Seward, and his paternally friendly relationships with his private secretaries John George Nicolay and John Hay, as well as his cordial relationship with the captain of his private guard, David Derickson.Įveryone wants to know - was Abraham Lincoln gay? What did his years of bed sharing with Speed, or reports of his sharing a bed with Major Dickerson in Washington mean? In Donald's view such bed sharing was completely unremarkable in its era. Browning and Secretary of State Wiliam H. Herndon, his two cordial post-1860 Washington relationships with Orville H. If we accept as a thesis that the measure of a man is the friends that he keeps, then what better way to know Abraham Lincoln than to review the record of his close personal friendships? Donald reviews the scant evidence of Lincoln's early childhood friendships, his close relationship with Joshua Speed, his relationship with his Springfield law partner William H. He specialized in the Civil War and Reconstruction periods, and in the history of the South. He wrote over thirty books, including well received biographies of Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Wolfe and Charles Sumner. Donald was the Charles Warren Professor of American History (emeritus from 1991) at Harvard University. Donald also served on the editorial board for the Papers of Abraham Lincoln.ĭavid H. He received the Pulitzer Prize twice (19), several honorary degrees, and served as president of the Southern Historical Association. Cooper, Jr., Michael Holt, Irwin Unger, and Ari Hoogenboom. At Johns Hopkins, Columbia, and Harvard he trained dozens of graduate students including Jean H. He also taught at Smith College, the University of North Wales, Princeton University, University College London and served as Harmsworth Professor of American History at Oxford University. After graduating, he taught at Columbia University, Johns Hopkins and, from 1973, Harvard University. The dissertation eventually became his first book, Lincoln's Herndon, published in 1948.

Randall as a mentor had a big influence on Donald's life and career, and encouraged his protégé to write his dissertation on Lincoln's law partner, William Herndon. He earned his PhD in 1946 under the eminent, leading Lincoln scholar, James G. Majoring in history and sociology, Donald earned his bachelor degree from Millsaps College in Jackson, Mississippi.

Lincoln biography david herbert donald