Biographers of the Lincolns have quoted extensively from Keckley's text.Ī DOCSOUTH BOOK. Scholars have acknowledged the book's valuable account of slave life as well as its intimate view into the Lincoln White House. Keckley's dressmaking business failed, the Lincoln family cut all ties with her, and she lived out her final days in a home for the indigent. However, the book's publication prompted an even greater public outcry, with the added racial subtext of white society's disdain for Keckley's audacity in publishing details of the Lincolns' private lives.
Behind the Scenes is, therefore, both a slave narrative and Keckley's attempt to defend the motives behind the auction. Lincoln's financial situation had worsened, Keckley helped organize an auction of the former first lady's dresses, eliciting strong criticism from members of the Washington elite. Several years after President Lincoln's assassination, when Mrs. She eventually became a close confidante of Mary Todd Lincoln. Keckley moved to Washington, D.C., where she worked as a seamstress and dressmaker for the wives of influential politicians. With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Behind the Scenes is both modern and readable.Behind the Scenes is the life story of Elizabeth Keckley, a shrewd entrepreneur who, while enslaved, raised enough money to purchase freedom for herself and her son.
It’s an inspiring tale that provides a personal account of one of the most volatile times in American history. Despite her limiting circumstances, Elizabeth Keckley earned her freedom and became a successful entrepreneur. One of her most notable clients was Mary Todd Lincoln, with whom she developed a close friendship.īehind the Scenes is a harrowing story of one woman’s unshakable drive. She ventured North and started a career as a dressmaker to influential women in political circles. Elizabeth was a gifted seamstress who used her skills to save money to buy her and her son’s freedom. One attack resulted in the birth of her son, whom she named George.
Keckley had unprecedented access, giving insight into their state during and after the Civil War.Įlizabeth Keckley was born into slavery and experienced a traumatic upbringing riddled with physical and sexual violence. Elizabeth Keckley reveals the hardships of slavery and the changing political climate in Washington amongst the country’s most powerful couple, Abraham and Mary Lincoln.
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