972, Barton, William Additional information* Hie Lincoln cabin on Boston C : r * v >n * LINCOLN ROOM UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS LIBRARY MEMORIAL the Class of 1901 founded by HARLAN HOYT HORNER and HENRIETTA CALHOUN HORNER M AVVITIOKAL lmvovsnrATiom N First Hortc 1m li*i&M€}Ji$ "53M i ^ff* ' ««#^ «■ »**£ Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2012 with funding from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign http://archive.org/details/additionalinformOObart I DESIGNED AND PRINTED BY EDWARD J, JACOB AT HIS SHOP IN PEORIA, ILLINOIS Presentation Copy — None for Sale Additional .Lniormation The Lincoln Cabin Boston Coninion # Rev. William E. Barton, D. D AUGUST 1929 pi^pg=^g5J^^3SS ' Ttleph**n Fonoio 198. 3(j*r* 7>/>fc? %>// ON SUNSET LAKE .Atjtr mu , / Jwill it d liiiU city *mjsm it* lint f *Hd4 ihtri, Uu h) mj dipt- an liiimld m*ki it iM/A'-PlVTAtca FoXIOtO, iMstUffillJtUi August 10, 1929 My dear Mr. Jacob: I have received this morning from our mutual friend Oakleaf a copy of the charming little brochure containing Mr. Shoaff 's statement to me in Springfield last May, It is a beautiful little monograph as you have sent it forth, and I thank you sincerely for sending me a copy. I note the request for further information, and I send you what I have to this date, I am also inclosing a photostat of the little handbill advertising the cabin on Boston Common. These are available for any use you care to make of them Sincerely yours, /7*£u~£ ^- THE LINCOLN CABIN ON BOSTON COMMON By William E. Barton Author of The Life of Abraham Lincoln, etc Whoever supposes that there exists an entity to be called Historic Truth, a concrete and separable reality, entire and free from error, to be obtained from authentic and indubit- able sources, and forever certified as the antipodes of false- hood, has something to learn when he enters the realm of historic investigation. Human testimony, on which history is based, even that small fraction of history which is preserved in official documents, is subject to marked limita- tions and strange and irreconcilable contradictions. Not only so, but there are inexplicable silences. The investi- gator approaches an event which he feels certain must have occurred, confident that it will have left abundance of contemporary evidence, and he sometimes finds that the incident which bulked so large in subsequent history made little impression on those who witnessed it. If one thing more than another has impressed me in listening to men who personally knew Abraham Lincoln, it has been their inevitable tendency to interpret their experiences in the light of subsequent events, and to read into what they actually observed the reflections of later years. In this process truthful men often appropriate the experience of others and believe it to have been their own. Often the really significant feature of an event failed to register at the time. Not only so, but whole communities permit notable events to pass without record; and the historian seeks for the documents which he is confident must have existed, and whose discovery is essential to the explanation of other events, and does not find what he is seeking. i ; J These considerations have present pertinence because of a recent experience with regard to one of the most inter- esting relics of Abraham Lincoln, the cabin which he and his father, with the assistance of Dennis and John Hanks, John D. Johnston and Squire Hall, erected as a family residence ten miles west and a little south of Decatur in the spring of 1830. On May 10, 1929, I met in Springfield, Illinois, Thomas Benton ShoafF, editor of the Shelby County Leader. His father, James ShoafF, descended from Dutch settlers near the Maryland-Pennsylvania line, was a hard- hitting Democrat of the old school, who edited the Decatur Magnet. While James ShoafF was fighting as a Union soldier, and Lincoln was speaking at Gettysburg, ShoafF was carrying at his column-head his ticket for 1864, Horatio Seymour for President, and George B. McClellan for Vice President; and later he ardently supported McClellan. He had married Nancy Hanks, daughter of Dennis Hanks, and he reared up a race of Democratic newspaper men, Douglas ShoafF is editor of the Paris (Illinois) Gazette, and Thomas Benton ShoafF is editor of an equally sound Democratic paper, the Leader, at Shelbyville. Only once has Thomas B. ShoafF considered the possibility of getting away from his pencil and paste- brush. That was when Woodrow Wilson set out to make the world safe for Democracy, and the Shelbyville post- office was an outpost of Democratic safety. ShoafF went to Washington with a pile of endorsements which he says no applicant for office ever exceeded in depth. He had all the Shelbyville and Shelby County officials, and other political friends of supposed influence, including