Was Lincoln’s coffin opened in February 1866 ?

[loetar44]

(02-18-2015 07:03 AM)RJNorton Wrote:  Kees, this is a mystery to me. I was thinking maybe there was confusion, and this was really a reference to the December 21 opening, but the "scarcely discernible" features make no sense when compared to what the eyewitnesses said in 1901. I am currently at a loss on this...

Roger, I still am in search for a reasonable explanation. Of course, in 1865/66 news "traveled" slow. The Missouri Democrat printed it on Feb 10, 1866, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle on Feb 16, 1866, The London Evening Sun on March 13, 1866, The Launceston Examiner on June 13, 1866. Could it be that the article is referring to the Dec 21, 1865 viewing? But news in the U.S. did not travel "that slow" I asume? I suspect that a week or 10 days is the limit for US papers. I can't get rid of the thought that the coffin was opened early Feb. 1866 and that there was more marked deterioration in Lincoln's remains than ever thought.... Was Lincoln exposed under a glass plate when lying in state in the cities en route to Springfield? But why a glass covering here? Puzzling ....