Behind the Scenes guide

Summary

Characters

• BurwellGatekeeperFrom Chapter 1
• ElizabethAlso Lizzie, KeckleyLeadFrom Chapter 1
• Mr. BinghamVillainFrom Chapter 2
• RobertAlso LincolnGatekeeperFrom Chapter 2
• GarlandGatekeeperFrom Chapter 3
• Willis L. WilliamsHelperFrom Chapter 3
• DavisGatekeeperFrom Chapter 4
• LincolnAlso ClarkeHelperFrom Chapter 5
• TadChildFrom Chapter 5
• WillieChildFrom Chapter 5
• DouglasHelperFrom Chapter 5
• DouglassHelperFrom Chapter 7
• Henry Highland GarnetAlso Rev. Henry Highland GarnetHelperFrom Chapter 7
• Dr. HenryHelperFrom Chapter 11
• Maggie GarlandHelperFrom Chapter 14
• BradyHelperFrom Chapter 15
• KeyesHelperFrom Chapter 15

Chapter by chapter

Storylines

• Elizabeth selects formative incidents to tell the story of her life.

• Elizabeth seeks to perform childcare faithfully, encouraged by her mistress's conditional promise to make her the baby's maid.

• Elizabeth resolves to give her mother every possible assistance.

  • Elizabeth acts on her commitment to help her mother by earning the household's support rather than allowing her mother to serve strangers, sustaining this work at a cost to her own health.
  • After her mother's death, Elizabeth's care extends to looking after her remaining effects and preserving her memory; the events do not establish that the effects were recovered.

• Elizabeth's dependence on her mistress exposes her to severe punishment when the baby falls and to further cruelty.

  • Dependence exposes Elizabeth to repeated organized beatings in Robert Burwell's household. Her resistance ultimately brings promises ending beatings by Bingham and Robert, but the wider vulnerability remains, including sexual persecution.

• Agnes and George's family life is restricted by enslavement, briefly restored, then permanently broken by George's forced removal; correspondence sustains their connection until his death.

  • Elizabeth's removal to Hillsboro extends the family's separation. Her letter records fear of permanent estrangement, while her mother's gifts and preservation of the letter show continuing attachment; these events do not establish any change to George's circumstances.

• Burwell undertakes to arrange for George to live with his wife and daughter through an agreement with George's owner.

• George's owner intends to establish a home in the West and requires George to accompany him, ending the family's reunion.

• Agnes responds to her mistress's insults with loathing and scorn.

• George repeatedly hopes and promises to visit his daughter, but cannot obtain leave to travel and dies without a reunion.

• George plans to obtain control of his own time by paying his master $120 annually, supported by earnings made for his own benefit.

• George resolves to continue praying despite his circumstances.

• Burwell conceals Joe's sale from Joe's mother and falsely assures her that her son will return the next morning.

• Joe's mother tries to prevent her son's removal, but the sale permanently separates them; she is whipped for grieving and dies without seeing him again.

• Burwell's sale of approximately seventy enslaved people breaks most of their spousal or parent-child relationships.

• Burwell threatens Elizabeth's uncle with severe punishment over replacement ploughlines; their theft leads the uncle to kill himself to escape the anticipated punishment.

• Mrs. Robert Burwell imagines that Elizabeth despises her parentage and subjects her to distrust and scolding despite Elizabeth's work.

• Mrs. Robert Burwell apparently enlists Bingham to punish Elizabeth and break her pride; after he refuses further flogging, she urges her husband to punish Elizabeth himself.

• Elizabeth determines to resist forced undressing and repeated attempts to subdue her, even at the risk of death; both men eventually abandon beating her without breaking her resistance.

• Elizabeth resolves to withhold screams and groans so that her tormentor cannot hear her suffering.

• Elizabeth seeks an explanation for her flogging, but Robert dismisses her demand and strikes her.

• Elizabeth struggles unsuccessfully to forgive her tormentors; her suffering later prompts Bingham to seek forgiveness and Mrs. Robert Burwell to plead for the beating to stop.

• An unnamed white man subjects Elizabeth to sustained sexual persecution, implicitly including coerced sexual relations.

• Elizabeth becomes the mother of her only child.

  • Elizabeth's only son leaves school for military service and is killed in battle, ending their living mother-son relationship and leaving her deeply bereaved.

