Presidential Assassins

[Tom Emery]

Whether this relates to the discussion or not is debatable, but I've always been intrigued by another angle of these assassinations.

If memory serves me right, the Lincoln casket was opened for the final time on Sept. 26, 1901. That would have been only 12 days after the death of William McKinley.

I've wondered if that was on the minds of those present when the Lincoln casket was opened that last time. The idea of opening a casket seems gruesome, but it certainly makes sense; the casket had been opened so many times, there was the Nov. 1876 plot to steal the body, etc.

But I've wondered if there was a sense of the recent McKinley assassination as well, since it would have been so fresh in their minds. I'm NOT saying that was a reason to open the casket; it was just an irony that the opening and the assassination were so close.

I'm glad to be a part of this symposium, and I've had a great time with it. Hopefully, I'll get to meet some of you in person at some point!