{"id":4705,"canonical_url":"https://www.kudos365.com/today-in-history/events/1861ce-feb-16--4705","name":"1861 CE, February 16","year":1861,"era":"CE","month":2,"day":16,"url":"https://www.kudos365.com/today-in-history/events/1861ce-feb-16--4705","iso-date":"1861-02-16","precision":"year-month-day","description":"\u003cp\u003eOn his inaugural train journey to Washington D.C., President elect Abraham Lincoln stops in Westfield on February 16, 1861, to meet 11-year-old Grace Bedell, who had written to Lincoln the prior year, suggesting he grow a beard to improve his appearance and win more votes. Lincoln, reportedly saying, \"Gracie, look at my whiskers. I have been growing them for you\". \u003ca href=\"https://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/gracebedell.htm\"\u003eRead the letters.\u003c/a\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","additional_details":"","photo":"https://k365fs.imgix.net/JwKoszN0QXS8SLxR6KCK_Lincoln-on-Nov-8-1863-LC%20-R.jpg?auto=format,compress\u0026fit=clip\u0026max-w=1600","photo_width":683,"photo_height":382,"created_at":"2026-02-16T13:29:39-08:00","updated_at":"2026-02-16T13:35:11-08:00","breadcrumbs":{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"February History","item":"https://www.kudos365.com/today-in-history/february"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"February 16","item":"https://www.kudos365.com/today-in-history/february-16"}]},"schema":{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Thing","@id":"https://www.kudos365.com/today-in-history/events/1861ce-feb-16--4705#eventK365","name":"1861 CE, February 16","headline":"On his inaugural train journey to Washington D - 1861 CE","description":"On his inaugural train journey to Washington D.C., President elect Abraham Lincoln stops in Westfield on February 16, 1861, to meet 11-year-old Grace Bedell,...","url":"https://www.kudos365.com/today-in-history/events/1861ce-feb-16--4705","additionalType":"HistoricalEvent","inLanguage":"en","datePublished":"2026-02-16T13:29:39-08:00","dateModified":"2026-02-16T13:35:11-08:00","publisher":{"@id":"https://www.kudos365.com/#organizationK365"},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://k365fs.imgix.net/JwKoszN0QXS8SLxR6KCK_Lincoln-on-Nov-8-1863-LC%20-R.jpg?auto=format,compress\u0026fit=clip\u0026max-w=1600","width":683,"height":382},"temporalCoverage":"1861-02-16","isPartOf":[{"@id":"https://www.kudos365.com/#websiteK365"},{"@type":"CollectionPage","@id":"https://www.kudos365.com/today-in-history/february","name":"What Happened in February History"},{"@type":"CollectionPage","@id":"https://www.kudos365.com/today-in-history/february-16#pageK365","name":"What Happened on February 16"}]}}