• Separation and disappointed hopes of contact lead Elizabeth to believe her family has forgotten her and that she will never see them again, although presents from her mother and aunt attest continuing ties.

• Elizabeth promises to write to her mother again.

• Miss Anna plans to travel to Petersburgh without taking Elizabeth.

• Elizabeth seeks suitable clothing for social occasions, worries over her bridesmaid's frock, and asks for a pretty frock to be sent to her.

• Mrs. Robert Burwell tells Elizabeth that she will belong to Miss Elizabeth when Miss Elizabeth marries.

• Elizabeth undertakes to support the impoverished Garland household through dressmaking so that her mother will not be sent into service with strangers; her earnings support seventeen people, but excessive work damages her health.

  • Exhausting needlework continues to impair Elizabeth's health, prompting relocation and the establishment of her own Washington clientele; these events do not establish whether support for the Garland household has ended.
  • The chapter recalls Elizabeth's dressmaking support, then establishes emancipation, relinquishment of Nannie's care, household dispersal and her mother's death, ending the original obligation to support the household to protect her mother.

• Elizabeth's obligation to support the Garland household prevents her from saving the money required to purchase freedom, making outside financial help necessary.

  • Her patrons' loan supplies the money she could not save, enables emancipation, and is subsequently repaid in full.

• Elizabeth's attachment to Keckley develops toward marriage, but she initially refuses his proposal because she fears bearing more children into slavery; the prospect of purchasing freedom enables her to consent and marry him.

  • Elizabeth ends marital cohabitation, making reunion conditional on reform; Keckley's subsequent death closes that possibility.

• Elizabeth seeks lawful freedom for herself and her son, persists after Garland prohibits the subject, rejects escape, obtains a $1200 purchase price, and ultimately secures their emancipation.

  • Elizabeth pays the purchase money and secures freedom for herself and her son.

• After marrying Keckley, Elizabeth discovers his dissipation and that his claim to be free was false.

  • Elizabeth separates from Keckley, whose dissipation continues until his death; the marital conflict ends without his reform.

• Elizabeth prepares to solicit freedom money in New York, but permission requires six guarantors; she obtains five signatures and rejects Farrow's offered sixth because he distrusts her promise to return.

  • Local financing secures emancipation, removing the need for the proposed New York fundraising journey.

• Le Bourgois proposes raising the purchase money among Elizabeth's local friends, asks her to postpone New York, and successfully secures the $1200 that enables Elizabeth and her son to become free.

  • The local advance funds emancipation, and Elizabeth fully repays those who supplied it.

• Elizabeth entrusts funds to Williams for her benefit; he deposits them with Darby and Barksdale and guarantees monthly interest, additional proceeds, and personal responsibility for principal and interest.

• Elizabeth accepts her patrons' emancipation advance only as a loan and undertakes to repay it in full.

• With her health impaired by needlework, Elizabeth determines to change her circumstances and establish an independent livelihood in the North.

  • Initially anxious about bills, Elizabeth gains numerous orders through Mrs. Lee's dress, becomes Mrs. Lincoln's regular modiste and obtains other prominent patrons, establishing her independent livelihood in Washington.
  • Elizabeth judges Washington the better place for her livelihood and returns there to reopen her business.

• Elizabeth attempts to earn money in Baltimore by teaching dress cutting and fitting to young colored women.

• Washington's residence and licensing requirements threaten Elizabeth's ability to remain and work without someone vouching for her freedom.

• Miss Ringold becomes Elizabeth's advocate and obtains official protection for her residence in Washington.

  • Miss Ringold extends her advocacy into professional patronage by introducing and recommending Elizabeth to Mrs. Lee; the resulting commission brings publicity and financial relief.

• Elizabeth becomes Mrs. Davis's dressmaker, negotiates hours that preserve her other work, and earns Mrs. Davis's confidence through faithful service.

  • Elizabeth's work for Mrs. Davis becomes a professional credential in Mrs. Lincoln's interview, where Mrs. Lincoln assumes that Elizabeth gave satisfaction.

• The Davis household holds frequent secret political meetings, whose existence Elizabeth learns from household informants.

• Mrs. Davis prepares a silk dressing-gown as a Christmas surprise for her husband, with Elizabeth undertaking to finish it in time.

