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HOLZER ACQUISITION PRESS RELEASE

New York State Board of Regents
Betty A. Rosa
Commissioner of Education
The State Education Department
The University of the State of New York / Albany, NY 12234
Office of Communications

NEWS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 10, 2022

Media Contact:
JP O’Hare or Jeanne Beattie
(518) 474-1201
www.nysed.gov

NEW YORK STATE LIBRARY ACQUIRES THE RESEARCH PAPERS OF AWARD-WINNING LINCOLN SCHOLAR AND HISTORIAN HAROLD HOLZER

Harold Holzer portrait

Collection Includes 55 Books, 150 Lectures, Newspaper Articles, Photos and Recordings of Television and Radio Interviews

The New York State Library has acquired the complete works of award-winning President Lincoln scholar and historian Harold Holzer, Commissioner Betty A. Rosa announced today. The acquisition covers Mr. Holzer’s 49-year career as a writer, lecturer, and historian specializing in President Lincoln and the political culture of the Civil War era. 

“At a time when our nation is increasingly divided, we can all draw inspiration from the tremendous work of President Lincoln,” said Board of Regents Chancellor Lester W. Young, Jr. “Harold Holzer’s research papers span the life of President Lincoln, his efforts to bring our country together and his work to abolish slavery. We are grateful for Mr. Holzer’s support of the State Library and this remarkable donation.”

“The State Library is widely known as a premier center for research and serves as a permanent repository for items that shaped the history of New York and the United States,” said Commissioner Rosa. “President Lincoln’s legacy on our country is one of the great treasures of our rich history. Thanks to Mr. Holzer’s generous donation, we can share his legacy with future generations of students and researchers.

“It’s a great honor to know that this material, which reflects so much of my work in the six decades since the 1970s, will be preserved at this wonderful institution—one where I have conducted research of my own and learned a great deal from its holdings,” said Harold Holzer. “As someone who has worked in Albany and has known so many extraordinary people here—in government, education, historical preservation, the museum world, and the arts—I am thrilled that our capital will hold this archive in perpetuity.”

The complete collection includes the research files and typescripts from Mr. Holzer’s 55 authored and co-authored books; more than 150 original lectures; photo files covering the development of the Lincoln image, and the art and iconography of the American Civil War; audio and video recordings of Holzer’s many television and radio appearances; and Holzer’s original correspondence from some of the leading historians, political leaders, and performers of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.

Mr. Holzer’s donation comes on the 30th anniversary of his appointment to the Board of the New York State Archives Partnership Trust, a post to which he was named by Governor Mario Cuomo in 1992, and still holds. Holzer was awarded the NY State Archives & History Award in 2017.

In addition to his work with the State Library, Mr. Holzer’s distinguished career featured several accolades, including the National Humanities Medal presented by President George W. Bush in 2008; an appointment to co-chair of the U.S. Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission by President Bill Clinton; and writing the Lincoln essay in the official commemorative book for the re-inauguration of President Barack Obama.

Mr. Holzer has hosted conferences at the New York State Museum focusing on the Empire State and the Civil War, delivered lectures, and, at the request of former Governor Andrew Cuomo, helped organize a statewide tour of Lincoln’s Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, which the New York State Library has owned since 1865. Mr. Holzer also co-directed the project to reinstall the portraits in the New York State Capitol Hall of Governors.

The NYS Research Library was established in 1818 to collect, preserve, and make available materials that support NY State government work. The Library’s collections include over 20 million items and are utilized by researchers on-site, online, and via interlibrary loan.

Biography of Eminent Lincoln Scholar Harold Holzer

Last Updated: February 14, 2022