Thursday, Nov 17, 2016

Please join us on Thursday, November 17th, for a discussion on the general that won the Civil War - or - was a blundering drunkard (depending on your perspective). General Ulysses S. Grant (1822-1885), everyone agrees, had a major impact on the outcome of the United States Civil War. There is, alas, very little else that "everyone" agrees on. As general-in-chief of the Union Armies in the Civil War, Ulysses S. Grant led them to victory in 1865. In 1868 he was elected the 18th President of the United States and went on to serve two terms. At the end of the 19th century, he was among the most admired Americans, surpassed only by George Washington. Mark Twain called Grant's Memoirs the greatest military autobiography since Caesar's Commentaries. It ranks among the best presidential memoirs. General David Petraeus said recently that Grant is the historical figure he would most like to have dinner with, describing him as "a great writer and a great leader". Please join us for a discussion of this fascinating man, who was so immensely popular, then not, and now.... Seating will be limited, so please RSVP to hold a space. There is no charge to attend and light refreshments will be served.

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Meet the Speaker: John Gavello grew up in and still resides in Walnut Creek with his wife, Stephanie. During the day he can be found working on commercial real estate finance. At night and on weekends, however, he can generally be found reading a book on American history. John has been a student of the Civil War for 50 years and will be speaking about the recent rehabilitation of Ulysses S. Grant by historians. He will also share a sampling of books on Grant from his Civil War collection.     Meet Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant), Civil War General and 18th President A graduate of West Point, a soldier in the Mexican-American War, and as a soldier he visited San Francisco during the height of the Gold Rush. Although he married into a slave-owning family, Grant himself was against slavery; he and his wife had only one slave (from her father), which he freed in 1859.