Did William Coggeshall Save Lincoln's Life?

[Eva Elisabeth]

(09-16-2016 04:06 AM)RJNorton Wrote:  John, I am afraid we'll have to agree to disagree on Coggeshall. I agree with Eva - this incident would be in Lamon's book if it really occurred. I checked Judd's notes - nothing. Also, nothing from Pinkerton.

Coggeshall is not mentioned a single time in Lincoln Day By Day. He is not in The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln. Regarding meeting with Cabinet members, he is not mentioned in Welles' diary.

I am sorry - I just do not believe Coggeshall's stories about being Lincoln's bodyguard. Koch's book says, “Coggeshall declined the post (head of Secret Service of Government) but agreed to continue to work in the Secret Service. He would commute among Washington, Columbus, and Springfield, Ohio, on secret assignments for Lincoln for what Mary Coggeshall later called three full and busy years."

There was not even a Secret Service under Lincoln – that came later after the assassination.

Offhand, I cannot think of a single Lincoln scholar who includes accounts of a friendship/relationship/meetings/ between Lincoln and Coggeshall in his/her book. There is not a single mention of Coggeshall in Hay's dairy or letters.

Certainly if Coggeshall were really a bodyguard to Lincoln it would be in Lamon's book. It's not. I also checked Fred Hatch's Protecting President Lincoln: The Security Effort, the Thwarted Plots and the Disaster at Ford's Theatre and cannot find any mention of Coggeshall.

IMO all of this was created. There is simply no evidence for any of it IMO.

Can't agree more.

Re.: "According to Mary's telling, the incident occurred when Coggeshall and Lincoln transferred from the Harrisburg car to the Baltimore car where they were to be 'by themselves'" - I quote from Mary's account:

"Near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the presidential party was to change railroad cars and the train would be switched off to proceed to Baltimore. Lincoln and Coggeshall were the last to go out to the other car. 'As they neared the door, they heard a hissing sound and discovered a Hand Grenade just ready to explode. As Mr. Lincoln reached the door, Mr. Coggeshall grasped the shell and hurled it through the open window where it [had] been dropped into the car. As it struck beyond the tracks and exploded, no one was hurt.'"

An exploding granade unheard by anyone? Trains weren't fast in those days, so the distance couldn't have been much, and I'd think an exploding granade would even drown out a steam engine, plus be visible, and catch attention.