Civil War Historian to Give Cowden Lecture

Michael Les Benedict, Professor Emeritus at Ohio State University, will deliver the seventh annual Joanna Dunlap Cowden Memorial Lecture at CSU, Chico on Wednesday, October 10 beginning at 7:30 p.m. in Rowland-Taylor Recital Hall (PAC 134).

A specialist in the history of the U.S. Constitution and the Civil War and Reconstruction Era, Professor Benedict is the author of several books, including The Impeachment and Trial of Andrew Johnson and The Blessings of Liberty: A Concise History of the U.S. Constitution , as well as numerous influential scholarly  articles.  

For his Cowden Lecture, Professor Benedict will discuss how the issues of slavery and the Civil War forced Americans to define previously ambiguous concepts of citizenship. Although the definition of citizenship broadened in some respects (most notably, former slaves became U.S. citizens), Benedict argues that its legal meaning actually narrowed in important ways.  

The lecture is free and open to the public. A reception in Trinity Hall 100 immediately follows.

The Joanna Dunlap Cowden Memorial Lecture honors the memory of a longtime CSU, Chico faculty member and History Department chair. A specialist in the antebellum and Civil War history of the U.S., Professor Cowden was known for her dedication to advancing the life of the mind and her high quality teaching. Shortly before her death in 2001, her book, Heaven Will Frown on Such as This: Six Democrats Who Opposed Lincoln’s War, was published.

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