Rotary Club learns Presidents Day history at a meeting in Starkville
STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) – It was a lesson on the history of Presidents’ Day at the Presidents’ Day meeting of the Starkville Rotary Club.
Starkville has good resources for studying two American Presidents, The Ulysses Grant Presidential Library and the Frank and Virginia Williams Collection of Lincolniana, both housed at Mississippi State University.
Susannah Ural, the Williams Chair for Abraham Lincoln and Civil War Studies at MSU, spoke to Rotarians about those resources, Lincoln’s legacy, and the evolution of Presidents’ Day commemorations.
The holiday began as a celebration of George Washington’s Birthday.
As early as the 1880’s some states were also celebrating Lincoln, and that grew into the early 20th Century. By the late 20th Century, both men were equally celebrated.
Ural said you don’t need to wait until Presidents’ Day to take advantage of MSU’s unique resources.
“I would just love to invite people to come see the collection. Come to Mississippi State University. You can park at the Steak and Shake; you can park at the Sports Complex and take the bus, but come see us. Like I said, we’re right there with the Grant Presidential Library, so wonderful way; it’s a wonderful place to visit, to bring students, to bring family when they’re visiting, just to learn more about the Civil War Era,” said Ural.
There will be an event on April 14 at Mitchell Memorial Library to commemorate and discuss the Lincoln Assassination. It is open to the public.
