Artifacts
The Frank and Virginia Williams Collection of Lincolniana consists of approximately 12,000 artifacts, statuary, prints, paintings, broadsides, ephemera, photographs, philately, collectibles/miniatures, and numismatics. Materials are housed in 20 map case drawers, 30 cartons, and a variety of loose statuary, prints, and paintings. The collection also includes nearly 100 original manuscripts and the Claude Simmons collection which consists of approximately 12 bankers boxes of Lincoln related materials and scrapbooks. There are also approximately 15,000 books, journals, and pamphlets separated into two collections: the Lincoln Book Collection and the Civil War/Collateral Book Collection.
-
Albumen Print of Abraham Lincoln
Henry F. Warren
The photograph features the image of Abraham Lincoln, the last taken before his death. Ref: O-112.
-
In Memory of Abraham Lincoln
D. T. Wiest and William Smith
The black and white lithograph depicts Abraham Lincoln being taken to heaven by angels
-
Fifth Ward Lincoln and Johnson Club. 1864
The object is a red silk political ribbon featuring the image of an eagle and lettering in black ink; Red, with black eagle and lettering; Inscription reads: "Fifth Ward Lincoln and Johnson Club. 1864."
-
George B. McClellan and George H. Pendleton Democratic Ticket
The object is a printed George B. McClellan and George H. Pendleton Democratic ticket for 1864 presidential election; It features a bust portrait of McClellan at the top
-
Hingham Bank Check, Paid to J. J. & Son, Signed by Joseph Jacobs & Son
Hingham Bank check dated 24 February 1865. It is made out to J. J. & Son by Joseph Jacobs & Son for the amount of $243. A blue George Washington two cent stamp is located at the top left corner of the object.
-
Hingham Bank Check, Paid to [?], Signed by E. L. Whiton
Hingham Bank check dated 19 December 1865. It is made out to [?] by [?] Whiton for the amount of $50. A cream George Washington two cent stamp is located at the top left corner of the object.
-
Hingham Bank Check, Paid to William Jacobs, Signed by Anna Jacobs
Hingham Bank check dated 17 August 1864. It is made out to William Jacobs by Anna Jacobs for the amount of $100. A blue George Washington two cent stamp is located at the top left corner of the object.
-
Hingham Bank Check, Paid to William Jacobs, Signed by Mrs. Anna Jacobs
Hingham Bank check dated 14 December 1864. It is made out to Williams Jacobs by Anna Jacobs for the amount of $200. A blue George Washington two cent stamp is located at the top left corner of the object.
-
Hingham Bank Check, Paid to W. W., Signed by William Whiton
Hingham Bank check dated 18 August 1864. It is made out to W. W. by William Whiton for the amount of $150.42. A blue George Washington two cent stamp is located at the top left corner of the object.
-
Lincoln and Johnson Republican Ticket for 1864
The object is a printed Lincoln and Johnson Republican ticket for the 1864 presidential election; It features blue and red ink on off-white paper; A figure of Columbia is at the top; The verso includes a green-hued image of an eagle and banner
-
The Gunboat Candidate At The Battle of Malvern Hill
The political cartoon depicts General McClellan commanding his troops from a safe distance while seated astride a saddle mounted on the boom of a ship. The publisher date, place, and name not indicated; There is some damage at the object's left and right
-
Seated Portrait of Abraham Lincoln
Anthony Berger
Seated portrait of A. Lincoln by Anthony Berger; On Cabinet card mount; Portrait used for the engraved bust of Lincoln that appeared on the United States five dollar bill for many years, from 1914 to 2007
-
Abraham Lincoln 1864 Campaign Badge
Mathew B. Brady
A. Lincoln 1864 campaign badge. Brass eagle with clasp, flag ribbon, and A. Lincoln ferrotype portrait in brass mat. Image is reversed variant of Brady photo, O-92. REF: variant of Sullivan, AL 1864-87.
-
Confederate Currency, Confederate States of America, Twenty Dollars
Confederate States of America. Dept. of the Treasury and Keatinge and Ball
The object is a Confederate States of America twenty-dollar bill. In order to finance its government and war, the CSA created a monetary system and printed bank notes in the following denominations: 50 cents, $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50, $100, $500, and $1,000.
