Abraham Lincoln's Birthday – Feb. 12, 1926

One hundred years ago today on Feb. 12, 1926, the Lorain Journal commemorated the birthday of President Abraham Lincoln on its front page (above), juxtaposing the cabin in which he was born with the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D. C.

The caption notes, "Down in Kentucky, in a distant, secluded district of the rolling foothills, there stands a rude, primitive log cabin. It is a desolate little building, almost a hovel; and yet it is one of the greatest buildings in the world.

"In Washington, fronting a wide, placid pool of water, rises a building which is everything the log cabin is not. It is spacious, stately, beautiful, built of marble to endure for centuries. And it was raised to honor the memory of the man who born in the squalid cabin.

"The log cabin was Abraham Lincoln's birthplace; the building at Washington is the Lincoln Memorial most beautiful of all the capital's monuments." 

The cabin in which Lincoln was born is the subject of many postcards. The earliest show the cabin outdoors; later versions show it indoors at its location in the Memorial Building at the Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Park in Hodgenville, Kentucky.

Here's an ample sample of postcards depicting the cabin. They're not necessarily in order; a few include the postmarked date found on eBay samples or close equivalents.

1941

1942

1945

1956 & 1958

It's odd how the proportions of the cabin (or the angle at which it was photographed) changed in the more recent photos.

Later research revealed that the cabin is not really the actual birth cabin but a reconstruction of sorts. But the "Symbolic Birth Cabin" accurately depicts the kind of structure that the Great Emancipator was born in.

Lincoln's Birthday Edition of the Lorain Journal – Feb. 12, 1925

We'll wrap up LincolnFest® 2025 with a vintage front page of the Lorain Journal commemorating his birthday. Below you see the February 12, 1925 edition – a hundred years ago today.

There's a nice editorial about Lincoln's hardscrabble life, and how hard work led to the fulfillment of his dreams. Accompanying the editorial is Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. It's a fitting tribute to a man that many consider our greatest president.

Elsewhere on the front page from a century ago are many items of interest, including: the announcement that roadside courts in Lorain County (of the speed trap variety with the goal of increasing revenue for a village) were going to be investigated by County Prosecutor D. A. Baird; famed inventor Thomas A. Edison reveals his sleep habits; a tragic mine explosion in Dortmund, Germany results in the death of 131 miners; an update on Floyd Collins, trapped in Sand Cave in Kentucky; a "blue-eyed, golden-haired baby girl" was abandoned on a doorstep in Wellington; and four vagrants are ordered to leave Lorain after they were caught soliciting money from pedestrians on Broadway.

They Saw Lincoln Too

Over the last 15 years, I've done a lot of blog posts on President Abraham Lincoln with a Lorain County connection. 

On this post, we met a Wellington man who owned an 1860 Presidential Campaign Medal from Lincoln's bid for the highest office in the land; and this post featured a Lorainite who compiled a reference book of Lincoln's speeches, letters and papers. And yesterday's post was about a Lorain woman with a land grant document that Lincoln signed that she was putting up for sale.

But more importantly, we also met folks who saw Lincoln – both alive and in death. This post explained how Mrs. Margaret Harvey of Lorain saw him twice – once when Lincoln was passing through Cleveland on the way to his inauguration, and again in that city after his assassination, when he was lying in state on Public Square. And this post included more reminisces by Mrs. Harvey, as well as the story of John J. Gregory, an Amherst man who saw Lincoln speak in Columbus during his campaign for re-election. 

Well, you can add a few more Lorain Countians to this list of those who saw the Great Emancipator.

Here's the first one. The article below, which ran in the Lorain Journal on February 13, 1929, under the heading, "News of Lorain-co and the Vicinity," tells of Arthur E. Smith, a Wellington man who, like Mrs. Harvey, also saw the President on the way to his inauguration.

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SAW LINCOLN

Arthur E. Smith, one of Wellington's life-long citizens, is one of the few Lorain-co people who saw Abraham Lincoln.