William Jennings Bryan. He had the support of everyone except his local Democratic congressman who had a political friend in Shelbyville. This Member of Congress received Shoaff's impressive pile of endorsements without enthusiasm, and a few days later wrote ShoafF a letter addressed to his Washington hotel, saying that he had recommended, and Wilson had appointed, the other man; and that the Member of Congress was leaving for several days' visit to New York. Shoaff discovered that other good Democrats were similiarly situated. He and two others who had suffered like wounds in the house of their friends walked forth together, lamenting the perversity; of congressmen and the fact that there were sixty thousand Republicans holding office under civil service appointments whom Wilson would not remove. They stopped in at a Democratic restaurant and obtained a glass all around of what was denominated lemonade, and it helped somewhat. As they walked they found two other places of refreshment and found them politically sound. After three drinks of this invigorating concoction they came to Jackson Square, where Andrew Jackson sits on his horse triumphantly treading down Republican office-holders and they said: i "Boys, the thing that's the matter with the Democratic party is, that man's dead!" So my good friend Shoaff went back to his editorial desk, and now at the age of eighty-two is perhaps the oldest active newspaper man in point of continuous service in the United States. He brought with him to Springfield a number of articles which he wished me to see, one of them being a carte-de-viste picture of the cabin which Abraham Lincoln helped his father to erect in Macon County, Illinois, in the Spring of 1830. I was familiar with this picture in reproduction but had not seen the tiny original. On its back was a printed paster saying: Lincoln Cabin This is to certify that this is from the ORIGINAL LOG CABIN built by Abraham Lincoln, John and Dennis F. Hanks, in Macon Co., Illinois, 1830. John Hanks, Dennis R Hanks. Mr. Shoaff said: "That is the only photograph of the cabin that was ever made. The two men seen in the photograph are my grandfather, Dennis Hanks, the smooth-shaven man at the corner, and his cousin John Hanks; and I was in the Decatur Wigwam, with my ; father, at the reporters' table, when John Hanks and Isaac Jennings brought in the famous Lincoln fence-rails. I was present with my father when this photograph was taken, just before the cabin was taken down in 1865 for removal to Chicago and Boston." I was familiar with the story of the Coles County cabin, which was removed to Chicago in 1891, but I had never heard that any other cabin associated with Lincoln had been exhibited in that city, much less in Boston. We were in the Library of the Illinois State His- torical Society, and I called a stenographer and she took down a full statement by Mr. Shoaff, my friend Hon. J. B. Oakleaf of Moline being present. At the suggestion of Miss Georgia L. Osborne, Librarian, I had a copy made of the little photograph, the negative being retained by the Society. In the enlarged photograph the features of John and Dennis Hanks came out quite clearly. Said Mr. Shoaff: "My father marked the logs, num- bering them plainly, and they were shipped to Chicago and Boston, and exhibited there for several months. My father was in Chicago during the exhibition. The cabin was re-erected on Boston Common. No; it was not in any other part of Boston, but on the Common. My father went on with John and Dennis Hanks and helped set it up. I have heard about it many times and from all three of them. The cabin was visited by famous people. I did not see it there, but I saw it in process of being taken down by my father and grandfather, and by John Hanks. I have a clear recollection of it, and this little photograph was made to sell as a souvenir to people visiting the cabin in those two cities." He told a strange story about the disappearance of the Macon County cabin; but that does not belong in the present narrative. There were seven Lincoln log cabins all told, and sometime I intend to tell about them all; for there is much confusion regarding them. For the present I content myself with the cabin on the Chicago lake front and on Boston Common. A fortnight later in Shelbyville I had another visit with Mr. ShoafF, whose step is as light as it was when he was fif tyt and whose memory is clear. The cabin was only one of many matters we talked about, and he had not many details to add. But he was clear in his declaration that the cabin was exhibited for some time on Boston Common. That seemed to me a matter worth inquiring about, and it did not appear to present any great difficulties. I spend my summers near Boston, and I began there. Something surely would be of record at City Hall; some permit would have had to be issued for an