-
Grand Banner of the Radical Democracy, for 1864
Currier and Ives
The object is a colored lithograph depicting oval bust portraits of presidential candidate General John C. Fremont and his running mate General John Cochrane; The design also includes flags, eagle, etc.
-
Grand National Democratic Banner Peace! Union! and Victory!
Currier and Ives
The colored lithograph depicts oval bust portraits of presidential candidate General George B. McClellan and his running mate George H. Pendleton; The design also includes flags, a harbor scene, and additional images
-
President Lincoln and General Grant on Peace and War
Abraham Lincoln, John T. Mills, Ulysses S. Grant, and Bayard Taylor
The broadside is cream in color and features black ink. It contains an interview of Lincoln conducted by Mills. It also features a letter from Grant, and a poem by Taylor. The broadside has some damage to its corners and right side, but is in otherwise good condition.
-
Engraving of Abraham Lincoln
Edward Dalton Marchant and John Sartain
Steel mezzotint engraving, engraver's proof copy; Portrait of seated A. Lincoln; Engraved by John Sartain after a painting by E.D. Marchant; Facsimile signature of A. Lincoln at LL. Inscribed to "Hon. William Whiting" and signed in pencil at bottom by Sartain and Marchant
-
Country Post Office: News from the Army
John Rogers
In the sculpture, an unidentified woman is shown visiting her local post office where she reaches toward a clerk for a letter, presumably from a member of the Army. This particular piece has two variants where the only difference is the length of the woman's dress sleeve. Variant A - the variant shown here - shows the woman's forearm sleeved to the wrist, while Variant B shows a bare forearm.
-
The Wounded Scout: A Friend in the Swamp
John Rogers
A highly admired piece, The Wounded Scout illustrates an escaped slave leading and protecting a wounded soldier. Its contemporaneous admirers included Jessie Benton Frémont, Henry Ward Beecher, Lydia Maria Childs, and Abraham Lincoln who said of the piece, "[It] is very pretty, and suggestive, and, I should think, excellent as a piece of art."
-
Union Refugees
John Rogers
A genre figure, Union Refugees illustrates a Southern Unionist family fleeing to the North. In the piece, the father is shown standing with his gun and a small bundle of belongings as his wife leans on him in sorrow. Next to the mother stands a small child who holds a small bouquet of wildflowers. This piece was the first of Rogers's to show the harrowing effects of the War on civilians.
-
Reading The Emancipation Proclamation
James W. Watts, Henry Walker Herrick, S.A. Peters and Co., and Luccius Stebbins
The engraving depicts a black and white image of a black family reading the Proclamation; Beneath the main engraving, a vignette portrait of Abraham Lincoln is placed among text
-
Hingham Bank Check, Paid to Self, Signed by [?] Willard
Hingham Bank check dated 31 December 1864. It is made out to Self by [?] Willard for the amount of $346.70. A blue George Washington two cent stamp is located at the top left corner of the object.
-
Secretary Seward's Diplomatic Party
William J. Baker
The carte de visite features black and white image of William H. Seward, standing at far right, with ten members of a diplomatic party visiting Trenton High Falls, New York
-
The Scourged Back
McPherson and Oliver and McAllister and Brothers
The carte de visite photograph depicts a former slave, Gordon, with severe scars on back from whipping; Printed text on verso describes the image; The image was widely circulated by Northern abolitionists to illustrate the brutality of slavery; The image originally appeared in the July 4, 1863, edition of Harper's Weekly along with an account of Gordon's escape and was attributed to McPhearson & Oliver in Baton Rouge; However, the image was later pirated by McAllister & Brothers and other entities
-
Brutus and Caesar. (From the American Edition of Shakespeare.)
John Tenniel
Wood-engraved cartoon from the Victorian-era publication Punch. The cartoon depicts Abraham Lincoln dressed as Marcus Junius Brutus. An African-American man stands next to him dressed as Julius Caesar. An African-American man dressed in clown-like clothing is shown sleeping in the background.
-
By The President Of The United States: A Proclamation.
John Murray Forbes
The object is a folio broadside of the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. The broadside is printed in one column and features a bold heading, printing of American eagle, and flag at the top center. No publisher is noted, but sources establish a possible attribution to J.M. Forbes, Boston. It was printed circa September-December, 1862. The broadside is a scarce early printing in an unusually large size.