• Jefferson Davis infers that the gown is his Christmas present but conceals his discovery to preserve his wife's belief that she will surprise him.

• Mrs. Davis plans to leave for the South and seeks to take Elizabeth with her, promising protection and predicting Southern victory and her husband's presidency.

• Elizabeth weighs Mrs. Davis's invitation and warnings against her own inclination to remain with the North.

• Mrs. Davis commits to abandoning expensive dress and practising economy.

• Elizabeth seeks dressmaking employment with the White House ladies and secures it after recommendations, competition and a difficult first delivery.

• Miss Ringold's recommendation brings Elizabeth Mrs. Lee's patronage; the successful dress establishes Elizabeth's reputation and attracts further orders.

• Harper extends commercial trust to Elizabeth and rewards her purchase with a commission, giving her pleasure in being trusted.

• Mrs. McClean offers access to Mrs. Lincoln's dressmaking work if Elizabeth completes her urgent dress; Elizabeth accepts despite her existing commitments.

• Mrs. McClean becomes Elizabeth's intermediary with Mrs. Lincoln, recommending her and directing her to an interview despite a delay caused by an unexplained message.

• Elizabeth becomes Mrs. Lincoln's dressmaker on terms requiring low prices; a dispute over her first delivery gives way to satisfaction, presidential praise and regular employment.

  • Elizabeth's relationship with Mrs. Lincoln extends beyond dressmaking into protected confidence, personal consultation, nursing and consolation; Mrs. Lincoln's condolence letter comforts Elizabeth after her son's death.
  • Mrs. Lincoln summons Elizabeth to accompany her travels, continues employing her for dress fitting, and repeatedly supports her relief association.
  • Mrs. Lincoln confides her social reforms, concealed political intentions and debts to Elizabeth, whose electoral reassurance renews her hope.
  • Dressmaking contact continues, and Mrs. Lincoln includes Elizabeth in her journey to City Point, extending their association beyond work.
  • Elizabeth continues her regular personal service, promising to arrive to dress Mrs. Lincoln and attending her at the White House.

• Mrs. Lincoln accuses Elizabeth of delivering her dress too late and refuses to attend the levee; Elizabeth offers to dress her quickly and explains the delivery.

• Outsiders cultivate Elizabeth's friendship and offer bribes to obtain White House access; she protects her employer's confidence by refusing them.

• An actress uses dressmaking commissions and apparent friendship to seek Elizabeth's recommendation for White House employment, offering a reward; Elizabeth refuses and ends their contact.

• The actress conceals her purpose of obtaining household secrets for a published scandal; Elizabeth subsequently learns her identity and motive.

• Mrs. Lincoln proposes replacing state dinners with three large receptions to economize, gains Elizabeth's support and the President's agreement, and begins issuing invitations.

• Willie's worsening illness conflicts with Mrs. Lincoln's reception obligations: she decides to postpone, proceeds on medical reassurance, and repeatedly leaves the guests for his bedside before his death.

• Nursing Willie and witnessing the President's grief bring Elizabeth into intimate contact with the Lincoln family's suffering and reveal his emotional vulnerability to her.

  • Elizabeth witnesses the President's distress over war news and discovers that reading Job gives him comfort and hope.
  • Elizabeth's effort to spare Mrs. Lincoln further pain leads to a candid exchange about her brother's death and reveals the strength of her allegiance against the Confederacy.
  • Elizabeth's access to the family continues through personal conversation and shared travel, allowing her to witness the President's informal pleasures with his son and companions.
  • Mrs. Lincoln repeatedly seeks Elizabeth during the assassination crisis. Elizabeth becomes her bedside comforter and personally mourns the President.

• Willie's death overwhelms both parents; Mrs. Lincoln's grief damages her health, and the President intervenes with a warning about madness and confinement.

  • Willie's name and mementos continue to renew Mrs. Lincoln's grief.
  • Willie's death continues to cause Mrs. Lincoln intolerable pain: she removes bouquets and gives away his belongings to avoid reminders.

• The Lincoln family intends to send Willie's preserved body west for burial in his home valley.

• Mrs. Lincoln seeks to preserve tangible memorials of Willie, requesting preservation of his flowers and keeping Willis's memorial sketch in her scrapbook.

