Historian Richard Heppner to Speak on the Lincoln Funeral Train Through the Hudson Valley

On Sunday August 23 at 3:00 p.m., the Historical Society of Woodstock will present a talk by Woodstock Town Historian Richard Heppner on the Lincoln funeral train through the Hudson Valley. Admission to the event is free. In April of 1865, the Lincoln funeral train moved up the east coast, through the Hudson Valley, and into history. Offering an account of how the news of the assassination was greeted locally as well as detailed descriptions of the train as it traveled up the Hudson River, historian Richard Heppner will explore the ceremonies and emotions that awaited the train’s passing on both sides of the Hudson. In doing so, he will also examine the seeds of transformation that were sewn during that fateful journey from Washington to Springfield, Illinois; a transformation that elevated the slain President’s legacy far beyond what it was in life and secured for the 16th president the honored place he forever holds in the collective memory of our nation.