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View allBehind the Scenes; or, Thirty Years a Slave, and Four Years in the White House
Keckley
1868
Thirty years enslaved, four years inside the Lincoln White House — in her own words.
Behind the Scenes; or, Thirty Years a Slave, and Four Years in the White House
Elizabeth Keckley · 1868
Elizabeth Keckley bought her own freedom and her son's with $1,200 raised by her St. Louis dressmaking clients, then built a business exclusive enough to make her Mary Todd Lincoln's personal modiste and closest confidante through the Civil War, Willie's death, and Lincoln's assassination. When she published this memoir in 1868 — quoting Mrs. Lincoln's own letters to defend both of them against the "old clothes" scandal — the backlash was immediate and the book was suppressed. A formerly enslaved woman's testimony about a First Lady's private life was read as a betrayal, not as journalism. It remains a sharp, specific case study in whose stories get told, in whose words, and on whose terms.
17 chapters · 58,403 words · ~4.4 hr read
Contents
Thirty Years a Slave
Keckley's own account of her birth into slavery, the abuse of her girlhood, the needlework that bought her freedom and her son's, and the road to Washington.
Four Years in the White House
From unknown dressmaker to Mary Todd Lincoln's confidante — Willie's death, the war, the assassination, and the wardrobe scandal that ruined them both.
- 6My Introduction to Mrs. Lincoln~10 min
- 7Willie Lincoln's Death-bed~14 min
- 8Washington in 1862-3~11 min
- 9Candid Opinions~8 min
- 10Behind the Scenes~9 min
- 11The Second Inauguration~16 min
- 12The Assassination of President Lincoln~20 min
- 13Mrs. Lincoln leaves the White House~19 min
- 14The Origin of the Rivalry between Mr. Douglas and Mr. Lincoln~7 min
- 15Old Friends~22 min
- 16The Secret History of Mrs. Lincoln's Wardrobe in New York~47 min
Appendix
Mrs. Lincoln's own letters to Keckley, quoted in full — the primary evidence behind the "old clothes" scandal the book was written to answer.