| Date | March 4, 1861 |
|---|---|
| Location | Washington, D.C. |
Background edit
Context edit
Abraham Lincoln received 180 electoral votes and about 40-percent of the popular vote in the United States presidential election, 1860, with the majority of the popular vote split among three anti-abolition candidates.[1]
Lincoln's victory prompted a strong and negative reaction from the governments of a number of states in the American South. On November 9, 1860, three days after the election, the South Carolina General Assembly enacted a "Resolution to Call the Election of Abraham Lincoln as U.S. President a Hostile Act" and, on Christmas Eve of that year, it declared independence from the United States. Six days later, in advance of the arrival of South Carolinian troops, U.S. Army forces in South Carolina quit their mainland encampments to withdraw to fortified positions on the island citadel of Fort Sumter.
The national situation continued to unravel as inauguration day approached. By March 4, six more states had declared independence from the United States and a convention was underway in XXX to unite the secessionist states into the Confederate States of America. President James Buchanan attempted to negotiate an end to the worsening crisis to no avail.[2]
Travel edit
An entourage of family and friends left Springfield, Illinois with Lincoln on February 11 to travel by train to Washington, D.C. for the inauguration. This group including his wife, three sons, and brother-in-law, as well as John G. Nicolay, John M. Hay, Ward Hill Lamon, David Davis, Norman B. Judd, and Edwin Vose Sumner.[3]
For the next ten days, he traveled widely throughout the country, with stops in Indianapolis, Columbus, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Buffalo, Albany, New York City, and south to Philadelphia, where on the afternoon of February 21, he pulled into Kensington Station. Lincoln took an open carriage to the Continental Hotel, with almost 100,000 spectators waiting to catch a glimpse of the President-elect. There he met Mayor Alexander Henry, and delivered some remarks to the crowd outside from a hotel balcony.[3] Lincoln continued on to Harrisburg.
In Washington, the Lincoln family stayed at the Willard Hotel.
Oath of office edit
Inaugural ball edit
For the inaugural ball, Mary Todd Lincoln wore a matching set of pearl necklace, earrings, bracelet, and brooch, purchased for the occasion from Tiffany & Co. for $530.[a][4]
Security edit
Lincoln was due to arrive in Washington, D.C. in early March 1861 in advance of his February 6 inauguration and preparations for his travel became a matter of national security. More than 130 threats against Lincoln's life had been intercepted by the Army and there were persistent rumors that a conspiracy was underway by which unknown forces would attempt a seize control of the government prior to the inauguration. United States Army General Winfield Scott was tasked by the outgoing president, James Buchanan, with ensuring Lincoln's safety. Lincoln traveled with a contingent of three armed men and, prior to his arrival in Baltimore, Maryland, where he would transfer trains for the final journey to Washington, the city's telegraph lines were cut to prevent communication between potential conspirators. In Baltimore, plans had been made by which Lincoln's train coach was separated from its locomotive in the middle of the night and drawn by horses several miles before being coupled with a Washington-bound locomotive. The precaution was fortuitous as the carriage on which it had been announced he would travel was ultimately thronged by an aggressive mob which Baltimore Police were unable to control.
The situation in Washington was equally precarious as the city was hedged between two Southern states, Virginia and Maryland. Army officials considered the Washington Metropolitan Police to be politically unreliable and staffed by secession sympathizers (despite this concern, the police did discover and arrest two would-be assassins in the days prior to the inauguration).
The presidential state coach, in which Buchanan and Lincoln rode, was surrounded by U.S. Army cavalry, four men deep on all sides, for its procession to the Capitol and plainclothes police mingled among citizens lining the route. At the inauguration platform, a company of 50 troops was used to separate the spectators from the Capitol steps, with a further contingent of 650 men held in close reserve to provide reinforcements in event the primary force was overwhelmed. Sharpshooters were placed on the rooftops of nearby buildings and a battery of cannons was arranged to the east of the Capitol steps ready to fire into the crowd should it develop into a mob.
Legacy edit
On March 5, 2011, a reenactment of Lincoln's inauguration was performed at the United States Capitol Visitor Center. Organized by Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr., the event featured Michael Krebs portraying Lincoln being sworn in by Chief Justice Roger Taney, portrayed by Frank Parsons. Lincoln scholar Harold Holzer narrated the event and Sam Waterston recited Abraham Lincoln’s inaugural address.[5]
Notes edit
- ^ As of 2011, this jewelry was in the custody of the Smithsonian Institution.[4]
References edit
- ^ "James Buchanan". History. History Channel. Retrieved December 26, 2016.
- ^ "Lincoln inaugurated". his2. History Channel. Retrieved December 23, 2016.
- ^ a b Hoch, Bradley R. (2001). The Lincoln Trail in Pennsylvania. Penn State Press. ISBN 978-0-271-02119-5.
- ^ a b Havelin, Kate (2011). Hoopskirts, Union Blues, and Confederate Grays: Civil War Fashions from 1861 to 1865. Twenty-First Century Books. p. 52. ISBN 9780761380542.
- ^ "President Lincoln's Inauguration Re-Enactment". C-SPAN. C-SPAN. Retrieved December 26, 2016.