• Freedmen arriving in Washington lose idealized expectations of freedom while indifferent Northerners regard them as idle and dependent.

  • Camp visits reveal freedpeople's disappointment and preference for returning to former masters; the old woman's complaint makes their frustrated expectations concrete.

• Elizabeth seeks to organize prosperous black people to relieve suffering freedmen.

  • Elizabeth carries out relief work through camp visits and learns directly about the distress the organization seeks to alleviate.

• Association members unite in a working relief organization and renew Elizabeth's mandate as its president.

• Elizabeth uses travel with Mrs. Lincoln to promote the relief association and obtain donations and organized support in New York and Boston.

• The relief association gains sustained material support from black communities, philanthropists, British donors, and the Lincolns.

• Bad war news leaves the President dejected; reading Job restores comfort, courage, and hope.

• Assassination warnings alarm Mrs. Lincoln, but the President continues to go out alone despite her efforts to dissuade him; his friends undertake to guard him at the White House.

  • Elizabeth recognizes and communicates the President's exposure to assassination. The feared danger culminates in his fatal shooting at the theatre, where Booth enters his box while its guard is distracted.

• Robert wants to leave school and enter the army despite his mother's opposition; presidential intervention secures her permission, and he enters service as a captain and aide-de-camp.

  • The President now directs Robert to leave military service and resume his education; Robert's compliance is not recorded.

• Mrs. Lincoln organizes a reception for Tom Thumb's company and seeks Robert's help entertaining him, which Robert refuses.

• Mrs. Lincoln objects to particular women and asks the President to avoid them at a reception.

• Mrs. Lincoln distrusts Chase and urges the President to investigate his motives and limit his trust; critics also send the President warnings against Chase.

• After reading Seward's letter, the President intends to visit him that day.

• Mrs. Lincoln opposes Johnson's proposed appointment.

• Mrs. Lincoln declares that she would leave the country throughout a Grant presidency.

• Elizabeth withholds news of Alexander Todd's death to spare Mrs. Lincoln pain, but discovers that Mrs. Lincoln already knows and explains her silence.

• Alexander Todd's choice to fight against the President makes him an enemy of his sister and her husband; his death brings Elizabeth to learn that Mrs. Lincoln has no sympathy for the Confederacy.

  • Coverage of her brothers' Confederate service renews the issue of divided family allegiance, and Mrs. Lincoln asks Elizabeth to publicize her own commitment to freedom and the North.

• The President directs Robert to leave military service, return to college, and study law for three years.

• Industrious freedpeople seek independent support, making practical plans and establishing cabins and cultivated family plots.

• Mrs. Lincoln undertakes to end the presidential promenade custom that gives another woman precedence; she secures the practice of walking with her husband or having him walk alone or with a man.

• Mrs. Lincoln cultivates politicians for a concealed electoral purpose and intends to discard them afterward, despite criticism of their association with her.

• Mrs. Lincoln's impulsive words and acts deeply hurt her husband, and she subsequently regrets wounding him.

  • The account describes a continuing pattern of impulsive letters followed by regret and attempts to recall them, extending the established difficulty of words whose consequences she later wishes to undo.

• Mrs. Lincoln's purchases on credit create roughly $27,000 in unpaid debts beyond her husband's salary; she fears electoral defeat and political exploitation of their discovery, although Elizabeth's prediction of reelection restores some hope.

  • The President's reelection removes the feared electoral defeat underlying Mrs. Lincoln's anxiety about her debts; these events do not establish that the debts are paid or disclosed.

• Mrs. Lincoln discloses her debts to Elizabeth but commits to keeping her husband ignorant of them.

• Mrs. Lincoln plans to demand that Republican politicians advance money to pay her debts.

  • The proposed demand on Republican politicians develops into a broker-managed appeal using her letters, but the private fundraising scheme fails and gives way to public exposure.

• Elizabeth seeks to preserve Mrs. Lincoln's reception glove for posterity; Mrs. Lincoln promises it conditional on reelection and subsequently gives it to her.

  • Elizabeth receives the promised reception glove and subsequently donates it with other presidential relics for Wilberforce University's benefit.
  • Elizabeth considers donating the preserved glove but withdraws the offer and retains it as a souvenir, sustaining her completed preservation goal.

