New Developments for “Remembering Lincoln”
We’re getting pinned! This week we’ve had two new developments that I’d like to share with you about the Remembering Lincoln project.
Last week, we launched our HistoryPin project site; this week, Laura Goetz of Stevens Point, Wisconsin, pinned some fascinating objects to our page. Laura saw the HistoryPin project on our Facebook timeline, and immediately remembered a display case in the Portage County Courthouse, where she often works as a mediator. The display case contains items related to the Lincoln assassination, including:
The sash worn by Wisconsin soldier W.H. Noble when he served in the honor guard on Lincoln’s funeral train. Noble’s Medal of Honor, which he received from serving in the honor guard. Noble’s sword and uniform. A piece of the fringe from Lincoln’s casket. Small fragments of the rope and the gallows from the hanging of the assassination conspirators.
So, Laura went to the courthouse, took some photos, and started uploading to HistoryPin! After we emailed with each other, she went to talk with the Clerk of Courts, who was thrilled that the items in the display case would be part of a national project. We’re now working with them on including these items in the Remembering Lincoln digital collection.
Meanwhile, our Google Alerts directed us to an article about plans to recreate Lincoln’s funeral in Springfield, Illinois. The article mentions how the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum and its Papers of Abraham Lincoln project (of which Dr. Daniel W. Stowell, one of our advisors on Remembering Lincoln, is the editor) is digitizing a Springfield City Council resolution that set aside $20,000 to defray the cost of Lincoln’s funeral there.
Even more exciting, they are kind enough to share a copy for Remembering Lincoln. We’re extremely excited about this new addition to our digital collection!
Keep checking back on HistoryPin as these and other items are uploaded.
David McKenzie is Digital Projects Manager at Ford’s Theatre, coordinating the Remembering Lincoln digital collection. He is also a part-time History Ph.D. student at George Mason University, studying 19th-century U.S. and Latin American history, as well as digital history.
