Seward and Diamond

Accidental juxtapositions are the best. They make you think.

Take Neil Diamond and William Henry Seward, for example. I was recently sorting through stacks of books and records. Somehow Neil Diamond’s 12 Greatest Hits Vol II album wound up cozying up with Walter Stahr’s notable biography of William Henry Seward, Seward -- Lincoln’s Indispensable Man, on my kitchen table.

The covers of the album and the book have a similar monochromatic feel to them. They looked aesthetically pleasing together, especially with a plaid tablecloth serving as a backdrop.

Aside from that moment together on the table, what do Diamond and Seward share?

I was hoping that Seward was best friends with poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, who was celebrated by Diamond in “Longfellow Serenade.” Sadly, Longfellow’s name does not appear in the index to Seward.

There is this though: Seward and Diamond were both born in New York and are the two greatest people to come out of that state.

More importantly, Seward negotiated the purchase of Alaska from Russia in 1867. Known as “Seward’s Folly,” this purchase indirectly enabled Neil Diamond and his buddies to road-trip to Alaska, an enjoyable folly that was documented by Entertainment Tonight in 1993.

Seward and Diamond may be linked in other ways as well. But for now, I’ll settle for Alaska.

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