exhibition of this sort any- where in the city, and some special action granting the use of the Common. I made inquiry through a friend, and not a scrap of evidence appeared. No matter; we would go to the newspapers. They would certainly have commented on the exhibit; would have told of the visits to it of General and Mrs. Grant, of Charles Sumner and other notables. But a friend made search and found not a single reference to it in any Boston paper examined. There is always that free-flowing fountain of historical knowledge, the Massachusetts Historical Society. I wrote, but learned that others had preceded me a few weeks in the quest, and that the Society had not been able to dis- cover any contemporary evidence that the Abraham Lin- coln cabin was exhibited in Boston. Now, with all their faults, the newspapers are among our most reliable historical sources. And not very much of importance escapes them. One single line in any Boston paper of 1865, saying that General and Mrs. Grant visited the Lincoln Log Cabin on the Common yesterday, would be better evidence that the cabin was there than the record of an official permit at City Hall; for the permit might have been granted and no exhibit followed. When both City Hall and the newspapers yield no results, one is dis- posed to say that no one man's testimony, based on recollections of events sixty-four years back, is sufficient to remove the inherent improbability of such an exhibition. I have personally excluded from my books concerning Lincoln several incidents vouched for by eminently truth- ful persons because of the lack of supporting evidence. D Meantime I instituted inquiry in Chicago, but at first with like results. No one remembered the Cabin as having been in that city, and at the outset no one there gave me any assurance that such an event had occurred. Singularly, the first evidence that came to me that the Cabin had been shown in Chicago was disclosed in the search of the Boston newspapers. The Transcript of June 15, 1865, told of the Northwestern Sanitary Fair, then in progress in Chicago, and said that "the most interesting of all the objects at the Fair" was the log cabin "which he helped to build with his own hands in the days of his youth and poverty." It stood in an enclosure at the corner of Randolph Street and Wabash Avenue, on the then lake front, about where the Public Library now is. The knowledge that the Chicago exhibit was in connec- tion with the Sanitary Fair was of marked assistance. Mrs. Hazelton of the Chicago Historical Library searched the daily papers with meager gleanings. The Chicago Tribune contained the only reference that has thus far been dis- covered in the Chicago newspapers and was printed May 29, 1865: ij \ ' THE LINCOLN LOG CABIN The identical log cabin, built by Lincoln and John and Dennis Hanks, in the days of their rail-splitting, about twelve miles west of Decatur, Macon county, 111., has been brought to this city for exhibition dur- ing the Fair, and will be placed on the corner of Randolph street and Wabash avenue. It will be open to inspection to-morrow. The Messrs. Hanks will be in attendance and give interesting items of their exper- ience with Lincoln in the days — "Auld Lang Syne." The following letter of identification from our noble Governor Oglesby will be read with much interest: State of Illinois, Executive Dep't, Springfield, May 20, 1865. John Hanks, Esq., Decatur, 111.: My Dear Old Friend — In reply to your ques- tion relating to the log cabin, said to have been built by yourself, Thomas Lincoln and the late President, Abraham Lincoln, I take pleasure in stating to you that for twenty-five years there has been doubt in the public mind in Macon county, Illinois, on this ques- tion. If the cabin you now have is the one you pointed out to me in the spring of 1860, when you were collecting the Lincoln rails, I cheerfully state that I am certain it is the one built by Mr. Lincoln: besides your voluntary statements on the subject abundantly satisfy me there can be no mistake about it. As the old companion and friend of Mr. Lincoln, and one who has been constant in your support of his administration, and an adopted friend of the Union, I hope you may receive a just compensation for your efforts to bring before the country the simple but honorable testimonies to the early, labor- ious and worthy efforts of our beloved President in his youth, to make for himself a home, a fortune and a name. The Log Cabin would be out of place in any other hands than your own. You should retain the control of it, that its identity may not be lost. There is but one such in the United States, and it rightfully and properly belongs to you. (Signed) RICHARD J. OGLESBY, Governor of Illinois. D t { oil-- S ** tt (3 r* *> $ *3 X S ** «-5 ^ ,*» ?? 4> 4> !3 & '55 *•£ o ♦<- „ o « 1 r -a ft©** ■5.2 s ,* <•>* » 8 »«-? .2 a> a •J «-£» «$ ± 5 s

