James Shannon's archive

When Abraham Lincoln was assassinated at Ford’s Theatre on April 14, 1865 – only five days after Lee surrendered to Grant to end the Civil War – it marked the end of a giant of a man who led the fight to preserve the Union. But it was the beginning of a remarkable cult of personality unprecedented in American history.

Radio station KSET, the Beaumont news-talk outlet that broadcasts at 1300 AM, has gone silent. A hastily scribbled note posted on the door of the KSET studio at 5550 Eastex Freeway read “KSET RADIO HAS TEMPORARILY SUSPENDED OPERATIONS. OWNER HAS TAKEN OVER MANAGEMENT.” A second note provided employees an address to e-mail their timecards.