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College Freshman Discovers Lincoln’s Fingerprint
By Samuel P. Wheeler | February 19, 2009
This is one of the most remarkable stories I have come across in quite some time. I definitely learned something new this morning.
Lydia Smith, a Miami University freshman, was transcribing a number of letters at Miami’s Walter Havighurst Special Collections library, but there was one that caught her eye. Yes, it was written by Lincoln, but there was more. The letter contained a smudge, but on close examination, Smith concluded the smudge looked a lot like a fingerprint.
Though this is news to me, we actually have a copy of Lincoln’s thumbprint on file. In late August 1864, the president signed an autograph; however, as he was handing it to an admirer, he put his thumb onto the wet ink. ”The finger marks are also [Lincoln's],” the autograph hunter later explained. “They will do as the olden times seals that were made by impressing the thumb on the wax.”
Apparently, Smith remembered seeing a copy of this letter. As she scanned the fingerprint in the Special Collections library, she concluded that it looked familiar.
It turns out she has a remarkable eye for detail.
Miami University sent the letter to the folks at The Papers of Abraham Lincoln in Springfield. They analyzed the letter and confirmed that the smudge was indeed Lincoln’s fingerprint. Now, there are two examples of the sixteenth president’s fingerprint on record.
Forget majoring in history; I would encourage Smith to puruse a career in forensic science!
UPDATE: Dr. John Sotos tells me that he believes there is another copy of Lincoln’s fingerprints. In his book, The Physical Lincoln, Sotos wrote about Lincoln’s November 1863 illness in some detail. In particular, he examined Lincoln’s brief note, written on November 27, 1863, to Secretary of State William Seward. “When magnified,” Sotos writes, “the smudges over the word ‘improving’ and the number ‘1863′ are seen to be fingerprints. They are probably Lincoln’s, as he would have had a fever at this stage of his illness: sweating accompanies fever, and sweating leads to fingerprint stains.” [Sotos, 157]
An absolutely fascinating observation, don’t you think? If you are interested in reading more about Sotos’ book or if you want to order a copy, click HERE.
Topics: Uncategorized | 6 Comments »
February 19th, 2009 at 4:28 pm
This is the third fingerprint on record. Page 157 of “The Physical Lincoln” describes and illustrates the second. It is on a remarkable note, written in disheveled handwriting, that Lincoln penned while he was ill with smallpox.
February 19th, 2009 at 7:18 pm
It’s good to hear from you! This is news to me. I had no clue we had Lincoln’s fingerprints on file. I will take a look at your source book.
February 19th, 2009 at 9:32 pm
I check your blog almost every day.
Although it’s mentioned in the Sourcebook, the illustration is in the other book, The Physical Lincoln. Alas the illustration in the book shows the fingerprinted area as only a smudge. The book’s text mentions the fingerprint, but image-processing is required to see the ridgelines clearly. The Lincoln Museum (RIP) sent me a scan to work with — I have never seen the original note.
February 19th, 2009 at 9:59 pm
Thanks again for pointing this out. I have updated the story in light of your observations, along with a link to your site.
March 7th, 2009 at 5:50 pm
My great grandfather was James Welling, National Intelligencer editor who advised Lincoln on his 1862 reply to Greeley.
The Greeley letter by Lincoln at the Wadsworth in Hartford, Conn was donated by my Aunt Elsa, daughter of JC Welling.
I have an old albumen print of the famous Greely letter and have often wondered if the thumbprint on the last page was Lincoln’s.
Any suggestions?
August 19th, 2009 at 10:17 am
[...] the finding. Though there is some debate over how many known Lincoln fingerprints exist (see this post from Sam Wheeler), Lupton claims this is actually the second one in the Miami University collection [...]