| Lincoln's Tomb was the subject of Quiz #11 on June 4, 2005. Click here to view quiz. |
| Lincoln's Tomb Oak Ridge Cemetery Springfield, IL |
The train was dubbed the Lincoln Special, and it drew huge crowds at every stop.
Leaving Washington at 8:00 a.m. on April 21, 1865, it traveled the short distance to
Baltimore where the coffin was viewed by more than 10,000 people in the span of three
hours. From Baltimore it traveled to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where some 40,000
people lined the streets to pay their respects.
That crowd was dwarfed at the next stop, however, which was Philadelphia. There, on
April 23, more than 300,000 passed by the open coffin, with waiting times as long as
five hours at the peak of the viewing.
The next day found the Lincoln Special in New York, where the coffin was placed on
public view in City Hall. More than 500,000 paid their last respects in the rotunda. The
next day, Lincoln's body was borne through the streets of New York, again to huge
crowds, to the Hudson River Railway Terminal. It is said that enterprising opportunists
rented their windows along the route for as much as $100. One of the spectators was
six year old Theodore Roosevelt, destined to become the nation's leader himself one day.
From New York the Lincoln Special rolled slowly through New York state, with
crowds lining the railroad tracks for one last look. When it reached Buffalo, another
100,000 people gathered to pay their respects, including former President Millard
Fillmore and future President Grover Cleveland.
Leaving Washington at 8:00 a.m. on April 21, 1865, it traveled the short distance to
Baltimore where the coffin was viewed by more than 10,000 people in the span of three
hours. From Baltimore it traveled to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where some 40,000
people lined the streets to pay their respects.
That crowd was dwarfed at the next stop, however, which was Philadelphia. There, on
April 23, more than 300,000 passed by the open coffin, with waiting times as long as
five hours at the peak of the viewing.
The next day found the Lincoln Special in New York, where the coffin was placed on
public view in City Hall. More than 500,000 paid their last respects in the rotunda. The
next day, Lincoln's body was borne through the streets of New York, again to huge
crowds, to the Hudson River Railway Terminal. It is said that enterprising opportunists
rented their windows along the route for as much as $100. One of the spectators was
six year old Theodore Roosevelt, destined to become the nation's leader himself one day.
From New York the Lincoln Special rolled slowly through New York state, with
crowds lining the railroad tracks for one last look. When it reached Buffalo, another
100,000 people gathered to pay their respects, including former President Millard
Fillmore and future President Grover Cleveland.
Monday, April 24th
Nine days after his death, Lincoln arrived
in NYC on a ferry from Jersey City at
DesBrosses (Street) Ferry terminal, just
south of Canal Street. The Glass hearse
traveled East on Desbrosses Street
merging into Canal Street; turned right
(South) down Broadway to City
Hall.arriving at City Hall Park about
11:30am, the casket remains in City Hall
for viewing until the next day.
Tuesday, April 25th, 11:40am
The presidential casket was placed on a
Nine days after his death, Lincoln arrived
in NYC on a ferry from Jersey City at
DesBrosses (Street) Ferry terminal, just
south of Canal Street. The Glass hearse
traveled East on Desbrosses Street
merging into Canal Street; turned right
(South) down Broadway to City
Hall.arriving at City Hall Park about
11:30am, the casket remains in City Hall
for viewing until the next day.
Tuesday, April 25th, 11:40am
The presidential casket was placed on a
American Heritage Magazine
June 1955
Volume 6, Issue 4
The Boy in the Window
Theodore Roosevelt, his widow recalled, watched Lincoln’s funeral from his
grandfather’s house
A discovery by STEFAN LORANT
Stefan Lorant has made a double reputation, as a picture-magazine editor in Europe
and as an historian in America (The Presidency, Lincoln, The New World). In the
pursuit of these two careers he has become the foremost iconographer in his field, with
many discoveries to his credit in American pictorial history.