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It was a notable fair, and contributions of many kinds were made to swell the total of receipts for the benefit of sick and convalescent soldiers. General Grant donated his war- horse "Jack." The Fair received a stipulated percentage of receipts from entrance fees at the cabin. But if the daily press said little about the Cabin in Chicago there was other evidence. The Chicago Historical Society unearthed the Fair's own publication, called The Voice of the Fair, and in it these three items: I I The Voice of the Fair, Chicago, Tuesday, May 30, 1865. Mr. Lincoln's Old Log Cabin and Razor For the Fair The Old Log Cabin. — Mr. James ShoafF, well known in this city, writes us, in a private letter, that he has "a big thing on ice." He and John Hanks, Esq., both citizens of Decatur, have purchased the old "Log Cabin" in which Abraham Lincoln studied law in 1830. The cabin is situated in Macon County, twelve miles west of Decatur, and is said to be in an excellent state of preservation. Messrs. Shoaff & Hanks have certificates from James Whitely, Esq., the gentleman from whom they purchased it, and also Gov. Oglesby and Col. Pugh, stating that it is really the identical Cabin referred to. It is about eighteen feet square and is represented as being well and sub- stantially built. The present owners design shipping the Cabin to Chicago today and placing it on exhibition for several weeks. From there the proprietors will proceed east with it, perhaps as far as Boston. Mr. Dennis F. Hanks, of this city, a near relation of Mr. Lincoln, and who taught him how to write, was written to by Messrs. ShoafF and Hanks to join them in their exhibition, and left to do so on Tuesday forenoon. Previous to starting, Mr. H. called in and got the razor, referred in another paragraph, to place it in a proper niche in the Cabin. Mr. John Hanks assisted Mr. Lincoln in making the rails, about which we y D ..— =■ Msaamfc'-^BL,^-- 1 heard so much in the canvass of '60, to fence in a ten acre field adjoining the Cabin. He will do the lecturing on the expedition. The Messrs. Hanks will add much to the interest of the exhibition. Mr. Shoaff writes that he could get fifty partners if he desired them, and that applications are being con- stantly made to him for situations. We doubt not the "Old Log Cabin" will prove a good card. At all events we wish those concerned great success in their enterprise, and candidly believe they will achieve it. A Relic of the Lincoln Family. — Mr. Dennis F. Hanks, of this city, has left at our office a razor, which is about 70 years old, which was presented to him by the late Thomas Lincoln, of this county, and father of the lamented President. Mr. Hanks, who is a near relation of the family, informs us that to his certain knowledge, that this was the first razor that was ever in this branch of the Lincoln family, and that the late President has shaved with it often — perhaps it is the identical blade with which he shorn himself of his maiden beard. It was Mr. Hanks' intention to have presented this razor to President Lincoln, but now that he is no more, he requests us to state that it is at the service of Capt. Robert Lincoln, Mr. Lincoln's eldest son. The razor is in a remarkable state of preservation, in excellent plight, and we doubt not would do better execution than one-half of the new ones of the present day. It is considerably worn at the "heel", but having been manufactured out of the best steel, the point has stood the test of time admirably. It bears the following brand: "Clark & Ham; war- ranted." Saturday, June 3, 1865. The Lincoln Cabin One of the great features of the Fair is the original log cabin, located at the corner of Randolph and Wabash Ave. It was brought to this city by John and Dennis Hanks, from the farm formerly owned by Thomas Lincoln, father of Abraham, in Macon County, Illinois, twelve miles west of Decatur. The Messrs. Hanks are old companions of Mr. Lincoln, ra > and can be seen night and day in the cabin, they are very gentlemanly and answer all questions pertaining to the cabin and the history of our late President. The building is sixteen by eighteen feet and was erected in the year 1830 by Abraham Lincoln and the two Hanks'. We hope that the cabin will receive a large share of citizens and visitors, as the proprietor, John Hanks, proposes to donate half of the receipts to the Sanitary Fair. Gov. Oglesby says in a letter published in several of the city papers, that old John Hanks and the cabin are genuine. Hundreds of visitors daily, pay their respects to the old log building. Voice of the Fair, Chicago, Thursday, June 8, 1865. The Original Lincoln Cabin One great feature of the Fair, is the original Lin- coln Cabin, built in Macon County, Illinois, in the year 1830, by Abraham Lincoln, John and Dennis