• Racial exclusion prevents Douglass and other colored attendees from entering the presidential levee; a congressman's intervention obtains presidential authorization admitting Douglass, while the general exclusion remains unaddressed.

• The President personally welcomes Douglass and affirms his respect for his conduct and opinions; Douglass's pleasure reaches the Lincolns through Elizabeth.

• Elizabeth promises her employees a holiday upon Richmond's fall and fulfills it with Mrs. Harlan's cooperation in postponing her dress.

• Mrs. Lincoln invites Elizabeth to City Point; Elizabeth accepts, and their journey expands into visits to Richmond and Petersburg with the President before their return to Washington.

• Mrs. Lincoln wants to accompany the President on his first entry into conquered Richmond, but learns on arrival at City Point that he has already visited it.

• A young officer's account of women's enthusiastic reception of the President provokes Mrs. Lincoln's displeasure at his familiarity and embarrasses him.

• Elizabeth seeks people she knew in Petersburg, finds some old friends amid extensive wartime changes, and leaves with painful memories revived.

• The President announces that he will deliver a speech in Washington the following Tuesday night.

  • The announced Washington speech takes place before the White House crowd, with Tad holding the light beside his father.

• Elizabeth seeks reliable news of the President after receiving confused assassination reports; her inquiries establish that he is mortally wounded.

• Elizabeth seeks to reach Mrs. Lincoln after the shooting, initially cannot locate her, and subsequently answers her summons and tends her grief.

  • Elizabeth continues tending Mrs. Lincoln through packing, accompanies her west and remains present during renewed grief at Hyde Park.

• The President's assassination plunges Mrs. Lincoln into recurrent grief; Elizabeth offers relief, while Tad's distress and pleas induce her to restrain her outbursts.

  • Packing temporarily relieves lamentation, but Mrs. Lincoln's grief persists through confinement, intense sobbing, anniversary letters and renewed mourning at the tomb.
  • Her bereavement persists amid public humiliation and Robert's distress, with reported deterioration in health and feelings of abandonment; belief in her husband's continuing love offers consolation.

• Mrs. Lincoln excludes almost all visitors during her mourning.

  • Her withdrawal extends into plans for summer seclusion, a tomb visit avoiding old friends and departure from Chicago to avoid Johnson's expected visit.

• Mrs. Lincoln believes the new messenger participated in the assassination plot and confronts him; his defense and repentance for dereliction do not establish that her suspicion is dispelled.

• After recognizing his father's permanent absence and his own lost privileges, Tad resolves to care for himself and behave well in hope of reunion with his father and Willie in heaven; he begins dressing himself without a nurse.

• Mrs. Lincoln opposes the city's proposed burial plot because she wishes to be buried beside her husband and threatens to stop his remains in Chicago; their placement in the family vault at Oak Ridge settles the dispute.

• Having lost her position as the serving President's wife, Mrs. Lincoln begins preparing to leave the White House and declares she will return to Springfield only for burial.

  • Mrs. Lincoln completes the White House departure and establishes residence first in Chicago and then at Hyde Park. Her later Springfield visits show that her earlier declaration against returning except for burial does not hold.

• Mrs. Lincoln's wish for death conflicts with her desire to live for her surviving sons.

  • Mrs. Lincoln again contemplates death and explicitly identifies attachment to Tad as the restraint preventing suicide.

• Mrs. Lincoln distributes objects associated with the President as memorial gifts; Elizabeth donates her received relics for the benefit of fire-damaged Wilberforce University.

  • Further accounts document the distribution of presidential effects and Elizabeth's donation of memorial garments for Wilberforce's educational benefit.

• Mrs. Lincoln seeks to take the President's favored dressing-stand for Tad; conditional presidential consent, the Commissioner's permission and a replacement allow its removal to Chicago.

• Mrs. Lincoln insists that Elizabeth accompany her to Chicago; Elizabeth initially refuses because of work commitments, but Mrs. Douglas releases her from giving the trousseau priority and Elizabeth accompanies Mrs. Lincoln.

• Mrs. Lincoln's limited funds constrain her housing and ability to compensate Elizabeth; promised support for Elizabeth depends on congressional provision that has not materialized.

