Mary's Carriage Accident

[Donna McCreary]

(12-05-2012 10:35 AM)Laurie Verge Wrote:  One of my staff members, Joan Chaconas, is a D.C. historian and has tons of books and maps on the subject. Let me tackle her for information. I know that the grounds of St. Elizabeth's (the modern name of the insane asylum) were perfect for viewing the fireworks on the 4th of July when I was a child. Those are held around the Washington Monument, which is just a few blocks from the White House. I have also heard the claim that the hospital was too far away to be seen from the White House. We'll see what we can find.

During Lincoln's time in office, the hospital was known as the Government Hospital for the Insane and opened in 1855. It had been authorized by Congress in 1852, largely due to the efforts of Dorothea Dix. I believe that one of the original buildings still exists on the campus.

During the Civil War, it was used as a hospital for wounded soldiers. There is a small cemetery on the grounds where many of those soldiers (including USCT) are buried, and there have been concerns as to what will become of it when Homeland Security takes over. Right now the eastern campus of the grounds is still a mental institute; the western half is Homeland Security.

It's interesting that the name changed from the Government Hospital for the Insane to St. Elizabeth's Hospital during the Civil War. Soldiers who were recuperating there were reluctant to mention in their letters home that they were in a mental hospital. The original name of the property (plantation) during the colonial era had been St. Elizabeth, so they began using that as the name of the hospital. It was not officially named that, however, until 1916.

During the Civil War, the hospital's grounds housed more than humans. Many exotic animals were being brought back from Smithsonian expeditions for the proposed National Zoo. They were housed at St. Eizabeth's. Some of the more famous in-patients over the years have been Richard Lawrence, who attempted to kill President Jackson, Garfield's assassin, Charles Guiteau (until he was executed) and currently John Hinckley (would-be assassin of President Reagan). Another famous patient there was Ezra Pound.

Thanks Laurie. I have always wondered about the exact location of the hospital. Even though Keckly details this scene, and several historians and film makers have included it in their works, I have always wondered if it were truly possible to see a mental hospital from the White House. I have also always wondered about Lincoln's word choice during this conversation. I can understand him saying something along the line of telling Mary she needs to compose herself, or perhaps saying that if she can not contain her grief, she will need help. However, taking her to a window, pointing to a building, and saying, that is "where we will send you" seems out of character for Lincoln.