Hanks, and now on exhibition near the corner of Randolph street and Wabash avenue. Hundreds daily visit it, and all acknowledge it the best part of the Fair. Every article or memento with which the lamented President was in any way connected, will hereafter be treasured up as a precious relic, and there are none more worthy of attention than this old log cabin. What tender recollections will it bring up! How sublime the thought that within the walls of this simple cabin was matured a mind which has so ably controlled, in its most trying hour, the destinies of the great nation, and sad the remembrance of the terrible manner in which its career on earth was terminated! The position filled by Abraham Lincoln during the four years of the terrible civil war will shed a lustre and romance around his name which nothing can do away, and future history will accord that high position to him which it always does to the great and good of all nations, however humble be their birth or their position in early life. ffl "Uncle John Hanks" as he is called — the com- panion of "Abe" in early life, and who assisted him in erecting the cabin now on exhibition in this city — can be seen daily in the old building, ready and will- ing to relate to visitors all the incidents connected in erecting said cabin, and also a complete history of Mr. Lincoln's early life. "Uncle John" is quite talk- ative, and the information we gained during our short but pleasant visit to the cabin Tuesday, was highly interesting. And, then, there is Dennis F. Hanks, the old gentleman who gave Mr. Lincoln his first lessons in reading and writing. He has in his possession the identical razor, seventy years old, formerly used by Thomas Lincoln, father of Abra- ham, and then by Abraham. Governor R. J. Oglesby paid his respects to the old cabin on Monday, and when he entered within its enclosure, taking John Hanks by the hand, exclaimed, "Well, John, this is certainly the identical Lincoln cabin. I have been in it many years ago. My feelings are sad. I realize where I am." After the Fair, we understand, the Messrs. Hanks intend removing it to New York, where it will be placed upon exhibition. From thence it will go to Boston. Those who fail to visit the cabin will lose one of the best parts of the Sanitary Fair. a I do not imagine Robert T. Lincoln called at the cabin and asked for the razor which was advertised as at his service. He did not wholly enjoy being reminded that his father had lived in log cabins. And by the way, this was the razor of Thomas, though Abraham may have used it occasionally. Abraham Lincoln had no skill in shaving himself and during the whole of his professional life he patronized a barber. Robert T. Lincoln said his father never owned a razor; but Thomas did, and the razor was doubtless genuine. It would be interesting to inquire whether the cabin was exhibited in New York. There would have been time for it during the month of July, but Mr. Shoaff has no i ! ( recollection that it was so done. I have looked through Harper's Weekly for the period and find no drawing or editorial paragraph concerning its display in that city. While the research in Chicago was under way, there came into my possession a very interesting broadside. It was an undated handbill or "dodger" printed in the Herald office in Boston. It came into market in a sale September 27, 1911, and was prominently mentioned in the Transcript of that date. The auctioneers were C. F. Libbie & Co., who disposed of a "collection of Lincolniana the largest ever brought under the hammer, including 1237 lots." A few items are selected for mention, among them, "Ah extremely rare item, not as yet listed by Fish, the Lincoln bibliographer," being a broadside, "The Original Lincoln Log Cabin, is now on Exhibition on the Parade Ground, Boston Common." D ! This clipping was framed with the broadside, which sold in 1911. The broadside came back into market in 1929, and found its way to Goodspeed's. Mr. Goodspeed sold it to me. This handbill was printed in the office of the Boston Herald, and reads thus: Fac-simile of this Hand Bill is inserted on Pages 12 and 13 of this booklet, If, however, the Herald, which printed this "dodger" mentioned in its columns the cabin then on the Common, I have not discovered it. But I announced in the Herald in July,, 1929, that this broadside was in my possession and asked for other evidence. In reply I have this letter from Dr. William O. Faxon: u Dr. Wm. E. Barton, July 30, 1929. Foxboro, Mass. Dear Sir: The enclosed clipping from last Sunday's Herald I read with a great deal of interest. Am not quite clear in my mind whether it was in 1865 or 1866 but am sure that it was just after the war (I was born in 1853 so was 12 years of age) that I distinctly remember of my mother taking me to see the Lincoln Cabin on Boston Common, To my mind, as it goes