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(NARRATIVES.) KECKLEY, ELIZABETH. Behind the Scenes. Portrait frontispiece of the author. 371 pages. 8vo, original red cloth (no precedent); some rubbing to the spine extremities and tips. New York: Carleton, 1868
first edition. Elizabeth Keckley (1818-1907), dressmaker, White House modiste and confidante of Mary Todd Lincoln, was born into slavery in Virginia. She was able to earn enough as a dressmaker to buy her freedom in 1855. After settling in Washington, she first worked for Jefferson Davis's wife Varina Howell Davis and then for Mrs. Lincoln. Ms. Keckley took care of Mrs. Lincoln through some of her most difficult times.
