Lincoln Other duties for Lincoln

[Glorybound]

Posted at 06:18 PM ET, 05/15/2012 TheWashingtonPost

Lincoln was more than a war president
By Linda Wheeler

One hundred and fifty years ago today, President Abraham Lincoln signed into law a Congressional act establishing a Department of Agriculture. Lincoln had told Congress an agricultural bureau would suffice but enthusiastic lawmakers wanted a department instead.

Five days later, Lincoln would sign the Homestead Act that provided 160 acres of public land to any American who was the head of a family and was over 21 years old.

On July 2 of that year, the president signed the Morrill Act, which established a system of land grant colleges to "teach such branches of learning as are related to agriculture and the mechanical arts." It committed the federal government to grant each state, except those in rebellion, a total of 30,000 acres of federal land to be used to establish the schools.

Lincoln managed to give these acts his attention while the Civil War entered its second year.

Between May 15 and July 2, General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson concluded his very successful Shenandoah Valley Campaign, Union forces took Memphis and the Seven Days Battle, with no clear winner, ended with 16,000 casualties on the Union side and 20,000 for the Confederates.

However, the Agriculture Department took root and Lincoln was able to report to Congress on Dec. 1, 1862, that it had already managed to create an extensive system of correspondence that would help establish "correct knowledge of recent improvements in agriculture, in the introduction of new products and in the collection of the agricultural statistics of the different States." And the new department would be ready soon to distribute seeds, plants and cuttings.

By Linda Wheeler | 06:18 PM ET, 05/15/2012

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs...war-president/2012/05/15/gIQAyyv7RU_blog.html

 

[rhp6033]

Don't forget the establishment of the route for the Intercontinenatl Railroad, which I believe also happened early in Lincoln's first term of office.

Many advancements were stalled in Congress by the disputes between the northern and southern states The southern states wanted an Intercontintinental Railroad which went right through the South through Texas and part of newly-acquired territory from Mexico to San Diego. Against this was a middle route - I think it was through South Louis, and and a northern route originating further north. The secession of the southern states rules out the southern route, and the war made the middle route appear risky - even more so than the snows of the winters in the northern plains and Rocky Mountains. But at least a decision was made.

Likewise, the Homestead Act was a political football - the South was against it, preferring to settle the west with slave labor instead of yeomen small farms. The secession opened up the west to the homestead settlement.

But what is ironic - and somewhat telling in terms of manpower and resources - is that the South never considered capitalizing on it's own inititives. It had it's hands full trying simply to defend Confederate territory, and every resource it had wasn't enough to do this. The North, however, had resources to at least consider the initial stages of Homesteading and surveying for the Intercontinental Railroad.