back, I think it was the cabin in which Lincoln was born. The main fact, of which I am sure, is that it was called the Lincoln Cabin. I have a piece of what appeared to be a shingle or piece of wood from that cabin which was given to me by a man in charge. Of course, I cannot remember his name. I suppose I was an inquisitive boy and full of war history at that time as my father had served in the Civil War. At any rate, I still have this piece of shingle which was from the Lincoln Cabin which I saw on Boston Common. Thinking that perhaps this might interest you I have taken the liberty of sending you this letter. Respectfully yours, William Otis Faxon. It is a mark of changing styles in journalistic judg- ments of news values that the Boston dailies say, so little about it. Mr. Julius H. Tuttle of the Massachusetts Historical Society discovered what is probably the first Boston reference to the coming of the cabin. It is in The Liberator for July 21, 1865: The Original Lincoln Cabin The original Lincoln Cabin, which he helped to build in Macon County, Illinois, in 1830, is to be exhibited on Boston Common. The identity of the structure is fully established. It was exhibited at the recent Sanitary Fair in Chicago, and was visited by thousands. Within a few days after July. 21, certainly before July 29, the cabin was set up. Mr. Tuttle found these two references. The first is in the Advertiser of July 29: The English Nobility in the Lincoln Log Cabin The Marquis of Drogheda and his lady, who arc in this city, stopping at the Tremont House, paid a visit last evening to the "Lincoln Cabin," which is now on exhibition on the Common. They spent some time in the examination of this now sacred relic; and, while purchasing some articles made from the wood of the cabin, her ladyship remarked: "I wish very much to take home these to show our people ; for my husband is one of those in our country who admired President Lincoln's character." On taking their leave the Marquis and his lady shook hands in a very cordial manner with Uncle John Hanks, who helped build, and now owns and exhibits the cabin, and said to him: "We are very happy indeed to take the hand of the old friend and companion of Mr. Lincoln." Although persons of high rank and large fortune, they came and went in a quiet, democratic way, and "Uncle John" was not aware, until after their depar- ture that he had been entertaining the English nobility in the humble log cabin which he helped young Abe Lincoln the rail splitter build over thirty-five years ago. But such was the case. The distinguished visitors, however, honored themselves no less than the humble cabin by the respect which they thus unostentatiously paid to our martyred President's memory. The other was in the same paper on August 1, 1865: n If ill The Lincoln Cabin. — Most of our readers are doubtless aware that there is on exhibition at the south end of the Common a quaint relic of the early days of the late President Lincoln, in the shape of a log cabin, which he aided to erect and in which he lived for two years, in Illinois. His comrade in build- ing and occupying this structure, and in many flat- boat journeys on the Mississippi, was one John Hanks, with whom Mr. Lincoln kept up a friendship as long as he lived. Mr. Hanks, no less interesting than the cabin superintends the exhibition, is always present to receive visitors, and has a variety of stories li to narrate and of little relics and photographs to show or to sell. The idea of the modest little exhibi- tion is unique, and a visit to the cabin is time well spent. So this is the story of the exhibition of the first Illinois home of the Lincoln family in the migrations of 1865. Mr. Shoaff says that the logs were shipped for exhibition in Europe and lost at sea. We have no present occasion to follow their adventures further. But this will serve as an illustration of the difficulties which beset the student of history who seeks to establish every event by reliable evidence. In this instance we have it, and it is deserving of permanent record lest it perish from the earth. COPY OF PERMIT ISSUED BY THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN OF THE CITY OF BOSTON JULY 10, 1865 From the official record of the Board of Aldermen of the City of Boston for the year 1865: At a Meeting of the Board of Aldermen of the City of Boston, held at Mechanics' Hall, on Monday, the tenth day of July, Anno Domini, 1865, Agreeably to the reports of the Committee on Licenses and Common, leave was granted to John Hanks to exhibit President Lincoln's original log cabin on Boston Common. * a The above item is furnished to Dr. William E. Barton by William Alcott, Librarian of the Boston Globe. UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA 973.7L63C2SH7S1 C001 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PEORIA, ILL 3 0112 031803270