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Southern Illinois University Press

R. Gerald McMurtry

The Insanity File: The Case of Mary Todd Lincoln

by Mark E. Neely Jr. (Author), R. Gerald McMurtry (Author) Format: Paperback

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In 1875 Robert Todd Lincoln caused his mother, Mary Todd Lincoln, to be committed to an insane asylum. Based on newly discovered manuscript materials, this book seeks to explain how and why.

In these documents—marked by Robert Todd Lincoln as the "MTL Insanity File"—exists the only definitive record of the tragic story of Mary Todd Lincoln’s insanity trial. The book that results from these letters and documents addresses several areas of controversy in the life of the widow of Abraham Lincoln: the extent of her illness, the fairness of her trial, and the motives of those who had her committed for treatment. Related issues include the status of women under the law as well as the legal and medical treatment of insanity.

Speculating on the reasons for her mental condition, the authors note that Mrs. Lincoln suffered an extraordinary amount of tragedy in a relatively few years. Three of her four sons died very young, and Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. After the death of her son Willie she maintained a darkly rigorous mourning for nearly three years, prompting the president to warn her that excessive woe might force him to send her to "that large white house on the hill yonder," the government hospital for the insane.

Mrs. Lincoln also suffered anxiety about money, charting an exceptionally erratic financial course. She had spent lavishly during her husband’s presidency and at his death found herself deeply in debt. She had purchased trunkfuls of drapes to hang over phantom windows. 84 pairs of kid gloves in less than a month, and $3,200 worth of jewelry in the three months preceding Lincoln’s assassination. She followed the same erratic course for the rest of her life, creating in herself a tremendous anxiety. She occasionally feared that people were trying to kill her, and in 1873 she told her doctor that an Indian spirit was removing wires from her eyes and bones from her cheeks.

Her son assembled an army of lawyers and medical experts who would swear in court that Mrs. Lincoln was insane. The jury found her insane and in need of treatment in an asylum. Whether the verdict was correct or not, the trial made Mary Lincoln desperate. Within hours of the verdict she would attempt suicide. In a few months she would contemplate murder. Since then every aspect of the trial has been criticized—from the defense attorney to the laws in force at the time. Neely and McMurtry deal with the trial, the commitment of Mary Todd Lincoln, her release, and her second trial. An appendix features letters and fragments by Mrs. Lincoln from the "Insanity File." The book is illustrated by 25 photographs.

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Print length

220 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Southern Illinois University Press
Publication date

March 31, 1993
Dimensions

6 x 0.8 x 9.25 inches
ISBN-10

0809318954
ISBN-13

978-0809318957

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"[This book] combines the discipline of historical writing with the forward march of a detective story. And it is painstakingly fair to both the pathetic Mary and the tortured Robert. Filled with confident insight and careful documentation, this book must already be considered as an essential addition to the Lincoln bookshelf."—Harold Holzer, ChicagoTribune

"Neely and McMurtry had to acquaint themselves with the principals in the case, study the judicial procedures and medical practices prevailing in the 1870s, piece together from here and there items of information relating to the trial, and trace historical controversies that have unfolded through the years. Their sensitive and thorough research has led them to the conclusion that Mrs. Lincoln was treated fairly, that human considerations and civil justice did not work to Mrs. Lincoln’s disadvantage."—Myron A. Marty, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

"A fair-minded, comprehensive account based on new documents. Unlike their predecessors, Neely and McMurtry have placed Mary Lincoln’s trial within the legal, social, and medical context of the times. So viewed, what happened to Mary Lincoln was governed as much by procedures and collective attitudes as by personal motivations."—Jean Baker, American Historical Review

"One of the saddest stories in the Lincoln family saga unfolds in detail for the first time in The Insanity File—the1875 jury trial to declare Mary Todd Lincoln insane and the role played in it by Robert Todd Lincoln, her firstborn and only surviving son."—Herbert Mitgang, New YorkTimes BookReview

About the Author

Mark E. Neely, Jr., professor of history at Saint Louis University, is the author of The Abraham Lincoln Encyclopedia and the Pulitzer Prize winning The Fate of Liberty: Abraham Lincoln and Civil Liberties.

R. Gerald McMurtry headed the department of Lincolniana at Lincoln Memorial University and was editor of the Lincoln Herald from 1937 to 1956, when he became director of the Lincoln National Life Foundation (now the Louis A. Warren Lincoln Library and Museum).

