“Where in the World is the Valentine?” Part 2: Lincoln Lost
So you find yourself walking through historic Court End, searching for the Valentine. You’re side-stepping traffic cones and crossing the street to avoid yet another “Sidewalk Closed” sign. You’re just about to give up, when you spot something…
President Lincoln Entering Richmond, April 4, 1865, by Thomas Nast. Published in Harper’s Weekly, February 24, 1866. V.45.28.345. Hibbs Collection, The Valentine.
Did you just see Lincoln’s ghost? Who is that with him?
I wouldn’t be surprised if you did.
On April 4, 1865, as the city was still smoldering from the evacuation fires at the tail end of the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln and his son Tad arrived in a smoldering Richmond.
Imagine what it would have been like as he walked through the streets to come to the realization that the Civil War that had consumed the city, the nation and his Presidency was finally ending. Lincoln and Tad entered the city from the James River (in the area where Bottoms Up Pizza is today) and made their way to the U. S. military headquarters that had been established in the former residence of Confederate President Jefferson Davis (now known as the American Civil War Museum’s White House of the Confederacy).
If you see the spirits of Lincoln and Tad wandering aimlessly as you start your visit to the Valentine, don’t worry; they’re lost just like you.
The neighborhood has changed so much since 1865 and it’s continuing to change day by day. Who knows? If you’re lucky, Lincoln’s ghost might be able to give you a few pointers on how to avoid closed sidewalks without tumbling into the road.
But as much as the Court End neighborhood has changed, you can still walk the incredible streets with all of those that built Richmond’s history and discover those stories and more at the Valentine.
If you make it, you not only receive a dose of Richmond Stories, you’ll win a medal!
