;
Fake Lincoln Photos – Changing Trains at Hanover Junction
Posted By Norman Gasbarro on October 24, 2016
Hanover Junction, c. 1863. (Library of Congress)
The photograph shown above is of the railroad station at Hanover Junction, Pennsylvania. On his trip to Gettysburg on 18 November 1863, Abraham Lincoln had to change trains there. There has been a great deal of speculation as to whether the man standing on the platform between the two trains is Lincoln.
In his book, Lincoln, A Picture Story of His Life, Stefan Lorant, page 309, analyzes the photograph to determine whether it is of Lincoln.
Some of Lorant’s conclusions:
- The photo is attributed to Brady. However, Brady was in New York City on 18 November 1863 taking pictures of the arrival of the Russian fleet visiting there. He did not make the trip to Gettysburg.
- Lincoln reached Hanover Junction at around 5 p.m. on 18 November 1863 whereas the sun set that day at 4:42 p.m. There is too much light in the picture.
- None of Lincoln’s staff who accompanied him to Gettysburg are seen in the picture.
But the final conclusion by Lorant comes from a super-enlargement of the figures on the platform: “The man with the umbrella is not Lincoln.”
Comments