Presidents and First Ladies Trivia

[L Verge]

(01-24-2019 02:22 PM)Susan Higginbotham Wrote:  She also stayed at the Fifth Avenue Hotel as First Lady. It was equipped with a "vertical railway"--i.e., an elevator.

http://www.boweryboyshistory.com/2012/01...-atop.html

Thanks for getting me started on the Fifth Avenue Hotel, Susan. I noticed that the link you gave gives virtually no Civil War history of the hotel, but there is plenty.

When Lincoln relieved Gen. McClellan of his command, the popular officer took up residence at the Fifth Avenue Hotel and on the day of his arrival was greeted with a throng of cheering supporters. He addressed them from a hotel balcony. Before moving to a fully-furnished home on West 31st Street (given to him by wealthy supporters), McClellan announced his intention to run for President against Lincoln from the hotel.

During the 1864 election turmoil in the city, Gen. Benjamin Butler set up his headquarters at the Fifth Avenue. Much of the fears surrounded the thought that the Confederates would firebomb the city, so Union troops were sent to deter any threat. However, as soon as the troops went away, the one-night incident that we are familiar with occurred, and the Fifth Avenue was one of the dozen hotel targets. Ironically, one of the Confederate leaders, Lt. Col. Robert Martin, was actually registered at the hotel.

The hotel was the site for a grand reception for Gen. Grant on November 20, 1865. Whenever he stayed at the hotel, Grant reserved rooms 43 and 44, overlooking West 24th Street. It was at the Fifth Avenue that he first debated running for President.

Edwin Booth and his first wife, Mary Devlin, lived in a suite at the hotel as newlyweds in 1861. William Tecumseh Sherman lived there for two years before buying an uptown home in 1888.

Now, here's a trivia question about the Fifth Avenue Hotel - There were two shops on the ground floor that were favorites of Abraham Lincoln. You don't have to know their names, but do you know what items Lincoln purchased from each (without cheating)?