KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – Research by the Kalamazoo Abraham Lincoln Institute (KLI) has discovered the identity of the woman who hosted Abraham Lincoln for tea during his 1856 visit to Kalamazoo. The identity of this individual and her bio will be revealed on Lincoln’s birthday, February 12, 2022.
The discovery was made by KLI investigators and former state lawmakers Tom George and Cameron Brown who analyzed a letter Lincoln wrote in 1860. In the letter, Lincoln recalled that he had taken tea in Kalamazoo during his visit four years earlier.
George and Brown say clues in the letter led to the identification of the Kalamazoo woman and her role during Lincoln’s visit. The KLI will announce its findings at a private event to be held at the Kalamazoo Ladies’ Library Association Saturday, February 12.
The KLI will also reveal its findings in a special edition of its e-newsletter to be published that evening. Interested parties may subscribe to the newsletter, via the KLI website kalamazoolincolninstitute.org.
Lincoln’s unusual August 27, 1856 visit to Kalamazoo was his only out-of-state venture that year, and the only trip he ever made to Michigan. Lincoln came to participate in a political rally. He arrived by train, stayed overnight, and returned to Illinois the following day.