While editing photographs for a recent book on Lincoln, he studied the picture on the
opposite page. Following is his own account of what he found:
The picture showed the funeral procession of President Lincoln. The place: New York;
the date: April 25, 1865.
June 1955
Volume 6, Issue 4
The Boy in the Window
Theodore Roosevelt, his widow recalled, watched Lincoln’s funeral from his
grandfather’s house
A discovery by STEFAN LORANT
Stefan Lorant has made a double reputation, as a picture-magazine editor in Europe
and as an historian in America (The Presidency, Lincoln, The New World). In the
pursuit of these two careers he has become the foremost iconographer in his field, with
many discoveries to his credit in American pictorial history.
While editing photographs for a recent book on Lincoln, he studied the picture on the
opposite page. Following is his own account of what he found:
The picture showed the funeral procession of President Lincoln. The place: New York;
the date: April 25, 1865.
 |  |  |  |
| If you have a picture you'd like us to feature a picture in a future quiz, please email it to us at CFitzp@aol.com. If we use it, you will receive a free analysis of your picture. You will also receive a free Forensic Genealogy CD or a 10% discount towards the purchase of the Forensic Genealogy book. |
 |  |  |  |
| Answers: 1. Abraham Lincoln's Funeral, April 25, 1865 2. Broadway at Union Square, New York City 3. Teddy Roosevelt is supposedly one of the children in the second story window of the building on the corner. |
| ********** |
| Click here to see results of 5th occasional photoquiz survey. |
| Answer to Quiz #205 - April 19, 2009 |
| ********** |
| ********** |
| If you enjoy our quizzes, don't forget to order our books! Click here. |
| Quiz #205 Results |
| Visit our blog at www.forensicgenealogy.info/blog. |
| 1. What event is depicted? 2. What is the address (or location) of the building on the corner? 3. What then unknown, but future famous person is in the picture? |
| Submitted by Angela McLaughlin |
| This event took place exactly 90 years before I (Colleen Fitzpatrick) was born. |
| Comments from Our Readers |
Colleen, I googled your birthday and it said you were born in July 1969. I guess you
can accept all the Happy birthdays you'll get now in April or continue letting everyone
on the web think you are really still 39!
I still can't decipher the writing in the lower right corner of the photo. I assume it is
the photographer's ID. I finally solved this by guessing it was a funeral by the black
bags over the street lights. Searching for July, 1879 (based on your sneaky web
birthday) was fruitless! Dave Town
The reason that searching for the answer was fruitless based on the birthday of July
1869 is that my birthdate is not Jul 1969. Lincoln's funeral was on my birthday,
exactly 90 years before I was born. When was I born? Colleen
Does that mean you're not the movie star Colleen Fitzpatrick, born July '69?
Dave Town
Yes that means I'm not the movie star born July '69. Colleen
*****
The first clue for me was the drapped items that look like lamp posts. This indicated
that this was a funeral and not just for anyone. Then some quick math put me in that
ballpark for Lincoln, as I guessed that Colleen is about my age (but I will never tell).
Using google image to search Lincoln's funeral produced the above image.
I miss the feature that allowed us to enlarge the photo right at this website.
Dan Schlesinger
*****
I would probably have struggled with this puzzle had I not seen the recent History
Channel "Stealing Lincoln's Body". This picture, showing a 6-year-old Theodore
Roosevelt and his brother Elliot future (father of Eleanor Roosevelt) viewing the Lincoln
Funeral procession from his grandfather Cornelius Roosevelt's house at the SW corner
of 14th St. and Broadway, Union Square, New York City on April 25, 1865, was
prominently featured in the TV program. Diane Burkett
*****
Happy Birthday to you Colleen - tomorrow, Saturday. I wonder how many quiz
masters needed the birthday clue to identify the year and then the event? I stand guilty!