-
General George Brinton McClellan Carte de Visite
Charles DeForest Fredricks
The Carte de Visite features a standing, left-side portrait of General George B. McClellan, holding binoculars; In this portrait in profile by C. D. Fredricks, one of Brady's principal rivals in New York, General George McClellan poses with a pair of binoculars; After the brutal battle of Antietam (September 1862), when McClellan failed to further advance on the weakened enemy, President Lincoln lost confidence in his general and removed him from service as head of the Army of the Potomac; Two years later Lincoln defeated McClellan, who ran against him as the Democratic Party candidate for president
-
Brady's Album Gallery. No. 605. Group of President Lincoln, Gen. McClellan, and Suite
Alexand er Gardner
This object is a mounted albumen print featuring a group photo of A. Lincoln, Ward Hill Lamon, and Army officers; The photograph was taken by Alexander Gardner at Antietam, MD
-
Camp Fire: Making Friends with the Cook
John Rogers
The plaster sculpture depicts camp life during the American Civil War. In the sculpture, an African-American cook stirs a pot over a campfire. A soldier sits next to the fire holding a newspaper, and the two appear to be engrossed in conversation. According to the New York Historical Society, Rogers offered a very simplistic description of this sculpture stating, ""A soldier is reading the newspaper to the cook and trying to make friends with him, so as to warm himself and get some choice bits from the kettle over the fire.""
-
The Picket Guard (without veil)
John Rogers
The plaster sculpture features a Union officer walking with two enlisted soldiers toward a picket line. The three appear on duty and cautious, possibly because they see the enemy approaching. The officer lays his proper right hand on the right-side soldier's gun to prevent him from firing. The left-side soldier shields his eyes with his proper left hand as he looks on in the distance.
-
The Picket Guard (with veil)
John Rogers
The plaster sculpture features a Union officer walking with two Zouaves (seen wearing baggy pantaloons with a fez cap) toward a picket line. Note the veil on the officer's hat as opposed to the variation shown in item # 4578.
-
The Town Pump (canteen in front)
John Rogers
The plaster sculpture depicts a soldier dressed in uniform standing with a woman at a water pump. A water bucket hangs from the woman's proper right arm, while the soldier holds a cup and rests his proper right foot on the water trough. He has a backpack hanging from his shoulders and a canteen and satchel hanging across his chest. This particular rendering of The Town Pump features the canteen at the soldier's front and a light tan finish.
-
The Town Pump (canteen in front)
John Rogers
The plaster sculpture depicts a soldier dressed in uniform standing with a woman at a water pump. A water bucket hangs from the woman's proper right arm, while the soldier holds a cup and rests his proper right foot on the water trough. He has a backpack hanging from his shoulders and a canteen and satchel hanging across his chest. This particular rendering of The Town Pump features the canteen at the soldier's front and a brownish finish.
-
Confederate ticket for Jefferson Davis and Alexander H. Stephens
The object is a confederate ticket for Jefferson Davis and Alexander H. Stephens during the election of November 6, 1861; It is printed in black ink on gray-blue paper and features an ink signature on reverse
-
President Lincoln and Gen. McClellan in McClellan's Tent
Alexander Gardner and Taylor and Huntington
The stereograph features a black and white image of President Lincoln and General McClellan in McClellan's tent mounted to an orange card; The original image was taken at the Antietam Battlefield by Alexander Gardner in Oct. of 1862; A captured Confederate battle flag may be seen in the lower left corner
-
The American Difficulty.
John Tenniel
Wood-engraved cartoon from the Victorian-era publication Punch. The cartoon depicts a caricature image of Abraham Lincoln seated before a fireplace stoking a fire.
-
1860 Presidential Election Ticket for John Bell and Edward Everett
Printed ticket for 1860 presidential election. "Union Electoral Ticket" for John Bell and Edward Everett. Issued in Virginia. Pencil signature on reverse "W.B. Birmingham"
-
Campaign Flag for 1860 Presidential Campaign
Campaign flag for 1860 presidential campaign. American flag pattern with blue text printed on white stripes.
-
John Wilkes Booth Carte de Visite
The Carte de Visite features a black and white image of John Wilkes Booth; It was found enclosed in an 19th century envelope with descriptive information.
