Abraham Lincoln in New York City on Monday morning, February 27, 1860, several hours before he delivered his Cooper Union address (Matthew Brady, U.S. Library of Congress, public domain).

“In the eyes of the young men who went to the front during the dark days of the Civil War, the greatest man in the country was President Lincoln. It was every young soldier’s ambition to get the opportunity to see the great Lincoln, to shake him by the hand and to hear words fall from his lips. It was not an easy matter to have this ambition gratified. But comparatively few soldiers ever got within speaking distance of the great statesman. It was a physical impossibility for the president to see all those who wished to meet him and the attaches [sic] of the White House had to exercise great diplomacy with the eager throngs that haunted the executive mansion.”

— The Allentown Democrat, April 4, 1911

The vast majority of average Americans will never have the opportunity to shake the hand of a United States president. The schedules of modern office holders are too hectic and security protections are too tight to allow for such encounters on anything more than an infrequent basis — a reality that was true even for many U.S. citizens in the nineteenth century.

So, it is striking to learn that four young Pennsylvanians actually were able to shake President Abraham Lincoln’s hand on one very special day in late September 1861. All four were members of the 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, which would go on to make history as the only regiment from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to participate in the Union’s Red River Campaign across Louisiana, and all four were members of that regiment’s G Company — a unit that would sustain heavy casualties as it fought valiantly in the Battle of Pocotaligo, South Carolina in 1862 and the Battle of Cedar Creek, Virginia in 1864.

Those memorable handshakes between President Lincoln and Private George Heppler, Drummer William N. Smith, Private Allen David Wolf, and Private Jacob Peter Worman, unfolded as follows, according to Wolf (who was interviewed by The Allentown Democrat in 1911):

“Our regiment went in 1861 from Harrisburg to Washington where we were encamped just outside the city limits. It was our dream to see Lincoln. Accordingly one day the four of us secured a pass to go into the city, but the time set for our return was 5 o’clock. We were all young fellows — I was seventeen years of age — and thrown into a new world. Everything seemed so wonderful to us and so different from Allentown. We were enjoying our holiday immensely, when some one suggested that we try to see President Lincoln. We had heard so much about this great man and when the matter was suggested we were all agreed.

“Let me tell you, however, that to start out to see the president and to actually see him in those days was [sic] two different things. Little did we dream of the difficulties that we would encounter. We started for the White House and arrived in due time. We got into the green room, where a negro servant met us and asked us our business. We told him that we were young soldiers from Pennsylvania and were very eager to see the president. The black man retired and returned a few moments later with the message that the president was very busy and could not see us at that time. We were disappointed, of course.

“We walked around the city for about an hour, but we were not satisfied. The disappointment over our failure to see the president weighed heavily on our minds. It was then that we determined to make another effort to have our ambition gratified and presented ourselves at the White House again. The negro servant recognized us and laughed when he saw us. We prevailed upon him to see the president and to find out whether we couldn’t see him. The negro again went up stairs and returned with the message that the president was still busy. We went away the second time disappointed.

“Again we walked about the city. Nothing seemed to interest us, however. We nursed our disappointment as best we could, but we simply could not rid ourselves of the desire to see the president. At four o’clock in the afternoon we determined to make a final effort. Again we ascended the White House steps and again we were met by our negro friend.… He consented to intercede for us and went up stairs. A few moments later the president came down the stairway. We were standing at the bottom. There was a kindly, patient smile on his face. He greeted us cordially, shook each by the hand and said: ‘Boys, you are young soldiers. Be good and above all obey your commander.’ With that he retired. We were satisfied and went away brimful of happiness and patriotism.'”

What happened next for those four soldiers? Find out in part two of our look back at one of several encounters that members of the 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry had with President Abraham Lincoln during the American Civil War.

Sources:

1. Bates, Samuel P. History of Pennsylvania Volunteers, 1861-5, vol. 1. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: B. Singerly, State Printer, 1869.
2. “Gleanings by the Way.” Allentown, Pennsylvania: The Allentown Democrat, April 4, 1911.
3. “Gleanings By the Way.” Allentown, Pennsylvania: The Allentown Democrat, April 5, 1911.