People taking a tour of the Stowe House may notice a framed photo that hangs near the foot of the staircase, just visible above a large monitor screen. It shows a sculpture of President Abraham Lincoln and Harriet, highlighting their difference in stature.  Located in Hartford, CT, this sculpture by Bruno Lucchesi depicts the meeting of President Lincoln and abolitionist Harriet Beecher Stowe in Washington, D.C. in 1862. A plaque attached to the sculpture's mounting is inscribed: “Lincoln Meets Stowe.”

This is the meeting in which Lincoln is reported to have greeted Harriet saying, “So you’re the little woman who wrote the book that made this great war!”  Though often related, the story and the quote are considered by scholars to be an apocryphal anecdote, that is, one for which there is no writing by either Lincoln or Stowe reporting it.  English professor Daniel R. Vollaro went so far as to claim in a 2009 article in The Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association that the quote was invented by the family later to burnish Harriet’s legacy.

In fact, the story was first reported by Harriet’s son Charles Edward, and her grandson Lyman Beecher Stowe in their 1911 book Harriet Beecher Stowe: The Story of Her Life.  They are careful to say that it was “Mrs. Stowe, in telling of her interview with Mr. Lincoln…dwelt particularly on the rustic pleasantry with which the great man received her.”  Their account relates many details of the meeting and the conversation.

Historians have wondered why there is no earlier account of the meeting.  Her son Charles wrote a biography of his mother, The Life of Harriet Beecher Stowe, in 1889 in which the only mention of it is in reproducing a letter written by Harriet to her husband.  However, it is important to remember that this work was written with the participation of its subject – Harriet.  She wrote an introduction that reads: “At my suggestion and with what assistance I have been able to render, my son, Ross Charles Edward Stowe, has compiled from my letters and journals, this biography. It is this true story of my life, told for the most part, in my own words and has therefore all the force of an autobiography. It is perhaps much more accurate as to detail & impression than is possible with any autobiography, written later in life.”

As for accounts of the meeting at the time by those who were present, Harriet’s letter to her husband Calvin, says only, “I had a real funny interview with the President…the particulars of which I will tell you.”  Her daughter Hatty wrote to her twin sister “It was a very droll time that we had in the White House,” saying that she and her mother were “ready to explode with laughter…(but)…were trying to keep it in.”

Nancy Koester in her biography entitled Harriet Beecher Stowe: A Spiritual Life discusses a letter written by HBS to her daughters in the spring of 1862, and in so doing sheds light on why Harriet herself did not mention Lincoln’s greeting.  Koester writes “Harriet was distressed that her daughters, especially the twins, seemed so frivolous and worldly... Then Harriet got down to cases.  How often she had heard her daughters indulge in mockery!... How could they go to church and pray ‘Our Father’ and in the very next breath make fun of others?”

Is it not obvious that to Harriet it would be the height of disrespect and lack of refinement to “make fun” of Lincoln by reporting a facetious and jocular remark?  After all she had traveled to Washington to meet the President with the serious purpose of encouraging him to issue the Emancipation Proclamation.  The 1911 account has Harriet recalling her words “Mr. Lincoln, I want to ask you about your views on emancipation.”

The first half of the nineteenth century America saw the development and expansion of a variety of Protestant denominations characterized by differing theological tenets, practices, and organizational structures. It was a time of evangelism, conversion, and activism with the core message that salvation is achieved by living a virtuous life.

​This period would be remembered in history as the Second Great Awakening. Reaching its zenith between 1820 and 1850 this movement expressed a theology by which every person could be saved through repentance and conversion. The aim of the Second Great Awakening was to remedy the evils of society and creation of a better world. ​

Such activism was extremely important to the orderly development of the expanding American west and local churches saw their role in society as focal points for a variety of social reforms. This was especially true on the Kentucky and Ohio frontier and one of its major champions was Lyman Beecher.

