Lincoln’s Legacy: Historic Americana from the Life of Abraham Lincoln

1 p., on small oblong card; 2 x 3 1/2 in. (51 x 89 mm); heavily toned; light soiling.

Lincoln writes in full: "Shoe Tad's horse for him. A. Lincoln April 7, 1864". In an elaborate red morocco folding case, with a photograph of President Lincoln and Tad by Anthony Berger (Ostendorf O-93).

Basler indicates that this note was originally accompanied by a newspaper clipping identifying the owner as Captain J.E. Allen. Although that newspaper clipping is no longer present, it appears that it was from the Harrisburg Daily Independent, dated Tuesday, 26 January 1909. Headlined "Shoe Tad's Horse For Him--A. Lincoln," the front-page article describes how the note from Lincoln descended to Harrisburg resident Charles Allen from his father, Captain John Edward Allen (1825-1894) who "was stationed in Washington at the close of the Civil War, connected with the Quartermaster's Department, having charge of government repair work and the farriery department." The article continues with an anecdote relayed by Captain Allen, in which Thomas "Tad" Lincoln came to see him asking for his pony to be shod, and Allen requested that Tad return with an order from President Lincoln making the request. The article closes stating that "The old card with the request that Captain Allen shoe Tad's horse has grown faded with age, but Lincoln's request and signature in the President's handwriting are as legible as the day they were written." Basler First Supplement, p. 235.

[With:] TOMPKINS, Charles H. (1830-1915). Partially engraved document, signed ("Chas. H. Tompkins"), as Brevet Brigadier General, U.S. Army, attesting to Allen's rank. Washington, D.C., 29 March 1867. 1 p.; accomplished in manuscript, on Letterhead "Chief Quartermaster's Office, Depot of Washington." Tompkins certifies that "J.E. Allen was employed by me as Superintendent of Repair Shops from February 1862 until June 1866 and that he was enrolled in the Quartermasters Volunteers in the month of June 1864...and served until the month of November 1864..."  

Biographical data recorded by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Archives also validates Allen's service in the Quartermaster's Department. Allen served as a state representative from Dauphin and Perry Counties, and is identified in his online biography as having served as "superintendent, repair shops and farriery, Quartermaster Department, Washington, DC, United States Army (1861-65, Civil War)."

[With:] BERGER, Anthony, photographer. Oval albumen portrait of Abraham Lincoln and his son Tad, taken at Brady's Gallery, Washington, DC, 9 February 1864; published 1864. 7 1/4 x 5 1/4 in., not including mount (rich tonality, toning, occasional soiling throughout). A celebrated image of Lincoln and Tad studying a Brady photo album (Ostendorf, O-93). Rare in this larger format.

On the evening of 10 February 1864, fire engulfed the White House stables, which were located just east of the Executive Mansion. The conflagration destroyed the stable building and most of its contents, most notably four horses that belonged to the Lincoln family, one of which had originally belonged to the President's deceased son Willie Lincoln. Eyewitness reports describe a distraught President Lincoln and tearful Tad, who mourned not only the loss of their animals but also grieved the loss of a pony that was one of the last connections to their beloved Willie. Lincoln's note to Captain Allen, written approximately two months after the fire, indicates that the family had replaced Tad's cherished pony, and that, as was his inclination, Lincoln made every effort to indulge Tad's wishes.

Provenance:

Louise Taper, Beverly Hills, California

Exhibition:

The Last Best Hope of Earth: Abraham Lincoln and the Promise of America, at the Huntington Library, October 1993-August 1994