1. This is the funeral procession for Abraham Lincoln in New York City on Tues. Apr.
25th 1865. It is travelling to the Hudson River Railway Depot where the coffin began its
final journey westward to Springfield, Illinois where the president was buried on May
4th. Very interesting is the website - http://home.att.net/~rjnorton/Lincoln51.html. It
gives a good summary of the funeral train’s progression. Twice it indicates how
“ordinary citizens” followed the procession - about 75000 in New York. Question 3
makes me wonder if there are other rather famous (future or present) people in the
throng shown. Perhaps it was too risky for anyone of wealth or fame to be out on the
street with so many strangers! Don Draper
*****
You may be interested to know that the History Channel has a program titled "Stealing
Lincoln's Body" which chronicles what happens to Lincoln after his death. I remember
seeing the show way back when it first cameout, and it is available from the History
Channel for $20 (or just wait long enough and they will replay it on tv). I thought I
remembered them briefly mentioning the subject photo this week, so when I found it on
the History Channel website just now I watched the preview and it is briefly in there.
You can find the preview at http://shop.history.com/detail.php?p=84222#detailTabs
The show itself was very interesting. There is a lot about what happened to Lincoln
after his death that is not known in the general public. For instance, it took about 40
years for Lincoln to get to his "final" resting place! Mike Vanlandingham
can accept all the Happy birthdays you'll get now in April or continue letting everyone
on the web think you are really still 39!
I still can't decipher the writing in the lower right corner of the photo. I assume it is
the photographer's ID. I finally solved this by guessing it was a funeral by the black
bags over the street lights. Searching for July, 1879 (based on your sneaky web
birthday) was fruitless! Dave Town
The reason that searching for the answer was fruitless based on the birthday of July
1869 is that my birthdate is not Jul 1969. Lincoln's funeral was on my birthday,
exactly 90 years before I was born. When was I born? Colleen
Does that mean you're not the movie star Colleen Fitzpatrick, born July '69?
Dave Town
Yes that means I'm not the movie star born July '69. Colleen
*****
The first clue for me was the drapped items that look like lamp posts. This indicated
that this was a funeral and not just for anyone. Then some quick math put me in that
ballpark for Lincoln, as I guessed that Colleen is about my age (but I will never tell).
Using google image to search Lincoln's funeral produced the above image.
I miss the feature that allowed us to enlarge the photo right at this website.
Dan Schlesinger
*****
I would probably have struggled with this puzzle had I not seen the recent History
Channel "Stealing Lincoln's Body". This picture, showing a 6-year-old Theodore
Roosevelt and his brother Elliot future (father of Eleanor Roosevelt) viewing the Lincoln
Funeral procession from his grandfather Cornelius Roosevelt's house at the SW corner
of 14th St. and Broadway, Union Square, New York City on April 25, 1865, was
prominently featured in the TV program. Diane Burkett
*****
Happy Birthday to you Colleen - tomorrow, Saturday. I wonder how many quiz
masters needed the birthday clue to identify the year and then the event? I stand guilty!
1. This is the funeral procession for Abraham Lincoln in New York City on Tues. Apr.
25th 1865. It is travelling to the Hudson River Railway Depot where the coffin began its
final journey westward to Springfield, Illinois where the president was buried on May
4th. Very interesting is the website - http://home.att.net/~rjnorton/Lincoln51.html. It
gives a good summary of the funeral train’s progression. Twice it indicates how
“ordinary citizens” followed the procession - about 75000 in New York. Question 3
makes me wonder if there are other rather famous (future or present) people in the
throng shown. Perhaps it was too risky for anyone of wealth or fame to be out on the
street with so many strangers! Don Draper
*****
You may be interested to know that the History Channel has a program titled "Stealing
Lincoln's Body" which chronicles what happens to Lincoln after his death. I remember
seeing the show way back when it first cameout, and it is available from the History
Channel for $20 (or just wait long enough and they will replay it on tv). I thought I
remembered them briefly mentioning the subject photo this week, so when I found it on
the History Channel website just now I watched the preview and it is briefly in there.