Beecher was born in New Haven, Connecticut in 1775 to David Beecher, a blacksmith, and Esther Hawley Lyman. His ancestry can be dated to 1637 Massachusetts. At age eighteen he entered Yale College and was graduated in 1797. Under the tutelage of Timothy Dwight of the Yale Divinity School, Lyman was ordained as minister in 1799. His first assignment was at the Presbyterian church at East Hampton, Long Island. He married Roxana Foote and together they started one of the most prominent families of the nineteenth century. In 1810 the Beechers moved to Litchfield, Connecticut where he served as minister for 16 years.

Of significant concern to New Englanders was slavery and The Second Great Awakening catalyzed the abolitionist movement. Of equal importance were excessive indulgences and in particular alcohol. Reverend Beecher resolved to take a stand against it and in 1826 he delivered and published six sermons on intemperance. He was convinced that,” “Intemperance is the sin of our land, and, with our boundless prosperity, is coming in upon us like a flood; and if anything shall defeat the hopes of the world, which hand upon our experiment of civil liberty, it is that river of fire which is rolling through the land, destroying the vital air and extending around an atmosphere of death.” These published sermons were sent throughout the United States, sold well in England, and burnished his reputation as an influential preacher. In 1826 Beecher was called to Boston's Hanover Church.

In the meantime events were happening in the West. On February 11, 1829, the Ohio Legislature passed  “An Act to Incorporate the Lane Seminary in the County of Hamilton” with 23 trustees headed by Rev. Joshua Wilson. The institution existed in name only however, without professors, students, money or buildings. By September 1830 the viability of the proposed seminary was doubtful so the trustees looked to the East for support. Franklin Vail, an agent of the American Education Society, offered that he could secure $20,000 from Lewis and Arthur Tappan if Lyman Beecher could be persuaded to leave Boston for Cincinnati. As a result On October 22,1830 the Board elected Lyman Beecher President and Professor of Theology though it took two years of negotiations before Beecher was to receive release from his Boston position.

​The Lane Seminary was tied to its indigenous western Presbyterians comprised, mostly of Scotch-Irish Presbyterians who would constitute the heart of the “old school”. The seminary also consisted of New York manual labor enthusiasts and New England evangelical traditionalists, so-called “new school” Presbyterians. It wouldn’t be long before these cultures collided with serious implications for Beecher and the seminary. But that would come later. In 1830 Lyman Beecher had his eyes on the enormous opportunity waiting for him in the Queen City and the burgeoning American west.

About the author: 
Dr. Nicholas Andreadis is a volunteer at the Harriet Beecher Stowe House. He was a professor and dean at Western Michigan University prior to moving to Cincinnati.    ​

Sources:
Scott, Donald: Evangelism, Revivalism, and the Second Great Awakening
Khan Academy: The Second Great Awakening Parts 1-3
Wikipedia: Lyman Beecher. Beecher, Lyman: Six Sermons on Intemperance

Thomas Jordan is on the Board of the Friends of Harriet Beecher Stowe House and the President of the African American Genealogy Group of the Miami Valley. He is the author of Double Jordan: My Journey Towards Discovering My Paternal Ancestors. Following are edited excerpts from an interview with Mr. Jordan.

When did you first learn about the Harriet Beecher Stowe House?
I was born and raised in Cincinnati and attended Xavier University. I was aware of the Harriet Beecher Stowe House for a while. The African American Genealogy Group had a meeting there four or five years ago which is when I went there and saw everything that the House teaches.

What is one thing you have learned since becoming involved with the Harriet Beecher Stowe House?
I have learned more about the history of Harriet’s family and the Lane Seminary. The Beecher family has a lot of depth and I did not know how extensive their influence was. There is so much people don’t know about history. Cincinnati itself is full of history, some of which has been lost.

What is one of your favorite books you have read in conjunction with the House?
My favorite book I found in the bookstore is The Overground Railroad. It is about The Green Book and the author documented his trip to visit all of these locations. It gives a raw perspective on The Green Book as it relates to African American history especially during the Civil Rights Movement.

