Lincoln Scholar to Speak in China

Douglas L. Wilson, co-director of the Lincoln Studies Center at Knox College, has been invited to deliver lectures in five Chinese cities on Abraham Lincoln in September.

Wilson, who has written and co-edited award-winning books on Lincoln, will visit China from September 14 to September 30, through a speaking program sponsored by the United States Department of State.

Wilson had been commissioned previously by the State Department to write an article on Lincoln's early life, for a publication on Lincoln designed for audiences outside the U.S.

Wilson said his lectures will cover Lincoln and the Lincoln legacy. "The talk will also touch on President Obama and his being part of Lincoln's legacy," Wilson said. "The State Department indicated that the Chinese were particularly interested in hearing about connections between Lincoln and Obama."

The lectures will take place in each of five "consular districts" in China, Wilson said. "The locations will be universities, foreign study institutes and 'think tanks' -- places where people are especially interested in American history and American culture."

Wilson's numerous Lincoln publications include two books that have won the prestigious Lincoln Prize -- "Lincoln's Sword: The Presidency and the Power of Words," and "Honor's Voice: The Transformation of Abraham Lincoln." He and colleague Rodney Davis are co-editors of a new edition of the famous Lincoln biography "Herndon's Lincoln," and the first critical edition of the texts of the Lincoln-Douglas Debates.

Wilson and Davis are codirectors of the Lincoln Studies Center at Knox College. The Center's activites -- research, publications, public events, lectures, conferences and classroom instruction -- are aimed at broadening the understanding of Lincoln and his legacy.

• Douglas Wilson Biographical Summary
• Lincoln Studies Center at Knox College

Founded in 1837, Knox is a national liberal arts college in Galesburg, Illinois, with students from 47 states and 48 countries. Knox's "Old Main" is a National Historic Landmark and the only building remaining from the 1858 Lincoln-Douglas debates.