Dr. Christian McWhirter Bio

Dr. Christian McWhirter is the Lincoln Historian at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Museum and author of Battle Hymns: The Power and Popularity of Music in the Civil War, published by University of North Carolina Press in 2012. He previously served as Editor of the Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association and as an Assistant Editor for The Papers of Abraham Lincoln project.

Dr. McWhirter's writings on Lincoln, popular music, and the Civil War have appeared in numerous publications, including the New York Times, Chicago Sun-Times, and Washington Post. His most recent publication is a Civil War Monitor article on what Lincoln’s taste in music tells us about his worldview.

Dr. McWhirter has spoken to audiences at the Library of Congress, National Archives, Newberry Library, Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, College of William & Mary, and the University of Texas. He received his PhD from the University of Alabama in 2009.