Trivial Trivia - taking trivia to new levels

[Gene C]

The music and words to "The Battle Cry of Freedom"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhCheCryopA

[Laurie Verge]

Skipping back to the subject of Mary liking purple, here's a factoid for you:

The Prince of Wales Room in the Northwest corner of the White House acquired its name because the prince had occupied that bedroom during an 1860 visit to the White House. It was extensively redecorated under Mary Lincoln with light purple wallpaper, heavy purple drapes and purple and yellow bedspreads for the rosewood bed that now occupies the "Lincoln Bedroom." The elaborately carved bed, which was adorned with representations of flora and birds, replaced a broken bedstead the Lincolns found when they moved in. The bed "was draped to suggest an antique French state bed or lit de parade, the head surmounted by a gilded half coronet emblazoned with the American shield. The coronet was suspended from high on the walls, just inches below the ceiling. From it hung curtains of purple satin trimmed with yellow-gold fringe over long, full panels of glistening gold lace drawn back with cord and tassels. Bolster and spread were of figured satin in purple and gold; deep purple and gold fringe formed a valance along the sides of the bed," wrote White House historian William Seale.1

White House expert Carl Sferrazza Anthony wrote: “When the Prince of Wales came to stay with the Buchanan family, he slept in the suite, and it was christened the ‘Prince of Wales Room.’ Here in 1861 Mary Lincoln placed an ornately carved rosewood bed and matching marble-topped table from the Philadelphia firm of William Carryl. She had the bed, which would forever after be known as the Lincoln bed, crowned with a gold American shield, from which gilt lace, overlaid by rich purpose satin curtains fringed in gold, flowed to the floor, covering the bed’s perimeter. The bedspread was also purple and gold.”2

This is the room that Willie Lincoln died in and the room in which President Lincoln's autopsy was performed. Anyone want to take a guess as to how long the Lincoln bed is?

[RJNorton]

About 8 feet?

[J. Beckert]

8.5 feet. Or 2.5908 meters.

[LincolnMan]

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

This is part of a larger painting. Can you guess who the artist is?

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The music and words to "The Battle Cry of Freedom"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhCheCryopA

This song was sung at the rededication of Detroit's historic GAR Building back in November 2012. In attendance was a second-great grand-daughter of a former slave.

[LincolnMan]

Hint: the artist is deceased. His works were featured on the covers of a very famous magazine.

[Gene C]

Norman Rockwell?

[L Verge]

Back to the length of the Lincoln bed. The White House Historical Association rep gave it as 9', so Joe comes closest.

[LincolnMan]

Gene: absolutely correct-Norman Rockwell. The full painting is of Matthew Brady photographing the sitting Lincoln.

[DannyW]

Not exactly a Lincoln question!
Who is the only president to give his inaugural address w/o the use of notes. Also he had no turnover in his cabinet & was a friend of Jefferson Davis.

[RJNorton]

Hi Danny. I really don't know, but I'll guess James Buchanan.

[RJNorton]

Danny, I am going to change my answer to Franklin Pierce.

[Bill Richter]

It was Pierce, Roger

[Laurie Verge]

Danny clued me in earlier on this tidbit, and I advised him to post the question here. I'm glad he did. He also had a link to a site that listed little things like this about presidents. I hope I can find it again.

[L Verge]

Just saw a piece of trivia that y'all probably already know, but P.T. Barnum offered Alphonso Donn $20,000 for the clothes Lincoln was wearing when assassinated, but was turned down. I know that Congressman Fred Schwengel was instrumental in getting funding from an American truckers' association back in the 1960s to buy the outfit from Donn's descendants. Does anyone know how much was paid at that time?