You can find the preview at http://shop.history.com/detail.php?p=84222#detailTabs
The show itself was very interesting. There is a lot about what happened to Lincoln
after his death that is not known in the general public. For instance, it took about 40
years for Lincoln to get to his "final" resting place! Mike Vanlandingham
| Congratulations to Our Winners Rick (Honest Abe) Mackenny and his Quiz Angel Jina Yi! Bill Utterback Karen Kay Bunting Tom Tollefsen Anne Beverley Johns Jose McCabe Suzanne Rude Jocelyn Thayer Mary Lee Alderman Dave Town Sharon Martin Milene Rawlinson Betty Chambers Dave Doucette Deborah Campisano Stan Read Brian Kemp Dan Schlesinger Larry Slavens Sandy McConathy Carolyn Cornelius Margaret Bonar Gary Sterne Margaret Waterman Jim Baker Bill and Mary Hurley Diane Burkett Diane Burkett Mike Vanlandingham Rex Cornelius Dennis Brann Don Draper Kathy Henderson Shirley Ferguson Dawn Colket Pat McChesney Dawn Carlile Wayne Douglas Marilyn Hamill Joshua Kreitzer Fred Stuart Norm Smith Robert E. McKenna, QPL |
They don't hold White House lunches the way
they used to at the beginning of the century.
On Jan. 1, 1907, for example, the guest list
was as follows: a Nobel prizewinner, a
physical culturalist, a naval historian, a
biographer, an essayist, a paleontologist, a
taxidermist, an ornithologist, a field naturalist,
a conservationist, a big-game hunter, an
editor, a critic, a ranchman, an orator, a
they used to at the beginning of the century.
On Jan. 1, 1907, for example, the guest list
was as follows: a Nobel prizewinner, a
physical culturalist, a naval historian, a
biographer, an essayist, a paleontologist, a
taxidermist, an ornithologist, a field naturalist,
a conservationist, a big-game hunter, an
editor, a critic, a ranchman, an orator, a
| Teddy Roosevelt Time Magazine Monday, April 3, 1998 http://www.time.com/time/time100/leaders/profile/troosevelt.html |
country squire, a civil service reformer, a socialite, a patron of the arts, a colonel of the
cavalry, a former Governor of New York, the ranking expert on big-game mammals in
North America and the President of the U.S. Read more...
cavalry, a former Governor of New York, the ranking expert on big-game mammals in
North America and the President of the U.S. Read more...
| ********** |
| ********** |
| The Story behind the Picture |
The street looked like Broadway. Comparing it
with other prints, I was able to ascertain that
the photographer exposed his plate facing the
southwest corner of Fourteenth Street. I
showed the picture to a friend of mine whose
hobby is the study of New York’s streets and
he pointed out that the house on the corner
belonged to one of the wealthiest men in the
city—Cornelius van Schaack Roosevelt. I
looked in the city directory of that era and
found that he was right.
Now the puzzle grew more exciting. Cornelius
van Schaack Roosevelt was Theodore
Roosevelt’s grandfather. In the second-story
window two heads can be seen, apparently the
heads of two children. Whom would a
grandfather ask to such a celebrated occasion
as a President’s funeral other than his
grandchildren? If this reasoning was correct,
the two little heads in the window would
presumably be those of Theodore Roosevelt
and his brother Elliott (Eleanor Roosevelt’s
father). But how to find out?
with other prints, I was able to ascertain that
the photographer exposed his plate facing the
southwest corner of Fourteenth Street. I
showed the picture to a friend of mine whose
hobby is the study of New York’s streets and
he pointed out that the house on the corner
belonged to one of the wealthiest men in the
city—Cornelius van Schaack Roosevelt. I
looked in the city directory of that era and
found that he was right.
