Pound Pup Legacy

Neatly packaged as a Chicago commercial product, the Libby Prison War Museum was a distinctive blend of Civil War relics, American heroes, and exotic curios.

The museum's marketing techniques were surprisingly contemporary, including advertising opportunities in a museum catalog, a souvenir line, name brand products, and tourist facilities. Thousands of artifacts, photographs, and papers were on display; the museum catalogs list only a fraction of Gunther's uninventoried holdings. The galleries were an eclectic mix -- the Lincoln relics were displayed in a former hospital room together with portraits of early Americans and shrunken "Inca" heads -- yet predominant themes were apparent. First and foremost, the Libby Prison galleries were designed as a war museum for Chicago's veterans.

Libby Prison War Museum Catalogues, 1889-90.

The Lincoln assassination was portrayed as the culminating symbol of war and personal sacrifice in the Libby Prison War Museum.

Lincoln's death deeply resonated among former Civil War soldiers. Veterans organizations such as the Grand Army of the Republic attracted a large membership in the 1880s. The museum became a national center for veterans, who managed its day-to-day operations, published a monthly newspaper, guided tours, and hosted reunions of ex-prisoners.

The Libby Prison War Museum was a commercial and political investment, yet the depth of Gunther's holdings and the enduring public response to his relics suggest a more complex interpretation of the candy man collector.

The powerful personal appeal of the Lincoln and Civil War relics touched the hearts of thousands. Over 100,000 visitors toured the museum during its first three months in 1889, with a total first year attendance of 250,000. Gunther received a flood of letters offering him additional Americana, and he amassed an unusually rich and comprehensive Civil War collection.

Relics of the dead, collected and traded since prehistoric times, have a primeval hold on our psyches. The potency of the Lincoln assassination relics is compounded by the presence of blood, a common denominator that instantly humanizes our preeminent American icon. Are these talismans genuine or forgeries, and what can we learn from this process of discovery?

The Lincoln relics open a window into Civil War America, and reveal the compelling stories of men and women caught in the maelstrom of the assassination.

These tangible fragments of the past evoke the tragedies of Mary Lincoln, Clara Harris, and Henry Rathbone, and reveal Laura Keene's and Elizabeth Keckly's proud struggle for independence. They embody the opportunism of William Petersen, Charles Forbes, and Charles Gunther, and the idealism of Civil War veterans. Sensationalism, inaccuracies, and outright fraud undoubtedly compromise the historical record of these artifacts. The scientists' lens can help historians focus on the shards of original evidence amid this historical debris, revealing new facts that are more powerful than the enduring myths

The Lincoln assassination relics are an indelible record of tragedy and transformation. A profound sense of national disorder spurred the frenzied crowds that descended on Ford's Theatre and the Petersen's house, ripping paper from the walls and prying splinters from the floor. The mementos they hoarded included ready-made clothing and early semi-synthetic plastics, products of the industrial age that was rapidly altering America. While many relics were genuine keepsakes, others were manufactured for the brisk trade in Lincolniana that began with the commercialization of the president's funeral.

Whether or not the investigators determine the origins of the stains on the Chicago Historical Society's cloak, they have discovered new avenues of exploration and revealed the intricate processes of historical and scientific authentication.

The Chicago Historical Society is grateful to the many organizations and individuals who have so generously contributed to the investigation, which has been characterized by an unusual degree of professional collaboration. Illuminated by the lamps of powerful microscopes, the fascination of the Lincoln assassination relics remains undiminished.