SHORT STORY PERFORMED ON THE NOSLEEP PODCAST
On May 5, 2024, my short story, “The Lonesome Post Oak,” was performed on the NoSleep Podcast — a horror fiction podcast that uses professional voice actors and sound effects to perform selected works. Since I am a Lincoln historian, you may not be surprised to hear that my piece is a ghost story — based on historical facts — centered around an incident from the early life of Abraham Lincoln…
You can find the NoSleep Podcast on all podcast platforms, or use the link below:
LINCOLN THE INVENTOR DISCUSSED ON PODCAST
On the February 1, 2024 episode of “Inside the Blanket Fort,” a podcast by Southern Illinois University Press, my book Lincoln the Inventor was discussed, and included a 3-minute segment of my describing how and why I wrote the book, what surprised me, and what it was like for me to see Lincoln’s actual patent model in person.
Take a listen at the link below!
THE DARK DAYS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN’S WIDOW REISSUED
My 2011 book, The Dark Days of Abraham Lincoln’s Widow, As Revealed by Her Own Letters, was reissued in late 2023. This book is the unpublished manuscript about Mary Lincoln that I found in a steamer trunk in 2005, along with Mary Lincoln’s lost insanity letters.
Thought to have been destroyed, this manuscript by Myra Pritchard, the granddaughter of Mary Lincoln’s friend Myra Bradwell, is published intact with an enhanced introduction and detailed annotations.
Check out the new cover!
HISTORIC MARKER PLACED IN NELSON, NY, DUE TO ARTICLE I WROTE
In early June 2022, I attended a historic marker dedication to honor Plymouth Freeman, a slave who earned his freedom by serving in the Revolutionary War. The marker was created in response to an article about Freeman I wrote for my book with Erica Barnes, ‘The Bear Tree’ and Other Stories from Cazenovia’a History, published by Syracuse University Press. The article was also published by the fantastic blog New York Almanack.
Plymouth Freeman first came to my attention as having been labeled in reminiscences and old newspaper reports as being the cook for General George Washington during the Revolutionary War. Further research showed that he also claimed to be the son of an African king who was kidnapped and brought to America as a slave. While the stories of who Freeman was did not turn out to be exactly accurate, he was still a fascinating man who did serve in the Continental Army for six years, and was definitely worthy of an article and a chapter in our book.
Thank you William G. Pomeroy Foundation for erecting this wonderful historic roadside marker in the town of Nelson!
LINCOLN THE INVENTOR
TO BE REISSUED
My 2009 book, Lincoln the Inventor, is set to be reissued in late August 2022. Not only that, the book will be the final installment of the Concise Lincoln Library series by Southern Illinois University Press. Check out the new cover!
Lincoln the Inventor, a nice little 109-page book, was actually the inspiration for the Concise Lincoln Library series, which is described by SIU Press as Short, fresh, accessible books on the life, times, and legacy of Abraham Lincoln.
Did you know Abraham Lincoln is the only president to hold a patent, and that his mechanical genius shaped his life in every way from law to writing to politics? If not, you should read my book to get the full story!
THE MADNESS OF MARY LINCOLN HONORED BY THE ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY PRESSES
My first book, The Madness of Mary Lincoln, was named one of the top 100 university press books in the “Escape the News Reading List” announced in May 2020 by the Association of University Presses! Read the list here.
www.jasonemersonhistorian.com 