Codie Eash, SRMEC Director of Education and Interpretation, will present “‘If it Takes Three Years More’: Lincoln at the Sanitary Fairs of 1864” at the York Civil War Roundtable. The meeting begins at 7:00pm at the York County History Center Museum (121 North Pershing Avenue, York, PA, 17401). For more information from the YCWRT, visit https://www.yorkhistorycenter.org/event/civil-war-roundtable-april/.

In 1864, Abraham Lincoln spoke at three fairs benefiting the Sanitary Commission in Washington, Baltimore, and Philadelphia, pleading for a new “definition for the word liberty,” promising “retribution” against Confederates who slaughtered Black U.S. soldiers, and vowing to proceed even “if it takes three years more” — collectively encompassing the most under appreciated orations of his presidency, set against the backdrop of the Civil War’s costliest year and a looming reelection campaign.