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The Cause Of Mary Todd's Tragedy

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Even though Mary Todd had obtained her goal of becoming First Lady, in 1862 she was again visited by tragedy. In the midst of the American Civil War during Abraham Lincoln’s first term in office, the beloved son of the President and First Lady, Willie, became ill with typhoid fever. Disease ran rampant at the time and was often deadly, as it was in Willie’s case. The Lincolns were devastated by the loss and it was uncertain if Mary would recover. Willie’s body was embalmed in the White House’s Green Room, which Mary would refuse to enter from that point on. (Burlingame 250) Abraham Lincoln kept his mind busy with war matters in order to grieve Willie's death. Mary Todd however fell into a deep depression and suffered for an extensive period

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