During this week 150 years ago, President Lincoln signed the Compensated Emancipation Act to free thousands of slaves in the nation's capital.

We mark the sesquicentennial of the Civil War with two historians. Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and author James McPherson is in town this week to speak at Gustavus Adolphus and Interlachen Country Club in Edina. McPherson's "Battle Cry of Freedom" is considered the definitive one-volume history of the Civil War.

"Goodheart turns the lens away from the usual stars of the story, the politicians, military officers, activists and editors who strove to direct the course of events," Debby Applegate wrote in the New York Times. "Instead, he explores the more obscure corners of antebellum America, introducing fascinating figures who loomed large at the time but have now been mostly forgotten."

McPherson will join The Daily Circuit Tuesday to talk about why the Civil War still matters. Adam Goodheart, historian, journalist and author of "1861: The Civil War Awakening," will also join the discussion.

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