Kudos to Cozzens

摘要

I wish to commend reter Cozzens on his excellent article on Elizabeth Keckley in the July issue. She was an amazing woman whose story has been neglected for far too long. While researching my master's thesis on Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln's interest in Spiritualism, I found that the sources of information on Keckley's life, outside of her autobiography, are frustratingly vague. This has perpetuated the misperception that Elizabeth Keckley was the person who introduced Mary Todd Lincoln to Spiritualism. There is simply no evidence to support this claim. The only link that connects Keckley to Spiritualism is from Noah Brooks, who records that Keckley introduced Mary Lincoln to a Spiritualist medium-later discovered to be a fraud. Thanks for another thoughtful and insightful issue!