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Southern Illinois University Press
Publication date ‏ : ‎ March 31, 1993
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Print length ‏ : ‎ 220 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0809318954
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0809318957
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 13.6 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.8 x 9.25 inches
Best Sellers Rank: #1,276,432 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #776 in American Civil War Biographies (Books)
- #2,253 in U.S. Civil War History
Customer Reviews:
(65)

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Southern Illinois University Press
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R. Gerald McMurtry
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65 global ratings

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Customers find the book well-researched and informative, particularly appreciating its background history. They describe it as very interesting, with one customer noting it's more engaging than fiction. The readability receives mixed feedback, with several customers finding it easy to read.

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14 customers mention content, 12 positive, 2 negative

Customers find the content of the book very good, with several giving it five stars, and one mentioning that it met all of their expectations.

great book at a great priceRead more

Five StarsRead more

Gave this to my wife. She says it is good, worth reading.Read more

Fabulous book about a very misunderstood woman of our History. In today’s world she’d pop a few Klonopin and be just fine!...Read more

12 customers mention informative, 11 positive, 1 negative

Customers find the book informative, particularly appreciating its background history and well-researched content, with one customer noting it provides new first-hand evidence.

...This well-written, well-researched book details all those and more. Readable, fascinating. Highly recommended.Read more

...law in the State of Illinois, I have found this book to be an invaluable resource in understanding the history of mental health law as it has...Read more

Good information, however I thought it was repetitive at times.Read more

...The overwhelming amount of information in this book deals with issues I've never read before....Read more

10 customers mention engaging, 9 positive, 1 negative

Customers find the book engaging and worth reading, with one customer noting it's far more interesting than fiction.

Gave this to my wife. She says it is good, worth reading.Read more

My wife read these books. She really enjoyed them.Read more

...Readable, fascinating. Highly recommended.Read more

Although I'm not done reading this book, I can say it's very interesting and easy to read....Read more

7 customers mention readability, 3 positive, 4 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the book's readability, with some finding it easy to read while others report it being difficult to understand.

too drawn out and details get boringRead more

Excellent book. Fast read. Book was in excellent condition.Read more

The book is full of intersting information even thought some of it is difficult to understand....Read more

...This well-written, well-researched book details all those and more. Readable, fascinating. Highly recommended.Read more

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Top reviews from the United States

