New Eyewitness Account?

[kerry]

It is interesting both refer to Mary calling Lincoln 'pa,' which I would assume most people wouldn't know about.

It's still confusing to me what she called him when they not being formal. A lot of people refer to her saying "Abe," but those accounts are mostly questionable. Julia Taft says she called him "Abra'm," which seems credible. He signed a letter to her "Lincoln." She seems to indicate in some letters she just called him "husband," which I think was typical at the time. Sickles said "pa." Her family claims it was always "Mr. Lincoln," but no one really echoes that.

What's odd is that in 1866, reports circulated that at the Springfield house, a blood-stained piece of Laura Keene's dress was on the wall framed, and they blamed Mary's oddity for it. However, she was not living there, so I don't know that it was her choice - I can't see her wanting it. But the claim surfaced very early. I agree it seems unlikely.