Now the puzzle grew more exciting. Cornelius
van Schaack Roosevelt was Theodore
Roosevelt’s grandfather. In the second-story
window two heads can be seen, apparently the
heads of two children. Whom would a
grandfather ask to such a celebrated occasion
as a President’s funeral other than his
grandchildren? If this reasoning was correct,
the two little heads in the window would
presumably be those of Theodore Roosevelt
and his brother Elliott (Eleanor Roosevelt’s
father). But how to find out?
| Elliott Roosevelt and his children Elliott Jr., Anna Eleanor, and Gracie Hall, 1892. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F..... |
| Teddy Roosevelt in Paris, age 11 in 1870. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... |
Not long after this I had occasion to visit Mrs. Theodore Roosevelt at Sagamore Hill. I
took the photograph with me and showed it to her. Aware that she had known her
husband since earliest childhood, and hoping that she might have some recollection of
the event, I asked Mrs. Roosevelt: “Did you ever hear that your husband saw President
Lincoln’s funeral?”
She looked at the picture and the two little heads in the window. Her face lighted up as
her memories jumped back to that day in 1865. She said, “Yes, I think that is my
husband, and next to him his brother.” And then, chuckling, “That horrible man! I was
a little girl then and my governess took me to Grandfather Roosevelt’s house on
Broadway so I could watch the funeral procession. But as I looked down from the
window and saw all the black drapings I became frightened and started to cry.
Theodore and Elliott were both there. They didn’t like my crying. They took me and
locked me in a back room. I never did see Lincoln’s funeral.”
took the photograph with me and showed it to her. Aware that she had known her
husband since earliest childhood, and hoping that she might have some recollection of
the event, I asked Mrs. Roosevelt: “Did you ever hear that your husband saw President
Lincoln’s funeral?”
She looked at the picture and the two little heads in the window. Her face lighted up as
her memories jumped back to that day in 1865. She said, “Yes, I think that is my
husband, and next to him his brother.” And then, chuckling, “That horrible man! I was
a little girl then and my governess took me to Grandfather Roosevelt’s house on
Broadway so I could watch the funeral procession. But as I looked down from the
window and saw all the black drapings I became frightened and started to cry.
Theodore and Elliott were both there. They didn’t like my crying. They took me and
locked me in a back room. I never did see Lincoln’s funeral.”
| ********** |
| Special Remark from the Quizmaster General |
Many thanks for all the Quizmasters who wished me a Happy Birthday on April 25, the
anniversary of Lincoln's funeral.
anniversary of Lincoln's funeral.
| Two Ways to Find My Birthday and Date the Photograph |
Steve Morse has a one-step tool on his website to find birthdays.
Scroll about 1/4 of the way down to find the section Births, Deaths, and Other Vital
Records:
Records:
The birthday tool is the first one on the list. When you click you will reach a page that
looks like the image below on the right. Fill it in as I have and you will get a list of
search results like the image below on the left.
looks like the image below on the right. Fill it in as I have and you will get a list of
search results like the image below on the left.
You will have to figure out which one of these I am. One way to do this is to look at
the mailing address on our website. You will find I live in Southern California, so I
have to be the one born on April 25, 1955. Note that this list also gives a second entry
for a Colleen Fitzpatrick in New Orleans born on this date. This is me, too. I was born
in New Orleans.
While you are at it, you might as well check out Steve's other tools that help you search
immigration records and census records, give you information on calendars and on
foreign alphabets, and much more.
A second way to find my birthdate is to Google "Colleen Fitzpatrick" "Forensic
Genealogy". You will come across many links, including one to the article about me on
Wikipedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colleen_Fitzpatrick_(forensic_genealogist)
According to the article, my birthdate is April 25, 1955.
So the date of the photograph was 90 years before this, or April 25, 1865. It is easy to
search this date to find out that the photo is of the funeral procession of Abraham
Lincoln.
the mailing address on our website. You will find I live in Southern California, so I
have to be the one born on April 25, 1955. Note that this list also gives a second entry
for a Colleen Fitzpatrick in New Orleans born on this date. This is me, too. I was born
in New Orleans.
While you are at it, you might as well check out Steve's other tools that help you search
immigration records and census records, give you information on calendars and on
foreign alphabets, and much more.