Lambie's MOM
A heart, broken... that will not heal.
Reviewed in the United States on July 27, 2015
Format: Hardcover
Verified Purchase
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Poor, Mrs. Lincoln:f
Her children (3) of them dead from disease and her deeply beloved, "Dear Husband" shot in cold blood in front of her. How could anyone be expected to recover from the abysmal grief, she was entrenched in.
The "gentlemen" of the Lincoln Administration wanted her to just disappear in a lady like fashion. There was no precedent for a murdered President in this time period. Mrs. lincoln, was treated terribly, I think in part because no one had any clue how to deal with her grief or no clue on how to absorb the country's loss. A dying President in front of them, no way to help either party. Madmen, on the loose in the countryside. What a world.
The medical community was just emerging from the Civil War's horrific wound counts and its human carnage toll. The horrific wounds caused by modern warfare, left the Medical Community unprepared for the appalling wounds inflicted by the Gatling Gun and Grapeshot. Drs. at the time, were helpless against infections, disease and fevers. The depths of grief that Mary Lincoln, found herself in was beyond the reach of any Civil War Doctor.
(In the same vain, Queen Victoria found herself in abysmal depths of grief as well, with the loss of her husband from Typhoid. There was no Psychology, no understanding of their terrible, deep pain. Their existence, without the men they loved, was a daily struggle for sanity). I have heard it called existential despair. A heart, broken... that will not heal.
When I first read this book (The Insanity File: The Case of Mary Todd Lincoln Hardcover – November 1, 1986), I really loathed her last living son, but I read this book with "blind eyes". Robert Lincoln, had also lost his own, very beloved, Father. Robert's grief was deep and palpable. His Father murdered. The President of United States, murdered. The entire country was in shock, in disbelief and grief. The entire country in mourning...a funeral train miles and miles long. Everywhere Mrs. Lincoln and her son travelled was a reminder of their terrible loss.
When I re-read this book, I came to peace with Robert Lincoln and his actions. I had never before considered how his Father's loss affected him. Robert, was shattered. The only surviving child of (4) boys and not even his Parent's favourite child. Now dealing with his own grief, his Mother's unending grief and suffering, his wife's grief and nothing but Laudinum or Choral Hydrate to ease their loss.
Robert was left to pick up the pieces for his Mother, his own family and to manage the estates of Mrs. Lincoln and his own. This is a wonderful book, tremendously sad. Deeply moving and profoundly hard to read. However, it does provide a deeper insight into the struggle of Mrs. Lincoln to keep on living, once her true love and his passionate support of her, was no longer there. After Mrs. Lincoln's, "Dear Husband" was eliminated, her life became a swirling bed of turmoil, unrest and emotional breakdowns. She wandered from place to place, trying to hold onto her fragile mental health. In her heart, she wanted to be with her dead husband.
I no longer view Robert Lincoln as an uncaring monster. Steeped in pain and loss, at the death of his beloved Father, trying to recover from a heinous murder and care for a Mother who was (mentally) falling apart. I see Robert Lincoln, due to this book, as another one of John Wilkes Booth victims. Booth, created (4) victims, not (1). The President (shot), Mrs. Lincoln (mental collapse), Taddie (mental collapse) and Robert (mental collapse and limited recovery) . It would be interesting to delve into Robert's mental state and to try to understand how he coped with loss after loss of brother and Father. I do not think that Robert, was as conniving, mentally stable or even as evil as he was made out to be in earlier publications.
How could he be?
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14 people found this helpful
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A. E Rothert
M.T.L. -- eccentric or ill?
Reviewed in the United States on June 13, 2002
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This book does not definitively answer the question whether the involuntary commitment of Mary Todd Lincoln subsequent to the assassination of her husband was just. It does portray Robert Todd Lincoln, the only surviving son of MTL, who initiated the proceedings, in a light more favorable than any previous biography to analyize the event.
As a person who works in the area of mental health law in the State of Illinois, I have found this book to be an invaluable resource in understanding the history of mental health law as it has evolved in this state. That said, there are instances in which legal terms are misused or misinterpreted by the authors, which leaves some question as to the authoriativeness of the opinions they express.
This is largely a work of history. As such, it animates the colorful characters involved in the insanity trial and the developments in the years prior. This is far more interesting any fiction I have read, and its historical basis makes it helpful in considering how we treat family members and the mentally ill today.
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45 people found this helpful
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Vicki Karr
Great book
Reviewed in the United States on August 5, 2025
Format: Paperback
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Excellent book. Fast read. Book was in excellent condition.
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D. Marquez
Could have been written better
Reviewed in the United States on March 3, 2009
Format: Paperback
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After reading the very entertaining "Mary" which I couldn't put down, I wanted to read more into the insanity case. The first few chapters of this book were tedious to get through at best; the authors were very well versed in the historical characters who made up the court and its proceedings, and went on (and on) to tell us about their educations and background, as well as the history of having one committed through jury trial, etc.
This reads as a history book in this regard (unlike the book "Mary") and I scanned over some of it to get to what I really wanted to know. The ending chapters contain actual letters written from MTL to her daughter-in-law which are most entertaining.
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9 people found this helpful
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Patricia J.Raczynski
very good book
Reviewed in the United States on May 25, 2014
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Thought it was well written and enjoyed it very much after reading it I had to change my views of Robert Lincoln, due to all that his mother put him /and anyone who did'nt see things her way through. She was'nt about to change her spending habits so to see from all sides I would have to say that with all that mary Lincoln went through that was the Only recourse Robert Lincoln had were NONEof her Siblings in her family" wanted to take her in, due to her Outbursts & Insults.
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3 people found this helpful
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Fay Y King
Intersting information
Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2013
Format: Paperback
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The book is full of intersting information even thought some of it is difficult to understand. The standards for women were different from what we have now and the medical help was not available to them. The extreme shopping was her way of bringing a little peace to a lonely heart and the many durgs she used was supplied to her by her doctors legally given to her. They were not "street drugs".
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One person found this helpful
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MOM2Ryan
Very Interesting Book
Reviewed in the United States on March 26, 2013
Format: Hardcover
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Although I'm not done reading this book, I can say it's very interesting and easy to read. From a historical standpoint it's fascinating to look back and see how little protection women in particular had with respect to the law. The overwhelming amount of information in this book deals with issues I've never read before. It gives the reader a look into the personal issues of a figure in history that most of us have never had the opportunity to read about. The book is an easy reader that you can pick up and set down at your leisure.
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3 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
Not my favorite…
Reviewed in the United States on January 4, 2026
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too drawn out and details get boring
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Southern Illinois University Press

R. Gerald McMurtry

Mark E. Neely Jr.

Mark E. Neely Jr.

Mark E. Neely

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Top reviews from the United States

A heart, broken... that will not heal.

M.T.L. -- eccentric or ill?

Great book

Could have been written better

very good book

Intersting information

Very Interesting Book

Not my favorite…

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