Harold Holzer facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Harold Holzer
Holzer in 2014
Born	(1949-02-05) February 5, 1949 (age 76)
Nationality	American
Alma mater	Queens College of the City University of New York (BA)
Known for	Scholar of Abraham Lincoln
Spouse(s)	Edith Spiegel

Harold Holzer (born February 5, 1949) is a famous historian and expert on Abraham Lincoln. He also studies the political life during the American Civil War Era. Today, he is the director of the Roosevelt House Public Policy Institute at Hunter College. Before this, he worked for 23 years at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, retiring in 2015.

Early Life and Education

Harold Holzer was born in Brooklyn, New York, on February 5, 1949. His father, Charles, was a construction contractor, and his mother, Rose, was a homemaker.

He went to Queens College of the City University of New York. In 1969, he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree there. In 1971, Holzer married Edith Spiegel, who is a writer. They have two children named Remy and Meg. Harold Holzer is Jewish.

Harold Holzer's Career Journey

Harold Holzer started his career as a newspaper reporter. He then became an editor for The Manhattan Tribune. After that, he worked in politics. He was a press secretary for Congresswoman Bella S. Abzug. He also worked for New York City Mayor Abraham D. Beame as a speechwriter.

For six years, he was the public affairs director for WNET, a major PBS station. From 1984 to 1992, Holzer worked for Governor Mario Cuomo. They even worked together to edit a book called Lincoln on Democracy in 1990.

In 1992, Holzer joined The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. He was the chief communications officer there. He was promoted several times, becoming senior vice president in 2005. He was in charge of things like government relations and visitor services. He retired from the museum in 2015. Since then, he has been the director of the Roosevelt House Public Policy Institute at Hunter College.

Harold Holzer's Work as a Historian

As a historian, Harold Holzer has written, co-written, or edited 56 books. He has also written over 600 articles for magazines and journals. Many of his books have won awards. For example, his 2015 book, Lincoln and the Power of the Press, won the Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize and four other awards.

Holzer was also a co-chairman of the United States Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission (ALBC) for nine years. President Bill Clinton appointed him to this role in 2000. In 2010, he became chairman of the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Foundation, which took over from the ALBC. He led this foundation until 2016.

He has been involved with many Lincoln-related groups. These include the Lincoln Group of New York and the Abraham Lincoln Association. He also helped with the Steven Spielberg movie, Lincoln, as a script consultant. He even wrote a special companion book for young readers about the movie.

Harold Holzer often appears on television. He has been on shows like C-SPAN's Washington Journal and The Today Show. He has also performed stage shows about Lincoln and Grant. In these shows, he combines old pictures with real words from history. Famous actors like Sam Waterston and Richard Dreyfuss have joined him. In 2005, President and Mrs. Bush hosted one of his Lincoln shows at the White House.

Holzer also gives talks all over the country. He has helped create seven museum exhibitions. These include shows about Lincoln's art and "Lincoln and New York" at the New-York Historical Society. He also helped organize an exhibition of Lincoln's original Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. This important document helped end slavery.

He has performed his stage programs with many well-known actors. These include Liam Neeson, Holly Hunter, and Annette Bening. His shows have been performed at famous places. These include the White House, Lincoln Center, and Ford's Theatre. Ford's Theatre is where Lincoln was assassinated.

Awards and Recognitions

Harold Holzer has received many awards for his work.

• In 2008, President George W. Bush gave him the National Humanities Medal. He also received the Lincoln Medal of Honor.
• His book Lincoln President-Elect (2008) won awards from several history groups.
• In 2011, his book for young readers, Father Abraham: Lincoln and His Sons, won the first James Robertson Jr. Award. This award is for Civil War children's literature.
• He has received lifetime achievement awards from Civil War Round Tables in different cities.
• In 2012, he won the DAR History Award Medal.
• His book Lincoln and the Power of the Press: The War for Public Opinion (2014) won many top awards. These included the Lincoln Prize and the Mark Lynton History Prize.
• In 2023, he received the Augustus Saint-Gaudens Medal. This was for his book about Daniel Chester French.
• In 2025, he was named a Guggenheim Fellow. This honor gives him support to continue his important historical research.

Harold Holzer's Published Works

Harold Holzer has written or edited many books. Here are some of them:

• 1984: The Lincoln Image: Abraham Lincoln and the Popular Print
• 1987: The Confederate Image: Prints of the Lost Cause
• 1990: Lincoln on Democracy (co-edited with Mario M. Cuomo)
• 1990: The Lincoln Family Album
• 1993: The Lincoln-Douglas Debates: The First Complete, Unexpurgated Text
• 1998: The Lincoln Mailbag: America Writes to the President
• 2000: Abraham Lincoln, The Writer (a children's book)
• 2004: The President is Shot! The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
• 2004: Lincoln at Cooper Union: The Speech That Made Abraham Lincoln President
• 2006: The Emancipation Proclamation: Three Views
• 2008: Lincoln President-Elect: Abraham Lincoln and the Great Secession Winter, 1860-1861
• 2011: Father Abraham: Lincoln and His Sons (a children's book)
• 2012: Lincoln: How Abraham Lincoln Ended Slavery in America
• 2013: The Civil War in 50 Objects
• 2014: Lincoln and the Power of the Press: The War for Public Opinion
• 2015: President Lincoln Assassinated!!: The Firsthand Story of the Murder, Manhunt, Trial, and Mourning
• 2019: Monument Man: The Life and Art of Daniel Chester French
• 2020: The Presidents vs. the Press: The Endless Battle between the White House and the Media—from the Founding Fathers to Fake News
• 2024: Brought Forth on This Continent: Abraham Lincoln and American Immigration

Honors and Achievements

Harold Holzer has received many honors throughout his career:

• He has won the Barondess Award from the Civil War Round Table of New York multiple times.
• In 1988, he received a Diploma of Honor from Lincoln Memorial University.
• He has received the Award of Achievement from the Lincoln Group of New York several times.
• In 1992, he received an Honorary Doctorate from Lincoln College.
• In 2008, he was awarded The Bell I. Wiley Prize for Lifetime Achievement.
• In 2009, he was inducted as a Laureate of The Lincoln Academy of Illinois. This is the state's highest honor.
• He received the Lincoln Medal of Honor in 2010.
• In 2012, he received an Honorary Degree from Centre College.
• In 2015, he was honored by the Civil War Round Table of Kansas City with the Harry S. Truman Award.
• In 2021, The Lincoln Forum created an annual book prize in his honor.