  • Congressional provision is established, but Mrs. Lincoln reports that the $22,000 went into a house and furniture. Restricted income, reliance on lodgings, the failed sales undertaking, and the loss of her month's living money sustain her financial difficulties and inability to reward Elizabeth.

• Mrs. Lincoln explicitly affirms her love and gratitude toward Elizabeth, whose companionship and continuing correspondence sustain their attachment after the White House departure.

  • Elizabeth undertakes the New York mission, and Mrs. Lincoln demonstrates affection and concern for her comfort. Their attachment continues through correspondence, although infrequent letters disappoint Mrs. Lincoln and promised financial rewards remain uncertain.

• Robert finds the family's Hyde Park residence intolerably dreary but feels obliged to defer to his mother.

• Mrs. Lincoln undertakes daily lessons for Tad, overcoming his immediate wish to go to town; his limited book knowledge and resistance to correction complicate the instruction.

• Elizabeth returns to Washington to reopen her shop and support herself after receiving expenses but no compensation for her time with Mrs. Lincoln; her business resumes successfully.

  • Following her visit and stay in Baltimore, Elizabeth again chooses Washington and reopens her business.
  • Elizabeth closes her business for the mission, spends money on the expedition, and must take sewing for subsistence while business difficulties delay her intended return to Washington.

• Despite her expressed wish to avoid Johnson family work, Elizabeth accepts a commission before learning the customer's identity and becomes the Johnson sisters' dressmaker; the relationship ends when she refuses cutting and fitting for a dress to be made elsewhere.

• Elizabeth conditionally promises to accompany Mrs. Lincoln on her first visit to the President's tomb, but the absence of the required congressional appropriation prevents her participation.

• Mrs. Lincoln plans a private first tomb visit with Tad, avoiding old friends, and carries out the journey from Chicago through Springfield to Oak Ridge and back.

• Mary Todd aspires to become a President's wife and maintains that expectation while rejecting Douglas.

• Lincoln and Douglas become rivals for Mary Todd; she rejects Douglas despite his determination to pursue the presidency.

• Mary's rejection of Lincoln, intended to test his sincerity, leads him to despair and illness; Henry's intervention establishes her love and willingness to marry, enabling reconciliation and marriage.

• Henry undertakes to investigate Mary's intentions toward Lincoln and conveys her assurance of love and marriage to the distressed Lincoln.

• Mrs. Lincoln receives Herndon's account of her husband's love as an attack on his memory and is shocked by it.

• After her son's death, Elizabeth accepts Welsh's argument for claiming a pension; Welsh and the Lovejoys pursue the claim, securing eight dollars per month.

• Joseph Lovejoy pursues Elizabeth's pension claim while hoping it will be rejected for his party's political benefit.

• Elizabeth's affection for the Garland household survives emancipation, separation and wartime losses; renewed contact leads to an affectionate reunion and continuing visits, letters and practical assistance.

• Elizabeth becomes Nannie's particular caregiver and later relinquishes that responsibility; Nannie's subsequent invitation and hospitality renew their attachment.

• Elizabeth seeks to look after her deceased mother's remaining effects, but declines an uncertain grave visit in order to preserve her happy memory of her mother.

• Elizabeth wishes to see her former household again and completes a five-week visit after renewed correspondence and repeated travel mishaps.

• Northern acquaintances question Elizabeth's affection for her former enslavers, while Garland neighbors predict that her social elevation will prevent a visit; reciprocal visits and correspondence contradict these expectations.

• Bettie promises Anne that she will visit Elizabeth in Washington and fulfills the promise, restoring contact between Elizabeth and the Garlands.

• General Longstreet seeks a pardon in Washington, while he and Bettie intend to live peacefully with the United States; they leave after his Washington business concludes.

• Nannie and General Meem plan to establish their own household in spring and subsequently receive Elizabeth at General Meem's place.

• General Meem welcomes Elizabeth warmly, and her acquaintance with him confirms her favorable judgment of his character.

• Elizabeth tells Ann that deprivation of a good childhood education is her sole stated grievance; Ann changes her view of that deprivation after hearing Elizabeth.

• Elizabeth plans to travel directly to Richmond but abandons that route after hearing of raging cholera and goes to Baltimore instead.

