Sometimes portrayed as a political helpmate to Lincoln, but often portrayed as his insane and strident wife and widow, Mary Lincoln has been a controversial figure ever since her time in the White House. This presentation offers a brief introduction to Mary Lincoln’s portrayal since 1865 and to historians’ treatments of the Lincoln marriage. Additionally, it examines popular memory of Mary Lincoln in the Springfield museum sites, historical fiction and popular culture.
Bonnie Laughlin-Schultz is a historian of 19th century America and of women’s and gender history. She has recently completed a chapter on the Lincolns as parents for the Blackwell Companion to Abraham Lincoln and is the author of The Tie That Bound Us: The Women of John Brown’s Family and the Memory of Radical Abolitionism.
Cayla Wagner is an honors student in the department of history. Co-president of the History Club and a member of the Living History program, she is completing a thesis about representation of Mary Lincoln in historical fiction.