It will be exactly 68 years ago this Friday that old Dr. Smith, honored and respected family physician, took his son, then aged 7 years, to the Union depot, Cleveland, to see Abraham Lincoln, en route to his inauguration at Washington.

Smith can plainly remember how his Dad perched him upon his shoulder as the train came in from the west, and how his father told him to "watch for the tall man as he came from the train."

Smith was very deeply impressed when he saw Lincoln as he was greeted by the reception committee.

When asked how Lincoln looked, Smith replied, "Just like this pictures."

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This next story has an interesting angle. It ran in the "As Is" column written by Carrie Lee MacPherson and appeared in the Lorain Journal on July 11, 1929. It's about Grandma Snyder of 1319 Sixth Street, and her thoughts as to whether or not Abraham Lincoln and his wife got along. Grandma Snyder sets the record straight with her own eyewitness account.

It's kind of cute and nice that Grandma Snyder took the opportunity to do her best to rebut the kind of unscrupulous gossip about Lincoln that was taking place at that time, and still goes on today.

Lorain Woman Owned a Land Grant Signed by Lincoln – 1929

President Abraham Lincoln's real birthday – February 12th – is only a few days away, so it's a good time to post this. It's the story of a Lorain woman who owned a small piece of history related to our beloved, martyred President: a Land Grant document that he signed shortly after taking office.

Below is the account that ran in the Lorain Times-Herald on March 19, 1929. (Sorry, I don't have the continuation on page 2.)

It notes, "An original land grant signed by Abraham Lincoln and deeding 80 acres of land in Springfield, Ill. is being offered for sale by Mrs. Irene White of Nichols-av.

"Henry Ford to further stock his Dearborn museum with relics of early American days has asked Mrs. White to set a price on the parchment. Pending the sale of the document to the auto magnate, Mrs. White is awaiting word from Washington telling of the real value of the precious "bit of paper."

"Dated April 2, 1861 the land grant is 68 years next month, according to Mrs. White.

"The deed has been in our family for many years," she states. "It has been one of our treasures and now we must sell it."

But why did she need to sell it? The story from the Lorain Journal from the same day provides the touching answer.

The Journal's account notes, "Henry Ford is negotiating for the purchase of a document signed in two places by Abraham Lincoln, which is in the possession of Mrs. Charles White, Nichols-av, city.

"The paper is a deed to 80 acres of land in Springfield, Ill. and was given to Mrs. White by her grandmother, Mrs. Edward Shepherd, Akron, to sell when she was attracted to a story of Ford's collection of Lincoln's effects.

"Mrs. Shepherd, now past 80, has an object in selling the document. Her husband is buried in Litchfield and Mrs. Shepherd would take the proceeds to purchase lot in a Lorain cemetery. She wants to have her husband brought here for burial and, when her time comes, wants to be buried next to him."

I couldn't find a follow-up story on the sale of the document to see if Mrs. Shepherd's wishes came true.

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If she did sell the land grand document to Henry Ford, I hope Mrs. Shepherd received a good price.

A land grant document also signed by President Lincoln went up for sale on the RR Auction website. It noted, "RR Auction makes history selling history. As a globally recognized source for rare documents, manuscripts, autographs, and historic artifacts, RR has hosted over 600 sales since its inception in 1976. Specialties include presidential autographs, music memorabilia, space artifacts, science and technology hardware, sports cards, and Hollywood costumes. 

"Our current Fine Autographs and Artifacts auction (Jan. 19 – Feb. 7) includes a featured section relating to US Presidents. There are many unique and rare documents, but here is one stand-out: A land grant signed by President Abraham Lincoln.

"The item (Lot 53) is considered “excessively rare” and was signed by President Lincoln on Jan. 2, 1863 – the very day after signing the Emancipation Proclamation into law, ending slavery in the United States. 

 "The rather mundane presidential practice of signing land grants was discontinued in 1833 during Andrew Jackson’s second term, when Congress passed a law authorizing the president to appoint a special secretary to sign them on his behalf. It is therefore incredibly rare to find an authentically signed land grant after that.

