Lincoln Coat by Brooks Brothers

Now in the current issue of QUILTER'S HOME magazine (Mar/Apr 2007, pp. 68-71), a story about the coat Lincoln was wearing on April 14, 1865, at Ford's Theatre. This coat was made by Brooks Brothers and given to him for his second inaugural. Hand-stitched into lining was an intricate design: a spread eagle and the inscription "One Country, One Destiny."

For decades, two coats were claimed to be this famous coat. One was given to the Chicago Historial Society--you can read the account of that Lincoln Coat here.

The Quilter's Home article tells the story about how Mrs. W. B. Hughes wrote a letter to the Chicago Historical Society claiming that her sister had made "the lining of the inaugural coat containing the spread eagle." Read the article to learn how Mrs. Hugh's helped identify the true inaugural coat.

The coat is now at the Lincoln Museum at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D. C.