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+--- Forum: Mary Lincoln and the Boys (/forum-4.html)
+--- Thread: What would you ask? (/thread-133.html)
What would you ask? - Donna McCreary - 07-27-2012 09:13 PM
Kim Bauer and I are co-authoring a q&a book about Mary Lincoln titled The Myths, Mysteries, and Mayhem of Mary Lincoln. Other than "Was she insane?" what questions would you ask? The topic can be about any aspect concerning Mary's life.
RE: What would you ask? - Rogerm - 07-27-2012 10:32 PM
Since Mary did not get along well with her step-mother, did she find another woman who might have served as a mother figure?
RE: What would you ask? - RJNorton - 07-28-2012 03:43 AM
According to Michael Burlingame, she was quite abusive toward her husband. How much of this is true?
RE: What would you ask? - LincolnMan - 07-28-2012 06:12 AM
I would ask Mary about her faith in God. How much comfort did it provide her? Was it a great source of strength?
RE: What would you ask? - BettyO - 07-28-2012 06:25 AM
Mary is such an intriguing personality - a seeming mixture of lady and at times, harpy...and she was definitely a lady!
I've always wondered why she was so jealous of other ladies being closely affiliated with Mr. Lincoln; i.e. such as Mrs. Ord, Mrs. Grant, et. al. Obviously she did not want them to either usurp her standing as First Lady or she was potentially worried about them getting personal with Mr. Lincoln for some reason. Of course, this was something that a lady in the Victorian era definitely did not usually encounter. Fascinating character study, Mrs. Lincoln.
I also wonder what her migraines portended, if anything? In my youth, I suffered from them as well - but I don't think they effected my personality in any manner.
RE: What would you ask? - Rob Wick - 07-28-2012 07:41 AM
I know some people, whose opinion I, and other Lincoln students, highly respect, who believe that Mary Todd Lincoln was actually buried alongside her husband and not in the wall of the tomb. They point out that the grave was big enough for two caskets. Any ideas how this got started and whether it could be true?
Best
Rob
RE: What would you ask? - HerbS - 07-28-2012 07:43 AM
Donna,I feel Mary suffered from bouts of Chemical inballance to caused severe depression.Eddie's early death and then Willie! She had to recognize Tad's symptoms and possibly carry some guilt for giving birth to child with"special needs".
RE: What would you ask? - Gene C - 07-28-2012 10:07 AM
What first attracted her to Mr. Lincoln, and what was the cause(s) of their on and off again courtship?
RE: What would you ask? - Dan Pearson - 07-28-2012 01:56 PM
What sort of physical ailments and conditions contributed to Mary's mental conditions and behavior? Certainly her use of (and possible physical addiction to) then-over the counter drugs like Laudanum did not help her emotional state. There have been suggestions of her suffering from diabetes and migraines. How did these illnesses factor into her mental state and behaviors?
RE: What would you ask? - Donna McCreary - 07-28-2012 10:49 PM
Thank you everyone for these wonderful questions! It seems there is a great interest in Mary's health and well-being. I am looking forward to adding these to the manuscript and finding the best response for each.
RE: What would you ask? - RJNorton - 07-31-2012 04:11 PM
Donna, have you read the research of Drs. Hirschhorn and Feldman regarding Mary and tabes dorsalis? If so, what do you think?
(Those same doctors also published an article on Abraham Lincoln's odd gait which they attributed to possible sensory nerve damage related to mercury poisoning from taking blue mass.)
RE: What would you ask? - Barry Doohan - 08-01-2012 08:11 PM
I would be interested if Mary had a post-assassination relationship with her half-sister Emelie Todd Helm. While I've read that Mary and Emelie had a close relationship prior to the death of Emelie's husband and subsequent White House stay, I can't recall seeing anything about their relationship afterward. Emelie gave Lincoln a number of headaches once she departed the White House. Despite these problems, did Mary continue to communicate with her?
RE: What would you ask? - L Verge - 08-01-2012 08:29 PM
Was Emelie the one who was so close to Robert Lincoln?
RE: What would you ask? - Donna McCreary - 08-01-2012 09:34 PM
(08-01-2012 08:11 PM)Barry Doohan Wrote: I would be interested if Mary had a post-assassination relationship with her half-sister Emelie Todd Helm. While I've read that Mary and Emelie had a close relationship prior to the death of Emelie's husband and subsequent White House stay, I can't recall seeing anything about their relationship afterward. Emelie gave Lincoln a number of headaches once she departed the White House. Despite these problems, did Mary continue to communicate with her?
In the fall of 1864, Emilie wish permission from President Lincoln to sell her cotton. The request was denied. Emilie then wrote a seething letter to Lincoln saying that she had “used up all her money to go on her long, tedious, unproductive, and sorrowful visit” to the White House. She continued by blaming Lincoln for the deaths of her husband, her brothers in the Confederacy, and the death of her brother Levi. According to Emilie Levi died ‘from utter want and destitution – another sad victim of more favored relatives.” Then she penned the words that Mary Lincoln could never forgive, “I also remind you that our minie balls have made us what we are.”
The cut was too deep, and the two sisters never spoke again.
(08-01-2012 08:29 PM)L Verge Wrote: Was Emelie the one who was so close to Robert Lincoln?
Yes, she was. Another way to look at it is that Emilie was the one who pestered Robert for money and political favors for the family. Of course, Robert granted the requests. After all, they were family and they did have a fondness for one another. Emilie and her children were listed in Mary Harlan Lincoln's will. The Lincoln estate continued to financially support the Helms far into the 20th century.
RE: What would you ask? - Donna McCreary - 08-02-2012 11:41 PM
(07-31-2012 04:11 PM)RJNorton Wrote: Donna, have you read the research of Drs. Hirschhorn and Feldman regarding Mary and tabes dorsalis? If so, what do you think?
(Those same doctors also published an article on Abraham Lincoln's odd gait which they attributed to possible sensory nerve damage related to mercury poisoning from taking blue mass.)
I read this article many years ago, and can not find my copy of it to refresh my memory as to their conclusions. However, if you are wondering if think Mary suffered from tabes dorsalis -- my answer is probably not.
While some of the conditions of this illness are symptoms which Mary suffered, they are also symptoms of other illnesses as well. Without a body, without an autopsy, we will never know exactly which diseases Mary contracted.
Someone else wish to answer this one?