Lincoln at Cooper Union

The Speech That Made Abraham Lincoln President

By: Harold Holzer

Narrated by: Mark Bramhall

Lincoln at Cooper Union explores Lincoln’s most influential and widely reported pre-presidential address—an extraordinary appeal by the Western politician to the Eastern elite that propelled him toward the Republican nomination for president. Delivered in New York in February 1860, the Cooper Union speech dispelled doubts about Lincoln’s suitability for the presidency and reassured conservatives of his moderation while reaffirming his opposition to slavery to Republican progressives.

Award-winning Lincoln scholar Harold Holzer places Lincoln and his speech in the context of the times—an era of racism, politicized journalism, and public oratory as entertainment—and shows how the candidate framed the speech as an opportunity to continue his famous “debates” with his archrival, Democrat Stephen A. Douglas, on the question of slavery.

Holzer describes the enormous risk Lincoln took by appearing in New York, where he exposed himself to the country’s most critical audience and took on Republican Senator William Henry Seward of New York, the front-runner, in his own backyard. Then he recounts a brilliant and innovative public-relations campaign, as Lincoln took the speech “on the road” in his successful quest for the presidency.

©2004 Harold Holzer (P)2011 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“This book is a must for anyone fascinated by Abraham Lincoln.” ( Civil War Times)

Great but…..

A well researched and detailed book. It provides a great picture of what NYC was in 1860 and an intimate look at Lincoln.

The major flaw for me when the date of Lincoln’s Shooting and Sewards attack was provided, they were off by 6 months. It was APRIL 14 1865, not October. How such an error occurs is mind boggling. Overall an excellent book

ok o am a real Lincoln fan

but fan or not this book is different, transports you to a totally different time and place... how our nation has changed and yet how similar it is. excellent book... I learned a lot from and and enjoyed it a lot... could not really put it down!

Important Book, Poor Narrator

As a lifelong enthusiast about all things Lincoln, I’m delighted to have found this fine book about a mostly overlooked but crucial moment in Lincoln’s rise to the presidency. Thank you, Howard Holzer. If you’re a Lincoln groupie too, here’s a good one for you.

There are just two things I regret about this Audible offering, one major and one minor.

The major one first. For me Mark Bramhall reads history among the best when he’s reading Holzer’s text. He has a good voice. He reads with intelligence, modulating his cadence and tone just where the text calls for it.

But for some reason, inexplicably, Bramhall changes his delivery radically when Holzer quotes someone. No intelligence, no modulating. Bramhall quotes people in a changed, inauthentic tone. Everyone — everyone — comes across declaiming, stentorian, like your uncle “sharing” his opinion on some subject after a few drinks. Sure, some of these 1860 pols and swells DID declaim. But all? And accents. Hearing Bramhall quote someone with that inauthentic tone AND with a bad English accent, well, it’s too much.

At first I felt annoyed by this reader’s trait, then very annoyed. If I weren’t so deeply interested in the subject, I would have given up on the book. Hasn’t someone at Audible or elsewhere coached Bramhall? For anyone who loves Lincoln and knows something about his ever-changing moods and personality, it’s just painful to hear his words declaimed in one-note bombast.

My minor concern: There’s nothing humble about Holzer when he tells us, too often, that other historians haven’t seen the importance of this subject, but he has, or that other historians have been wrong about this point, but he isn’t. Easily forgiven. Most of us are full of ourselves, but many of us aren’t so full of ourselves that we have to show it.

The Man

Lincoln was evolving and Cooper Union was a clear step to defining the struggle to come with southern states
And the need to realize that owning another human being was wrong on many fronts

Great details many ppl don't know about.

A wonderful audio book. There are some tid bits that I had know Idea that Lincoln went to great extremes to get this speech out.
In the last of the book audible Abe's whole cooper union speech is reenacted by Mark Bramhall.
It is so nice to listen to this book. Mark Bramhall is a wonderful Narrator.
Thank you to the Author Harold Holzer.

Excellent for Lincoln buffs.

This book reveals the thinking process of Lincoln and the innate brilliance of his logic. Highly recommended.

Entertaining

I enjoyed listening to the story behind the Cooper Union speech after hearing about it in Team of Rivals.

Detailed documentation of an under examined speech

This was a well-researched book. Like most things to do with Abraham Lincoln are inappropriately slanted. Howbeit, overall it is really well done. True historians or deep thinkers hear things that ping. They question it & think that just doesn't sound right, and thereby research such things. This book sent me on a minor rabbit trail of such, regarding John Surratt (a man who was involved in John Wilkes Booth's plot against Abraham Lincoln). The author talked about John Surratt fleeing, having no consequences, and giving a speech glorifying John Wilkes Booth at the same Cooper Union in 1870. The whole affair was a sad one. John Surratt's mother was historically murdered by the blood-thirsty federal government with overwhelming doubt to her involvement. John Surratt's speech (which can be found word for word) talks about how John Wilkes Booth deceived him. He thought it was merely a kidnapping plot, with the outcome being to gain the South their independence. When you read about history from the actual things written back then - it's completely different than if it is written years later. Abraham Lincoln and everything involving him is major that way. He was made a martyr & pretty much deified. During his life he had plenty of people who didn't like him, had marital problems, suffered from mental illness, was a spiritualist (not a Christian), etc. Those are all based on the testimonies of various individuals who knew him.
...Still, this is a well-produced and insightful book. Abraham Lincoln was a brilliant speaker & embodied what a politician is (playing to the crowds skillfully).

Great concept

This was a very interesting, informative, and surprisingly enjoyable, approach to Lincoln’s politics and thought!

OUTSTANDING TALE OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN

Great retelling of the turning point for Abraham Lincoln! incredible speech, as Democrats still want everything their way today, damn the Constitution of the United States! Every USA-history loving American should read - and hear this! A+++!