Press Release: July 25, 2011

National Archives at Kansas City

National Archives to Host Historian Dr. Terry Beckenbaugh for Lee and Grant Speaker Series

For More Information Contact:
Kimberlee Ried, 816-268-8072

Kansas City, (MO)…The National Archives at Kansas City will host historian Terry Beckenbaugh on Tuesday, August 9, at 6:30 p.m. for a lecture entitled Grant and Lee: A Study of Comparative Generalship. A 6:00 p.m. reception will precede the event. In addition, attendees are encouraged to view Lee and Grant exhibition prior to the lecture.

One cannot discuss a military history of the Civil War (1861-1865) without examining the top two military minds of that conflict: Generals Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant. While Lee skyrocketed to fame shortly after taking over the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the summer of 1862, Grant worked his way up the chain of command with many smaller successes – and some setbacks – before being named commander of all the Federal armies in 1864. The two men came from different backgrounds and used different methods to lead their respective armies, yet the leadership ability of both men cannot be denied. This lecture will compare and contrast the generalship of both, the challenges each man faced and how they consistently overcame seemingly insurmountable odds time and time again – until they faced each other.

About the speaker
Dr. Terry Beckenbaugh is an assistant professor of Military History at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He received his bachelors and masters degrees from Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania, and his doctorate from the University of Arkansas. He is currently researching a book tentatively titled, Pragmatic Abolitionists: Contrabands, Samuel Ryan Curtis and the Army of the Southwest in the White River Campaign in Arkansas, 1862, which examines the motivations of Federal soldiers to free slaves prior to the Emancipation Proclamation.

For more information or to make a reservation for this free event call 816-268-8010 or email kansascity.educate@nara.gov.

Additional Information
Lee and Grant will be available for viewing at the National Archives at Kansas City, through October 22, 2011. To schedule a group tour or for additional information, call 816-268-8000 or visit www.archives.gov/central-plains/kansas-city.

Lee and Grant has been made possible by NEH on the Road, a special initiative of the National Endowment for the Humanities. The exhibit was originally developed by the Virginia Historical Society and co-curated by Dr. William M. S. Rasmussen, Lora M. Robins Curator of Art at the Virginia Historical Society and Dr. Robert S. Tilton, Chairman of the Department of English, University of Connecticut, Storrs. This exhibit is toured by Mid-America Arts Alliance through NEH on the Road. NEH on the Road offers an exciting opportunity for communities of all sizes to experience some of the best exhibitions funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). Mid-America Arts Alliance was founded in 1972 and is the oldest regional nonprofit arts organization in the United States. For more information, visit www.maaa.org or www.nehontheroad.org.

The National Archives at Kansas City is a regional facility that serves as a repository for more than 50,000 cubic feet of historical records dating from the 1820s to the 1990s created or received by nearly 100 Federal agencies. Serving the Central Plains Region, the archives holds records from the states of Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. These records are available for public research and use. The facility is located at 400 West Pershing Road, Kansas City, MO 64108. It is open to the public Tuesday – Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. for research, with exhibits open from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. For more information, call 816-268-8000 or visit us online.

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NREKA 11-82

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