara poke, they were politically involved with their spouses and there were a few that had no desire and no interest whatsoever. as much as they loved and supported their spouse, they didn't want any part of politics. it's just a difference of opinion, you love your spouse but it's their career. politics was my husband's career not mine is what she said when they left the white house. >> the one thing that may have resigned her to being in the

white house was the entire family was there. >> rob of florida, are you there? >> i am indeed. and thank you for taking my call and this is a wonderful series. a couple of quick questions. how does she respond to on the night of president lincoln's assasination a card was left for her husband as well. and second really quick have any of your guests seen the -- film tennessee johnson for was a wonderful film the time and vindicated president johnson. >> have you seen the film? >> yes. during the by centennial we had we had of it and world war ii news reels go

before as it would have originally been shown. i'm not aware -- unlike today when we are tweeting and calling, it took longer back then to get information down. i think she was terrified. i don't know what her immediate reaction was. >> anna who they stayed with after they left the white house said it completely dwath devastated her decpwhrifment read that she looked forward to leaving the white house almost from the day she arrived. it's all very well for those e who like it but i don't like this public life at all. >> even though she felt this way history has shown that the johnson family bliveed and lived impeccably in the white house. do you agree? >> absolutely. and people in the white house, people in washington all said they were extremely honorable.

they were probably one of the most well liked families that lived in the white house because they were so gracious. they gave of themselves, their time and energy and efforts and i totally agree. >> one source said he was probably one of the hardest working presidents in the white house and once you got him away from politics he was a pleasant to be around. >> i hope we've added more contour to the story rather than the first impeached president. was there any public recognition or mourning when they passed away six months apart from each other? >> there was a big funeral for andrew johnson. special trains brought in dignitaries and people alike. and then recently when she died, the same was brought in from knoxville for her funeral and it was drawn by four white hourses and led by some of the former serve vants.

>> the white house association will be our partner helping us with research and guests and many of the photographs and other additions we bring to the program. i want to say a special thanks o our guests as we close here. >> thank you so much for being here and thank you for watching. ur next is life on the grants.

captioning by the national captioning institute www.ncicap.org-- >> next week we'll focus on julia grant. she was the wife of general grant and spent years following her husband from one military post to another. then as first lady she through lavish parties and reorganized the white house staff which she had opinions on cabinet appointments and positions. we'll explore her life growing up in a slave holding family. and her influence on the image of first lady.

julia grant on first ladies live next monday on c-span at :00. our website has more about the first ladies including a special session welcome to the first ladies which chronicles life in fact executive mansion. we're offering a special edition book presented biography and portrait of each first lady. thoughts from michelle obama on the role of first ladies throughout history. now available for the discounted price of $12.95 plus . ipping at cspan.org/products >> c-span, created by america's

cable companies in 1979 brought to you as a public service by your television provider. >> tonight on c-span the annual rifle association meeting followed by a discussion on media discussion of the martin case. later a look at the april unemployment and jobs numbers. >> the national rifle association is holding it annual meeting this week end in houston. ere is a portion from saturday including david keene and chris cox. this is about an hour and 20 minutes. >> today i want to thank you

for what you do to support our second amendment rights and for being here at this incredibly important meeting. by your very presence you are sending a message to the president, so joe biden, diane feinstein, and michael bloomberg. and to all their friends in the media who have been claiming for months that you and american gun owners simply don't count. we've all been under attack since the connecticut tragedy by those who would exploit the second of a madman to their ageneral dafment we've been under attack because they realized to win they'd have to take down the n.r.a., deemize gun owners and convince the american citizen that is we are the problem rather than mass shootend