Andrew Johnson by Annette Gordon-Reed

Author:Annette Gordon-Reed
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.

6

Mr. President

It is a measure of how little given to self-reflection Andrew Johnson was that the story of what happened to him on the night Lincoln was shot, and the aftermath of that most pivotal event in American history, comes from others. Leonard J. Farwell brought news of the tragedy at Ford’s Theatre to Johnson at Kirkwood House, the boarding establishment where he was living. The sleeping vice president was awakened by the sound of the former governor of Wisconsin rapping at his door and speaking in urgent tones. Johnson opened the door, and Farwell relayed the news that Lincoln had been shot. Farwell recalled that he and Johnson fell into each other’s arms and cried.

It was clear very quickly that this was a moment of great danger for the entire government because Lincoln was not the only official who had been attacked. Secretary of State William H. Seward and his sons Frederick and Augustus, who tried to protect him, were seriously wounded by Lewis Powell (Paine), one of the conspirators. An organized effort to destroy the leadership of the United States was under way, and there was justifiable concern for Johnson’s life. The fears were well founded. There had, in fact, been plans to kill Johnson, but the would-be assassin, George Atzerodt, decided to get drunk instead of carrying out his mission. Johnson was placed under guard, and Farwell returned to Ford’s Theatre to learn Lincoln’s condition. The president had been taken across the street, to Peterson House, a boarding establishment. It was evident to all present that they were on a death watch. Farwell reported this grim news to Johnson, who thought it best to hurry over to join what was an excruciatingly painful scene.

Johnson arrived to find people packed into the tiny room where the very tall Lincoln lay awkwardly on a too-short bed. Mary Todd Lincoln, in the grips of a hysteria from which she never seemed to recover, was in the room next door. Charles Sumner, who held the president’s hand as his life ebbed way, suggested that Johnson not stay too long lest he encounter Mrs. Lincoln, who absolutely detested her husband’s vice president. Johnson acceded to the request and remained only a short time at the president’s bedside. He would continue to be solicitous of Mary Lincoln’s feelings, as he waited patiently as she grieved, allowing her to remain in the White House for weeks after her husband’s death.

Lincoln died the following morning, having never regained consciousness. Johnson was sworn in several hours afterward by the chief justice of the United States, Salmon P. Chase. The simple ceremony (so different from the one that had taken place just weeks before) was held in Johnson’s hotel room before a small group that included several of his friends, along with members of the cabinet and members of Congress. The country had been awash in violence unparalleled in its history. There were still pockets of resistance, Confederates who would not give up even after Robert E. Lee’s surrender to Ulysses S.

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