A second way to find my birthdate is to Google "Colleen Fitzpatrick" "Forensic
Genealogy". You will come across many links, including one to the article about me on
Wikipedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colleen_Fitzpatrick_(forensic_genealogist)
According to the article, my birthdate is April 25, 1955.
So the date of the photograph was 90 years before this, or April 25, 1865. It is easy to
search this date to find out that the photo is of the funeral procession of Abraham
Lincoln.
| ********** |
| Chronology of Lincoln's Funeral Procession |
| Another view of Lincoln's funeral procession. http://www.flickr.com/photos... |
wagon pulled by 16 horses. It went north up Broadway to 14th Street. At Union
Square, it went west to Fifth Avenue. It went north, up Fifth Avenue to 34th Street,
turning west to the Hudson River Railway Depot, at the corner of 30th Street & 10th
Avenue.
Square, it went west to Fifth Avenue. It went north, up Fifth Avenue to 34th Street,
turning west to the Hudson River Railway Depot, at the corner of 30th Street & 10th
Avenue.
| Click link to see Lincoln's Funeral Procession Map NYC April 24-25, 1865 (File opens in Word format) |
| ********** |
| Lincoln's Funeral http://www.angelfire.com/my/abrahamlincoln/Funeral.html |
Seven days after his death, Abraham
Lincoln's body began the long trainride
home to Springfield. His photograph was
affixed to the cowcatcher of the
locomotive, and some 300 mourners filed
onto the train for its departure from
Washington. Willie Lincoln's body, the
President's son who had died in the White
house, was also on board.
Lincoln's body began the long trainride
home to Springfield. His photograph was
affixed to the cowcatcher of the
locomotive, and some 300 mourners filed
onto the train for its departure from
Washington. Willie Lincoln's body, the
President's son who had died in the White
house, was also on board.
| Stereogram of Lincoln's Catafalque NYC April 24-25, 1865 |
From Buffalo it was on to Cleveland,
where the coffin was placed in Monument
Square, the only outdoor viewing along
the entire funeral route. Here, 150,000
attended the viewing before the train left
for Columbus in a heavy rain. From
Columbus it traveled to Indianapolis,
where the rain was so heavy that an
outdoor procession had to be cancelled. In
Richmond, Indiana, 15,000 mourners
came out when the train entered the
station. This was more than the population
of the entire town, even though the time
was 3:15 a.m.
where the coffin was placed in Monument
Square, the only outdoor viewing along
the entire funeral route. Here, 150,000
attended the viewing before the train left
for Columbus in a heavy rain. From
Columbus it traveled to Indianapolis,
where the rain was so heavy that an
outdoor procession had to be cancelled. In
Richmond, Indiana, 15,000 mourners
came out when the train entered the
station. This was more than the population
of the entire town, even though the time
was 3:15 a.m.
There was no cancellation when the train reached Chicago on May 1, however. There,
the funeral procession though the streets was nearly as large as that of New York's,
and 7,000 mourners passed the coffin every hour it was on view. It was reported that
the body was now beginning to deteriorate to the point where many of the viewers
were visibly distressed at its appearance.
The train reached Springfield on May 3, where Lincoln's body was placed in the Hall of
Representatives in the State House. Ironically, it was in this same room that he had
given his famous House Divided Speech just seven years earlier.
the funeral procession though the streets was nearly as large as that of New York's,
and 7,000 mourners passed the coffin every hour it was on view. It was reported that
the body was now beginning to deteriorate to the point where many of the viewers
were visibly distressed at its appearance.
