11. Lincoln Letter

 

Judy stumbled out of the bedroom, somewhat bleary-eyed, to find the office light on and Greg bent studiously over his laptop.  Concentrating so hard, Greg did not even hear her approach.

 

“What in the world are you doing on your computer at 3:00 AM in the morning?   Do you know what time it is”? she asked.

 

“Oh, Judy, you will not believe what I have just found.  This is so exciting.  It’s a handwritten, personal letter from Abraham Lincoln to your fourth great grandfather, thanking him for his support in the 1860 election.  Can you believe that”?  Greg exclaimed.

 

Greg was clearly pumped.  He went on “I stumbled across this document trail around midnight, and I just could not stop.  So, I kept on digging, digging and finally, I found this letter.  Talk about history!  I can’t wait to share this with the family.  Who knew?.”

 

It turns out that Judy’s fourth great grandfather, a lawyer and prominent Philadelphia citizen, had provided support to Lincoln through the election process as Lincoln fought for his second term as President.  The letter would prove to be a dandy addition to family history. 

 

Often, we researchers become deeply buried in our research and keep going, trying to maintain the thread of pursuit of clues, totally oblivious to the world around us.  No worries.   We eventually must come up for air and life support.  

 

Ron Gilmore

Email:            rvg3@me.com

Website:       https://www.rgenealogy.ca