Who Can You Believe

[Houmes]

(07-29-2014 04:57 PM)LincolnToddFan Wrote:  Hi Mr. Houmes,

You read my mind! I read that line and I also wondered how he could have survived such a severe brain injury in 1865. Even today, a person would be in considerable danger with an injury like that. Maybe there was a bit of brain matter observed coming from the wound?

I have seen photos of Fred taken years after the assault and he did indeed have a head covering, so he must have suffered some type of permanent disfigurement.

The reason Fred Seward wore different head coverings is because he had a depressed skull fracture. This was before the days of refined neurosurgery, so efforts to reduce a fracture (and relieve pressure on the brain) would involve elevating the skull fragment as much as possible with an instrument which looked like a dental pick. When that wasn't handy, a Civil War surgeon would use an ordinary kitchen fork, bending one or more of the tines to the right shape.