Join us on Tuesday, January 8, 2013 for the
198th anniversary commemoration of the Battle of New Orleans!
Admission is free to the public from 9:00 a.m. -4:30 p.m.
On the foggy morning of January 8, 1815 at a place that has come to be known as Chalmette Battlefield, just downriver from New Orleans, General Andrew Jackson led a ragtag army of Americans to a stunning victory over the highly trained British forces that has come to be called the Battle of New Orleans. This American victory was the final and pivotal battle of the War of 1812, thus ending the three-year conflict with Great Britain. Jackson and his force of approximately 4,000 men defeated the mighty British army of 10,000 soldiers, and resulted in 13 American casualties against approximately 2,000 British casualties. This battle changed how both Americans and Europeans thought about the United States "experiment" in self government, branded Andrew Jackson as an American military hero, and served as the springboard for Jackson's eventual election to the U.S. presidency in 1828. For more information on the Battle of New Orleans, please visit the Blog of 1812.
Each year on January 8 The Hermitage commemorates the anniversary of this American victory with public programs for children and adults and offers free admission to the public. Please see below for schedule of activities.
Schedule of Activities
10:00 a.m. Wreath-laying ceremony at the tomb of President Andrew Jackson
featuring keynote speaker Jon Meacham
11:00 a.m. Jon Meacham will sign copies of Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power and
American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House
in the museum gift shop at the Andrew Jackson Visitor Center
2:00 p.m. “Old Hickory and the Natchez Expedition of Early 1813” presentation by Tom Kanon, Ph.D.
Andrew Jackson Visitor Center Auditorium
Ongoing activities from 9:00-3:00
*Free admission all day
*Meet President Andrew Jackson & Mrs. Rachel Jackson
*Kids have an opportunity to explore the Hermitage grounds learning about President Jackson and his role during the War of 1812 with the Hermitage Pastport
*Living history presentation on “The Hero of New Orleans: How Andrew Jackson
Formed an Army and Saved a Nation"
*Children’s activities and crafts
Speaker Information
Jon Meacham is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and executive editor at Random House. He is a former co-anchor of the public-affairs broadcast “Need to Know on PBS” and former editor of Newsweek. Meacham’s latest book, Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power, was published by Random House on November 13, 2012. His book, American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House, was published by Random House on November 11, 2008 and debuted at #2 on The New York Times bestseller list. On April 20, 2009, American Lion was awarded the Pulitzer Prize. Meacham has written for The New York Times, The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, Slate, and The Los Angeles Times Book Review. Born in Chattanooga in 1969, Meacham was educated at St. Nicholas School, The McCallie School, and graduated from The University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee, with a degree summa cum laude in English Literature; he was salutatorian and elected to Phi Beta Kappa.
Dr. Tom Kanon is an archivist at the Tennessee State Library and Archives (TSLA) and holds a Ph.D. in Public History from Middle Tennessee State University. Dr Kanon is a nationally-known speaker and writer on topics relating to the War of 1812, particularly the southern campaigns. Dr. Kanon has completed a book-length treatment of Tennessee’s involvement in the War of 1812 which should be published at the end of 2013.