"Indeed, this is the only Lincoln-signed land grant we have ever encountered, and our research suggests that no other authentically signed example has appeared at auction. The vast majority of land grants issued during the Lincoln administration were signed by William O. Stoddard, who was specifically appointed for the task on July 15, 1861.

"This Item Sold At Auction For $15,496."

Lorainite Authors Book on Lincoln – Feb. 1950

Today is President Abraham Lincoln’s birthday. Although it’s not a national holiday (since it is lumped in with Presidents’ Day), Lincoln’s birthday is still a legal holiday in a few states.

I’ve done several posts over the years honoring the Great Emancipator.

Back in 2017, there was a post about a Wellington man who in 1952 had an original Lincoln campaign medal. I also wrote about the Lorain woman who saw Lincoln twice, who, along with an Amherst man, was also the subject of a post entitled ‘They Both Saw Lincoln.’

Well today’s post is not about Honest Abe spotting. It’s about Archer H. Shaw, a native of Lorain County who edited and compiled a reference book of Lincoln’s speeches, letters and papers entitled, The Lincoln Encyclopedia.

Here's the article (below) announcing the impending publication of the book. It appeared on the front page of the Lorain Journal on February 6, 1950.

Archer Shaw circa 1956

As the article notes, Shaw was born in North Ridgeville and attended Elyria High School. He began his distinguished newspaper career with the Lorain Herald. 

At the time of his book’s publication, Shaw was a nationally known editorial writer with the Plain Dealer, having been with the newspaper for more than 40 years.

Mr. Archer’s motive for compiling the book was explained in the Journal article. In Shaw’s own words:  “It grew out of a newspaper editorial writer’s frequent desire, in pursuit of his own work, to consult the opinions of America’s great spokesman for Democracy.” 

Consequently, Shaw felt it was his duty to publish the book as a resource that he wished had been available to him.

Today, anyone can have a book printed (and call themselves an author) if they’re willing to pay the price. In Mr. Shaw’s case, it’s nice to read about someone who did it with a noble intent: to collect all of Lincoln’s words in one place.

Wellington Man’s Lincoln Medal – Feb. 12, 1952

From Lorain Journal of Feb. 12, 1952

Well, yesterday was Abraham Lincoln’s Birthday, so it’s a good time for this post. It’s about a Wellington man with a special keepsake: an original medal struck in 1860 to commemorate Abraham Lincoln’s campaign for the Presidency.

You can read all about it in the article below, which ran in the Lorain Journal on February 12, 1952.

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C.D. Battles Holds Gift of 1860 From His Grandfather
Wellingtonite Proud of Lincoln Campaign Medal

WELLINGTON – Abraham Lincoln, the subject of so many controversies while he was in office as the President of the United States, set such an example for those who followed him that today anything related to him is regarded as virtually priceless.

Among the many material objects concerning Lincoln which today brings a fancy price on the market are the original campaign medals struck in 1860 when the lanky Lincoln was first seeking the highest office in the land.

Just such a medal is owned by Clyde D. Battles of Wellington, whose photographs accompany this article. Battles has one of the very few medals from Lincoln’s initial bid for public office.

He received this prized object from his grandfather, the late Peter Dagnan, who wore the medal on a piece of black ribbon when he was just a child. Other medals of a similar nature were cast in 1864 after Lincoln had proved his leadership but Battles owns one of the original 1860 models.

On the front of the medal is a bust of Lincoln, showing his features,  as being more even and regular than usually pictured in present day art. He seems to have a studious look and his nose is smaller than usually portrayed.

Also on the front are the words, “Hon. Abraham Lincoln” and the date 1860, along with the name of the designer of the medal, a man named Ellis.

On the back side are the words “The Rail Splitter of the West” and a picture of a man with the axe poised, ready to strike at a log, as another man sits and watches. In the background is a log cabin, similar to the one in which Lincoln was born in Kentucky.

The medal owned by Battles is a bronze piece, about one inch in diameter. Through the top is drilled a hole, placed there so Battles’ grandfather could carry it on a piece of tape or string so it wouldn’t be lost. Peter Dagnan proudly wore the medal through Lincoln’s first campaign.

