I was reminded this morning that on this day in 1865 the train carrying the body of Abraham Lincoln stopped briefly in Hudson on its journey from Washington, D.C., to Springfield, Illinois. What transpired that night was recorded by the commander of the funeral train, Assistant Adjutant General Edward D. Townsend:
At Hudson . . . elaborate preparations had been made. Beneath an arch hung with black and white drapery and evergreen wreaths, was a tableau representing a coffin resting upon a dais; a female figure in which, mourning over the coffin; a soldier standing at one end and a sailor at the other. While a band of young women dressed in white sang a dirge, two others in black entered the funeral-car, placed a floral device on the President's coffin, then knelt for a moment of silence, and quietly withdrew. The whole scene was one of the most weird ever witnessed, its solemnity being intensified by the somber light of torches at that dead hour of night.
 |
| Photo: Bob Burns |
On this day in 2015, on the sesquicentennial of the event, this moment in Hudson history was re-created down near the train station. Gossips reported on the event the next day: "Re-creating and Creating History."
No comments:
Post a Comment