By the 1930s, the Walnut Hills neighborhood was a thriving African American business district. In the 1940 edition of the Green Motorist Book, the Harriet Beecher Stowe House, then referred to as "The Edgemont Inn," was one of only a few taverns listed as safe for African Americans in Cincinnati.  Other Walnut Hills neighborhood businesses were also included. To learn more about the 20th century history of the House click here.

​Thomas Jordan believes that volunteering with the Friends of the Harriet Beecher Stowe House is an opportunity to educate oneself and others  on many topics but especially race relations and gender equalities. Learn more about becoming a volunteer here.

Several museums in the greater Cincinnati region have extended access through the Museums for All program, ensuring that "those receiving food assistance (SNAP benefits) can gain free or reduced admission to more than 600 museums throughout the United States simply by presenting their SNAP EBT (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Electronic Benefit Transfer) card."

As explained by Museums for All, "The cost of museum admission can be a barrier for many low-income families. Participating museums provide reduced admission, ranging from free to $3.00, to visitors presenting their EBT card. This reduced rate is available during all normal operating hours to up to four individuals per EBT card. With a year-round open door policy, Museums for All invites low-income visitors to feel welcome at cultural institutions." Learn more about Museums for All.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
July 1, 2021
Media Contact:  Christina Hartlieb
513-751-0651
friends@stowehousecincy.org

(CINCINNATI, OH)– The Harriet Beecher Stowe House is pleased to announce the opening of a brand-new experience for visitors to the historic site in Walnut Hills. “Our Neighborhood Story: A Tour of this Walnut Hills Block,” developed in partnership with Ohio Humanities and the Walnut Hills Historical Society, traces 200 years of the history in one Cincinnati block. This entirely outdoor exhibit is free and open to the public during daylight hours at the historic Harriet Beecher Stowe House, 2950 Gilbert Avenue, Cincinnati OH 45206.

Seven panels on the ground of the Harriet Beecher Stowe House (and one panel a few blocks down on Beecher Street at the Walnut Hills Community Garden) explain the significance of the site and the ways that women and men from Walnut Hills developed and sustained the diverse and dynamic neighborhood over the past two centuries.

Double-sided outdoor panels feature photographs and illustrations from the neighborhood’s formation in the 1830s around Lane Seminary, through the Civil War and Reconstruction, to a 20th century thriving middle-class neighborhood full of Black-owned businesses, to recent changes brought about by the expansion of MLK Drive and the highway 71 interchange. Visitors are encouraged to think about how people in this neighborhood have use their voices to affect change both locally and around the world how they can use the power of their own voices today.

While the Our Neighborhood Story exhibition on the grounds of the Harriet Beecher Stowe House is free, there is a modest fee of $6 for adults/$5 for seniors/$3 for children to tour the house, which holds detailed exhibits explaining how author and abolitionist Harriet Beecher Stowe's young adult years in Cincinnati led to the landmark publication of Uncle Tom’s Cabin.  For more information on the exhibit or to plan your trip, visit www.stowehousecincy.org or call 513-751-0651. 

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ABOUT HARRIET BEECHER STOWE HOUSE
The nonprofit Friends of Harriet Beecher Stowe House manages a Cincinnati home where Harriet Beecher Stowe lived during the formative years that led her to write the best-selling novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin. This historic site is part of the Ohio History Connection’s network of more than 50 sites and museums across Ohio. For more information about programs and events, call 513-751-0651 or visit www.stowehousecincy.org.
 
Ohio History Connection
The Ohio History Connection, formerly the Ohio Historical Society, is a statewide history organization with the mission to spark discovery of Ohio’s stories. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization chartered in 1885, the Ohio History Connection carries out history services for Ohio and its citizens focused on preserving and sharing the state’s history. This includes housing the state historic preservation office, the official state archives, local history office and managing more than 50 sites and museums across Ohio. For more information on programs and events, visit ohiohistory.org.