From the Nov. 14th Washington Post "To arrive in Michigan's Henry Ford Museum, Lincoln's fateful chair took a circuitous journey" by John Kelly.
You'd think this chair, the one Abraham Lincoln was sitting in at Ford's Theatre on April 14, 1865 while viewing "Our American Cousin" when John Wilkes Booth shot him, would be in the Smithsonian in DC or at least back in the theater, but it is now at the Henry Ford Museum in Michigan.
An interesting story as to how it got there.
Joe Simms, an employee of the theater, had moved his boss' plushly upholstered chair into what had become the presidential box a short time before the event. That owner was manager Harry Clay Ford.
The War Department seized the theater after the assassination. Guards were posted on 10th Street and outside the box.
On April 22nd, Assistant Secretary of War Charles Dana ordered the chair removed after finding out souvenir hunters had been taking pieces off it.
In 1867, the War Department sent it to the Department of the Interior along with the stovepipe hat Lincoln wore that night to be put on display at the Patent Office building where it remained for two years.
More to Come. --Old B-Runner
The Battle of Fort Fisher, N.C.
Showing posts with label DC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label DC. Show all posts
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Lincoln Cottage Reopening a Highlight of 2008-- Part 2
Continued from yesterday.
The 1842 house was used summer to fall from 1862 to 1864. Mary and Tad were also there. Robert was away at college. They would normally only use it for a few weeks at a time. Part of the reason to go there was for privacy to grieve their son Willie's death, probably from typhoid fever. They also went to escape Washington, DC's hot, swampy humidity as the cottage was on one of the highest points of the city and enjoyed cool breezes.
The commute to the cottage was dangerous. At first, Lincoln insisted on going alone through the streets. Later, a guard unit was sent with him. There were also 180 troops on the grounds. Lincoln would often wander out to their camp and it is believed that he may have liked their coffee to Mary's.
On one trip to the cottage in 1964, a bullet hole was discovered in Lincoln's top hat, but he insisted that it be kept quite.. Confederate leaders knew the route he took as did John Wilkes Booth, who one time planned an abduction.
Admission is $12 and groups of 15 or more the price is $8. There are 1-2 hour guided tours.
The Place to Be in Washington, DC. --Old B-Runner
The 1842 house was used summer to fall from 1862 to 1864. Mary and Tad were also there. Robert was away at college. They would normally only use it for a few weeks at a time. Part of the reason to go there was for privacy to grieve their son Willie's death, probably from typhoid fever. They also went to escape Washington, DC's hot, swampy humidity as the cottage was on one of the highest points of the city and enjoyed cool breezes.
The commute to the cottage was dangerous. At first, Lincoln insisted on going alone through the streets. Later, a guard unit was sent with him. There were also 180 troops on the grounds. Lincoln would often wander out to their camp and it is believed that he may have liked their coffee to Mary's.
On one trip to the cottage in 1964, a bullet hole was discovered in Lincoln's top hat, but he insisted that it be kept quite.. Confederate leaders knew the route he took as did John Wilkes Booth, who one time planned an abduction.
Admission is $12 and groups of 15 or more the price is $8. There are 1-2 hour guided tours.
The Place to Be in Washington, DC. --Old B-Runner
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