The train reached Springfield on May 3, where Lincoln's body was placed in the Hall of
Representatives in the State House. Ironically, it was in this same room that he had
given his famous House Divided Speech just seven years earlier.
| ********** |
| As an American History enthusiast, I instantly knew the answers for this photo. It is the funeral procession of Abraham Lincoln through NYC, and this photo was taken April 25th, 1865. The 4 story (not 3!) house on the corner is the home of Cornelius Van Schaack Roosevelt, grandfather of future president Theodore Roosevelt, who is seen looking out of the second story window of the home (along with his brother). Far too easy for a history buff like me! Now the address of the house was more of a challenge. I already knew an answer, which is that grandpa's house was on Union Square in NYC. I was hoping to do better than that though. I quickly found the following website http://www.mrlincolnandnewyork.org/inside.asp?ID=29&subjectID=2 which detailed the movements of the procession through NYC. The president arrived in NYC on April 24th at the docks on Desbrosses St. The casket moved down the street to Canal St, and then down Canal St to Broadway, and south to NYC's City Hall where it remained on display for the people of New York to pay tribute. The casket did not move past Union Square that day. The next day (the 25th) at 1pm it was loaded on the funeral carriage which was drawn by 16 horses and started the trip to the Hudson Railway station and the trip to Albany. The procession moved up Broadway to 14th St, then west to 5th Avenue, north on 5th Ave to 34th St, and then west to the Hudson River Railway Depot to be loaded on the train. The casket was on the train by 4pm, which means the trip through NYC took about 3 hours. My estimate is that the photo was taken just after the casket had passed around the corner to the left somewhere about halfway through the trip - roughly about 2:30 or so that afternoon. I had no luck finding the exact address for the home of Cornelius Van Schaack Roosevelt, but given the orientation of the photo and the knowledge that the home was on Union Square, I am making some educated guesses. First, Union Sq Park is seen in the photo, so the photographer could only be in one of 2 locations to take the photo and capture any part of the procession. Given the movement of the procession, the photographer is either on Broadway looking toward the intersection of 14th St and Broadway (facing North), or on 14th St looking toward the intersection of 14st St and Union Square West (facing East). I believe the photo was taken from the second floor of a building on the Eastside of Broadway facing north because of two reasons. First, if the photographer was in a building on 14th St the procession would be shown heading toward him (and as I will talk about, a better photo would be taken!). Second, the photo shows the shadows of the people and buildings oriented so that the Sun is to the left of the photographer (which would be west for an afternoon photo facing north). So the house on the corner is at the intersection of 14th and Broadway at the southeast corner of Union Square. The front of the house appears to face Broadway (given the pillars wrapped in black crepe that can be seen around the doorway), where there is now a Shoemania store (thanks Google Earth streetview!). The address of that store is 853 Broadway, so that is my guess for the exact address. A couple of last points before I go. First, this photo is terrible. If the idea was to capture a crowd of people, dressed in black, and standing in a street, then the photog gets an A. If the idea was to capture a photo of the casket or the procession itself, then the photog gets an F. A better photo could have been taken from the 14th St angle, where the procession would be heading toward the camera with the sun directly behind his back to light everything up for him nicely. He could have gotten a nice photo of a wagon being pulled by 16 horses and crowds on either side. But that would not get us a photo of Teddy Roosevelt to talk about later, so maybe the photographer knew something no one else did! This photo appears to show the crowd moving into the street, which would happen after the procession had gone by and the crowd started to follow the casket or just move on. You can not seen the procession at all in the photo and no one would stand in the street in front of such an august event. Finally, Teddy's brithplace and childhood home are in the close neighborhood of grandad's house, but this is not an option for the building in the photo. First, the childhood home is at 28 E 20th St in NYC, and the procession did not pass in front of the house. There is no park around the home, and the procession moved up 5th Ave about a block west of that home. If Teddy and family were going to get a good look at anything, they would have to go to grandpa's house which was along the procession route! That's it! A long answer for a picture I already knew about! |
| More than you may want to hear about one photo! by Mike Landingham |
| A SAD DAY IN HISTORY The picture shows the Abraham Lincoln Funeral In New York on 25 April 1865. Paused that day, Stopping by the Cornelius Roosevelt mansion, Shown on the West, addressed on 841 Broadway. Many historical persons witness this event. Shown in the picture, where both were ready, Was future president Theodore Roosevelt, In a window was brother Elliott and Teddy. Robert Edward McKenna Quiz Poet Laureate |
| ********** |