Lincoln and His Wife's Hometown

The Lincolns' visits to Lexington began to take a dark turn with the 1849 return to Mary’s hometown. That summer, a deadly cholera epidemic swept through Lexington and much of Kentucky, killing hundreds, including Robert S. Todd, Mary’s father.

Robert Todd’s deathbed will, however, was declared invalid because it did not contain two witnessing signatures as required by law. He had left the bulk of his estate including his slaves to his second wife Elizabeth (Betsy) Humphreys Todd for the remainder of her life, and then to her eight children. Mary Todd Lincoln and the other children of his first wife, Elizabeth (Eliza) Parker Todd who died in 1825, sued to force an estate sale and distribution to all 14 Todd children.  Abraham Lincoln was selected to represent the Todd children from the first marriage, four of whom lived in Springfield, Ill.

Upon Eddie’s passing in February of 1850, the Lincoln family was desperate to escape their surroundings, which provided a constant reminder of little Eddie.  Mary and Abraham decided now was the time to return to Lexington to help settle Mrs. Parker’s, Mary’s grandmother, estate.  Though this was Lincoln’s first springtime visit to Lexington, he found that he could not enjoy the beauty. Instead, he found himself studying the mysteries of the Hereafter.

Featured in this exhibit is a children's play to learn center titled, Play Date With History. In this area children can play with many of the toys that the Lincoln and Todd children might have played with, while learning the life stories of Robert, Eddie, Willie, Tad Linoln, and Emilie Todd.