The Baltimore Plot: What was Pinkerton Thinking?

[irshgrl500]

I know very little about Allan Pinkerton, and his theory, which is known or referred to as, "The Baltimore Plot". Pinkerton was hired to protect Lincoln, and deliver him safely to his inauguration in Washington, D.C. by investigating any suspicious activity, which may have led to endangering his life, or death. Pinkerton re-routed Lincoln into Baltimore secretly, and disguised, and supposedly tucked away in a sleeping car of a train, which ultimately had to be pulled by horses, due to Baltimore’s city ordinance prohibition of trains, traveling at night.
What was Lincoln supposed to do, after he boarded the train from Harrisburg to Baltimore, and travel secretly through Baltimore? Was he supposed to be asleep? Did he sleep? And boarding Lincoln onto the train, in preparation for the secret ride, did Pinkerton have a plan if someone, other than those in the inaugural party or travel party, happen to see Lincoln? He was sort of hard to be missed. His height at 6’4” is over 6” in height, than the average American male of 2010 (5’ 9.7”), and over 8” taller than the average American male, in 1857 (5’ 7.8”). There are a number of ways to disguise one’s appearance, which includes altering someone’s height, by increasing it but impossible to decrease it. Lincoln was an obvious figure in photographs, so he had to be obvious in crowds, and even when he was alone. It wouldn’t matter if you knew who he was; it was his height, which brought immediate attention to him, and once noticed, he would likely be identified.
Was Pinkerton’s plan so poor, it gave little or absolutely no consideration to Lincoln’s height, when considering possible security measures?

[L Verge]

I can't answer that question, but Pinkerton's plan of disguising Lincoln as an invalid sans stovepipe hat worked! Have you read Daniel Stashower's The Hour of Peril? There is another excellent one written about five years ago by Michael Kline, who also spoke on the plot for one of the Surratt House conferences. I found both of them very good - the latter one a tad more detailed and scholarly.

[Gene C]

Anyone know anything about Kate Warne's involvement in the Baltimore plot?

[L Verge]

Other than being the agent assigned to escort the sickly invalid, not much. Jane Singer is the expert on Kate, but Jane has a contract for a series of young adult history books and is laying low working on that project. I believe John Stanton has done some research on Kate Warne also.

[Eva Elisabeth]

Lamon, who accompanied Abraham Lincoln, was pretty tall, too (6'2''). Also I think you can't compare the "media situation" and the people's "awareness" of what Lincoln looked like with the situation today. How many pictures were to be seen in the newspapers? And how far did they make people aware of his actual body size?
Lincoln went from Harrisburg to Philadelphia and from there on another train to Washington via Baltimore. Before Lincoln boarded the train to Philadelphia, all telegraph lines from Harrisburg had been cut so that if someone there got wind of Lincoln's departure, the information couldn't spread. No one expected Lincoln to be in Philadelphia at that time.
In Philadelphia, Lincoln, Lamon and Pinkerton spent the time until the departure of the Washington train by riding around in a closed carriage. Pinkerton had arranged that the train for Washington departed immediately after Lincoln (together with Lamon and Pinkerton and a man named Kennedy, an employee of the railroad company) reached the train. They arrived at the station in the carrriage at last minute. The conductor had been told he had to wait for an urgent parcel with government dispatches that had to be delivered to Washington. Kennedy delivered the "fake" parcel and the train left.
Kate Warne had reserved the four double berths on the back of the train and had occupied them until Lincoln & Co arrived. She also had told the conductor she would be traveling with her “invalid brother”, who needed privacy when entering the train and prefered closed blinds. She left the train at Baltimore.
Lamon and Pinkerton reported that Lincoln told jokes to relieve the tension when they passed Baltimore and that none of them sleept during the journey.

[LincolnMan]

Wasnt this incident one that Lincoln regretted?

[Gene C]

He did regret it, but I always wondered, why send his family on the train through Baltimore? Why not send them by ship, except they might miss the inauguration?

[irshgrl500]

This was the incident that Lincoln later regretted. The New York Times ran a story, which was particularly unfavorable, which was written by Joseph Howard, Jr. I believe that Howard’s piece included a cartoon of Lincoln, in a nightshirt and Scottish tam, peering out of an opening of a rail car, looking terrified. This cartoon and the fact that the New York Times, was a Republican paper, clearly was not the message Lincoln or the Republican Party needed, pre-inauguration.
Also, I was not aware of Lamon accompanying Lincoln, when he switched trains, or Kate Warne's part, either. So, I guess Pinkerton did have the situation covered. I guess my point was Lincoln's height, drew immediate attention to him, even by today's height averages, he was extremely tall.
I did check out the reviews on The Hour of Peril, and it looks like a fascinating read.

[L Verge]

Both the Hour of Peril and Michael Kline's The Baltimore Plot are excellent books. And, for me, it has been nice to see that the Lincoln historians have finally agreed that there was such a plot against Lincoln as he passed through Baltimore. For years, they placed it on a back-burner as being spurious; and I always suspected that they just did not want people to think that Lincoln would have stooped (pardon the pun) so low as to sneak into D.C.

As for Lincoln's height being difficult to disguise, we have to take into account the hour of night that they pulled the stunt. The plotters had not counted on the change of plans, and there would be few people out and about at the new arrival to notice a stooped and frail gentleman.

I do find it interesting that Mrs. Lincoln and the children were sent on the regular train and would possibly face the wrath of the Baltimore crowds, but it would have been very difficult to sneak an entire family on the trains -- and I suspect that the authorities counted on the crowds not caring about Mrs. Lincoln and her sons; they were out for the president-elect's blood!

[RJNorton]

This was the incident that Lincoln later regretted.

Thanks, Karin. As far as things Lincoln regretted in his life, I have read that there are at least two others. One was the duel with James Shields that was averted. There was also a lesser known one. As an Illinois state legislator Lincoln once jumped from a window of the Second Presbyterian Church, the temporary location of the Illinois House of Representatives, in December 1840. The motive of the unusual action was to break a quorum when Democrats called for a vote to cripple the Whig-favored state bank.

Springfield's Old Second Presbyterian Church where Lincoln jumped out a window on December 5, 1840.

Laurie, I am way behind you. The only book I have on the Baltimore Plot was written in 1949. The author was Norma Cuthbert.

[L Verge]

That may be the first book I ever read on the subject; is it entitled Arrival: 12:38?

[RJNorton]

Nope. Norma Cuthbert's book is titled "Lincoln and the Baltimore Plot 1861: From Pinkerton Records and Related Papers."

[Liz Rosenthal]

Lincoln was kind of known for his poor posture - which may or may not have had something to do with the fact that he had to look down on everyone to talk to them - so I doubt that "stooping" was really part of the "disguise."

[LincolnMan]

If one believed Herndon- Lincoln may have regretted marrying Mary?

[Hess1865]

I wonder if Lincoln ever regretted having Herndon as his law partner??