Buddy Secor/American Battlefield TrustOn October 1, 2020, Jim Lighthizer (right) retired as president of the American Battlefield Trust. His successor, David Duncan (left), has served as the Trust’s longtime chief development officer.
Autumn always brings change: fields bare after harvest, days shorter and darker, and trees showing their brilliant colors before the leaves fall. In 2020, the season marked a number of changes at the American Battlefield Trust.
On October 1, Jim Lighthizer retired as president of the Trust. He had announced his intention last year, having held the position since December 1, 1999. Nearly 21 years ago, he had assumed leadership of what then became known as the Civil War Preservation Trust, the result of a merger between two predecessor organizations. His leadership transformed the Trust from an organization $7 million in debt and not sure of how many donors it had on its rolls into a holistic national force for battlefield preservation with 53,000 acres to its credit and nearly 300,000 members and supporters.
Lighthizer stepped down with confidence, the board of trustees having unanimously selected the Trust’s longtime chief development officer, David N. Duncan, to succeed him. Duncan has been an indispensable part of the Trust team for over two decades, working with Lighthizer to build the organization we know today. In sharing his plans for the Trust’s future, Duncan emphasized continuity of vision and building on the momentum from the past.
Specifically, he emphasized pursuing substantive completion of preservation efforts at a number of major battlefields and positioning historic preservation as a key element of forthcoming commemorations of the United States’ 250th anniversary, our semiquincentennial. Moreover, as the son, husband, and father of professional educators, Duncan cited his personal commitment to producing top-notch content for teaching American history—materials applicable to students K-12, learning in person or virtually, and to adults in equal measure.
Additional information on the transition, including messages from incoming and outgoing leaders, and details on Lighthizer’s new role as president emeritus, can be found at battlefields.org/transition.
A less pleasant change, however, came on September 15 when Edwin Cole Bearss, our board’s historian emeritus, died at age 97. A legendary tour guide, Bearss spoke authoritatively and intimately not only about history, but also on the role that physical landscapes played in those events and outcomes. A decorated Marine veteran of the Pacific theater in World War II, Bearss drew on his own experiences to bring the past to life for those he guided—and for the millions who heard his commentary in documentaries, especially in Ken Burns’ The Civil War.
Bearss’ involvement in battlefield pre-servation efforts began during his time as National Park Service historian, remained through his tenure as the agency’s chief historian, and only deepened during his decades on our board. At the request of the Bearss family, the Trust has created a memorial fund in his honor that will be used to protect additional landscapes of his beloved Vicksburg Campaign, the battlefields where he began his NPS career. Further details of his life and legacy can be found at battlefields.org/RememberingBearss.
Mary Koik is director of communications at American Battlefield Trust.