-
National Democratic Ticket
The object is democratic ticket for the 1860 presidential election, which is cream in color and printed in black ink
-
Original Hartford Wide Awakes Badge
The medal is a brass, seven-pointed star badge attached to a white silk ribbon; The ribbon features an image of the Wide Awakes shield, and the medal features the Wide Awakes' signature eye emblem
-
Standing, Left-side Portrait of John Wilkes Booth
Charles DeForest Fredricks and Coddington and Davidson
The black and white Carte de Visite captures a standing John Wilkes Booth from his left side; It is a period copy of an original photo by C.D. Fredricks
-
1860 Democratic Ticket
Hoyer and Ludwig
The object is a John C. Breckenridge and Joseph Lane Democratic ticket for the 1860 presidential election. Bust portraits of both men are featured at the ballot's top. It is printed on off-white paper with black ink.
-
The Rail Candidate
Louis Maurer and Curier and Ives
The cartoon depicts Abraham Lincoln uncomfortably straddling a rail labeled "Republican Platform" carried by a black man (left) and abolitionist editor of the New York Tribune, Horace Greeley (right).
-
Charleston Mercury Extra: The Union Is Dissolved
Charleston Mercury
The Charleston Mercury's "The Union is Dissolved" broadside was the first Confederate publication as South Carolina was the first state to secede. It went to press 15 minutes after the secession ordinance was passed.
-
Civil War Cartridge Pouch
S. H. Young and Co.
The object is a black leather Civil War cartridge pouch with embossed "US" on flap.
-
The Slave Auction
John Rogers
A rare piece due to its short sale run, The Slave Auction depicts an auctioneer selling two slave parents and their two children. The piece illustrates a tragedy that to many slaves was a harsh reality - a family torn apart at a slave auction. The piece was not a commercial success and was pulled from sale in 1866. However, Rogers said of the piece, "[It] gave me probably more satisfaction to make than any other group. By taking a subject where there is a divided opinion, of course, I lose half my customers."
-
Vignette Portrait of A. Lincoln
William Painter Pearson
Photo on a cabinet-size mount, vignette portrait of A. Lincoln taken by T.P. Pearson in 1858. This is a reversed image of original ambrotype. Imprint; "Rider...Chicago." Ref: O-8.
-
Union
Henry S. Sadd, Tompkins Harrison Matteson, William Pate, and Augustus W. Sexton
The mezzotint and line engraving, colored, depicts various statesmen: Winfield Scott, Lewis Cass, Henry Clay, John Calhoun, Daniel Webster, Millard Fillmore, Howell Cobb of Georgia, James McDowell, Thomas Hart Benton of Missouri, John M. Clayton of Delaware, Thomas Corwin, James Buchanan, Stephen A. Douglas, John J. Crittenden, Sam Houston of Texas, Henry Foote of Mississippi, Willie P. Mangum of North Carolina, W. R. King of Alabama, Daniel S. Dickinson of New York, John McLean of Ohio, John Bell of Tennessee, and John C. Fremont of California; This print was reissued about 1861, with a figure of Abraham Lincoln substituted for that of Calhoun
-
Union
Henry S. Sadd, Tompkins Harrison Matteson, William Pate, and Augustus W. Sexton
The colored engraving depicts Abraham Lincoln (reworked over John Calhoun) and other statesmen: Winfield Scott, Lewis Cass, Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, Millard Fillmore, Howell Cobb of Georgia, James McDowell, Thomas Hart Benton of Missouri, John M. Clayton of Delaware, Thomas Corwin, James Buchanan, Stephen A. Douglas, John J. Crittenden, Sam Houston of Texas, Henry Foote of Mississippi, Willie P. Mangum of North Carolina, W. R. King of Alabama, Daniel S. Dickinson of New York, John McLean of Ohio, John Bell of Tennessee, and John C. Fremont of California
-
The Life and Public Services of Henry Clay
R. G. Berford
The colored engraved broadside features at its top a portrait of the Whig candidate for President. It is surrounded by seven vignettes and flourishes. The text of the broadside is an essay promoting Clay's qualifications for the Presidency.
-
The Annual Celebration of the Signing of the Emancipation Proclamation
The broadside was probably printed in the 19th century for an annual celebration of the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. It is printed on off-white paper with black ink.
-
Clament Laird Vallandigham Carte de Visite
Austin Augustus Turner and D. Appleton and Co.
The Carte de Visite features a black and white bust-length portrait of C.L. Vallandigham, which is mounted to a white paper card; The card features a double-lined border around its parameter.