In 1864, when the second issue of medals was struck, every parade backing Lincoln had a wagon full of men engaged in rail splitting, the strong point in Lincoln’s campaign – the fact that he was a common man and knew the common man’s problems.

Battles, who won’t even estimate the value of his Lincoln medal, keeps it with his coin collection, fearful of losing this bit of American history.

Battles’ grandfather, although he wore the medal with pride as a youngster, never got to see the noted President. The closest he ever came to that was when Lincoln’s body passed through Wellington after his assassination.

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Here’s a photo of the back of one of the 1860 Lincoln campaign medals, courtesy of pinterest.

And here is the link to a blog that is focused entirely on one person’s collection of these types of medals. The blog – “19th Century Presidential Campaign Tokens/Medals” – even has a great photo of an 1860 Lincoln medal (below). The blog also has some information about it, including the identity of the man watching Lincoln split the rail.

Courtesy prestokens.blogspot.com

Gettysburg Address Anniversary

Here's an interesting article that appeared in the Lorain Journal on November 16, 1963 – a few days short of the 100th anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln delivering the Gettysburg Address.

It's a well-written article and perfectly suited for today, November 19, 2013 – the 150th anniversary of the event.

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Gettysburg Address: Classic Reaches Century Mark Nov. 19
Few in 15,000 Crowd Recognized Greatness of Address At Time President Lincoln Spoke

(Reprinted from the Nov. 9 issue, Buffalo Evening News)

At Gettysburg, Pa., near mid-afternoon of Nov. 19, 1863, an estimated 15,000 Americans heard – or saw – the President of the United States as he spoke ten sentences dedicating a soldiers' cemetery.

Since Abraham Lincoln's voice carried well, and his habit – in a pre-microphone era – was to say important things slowly, most of those present probably heard him.

Whether they grasped what he said, or realized that they had heard one of history's most thoroughly prepared addresses, was quite another matter.

That many, if any, expecting a long speech may be doubted. The printed program stipulated plainly that the President was to make "Dedicatory Remarks."

Edward Everett, Massachusetts statesman and former president of Harvard, had just spoken ably for two hours. Long before the event, it had been known that he, not Lincoln, was the orator of the day.

That any appreciable number wished for more than a few remarks taxes credulity. Most of the listeners were both tired and hungry. They had stood for hours, missing their noon meal.

The procession from town had been late, and then the crowd had waited until Everett returned tardily from a tour of the battlefield that was the scene of – and the reason for – the dedication.

As it was, the program did not end till after 2:30 p. m.

Even so, the President's actual brevity – popular though it was sure to be – took many by surprise.

The only photographer who might have taken a picture of Lincoln delivering the Gettysburg Address was still going through the old tripod - and - shawl routine when the former Rail-Splitter sat down.

Surprised or not, the circumstances impose a heavy burden of proof upon all persons – whether in the crowd or on the platform – who later said that they or others were disappointed, or critical, because the President's remarks required no more than three minutes instead of ten, or whatever had been expected.

What John Hay, the junior of Lincoln's two private secretaries, put in his diary next day cannot be overlooked, He wrote:

"...Mr. Everett spoke he always does, perfectly – and the President, in a fine, free way, with more grace than is his wont, said his half-dozen words of consecration, and the music wailed, and we went home through crowded and cheering streets."

Obviously, young Hay did not think that Lincoln had failed in any sense of the word.

Neither did he – a Brown University class poet with a still unsatisfied yearning for letters – show the slightest  awareness of having heard a masterpiece.

If he did not, what then was to be expected of the burghers of Gettysburg and their wives, or of the equally weary and famished politicians, clerks, military men, diplomats and others who, as the Pennsylvania Dutch phrase went, had come "from off."

Only later – much later – did most of those who were there begin to remember things, and they contradicted each other on nearly every detail.

There was "a hurricane of applause," for instance, or there was "no applause whatsoever," or there was just a dignified "ripple." So the testimony ran, all, of course, from witnesses of unimpeachable veracity.

