We invite you to attend the annual lecture sponsored by the Mountain History & Culture Group on April 20 from 10:00-11:30 in the Vance Birthplace Visitor Center. This year's speaker, Dr. Angela Elder, will be discussing widowhood during the Civil War.
Between 1861 and 1865, approximately 200,000 women became widows during the American Civil War. They recorded their experiences in diaries, letters, scrapbooks, and pension applications. In this talk, Dr. Elder will draw from her research to share stories about their varied experiences.
Join us for coffee and conversation at 10:00, with the lecture to begin at 10:15. Time for questions will follow Dr. Elder's presentation.
Dr. Angela Elder received her PhD from the University of Georgia, before joining the faculty at Converse University in Spartanburg, South Carolina. She teaches a variety of American history classes, particularly in gender and Civil War studies. Her first book, Love and Duty: Confederate Widows and the Emotional Politics of Loss, explored the experiences of widows in the Civil War. She is now working on a new book exploring the Dry Tortugas and Fort Jefferson, off the coast of Key West, Florida.