Author(s): Tom Tierney
Format: Paperback
No. of Pages: 32
Publisher: Dover Publications Inc.
Language: English
Date Published: 2003-03-28
Dimensions: 241.3 x 312.42 x 7.62mm
Publication City/Country: New York, United States
Edition:
Illustrations:

Here is a wonderful paper doll tribute to one of the greatest American presidents and his family, a meticulously detailed recreation of the mid-19th-century clothing worn by Abraham Lincoln, his wife Mary Todd Lincoln, and three of their four sons: Robert Todd, William Wallace ("Willie"), and Thomas ("Tad"). Their second child, Edward Baker, died at the age of four, and is not pictured here.

Included are 5 dolls and 32 authentic costumes, carefully researched and rendered with extraordinary skill and attention to every nuance of fabric and style. Among the costumes presented:

"President Lincoln": a white frock coat with white straw hat, worn during the Lincoln-Douglas debates; a formal cutaway jacket with claw-hammer tails, white tie and vest, and familiar stovepipe hat; the suit Lincoln wore when he gave the Gettysburg Address, including the legendary fringed shawl over his shoulders, and more

"Mary Todd Lincoln": an evening gown of gold silk, trimmed in gold lace, satin bows and braid; a walking ensemble of red, gold, and turquoise brocaded silk with a black velvet vest and shawl; military-style cape with gold boucle epaulettes atop a navy silk traveling dress, and others.

"Robert, Willie and Tad Lincoln": Among the outfits worn by the three boys: Tad sports a canvas coat with a knitted-wool lining and a black bearskin hat; one of Robert's costumes is a Chesterfield-style coat with a velvet collar and checked woolen trousers; Willie is resplendent in a formal jacket of wine velvet with a gold closure in the front, black wool trousers with a gold stripe, and a soft velour wide-brimmed hat.

These and many other colorful ensembles recall the clothing and style of the firstfamily in the 1860s. Paper doll enthusiasts, lovers of Americana and period fashion, and students of American history will find much inspiration and enjoyment in this realistic and historically accurate collection.