Lincoln's speech was not casual; not dashed off on the back of an old envelope. There was nothing impromptu about it.

It was a speech that had grown within him, one that he was determined to make – and one that he painstakingly edited through five extant manuscript versions, two before, three after he spoke, and all slightly different from each other and what was taken down and sent over the wires.

On the evening of July 7, 1863, Lincoln had been serenaded at the White House. Word had come of Vicksburg's surrender to Gen. Grant on July 4.

Responding extemporaneously, the President warmed to a theme.

"How long ago was it? 80 odd years – since on the Fourth of July for the first time in the history of the world a nation by its representatives, as assembled and declared as a self-evident truth that "all men are created equal."

"That was the birthday of the United States of America."

Without naming them, Lincoln then interpreted both Vicksburg and Gettysburg as defeats for opponents of "the principle that all men are created equal."

Prophetically, he announced amid cheers:

"Gentlemen, this is a glorious theme, and the occasion for a speech, but I am not prepared to make one worthy of the occasion."

Clearly, he was working toward – living his way into – a text beginning:"Fourscore and seven years ago..."

Whatever else he was or was not when spoke at Gettysburg on November 19, he was prepared.

At first, he had not even figured in the cemetery commission's plans for the dedication. He received merely a formal invitation – printed and impersonal. He was invited to make his remarks only after he had let it be known that he intended to be there.

Actually, he had been living with his "glorious theme" long before the Fourth of July made memorable by Gettysburg and Vicksburg.

Some of the central ideas had shaped themselves in the mind of a young frontierman who became a prairie lawyer, who would say as Lincoln had, quite forthrightly in New Haven in 1860.

Vaughn Shoemaker political cartoon
that appeared with this article in the Journal

"I am not ashamed to confess that 25 years ago I was a hired laborer mauling rails, at work on a flat-boat – just what might happen to any poor man's son. I want every man to have the chance – and I believe the black man is entitled to it – in which he can better his condition..."

With the ten sentences of Nov. 19 the resolute foe of slavery, the Lincoln agonizing for mankind, revealed himself as he wished posterity to remember him. It was a Lincoln who had been masked at times by Lincoln the politician and Lincoln the statesman.

But it was not a new Lincoln, for his collected private and public writings show that he had been through the years a protagonist of amazing consistency – biding his time.

Ten sentences. With them, he dedicated a cemetery. He also redefined the war's purpose, dedicating himself and his countrymen to an unfinished task.

Above and beyond that, he rededicated a nation to "a proposition" that Jefferson, the Adamses, Franklin, the Lees – and all the other signers of the Declaration of Independence – had accepted as "self-evident."

They Both Saw Lincoln

The 1959 Lorain Journal article yesterday about the Lorain woman who had seen the Great Emancipator mentioned a newspaper interview with her that took place in 1930. Naturally, I decided to hit the library microfilm to find it.

I guessed correctly that the article with the interview appeared in the newspaper around Lincoln's birthday that year. And – believe it or not – next to the article about the Lorain woman on the front page was an article about an Amherst man who also saw Lincoln.

Both articles (below) from the February 11, 1930 Lorain Times-Herald appeared under the heading "They Saw Lincoln, in Life and in Death."


Lorain Woman Helped Drape Funeral Train in Cleveland
By CHESTER L. KIEFFER

MRS. MARGARET HARVEY, 78, 1152 6th-st. is one of the few remaining persons who has personal recollections of the Abraham Lincoln whose 131st birthday anniversary will be observed tomorrow.

Mrs. Harvey saw Lincoln twice in Cleveland, once when he was enroute to Washington to be inaugurated president, and then again after he had been killed, when they brought his body to Cleveland to rest in state in the Public Square before taking it to Springfield, Ill., for burial.

On the latter occasion her father, William Simmons, a railway engineer, drove the train that carried the martyred president's body from the Cleveland union depot to the Euclid-av station, and the Lorain woman, then a 13-year-old girl living in Cleveland, helped to drape the mourning on old engine No. 40, she recalls vividly.

