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Tad Lincoln
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Thomas Lincoln | |
|---|---|
 Tad Lincoln reading a book with his father |
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| Born | April 04, 1853 Springfield, Illinois, USA |
| Died | July 15, 1871 (aged 18) Chicago, Illinois, USA |
| Parents | Mary Todd and Abraham Lincoln |
Thomas "Tad" Lincoln (April 4, 1853 - July 15, 1871) was the fourth and youngest son of President Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd Lincoln.
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His nickname, "Tad", is short for "Tadpole" and was given because as a child, he had a disproportionately large head. During the first year of his father's presidency, he and his older brother Willie often caused mischief -- for example, ringing the bells in the attic of the White House, interrupting Cabinet meetings and offering tours of the mansion for a fee. Of the two, Tad was more rambunctious than his brother. President Lincoln was an extremely indulgent parent, and took great delight in his boys' pranks. In February 1862, Willie died, leaving Tad with no one to play with. His oldest brother Robert was in college. However, Tad continued to get much attention through his efforts to raise funds for the Union soldiers.
Tad was born with a cleft palate which, without modern corrective surgery, resulted in teeth that did not grow in straight and a lisp. His diet was limited to foods that were easy to bite or chew or had been given much preparation in advance.[1]
Some sources believe that, while living in the White House, Tad had a large collection of pets, including dogs, cats, snakes, frogs, sheep, and goats. He apparently enjoyed riding the goats around the lawn of the White House, despite his mother's objections.[2]
On April 14, 1865, Tad went to the Grover Theater to see "Aladdin and the Magic Lamp" while his parents attended "Our American Cousin" at Ford's Theater. The same night, his father was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth.
In 1868 Tad and Mary Todd Lincoln left the country and lived in Europe for two and a half years. During their voyage home in May of 1871, Tad became ill. Later that month, his condition grew worse. He had difficulty breathing when lying down and had to sleep sitting up in a chair. In early June, Tad grew dangerously ill. He recovered briefly, but by late June he started to weaken again. He suffered from intense pain in his chest, and his body grew thinner. On July 15, 1871 at the age of 18, Tad died in the Clifton House in Chicago. The cause of death, though not recorded, was most likely tuberculosis. Author Doris Kearns Goodwin, in her book Team of Rivals, suggested that Tad died of pleurisy.
The next day funeral services were held for Tad in Robert Lincoln's home in Chicago. Tad's remains were transported to Springfield and buried in the Lincoln Tomb at Oak Ridge Cemetery, alongside his Father and two of his brothers. Robert accompanied the casket on the train, but Mary was too distraught to make the trip.
- ^ R. J. Brown, Tad Lincoln: The Not-so-Famous Son of A Most-Famous President. Retrieved 23 July 2007.
- ^ Highlights Magazine