19 February 2008

Historic Lincoln Cottage Sheds Light on Civil War Presidency

Restored residence will host public tours and scholarly seminars

 

President Lincoln’s Cottage was a favorite retreat for Lincoln during the U.S. Civil War. (President Lincoln’s Cottage)

President Lincoln’s Cottage was a favorite retreat for Lincoln during the U.S. Civil War. (President Lincoln’s Cottage)

By Lauren Monsen
Staff Writer

Washington -- A Victorian-era house that served as a refuge from the bustle of White House life for President Abraham Lincoln and his family now offers an intimate look at the presidency of a man whose leadership during the U.S. Civil War (1861-1865) helped keep his nation intact.

President Lincoln’s Cottage, situated on the 112-hectare compound of the federally owned Soldiers’ Home in Washington, opened to the public on February 19 following an eight-year restoration project.

During Lincoln’s presidency, the cottage afforded a measure of privacy -- much like today’s presidential retreat at Camp David in Maryland -- and because of its elevated, breeze-swept location, some relief from the city’s summer heat and humidity.  From June to November during the years 1862 to 1864, Lincoln and his family lived at the cottage, and the president commuted to the White House almost every day.  He initially traveled alone, on horseback or by carriage, but was forced to accept an escort of armed Union soldiers after he was stalked by Confederate sympathizers.

While at the cottage, Lincoln rendered some of his most critical decisions about the course of the war and the direction of U.S. democracy; chief among these was the Emancipation Proclamation, which began to dismantle slavery in 1863. (The institution of slavery formally was abolished by the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in December 1865.)

When officials from the National Trust for Historic Preservation first assessed the cottage, they discovered that it was “structurally in pretty good shape,” said Frank Milligan, the site director.  The cottage had been occupied continuously, which prevented it from falling into complete disrepair.  “Additional support was needed in the basement, but architecturally, it was sound,” Milligan recalled.  Funding for the $14 million restoration, which started in 2000, included $4.5 million from the U.S. Congress plus contributions from private donors.

 

A detail from a mural near President Lincoln’s Cottage depicts the Lincoln family. (President Lincoln’s Cottage)

A detail from a mural near President Lincoln’s Cottage depicts the Lincoln family. (President Lincoln’s Cottage)

The cottage is fitted with electric light fixtures designed to resemble the original gaslight fixtures of the 1860s, and modern wiring and plumbing have been installed. The pine wood floors have been repaired and refinished, and furniture includes both restored antiques and period reproductions.

Episodes from Lincoln’s final years are dramatized with the help of modern technology.  For example, at the nearby visitors center, a meeting between Lincoln and his Cabinet secretaries is reproduced through an audio soundtrack of actors’ voices piped into a conference room.  The men are debating war strategy and other issues of the day.  Similar audio experiences will be available at the cottage, which was the site of many well-documented conversations between Lincoln and his inner circle.

Milligan recounted one episode that illustrates Lincoln’s capacity for empathy.  Thomas Scott, a Union colonel who had been wounded in combat, came to see Lincoln at the cottage, Milligan said.  Scott had learned that his wife, who was traveling downriver from New Hampshire to visit him, had drowned in an accident en route.  “He asked Lincoln for help in recovering his wife’s body,” said Milligan.  Lincoln, battered by fatigue and strain, responded “in an uncharacteristically irate fashion,” and turned away.  The following day, however, a remorseful Lincoln tracked Scott down, apologized “for being a brute” and did everything in his power to assist the widower.  “Lincoln personally escorted Scott to the Navy Yard, and provided a mortician, casket, and Navy guard” to help retrieve Mrs. Scott’s remains, said Milligan.

That story, and many others, will be presented to visitors who tour the cottage, Milligan added.  Displays at the cottage also will examine the evolution of Lincoln’s thoughts on freedom, slavery, emancipation and the nature of democracy.  To reinforce these themes, quotations from Lincoln’s speeches and writings have been stenciled above the fireplace mantels throughout the cottage.

When visitors arrive for guided tours, they will see a Gothic Revival-style house with a peaked roofline, fronted by a porch overlooking a rolling lawn that was once a presidential parade ground.  A small bandstand pavilion sits nearby, reinforcing the 19th-century ambience.  The interior of the cottage summons the past even more powerfully, and it is there that Lincoln is most vividly evoked.

Lincoln’s enduring legacy, and his stature as one of the greatest U.S. presidents, rests on “his commitment to democracy and equality of opportunity, which were firmly grounded in the U.S. Constitution,” said Milligan.  “We hope visitors to the cottage will come away with a clearer understanding of the aspects of Lincoln’s leadership that shaped his decision making.  He was a man who redefined American democracy in a time of national strife, and he reminded Americans -- both North and South -- of core American values.”

For more information about President Lincoln’s Cottage, and to make online reservations for a tour, visit the landmark’s official Web site.