"Mother and I spend much of the time the day before making rosettes," she said, "for father's engine."

She was a girl of nine when Lincoln stopped in Cleveland enroute to Washington late in February, 1861, to be inaugurated president.

"They let us out of school for the occasion. I thought I had never seen such a tall man," she said. "The thing that stands out in my mind is how he reached down, right after he had gotten in his carriage behind large white horses, picked up a small child, kissed her and then gave her back to her mother. He smiled as he did this, but his face seemed quite sad when he wasn't smiling."

When they brought the Great Emancipator's body to Cleveland April 28, 1865, and set it on a platform on the Public Square, she was one of the thousands who filed past his casket.

"It was raining quietly, just as tho the skies were weeping for him," she said.

Mrs. Harvey is the mother of Dr. W. S. Baldwin, Lorain physician, Mrs. Walter Mahia and Mrs. Nellie Albaugh. Her nephew, Bruce Baldwin, was born on Lincoln's birthday anniversary and will be 17 years old tomorrow. She has a sister, Mrs. George Horsley, in Lorain.

Mrs. Harvey was past 50 when she moved to Lorain. Lowell H. Eddy, Lorain, who once carried another president, William B. McKinley, was once fireman for Mrs. Harvey's father.

Amherst Man Recalls Columbus Speech of Martyred President
By BLANCHE M. JENNE

AMHERST, Feb. 11 – Not many Amherstites have had the distinction of having seen Abraham Lincoln personally but there remains one, John J. Gregory, 78, of 193 Lincoln-st. who, when a small lad of 12 years remembers the visit of the Great Emancipator to Columbus, O.

"This visit, if I recall correctly, was when he came to the capital city campaigning for the presidency for the second election," he said. At that time Gregory was living in Columbus.

"I was a small lad and when we boys heard that he was going to make a visit there we were on hand to see the man we had heard so much about. In those days, boys were seen and not heard, so we had to satisfy our curiosity by seeing him walking along the sidewalk on High-st between Broad and State-sts.

"There was no great fuss made over him, no big parade, no band – just two body guards walking along, one on each side of Lincoln. He wore a stove pipe hat and was so tall – sort of gangling looking man."

In later years Gregory says he has regretted many times that he did not take more interest in Lincoln that day.

He went on to say that he had seen President Grant and President Hayes and that they were both better looking than Lincoln – but – he was good, tho not good looking. All the folks in Columbus and the countryside around he remembers, mourned when they learned of the martyred president's death.

Gregory told me that he migrated with his parents when a child of three years to Columbus from New York state and spent nearly a quarter of a century there. He remembers many of the folks of Monroeville, O., for he lived there around a half century.

This Gregory who saw Lincoln lives with his only daughter Mrs. John Fritz. Their home is in Lincoln-st., incidentally. For about three years he has made his home in "The Sandstone Center of the World" going occasionally to visit his sister and son who reside in Detroit and also to Monroeville to chat with old friends.

It was Gregory's granddaughter Miss Algegert Fritz, who brought this story to light. She told me the other day "Grandpa saw Lincoln."

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Thinking about all this, I remembered that while I was a student at Ohio State both President Carter and Governor Ronald Reagan were campaigning in Columbus on the same day in May 1980. I remember my buddies and I made it out to Port Columbus to see Air Force One land, but then went to the Reagan campaign rally in Downtown Columbus.

Gee, if I live long enough maybe I can be "The Guy That Saw a President and a Future President the Same Day!"

The Woman Who Saw Lincoln Twice

Here's an interesting article that appeared in the February 12, 1959 Lorain Journal on the 150th anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln's birth. It was written by Jean Weaver and tells the story of a Lorain woman whose mother saw Lincoln twice during her lifetime.

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Lorainite Recalls Stories Mother Told About Lincoln
By JEAN WEAVER

Stories her mother used to tell her about having seen Abraham Lincoln were recalled by Mrs. Nellie Albaugh today as the nation observed the 150th anniversary of the birth of the Great Emancipator.

