By Thomas F. Schwartz October ends with Halloween, a time of witches, ghosts, goblins, and all things scary and frightening. The Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum will host three film events during October that features Presidents threatened by zombies, vampires, and a small Iowa town [filmed in West Branch, Iowa] attacked by the living … Continue reading Things that go bump in the night
by Thomas Schwartz Springfield eagerly anticipated the presidential visit by Herbert Hoover to rededicate the remodeled Lincoln Tomb on June 17, 1931. In advance of the visit, Hoover received an unusual request from famed Lincoln collector Oliver R. Barrett proposing an offer that he hoped the president could not refuse. Writing on June 2, 1931, … Continue reading Hoover and Lincoln: A Strange Offer
By Thomas F. Schwartz Although Abraham Lincoln predates Sigmund Freud, the Illinois lawyer did write to famed Cincinnati physician Dr. Daniel Drake for help during his emotional crisis of “the hypo” in 1841. If Drake replied to Lincoln’s letter, it has never surfaced. Since then, both professionals and amateurs have tried to explain Lincoln’s personality. … Continue reading An Appeal to President Hoover to Prevent Putting Lincoln on the Couch
by Spencer Howard The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum presented a program by art conservator Barry Bauman entitled "The Demise of Mary Lincoln: An Artistic Conspiracy." In short, Mr. Bauman discovered that a painting that had hung for years in the Illinois governor's mansion, which was believed to be an original portrait of Mrs. … Continue reading Lincoln Portrait Fraud
