lincolnsdressmaker
lincoln dressmaker
In Jennifer Chiaverini’s richly drawn historical fiction novel, “Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker,” we meet Elizabeth “Lizzie” Keckley, a talented black seamstress whose skills with a sewing needle enable her to buy her status as a freewoman. Her reputation, sewing for the elite such as Mrs. Jefferson Davis and Mrs. Robert E. Lee, among others, lead her to Washington, D.C. and the chambers of Mary Todd Lincoln – where she finds herself outfitting the first lady in exquisite gowns as well as the clothes that suited her everyday life.
An extraordinary friendship forms between the first lady – and President Abraham Lincoln – and Lizzie becomes privy to the lives, secrets and scandals of two of history’s most notable characters. The discussions of the Civil War and its most discreet underlyings become her everyday environment. The recollections of numerous situations and conversations become of keen interest to her.
When her only son, George, enlists in the service of the Union, and is soon killed in action, Lizzie finds herself drawn to his efforts and those of the Union. She raises funds for the freed slaves who are converging upon the Washington area and teaches them the skills necessary to survive. Her efforts for the Contraband Belief Association become of interest to Mrs. Lincoln as well, and its needs become a distraction to the First Lady’s grief over the the death of her own son, Willie. Declares Chiaverini’s Mrs. Lincoln: “I shall do as you suggest, Elizabeth, and distract myself with the needs of others. Even if it does not ease my pain, it will at least accomplish some good for the soldiers.”
“I hope it does both,” is Lizzie’s impassioned reply. They combine their efforts to raise the funds for this cause.
Lizzie saved the scraps from the numerous gowns and frocks she had sewn for Mrs. Lincoln over the years and fashioned a quilt with them – later referred to as the Mary Todd Lincoln Quilt. When made aware of the project, Mrs. Lincoln comments: “What a lovely idea...A memory album made of fabric. It is just the thing.” But it was the notes and and memories that Lizzie also saved that severed her fond relationship with the first lady.
Publishing a book in 1868 of her recollections, “Behind the Scenes: Thirty Years as a Slave and Four Years in the White House,” she created a scandal that the cherished friendship could not survive. To Lizzie’s dismay a number of Mrs. Lincoln’s private letters had been published within her manuscript without her knowledge.
When she challenged her publisher, he commented: “The letters reveal her thinking, the motives behind her actions. You always said that if people understand her good intentions, they would be more forgiving of her ... outbursts and mishaps, as it were. I fail to see how this should embarrass her.”
But Lizzie knew the publication of the first lady’s private correspondence was the worst sort of betrayal. The longtime confidants were now estranged, and Lizzie spent the remainder of her long years trying to reclaim her reputation through a moral life of teaching and reflection. Explains Chiaverini: “If Mrs. Lincoln’s example had taught her nothing else, it had shown her that the only way to redeem oneself from scandal was to live an exemplary life every day thereafter. And that was what Elizabeth intended to do.”
“Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker” is Jennifer Chiaverini’s first stand alone historical novel and reflects impeccable research of key Civil War figures and the years that wrap around it.