Mrs. Margaret Harvey, the mother of Mrs. Albaugh and grandmother of Mrs James C. Hageman, 305 Michigan Ave., saw Lincoln twice when he passed through Cleveland where she lived as a child.

Mrs. Harvey, who died Jan. 21, 1942, was a girl of nine the first time she saw the 16th president of the United States.

"That was when Lincoln stopped in Cleveland enroute to Washington for his inauguration in February 1861," Mrs. Albaugh said.

1915 postcard of President Lincoln lying in state in Cleveland in 1865
(Courtesy Cleveland Memory Project website)

The second time was four years later, after Lincoln's assassination. The body of the Civil War president was brought to Cleveland and lay in state on Public Square before it was taken on to Springfield, Ill. for burial.

Mrs. Albaugh's grandfather, William Simmons, was a railway engineer and ran the engine which pulled the train carrying Lincoln's body from the Cleveland Union Depot to the Euclid Ave. station.

"I remember mother telling about how she helped drape Engine 40 and how she spent most of the day before making rosettes which were put on the engine," Mrs. Albaugh recalled.

"At one time we had the oval framed picture of Lincoln which they put on the front of the engine over the headlight."

A newspaper account of an interview with Mrs. Harvey in 1930 relates Mrs. Harvey's recollection of the sadness of an entire community as the body of Lincoln rested in state in Cleveland Public Square April 28, 1865.

"It was raining quietly – as though the skies were weeping for him," Mrs. Harvey said at that time.

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According to the above article, Margaret Harvey, the woman who had seen Lincoln twice, passed away on Jan. 21, 1942. So it was easy to head back to the microfilm and see if her obituary was in the newspaper that week. I was curious; was her Lincoln connection important enough to mention in her obituary?

It was indeed. Here is her obituary (below) as it appeared on Jan. 23, 1942 in the Lorain Journal.

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SHE SAW LINCOLN, DIES HERE AT 90

Mrs. Margaret Harvey 

Mother of Doctor

Mrs. Margaret Harvey, 90, who saw Abraham Lincoln as he passed thru Cleveland on his way to the inauguration at Washington, D.C., died yesterday at the home of her son, Dr. W. S. Baldwin, 1153 6th-st.

Mrs. Harvey, a resident of Lorain for 39 years, formerly lived in Cleveland. Her father, William Simmons, was engineer on the train that took Lincoln to Washington for the inauguration ceremony. After Lincoln's assassination, she viewed the body as it lay in state in Cleveland.

The Lorain woman was a member of the First Methodist church here.

Survivors besides the son, at whose home she died, include two daughters, Mrs. Nellie Albaugh, Lorain, and Mrs. Walter Mahla, McKeesport, Pa.: six grandchildren and five great grandchildren.

Funeral services will be at 1 p.m. tomorrow at the Baldwin residence. Rev. A. I. Cox, pastor of the First Methodist church, will officiate and burial will be in Woodland cemetery, Cleveland, under the direction of Sidney B. Royce.

Are you in there, Honest Abe?

Just in time for Presidents' Day...

Here's an interesting article that ran on the front page of the February 12, 1935 Lorain Journal. (Click on it for a super-sized version you can read.) 

It's the story of a tinsmith named Charles L. Willey, who had the grisly task of cutting open President Lincoln's casket in 1901 to see if he was in there or not. According to his eyewitness account in the 1935 article, Willey was the last man to look upon Lincoln's face.

Believe it or not, Willey had performed this same duty before in 1887, when rumors that Lincoln's body had been stolen necessitated the opening of the coffin

I had heard about this when I was a kid, but never knew the whole story. And here's a link to an even more detailed (and gruesome) account that ran in Yankee magazine. It turns out that Lincoln's body was moved ten different times.

Kind of reminds me of one of my favorite Alfred Hitchcock movies: The Trouble With Harry.

Thankfully, according to the Yankee magazine article, there have been no further concerns necessitating the unearthing of Lincoln's casket. The beloved, martyred president's body has been undisturbed to this day.