Mary Todd Lincoln Mary Todd Lincoln House, Lexington, Kentucky

James N.

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According to the brochure, "The house was completed in 1806 and was occupied by the Todd family from 1832 until 1849. After marrying Abraham Lincoln in 1842, Mary brought her family to visit her childhood home in 1847 while on their way to Washington, where her husband spent hours in Mr. Todd's extensive library..." The view above is from the garden side of the house, which is located directly upon the modern sidewalk and Main Street in the front. Originally built on the edge of Lexington the house has been engulfed by the modern downtown.

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"Mary Todd resided here from the ages of 13 to 21, when she left for Springfield, Illinois, to live with a sister. There she met Abraham Lincoln and they were married in November 1842. The Lincolns stayed at this home during a three-week visit to Lexington in November 1847. The Lincolns visited Lexington on several other occasions, including to settle the estate of Mary's father in 1849. The house opened as a museum in 1977." Although the house underwent a number of owners and some structural changes after the Todds and had been threatened with demolition, it has now been lovingly restored and furnished as it might've looked during Mary's girlhood.

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"Abraham Lincoln's wife, Mary Todd, was born to a prominent Lexington family in 1818. The Georgian house in which she lived from 1832 until 1839 is open for tour, and includes Todd family furnishings as well as Todd and Lincoln memorabilia... Mary Todd's Lexington heritage followed her to the nation's capital: the fact that some of her Kentucky relatives, including several of her half-brothers, fought for the Confederacy, aroused suspicion against Mrs. Lincoln in Washington, D.C." Members of the Forums should be gratified to know that one very real intent of the operators of the museum is the humanization of the First Lady after more than a century of demonization and opprobrium. Instead of being given a bum's rush sort of house tour like in many such venues the hour-long tour I experienced gave insight into Mary Todd and explained some of her apparent and well-known foibles.



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"The Mary Todd Lincoln House is at 578 West Main Street. Open April through November." Also nearby to the west of downtown is the sprawling and beautiful Lexington Cemetery below where many of Mary's Todd relatives are buried in the family plot; other notables buried here include Henry Clay, Vice President and Maj. Gen. John Cabell Breckinridge, Confederate Brig. Gen.'s John Hunt Morgan, Basil Duke, and Roger Hanson; Union Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger; and other Kentucky notables.

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Nice photos James N. . Looks like someone's literally been sitting down to eat at that table, though??

I'm remembering one reason I took that particular photo was because of the three-piece candelabra set on the mantel - I found a similar set (of only the two side candlesticks) recently in a local antique shop that are currently gracing mine!
 
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According to the brochure, "The house was completed in 1806 and was occupied by the Todd family from 1832 until 1849. After marrying Abraham Lincoln in 1842, Mary brought her family to visit her childhood home in 1847 while on their way to Washington, where her husband spent hours in Mr. Todd's extensive library..." The view above is from the garden side of the house, which is located directly upon the modern sidewalk and Main Street in the front. Originally built on the edge of Lexington the house has been engulfed by the modern downtown.

View attachment 144041

"Mary Todd resided here from the ages of 13 to 21, when she left for Springfield, Illinois, to live with a sister. There she met Abraham Lincoln and they were married in November 1842. The Lincolns stayed at this home during a three-week visit to Lexington in November 1847. The Lincolns visited Lexington on several other occasions, including to settle the estate of Mary's father in 1849. The house opened as a museum in 1977." Although the house underwent a number of owners and some structural changes after the Todds and had been threatened with demolition, it has now been lovingly restored and furnished as it might've looked during Mary's girlhood.

View attachment 144042

"Abraham Lincoln's wife, Mary Todd, was born to a prominent Lexington family in 1818. The Georgian house in which she lived from 1832 until 1839 is open for tour, and includes Todd family furnishings as well as Todd and Lincoln memorabilia... Mary Todd's Lexington heritage followed her to the nation's capital: the fact that some of her Kentucky relatives, including several of her half-brothers, fought for the Confederacy, aroused suspicion against Mrs. Lincoln in Washington, D.C." Members of the Forums should be gratified to know that one very real intent of the operators of the museum is the humanization of the First Lady after more than a century of demonization and opprobrium. Instead of being given a bum's rush sort of house tour like in many such venues the hour-long tour I experienced gave insight into Mary Todd and explained some of her apparent and well-known foibles.



View attachment 144043

"The Mary Todd Lincoln House is at 578 West Main Street. Open April through November." Also nearby to the west of downtown is the sprawling and beautiful Lexington Cemetery below where many of Mary's Todd relatives are buried in the family plot; other notables buried here include Henry Clay, Vice President and Maj. Gen. John Cabell Breckinridge, Confederate Brig. Gen.'s John Hunt Morgan, Basil Duke, and Roger Hanson; Union Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger; and other Kentucky notables.

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Thanks for posting.
It's a beautiful property: so glad it was saved.
 
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Not to steal James' thunder, here were a couple of other photos I took at the house.

I wasn't aware how fond Mary was of hot cocoa and drank it often.
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Part of her clothing...dark since the death of her husband.
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Also a couple of blocks from there was her birthplace. and Henry Clay's office.
 
Was not aware they'd done this much though, thanks for the double tour! There's such a bruahaha when her name comes up, it's tough being able to see her in history. Some of the most iconic names in Southern hospitality and politics walked through those doors, too. I'd sound like an idiot trying to list them ( Yanks really should stop trying ) but she was a Todd. At one point she lost three relatives, same month Will died.

Her sisters wrote some made-up snark about her, too. One of the most tragic lives you could invent- if it were a novel it would be poorly reviewed as not believable. How fitting she is ' back home ', in good, kind hands.
 
Wonderful job, James!

* Here is my photo of Confederate Brigadier General John Hunt Morgan's grave site.

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Bill, yours came out so much better than mine I decided not to post them in the Confederate Cemeteries thread! I'll go ahead an put them here, though, since they're Lexington-related.

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The foreground monument is to Brig. Gen. Basil Duke, John Hunt Morgan's brother-in-law and sometime chief-of-staff who replaced him when he died as commander of Morgan's Cavalry. Morgan's grave is in the row behind, and is also below:

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I'm pretty sure the reason for the distinct BLUE tint in these photos was the setting I had my camera on and forgot to change. It's also evident in the photos I took outside the Mary Todd Lincoln House, but was FINE for the interiors!

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Above, the center grave is that of John Cabell Breckinridge; interestingly, and I think revealingly, it fails to mention ANY of his considerable accomplishments as: our youngest Vice President of the United States; 1860 Democratic Presidential candidate; Confederate Lieutenant General and victor of the Battle of New Market; and last Confederate Secretary of War.

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Above is the grave of Confederate Brig. Gen. Roger Hanson, commander of the Kentucky Orphan Brigade, who was killed at the Battle of Stones River, Jan. 2, 1863.
 
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... Not to steal James' thunder, here were a couple of other photos I took at the house...Also a couple of blocks from there was her birthplace. and Henry Clay's office.

Unfortunately, we had to return to Indianapolis that afternoon so cut short our visit to Lexington, missing Clay's home and office. I was unaware of Mary's birthplace, but did get to take a somewhat abbreviated tour of the nearby Hunt-Morgan House, which was technically closed because it was hosting a local art show. Fortunately, there were a couple of ladies who were there at the same time, so the administrator took pity on us and showed us through the house! I was disappointed to learn that it was the home of John Hunt Morgan's mother where he only visited but never resided, so neglected to take any photos there.
 
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