The Complex Relationship between Lincoln and the First Americans

In this work Prof. Green (Nevada at Las Vegas), author of Lincoln and the Election of 1860, Politics and America in Crisis: The Coming of the Civil War, and other notable works, makes the case that Lincoln had a multifaceted understanding of the country’s relationship with Native Americans. The book is concise and readable and offers an overview of the evolution of the President’s opinions on Native Americans over his lifetime and particularly during his time in office, 1861-1865.

This is a valuable introduction to the subject, which clearly needs much more study. Green handles complex information adroitly, creating a smooth, readable narrative that handles considerable detail without ever getting bogged down in it.

Throughout the book, Green often makes comparison in with the views about Lincoln and Native Americans offered by earlier authors such as Phillip Paludan, Eric Foner, David Nichols, and Neil Painter, which improves our understanding of the complexity of Lincoln’s views. Green’s concludes that Lincoln’s perspective on Native Americas, as with most Americans, was that they were “uncivilized” and an obstacle to Manifest Destiny and the economic growth of the United States.

Green particularly covers the Native American sides of the Black Hawk War of 1832 in Illinois, in which Lincoln served as a volunteer, and the “Sioux Uprising” or “Dakota War” of 1862 in Minnesota, both of which he argues have largely been neglected by historians. We get a detailed account of Lincoln’s decision making in the aftermath of the “Sioux Uprising,” as the president reviewed each of 303 death sentences passed on Native Americans, commutating all but 38, which still resulted in the largest mass execution in American history.

Despite this seemingly brutal, racist decision, Michael Green argues that Lincoln was capable of growth and change, but was also dependent on political pressure from others, particularly given these events unfolded in the midst of the Civil War.

One problem regarding Lincoln and Native Americans is that during his presidency many people in government often failed to seek and receive his guidance prior to making important decisions, often acting on their own in what they thought was in the best interest of the government. And some events that took place during Lincoln’s presidency had no connection to the federal government, such as the Sand Creek Massacre. Nevertheless, Green points out that the President often failed to comment on some events, and did not show the degree of regard for Indians that he exhibited toward African Americans, failing to push through Congress important reforms, and was at times condescending toward visiting Native American leaders.

Green also reminds us that Lincoln lived in a time that was generally unconcerned, about and hostile to Native Americans. Unlike some historians, Green does not blame the President, though he also does not praise his policies. Lincoln was primarily concerned with preserving the Union by winning the Civil War. He does, however, make a case that Lincoln’s policies toward the nation’s indigenous people were better than those of most of his predecessors and his successors, thought not necessarily what most of his contemporaries wanted.

Lincoln and Native Americans, a volume in the SIUP series ‘Concise Lincoln Library,” is highly recvommended, not only to scholars, but also to the armchair historians and buffs with an interest in Native American history or the Western theater during the Civil War.

Note: Lincoln and Native Americans is also available in e-editions.

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