Grace Bedell
Grace Greenwood Bedell Billings (November 4, 1848 – November 2, 1936) was an American woman, notable as the person who, as an eleven-year-old, influenced Abraham Lincoln to grow his famous beard.
On October 15, 1860, a few weeks before Lincoln was elected President of the United States, Grace Bedell sent him a letter from Westfield, New York, urging him to grow a beard to improve his appearance. Lincoln responded in a letter on October 19, 1860, making no promises. However, within a month, he grew a full beard. He later met with her.
This anecdote became a popular children's story following Lincoln's assassination. A statue depicting a meeting between Lincoln and Bedell is located in the center of the village of Westfield, at the intersection of US 20 and NY 394.Seen here on Google Street View
To mark the one hundred fiftieth anniversary of the events surrounding the letter, Mark Esslinger and Eric Burdett produced a short film (Grace Bedell 2010) starring Lana Esslinger as Grace Bedell.
Bedell later married a Union veteran and moved to Delphos, Kansas, where she died in 1936.
Read more about Grace Bedell: Grace Bedell's Letter, Text of Grace Bedell's Letter, Text of Lincoln's Response, Lincoln Visits Bedell, Second Letter
Famous quotes containing the words grace and/or bedell:
“Christ of His gentleness
Thirsting and hungering,
Walked in the wilderness;
Soft words of grace He spoke
Unto lost desert-folk
That listened wondering.”
—Robert Graves (1895–1985)
“Armies, for the most part, are made up of men drawn from simple and peaceful lives. In time of war they suddenly find themselves living under conditions of violence, requiring new rules of conduct that are in direct contrast to the conditions they lived under as civilians. They learn to accept this to perform their duties as fighting men.”
—Gil Doud, U.S. screenwriter, and Jesse Hibbs. Walter Bedell Smith (Himself)