Brian R Dirck - The Black Heavens: Abraham Lincoln and Death

A book about death and mourning must necessarily bring to mind the loss of Phil Paludan, my mentor, advisor, and friend, an outstanding Lincoln and Civil War historian whom I still miss a great deal. How he carried himself as a scholar exercises a tremendous ongoing influence on me, and I hope I have been at least somewhat worthy of his example.

I must also profusely thank my editor at Southern Illinois University Press, Sylvia Frank Rodrigue. This was not an easy book to write or (Im sure) edit, and Sylvia displayed her usual sense of humor, extraordinary patience, and care in helping me see it through to fruition. Both Sylvia and the rest of the very able staff at the press did heroic work in editing and preparing this project for publication. I would also like to express my deep gratitude to the anonymous peer reviewers who offered their excellent observations and saved me from numerous pitfalls and errors. I of course am solely responsible for any errors that remain.

I have been blessed with a congenial professional environment at Anderson University, where I have had the honor to teach for the last twenty years. My colleagues Dan Allen, Michael Frank, David Murphy, Abigail Post, Jaye Rogers, and Joel Shrock are actually more than that; they are valued friends. Our department secretary, Jan Bell, has also been of tremendous help, both in preparing this manuscript and in other professional matters. And I thank all my students, who have enriched my life in uncountable ways. I learn from them at least as much as they learn from me.

My father and my children have been, as always, forthcoming with their love and support, listening with admirable patience to my ramblings about my latest book project. This has probably been a more taxing matter than usual, given the dark subject matter contained in what they dubbed the death book. I am grateful for their forbearance. I want to thank Lavada for her support, as well as the occasional little push. I would also like to thank my friend and colleague Kris McCusker, professor of history at Middle Tennessee State University, who read early portions of the manuscript and offered valuable input.

In October 2013, we received the news that my mother had been diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer. Her prospects were dim from the outset, and her suffering was painful for me and my family to watch. Yet for over a year she fought the disease with a forthrightness and bravery that impressed all who knew her. She passed away in February 2015, while I was in the process of writing this book. As a rule, historians are unwilling to admit that personal circumstances play a role in their research and writing: the past for the pasts sake, or so goes the saying. Yet honesty compels me to admit that my mothers lengthy illness and passing away played a role in how I approached the subject of Lincoln and death, though just how is not altogether clear, even to me. But I am certain that the experience of watching her difficult final months is in these pages. How could it be otherwise? I would like to think that in the end, this has not been a bad thing. My experience with my mothers death helped me better understand Lincolns various experiences in this regard; or at least I hope so.