A talk by Jeffrey Boutwell, who writes:

George Boutwell is a fascinating if under-appreciated figure in American history, having played a central role in US politics for over sixty years.  For this talk, historian and family member Jeffrey Boutwell will draw on his new biography that details George Boutwell's service during the Civil War, including: his important rejection of Southern secession at the Virginia Peace Conference held at the Willard Hotel in Washington, DC, in February 1861; helping coordinate the delivery of Massachusetts troops and supplies in the first critical months of the war; assisting Abraham Lincoln in preparing the country for the Emancipation Proclamation in 1862; becoming the country's first-ever Commissioner of Revenue in 1862-63 to help raise needed resources for the Union war effort; and serving as a Radical Republican member of Congress from 1863-1865, supporting Lincoln's military and emancipation policies.  Copies of Jeffrey's book, BOUTWELL: Radical Republican and Champion of Democracy (WW Norton, 2025) will be available for purchase and signing.   For more info, www.jeffreyboutwell.com

The meeting will be held at Draught 55