is a half sister of mary todd lincoln. came in as persons from the confederacy. she was a staunch confederate loyalist. she believed in the cause of the confederacy. washington, d.c. president lincoln took her and told her she could come back because she was sewing petticoat tor bring it across the confederate lines. said her hair was hair ineautiful as her person. burial part of a women's association. she laid out a confederate circle. we are in confederate circle. it was founded after the war. dawson was the one who planted the trees, live oaks and magnolias. she wanted to have an area so we could memorialize those who have fallen in the war. land toave them the build this -- selma gave them the land to build this confederate circle. monument built in 1878 to commemorate the lost cause. there are 155 confederate soldiers whose remains are buried behind me. see theemetery, we can rise of the state. prospered, howit the state was involved in the civil war, and we have many prominent people who worked to make some a a prominent place after the time -- after that t

her sister mary todd lincoln. time that she was up there, president lincoln took she couldnd told her, no longer come back because he ound out she was sending money and medicines in her petticoat to bring them across the arricaded lines of the confederacy. she died here in selma. he memorial you see hyped us was carved, in marble, in italy. her husband sent it back to have he said her ause hair was not as beautiful as her person.s in she's the one who was part of the women's memorial association that, and she's the one who laid out the confederate circle which next. be going to we're now in confederate circle founded after the war. todd dawson's husband, nathaniel dawson is the one who planted the trees we see here. the magnolias.nd part of the lady's memorial association which became the nited daughters of the confederacy, and she wanted to area, where they could memorialize those who fought in the war. the land to be used to circle.his confederate in the circle there are graves confederate soldiers who were inte

are at the grave of the half sister of mary todd lincoln. the swearing-in of justice davis at the mont -- at montgomery. a loyalist and very much believed in the cause of the confederacy. she had visited several times in washington dc, to her sister, but president, her pass and told her she could no longer come back, because she was selling owing goodsing -- s into her petticoat to bring to the confdederacy across state lines. the statue here, her husband sent back to have redone because he said her hair was not as beautiful as her hair in person. gery: we are now in confederate circles after the war. dawson,and, nathaniel is the one who planted the trees we see here. she wanted to have a place to those fallen in the war. the city gave to the udc to build this confederate circle. there are grades of unknown confederate soldiers moved -- graves of unknown confederate soldiers moved here. there are 155 confederate soldiers whose remians were -- remains removed. and were buried here to mark those died in the war. we see how the state basically

it's the region where mary todd lincoln came from, from kentucky, from lexington. kentuckian herhe found herself facing half sibling on the confederate side. stonewall jackson found himself pretty painfully divided from his sister. those are two of the best-known cases but this is the phenomenon that affected the ordinary in keeping with our team today. i think it's important to point out that this is a phenomenon deeply connected in many ways. this is something that white families experienced. lee talked about the hardships of african-american families, the way they were torn apart in different families. did,s what white families african americans of course were pretty unified around the union. this existence of whites divided families is all the more when one considers how these americans in the middle of the 19th century. cherished about family. constant, onene belief shared by americans north and south, east and west, it is that family life was to be private. occupy life -- what they consider to be public life. family was to be a protected space. increasingly c

mary todd lincoln, mar martha washington, were all credit criticizedthe nasty stiff with hamilton and jefferson. we have a long history of it. but -- we have a two-party system, and they get all riled up and good after each other, and there's -- you know but in the end somebody like nancy reagan comes along and she gets through it. she really -- she turned already image around and did it for her husband. criticism of her went from their -- like that. and people started to recognize that she was a woman of substance. every presidency is different, and -- but there's always controversy. to put it politely. >> so good to see you. >> so good to see you, too. >> i bought the book tonight i have not had a chance to read it. some of this may be in the book but in case it's not, i want you to talk bit her relationship with the white house resident staffment the reason that comes to mine is because when i worked for laura, the one time i got to meet nancy, the only time i ever met her, is when nancy came back to white house and i just -- >> laura had the party? >> yes. i have this vivid memory

it's the region where mary todd lincoln came from, from kentucky. she found herself facing her todd half-siblings on the confederate side. it's the region of stone wall jackson from western virginia who found himself pretty painfully divided from his sister. those are just 2 of the best- known cases, but this is a phenomenon that affected the ordinary too, in keeping with our theme today. i think it's really important to point out at the outset that this was a phenomenon deeply connected in many ways to race. the division i'm talking about in this sort of experience is something that just white families experienced. i think dr. lee very powerfully early this morning talked about the hardships of african american families, the ways that they were torn apart in different ways too. but when it comes to allying one's self on opposing sides of this war, that's what white families did. african american families were pretty unified around the union. but this existence of even white divided families is all the more remarkable when one considers how these am