The Lincoln Death Chair

As the story goes, this chair was personal property of Harry Clay Ford (owner, operator of the Ford's Theater, and no relation to Henry Ford), and he used to bring the chair to the theater when he knew that President Lincoln was coming. The chairs in the Presidential box were too small for the tall President to be comfortable and Ford knew that the President like to relax in one of his rocking chairs with the high backs.

On April 14, 1865, Ford knew that the President would be attending, so he made the arrangements to have the chair brought over to the Presidential box at the theater. Little did Ford know, this would be the last time he saw the chair sitting in the parlor of his home.

At 10:30 p.m. that night, while President Lincoln was sitting in this chair, watching a play called Our American Cousin, John Wilkes Booth snuck into the box, behind the President and fired a single fatal would to the back of his head. The President did not die immediately, and he was removed to the house across the street where he died the following morning.

So, what happened to the chair after the assassination? Well, it was sequestered by the Federal Government for investigation purposes. It was never returned to Harry Clay Ford, since the theater was actually appropriated by the Federal Government with Congress paying Ford $88,000 for the theater and the contents. They were not aware that the chair was personal property and not property of the theater.

Sometime later on, the chair was taken to the Smithsonian Institute, but it never displayed. Instead it was sent into a storage area, where it received, belief it or not, most of it's damage. There are those that say that employees even used the chair during their breaks, but we were not able to verify that information.

As you browse through the pictures of the chair, you will notice that it was never repaired or reupholstered, it is in the original condition it was that fatal night. There are several stains on the chair and most thing that this is blood stains; however, they are not. There is blood on the chair, but only a small amount. The larger stains is from water damage that the chair experiences while it was at the Smithsonian in storage.

So, how did it end up at the Henry Ford Museum. Well, a couple of things happened around the same time, and with some luck, it ended up at the Henry Ford Museum. First, After some 30 years at the Smithsonian, Blanche Chapman Ford, the widow of theater manager Harry Clay Ford, petitioned the government to get the chair back. Soon after it was returned to her, the chair was put up for auction, since, well the depression just hit and she needed the money.

Henry Ford was building his new museum, and he send word to all of his trusted friends and dealers to be on the look out for unique items he could place into his museum. Israel Sack, a prominent antique dealer, purchased the chair for Henry Ford. It was a month after Ford had opened Greenfield Village, which included the Logan County Courthouse, where Lincoln had practiced law. The chair has been at the museum since it opened, and is very well cared for, as it should be, since this chair was the last resting places of one of the greatest Presidents the United States has ever had.

All of the photos within this article were taken on June 29, 2017 by Shawn and Marianne Donley of PANICd.com