• Ann's introduction brings Elizabeth into contact with Baltimore ladies, and Mrs. Doctor Thomas promises to help her welfare.

• Maggie maintains her intention to visit Elizabeth despite ridicule, obtains Elizabeth's welcome and stays in her rooms.

• Mrs. Meem hopes to spend part of winter in the city if money and railroad access permit.

• Spot intends to open a professional practice in St. Louis as his health improves.

• Maggie commits to teaching her cousin's child until February and begins teaching; she also proposes another visit to Elizabeth during a northward journey, dependent on learning her location.

• Mrs. Meem intends to continue corresponding with Elizabeth and requests her New York address if needed.

• Mrs. Lincoln seeks to supplement her income by selling clothing and jewelry, with Elizabeth assisting in New York; low offers and few sales undermine the undertaking, and the unsold goods are ultimately returned.

• Elizabeth's assistance to Mrs. Lincoln interrupts her livelihood, costs her money, and prolongs her stay in New York; she takes sewing for subsistence while Mrs. Lincoln's promises of compensation remain conditional.

• Mrs. Lincoln travels under assumed names to avoid publicity, but her possessions reveal clues to her identity; brokers identify her, reporters pursue her, and she eventually authorizes publication of her letters.

• Hotel staff treat Elizabeth as a servant, exclude her from the main dining room, and fail to provide dinner; Mrs. Lincoln's proposed intervention risks unwanted attention, and Elizabeth persuades her to wait until morning.

• Mrs. Lincoln entrusts her financial affairs to Brady and Keyes, but disappointing results, suspected political exploitation, disputed charges, and the disposition of her goods destroy her confidence; Elizabeth closes the arrangement and obtains the remaining articles.

• Brady and Keyes propose obtaining political contributions through Mrs. Lincoln's letters, including threats of publication; the private appeal fails, prompting publication and further fundraising attempts.

• Public exposure of Mrs. Lincoln's wardrobe sale provokes criticism, allegations of insanity, and distress within her family; Elizabeth supplies corrective accounts while Mrs. Lincoln seeks to stop further publication and defend her loyalty to the North.

• Elizabeth seeks to protect Mrs. Lincoln's interests by remaining in New York, securing an account and inventory, settling the brokers' charges, and returning the unsold goods; she completes the settlement and dispatches the articles to Chicago.

• Brady and Keyes pursue a nationwide subscription appeal with prominent endorsements, but Greeley conditions his help on responsible leadership; the circular scheme is abandoned.

• Black supporters propose contributions and benefit lectures for Mrs. Lincoln; her initial refusal stops the effort, and her later consent does not restore Douglass's and Garnet's active participation.

• Mrs. Lincoln's goods are taken to Providence without her consent for an exhibition; she also learns of a proposed European display and demands its cancellation and the return of her possessions.

• Mrs. Lincoln asks Elizabeth to conceal her suspicions of Brady and Keyes while monitoring them, and to restrict access to private letters and clippings.

• Mrs. Lincoln conditionally promises to leave funds raised by black supporters to black beneficiaries at her death and to reward Elizabeth from successful fundraising proceeds.

• Mrs. Lincoln proposes leaving her present location in early spring and invites Elizabeth to accompany her for a year or more; she separately offers expenses and payment for a six-week dressmaking visit.

Places

Virginia, Hampton Sidney College, West, Tennessee, Border States, North Carolina, Boyton, Petersburgh, St. Louis, New York, The North, Missouri, Baltimore, Washington, South, Confederate States, The White House, Chicago, Long Branch, Saratoga, Wilberforce, East Room, Maryland, Metropolitan Hotel, Boston, Shiloh Church, England, Fifteenth Street Presbyterian Church, City Point, War Department, Richmond, Petersburg, James River, Capitol, Georgia, Fort Sumter, Springfield, Oak Ridge, Ohio, Tremont House, Lynchburg, Shenandoah Valley, Winchester, New Market, Mount Airy, Nelson County, Amherst, St. Denis Hotel, Broadway, Union Square Park, 609 Broadway, Canal Street, Earle Hotel, Union Place Hotel, Central Park, Seventh Avenue, Brandreth House, Fort Wayne, Newark, Pottsville, Cooper Institute, Providence, 14 Carroll Place, Rocky Mountains, Clifton House