Lincoln's 1865 Autopsy Report and Death Certificate

[LincolnToddFan]

It all sounds horrifying, ghastly. Dr. Lattimer wrote that the .44 caliber bullet struck the back of the president's skull with the force of a sledgehammer. I suppose that is what shattered both his eye sockets?

I can't imagine him or anyone else surviving such an injury, but of course a few doctors have suggested that modern medicine might have saved AL. They note that former congresswoman Gabrielle Gifford's brain injury was almost identical to Lincoln's, except the bullet that hit her brain passed out of her skull, Lincoln's did not.

In any case, if he had survived even with 21st century medicine he would have been a much, much different man...partially blind and completely deaf, subject to seizures and with impaired motor skills.

The legendary speeches would also have been a thing of the past.

Thanks much, Betty. Those docs are fascinating and sobering to read.