Lincoln, Mary Todd | A meticulous order for a hat from her Jewish milliner, Ruth Harris

Lincoln, Mary Todd

Autograph letter signed ("Mrs. Lincoln") as first lady, [Washington, D.C., 2 December 1861], to Ruth Harris ("Mad[ame] Harris"), 2 pages written on the rectos only of two leaves of blue-ruled machine-laid paper; remnants of hinges on versos and faint edge discoloration, evidently from earlier framing.

"Mary Lincoln's interest in clothes as well as her penny-pinching proclivities are … evident in the letters she wrote her favorite milliner in New York, 'Madame' Ruth Harris. The most elaborate headdress, made to precise specifications, must be ready in no time and must not cost more than $5.00. The letters to Madame Harris crop up all through Mrs. Lincoln's years in Washington. They provide fascinating insight into her skill as a designer, her meticulous attention to changing styles, her awareness of her own best features, and her sureness of taste" (Turner & Turner, p. 113).

Mrs. Lincoln may have written frequently to Ruth Harris, but those letters are extremely rare in the market. Justin G. Turner and Linda Levitt Turner's Mary Todd Lincoln: Her Life and Letters (New York, 1972) print eight letters and telegraphs from Mary Todd Lincoln to Ruth Harris in addition to the letter offered here; seven of these are in institutional collections and the other is unlocated. The present missive is apparently one of two ever to appear at auction; the other was unknown to Turner & Turner and is now in the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. The only other item tangentially related to the two women cited in Rare Book Hub is an envelope (without letter) addressed to "Madame Harris & Son, 729 Broadway, New York," 7 April of an indeterminate year, that was franked by President Lincoln. This letter, then, is evidently the only known Mary Lincoln fashion-design commission in private hands.

The First Lady evidently wrote to Harris on 1 December 1861, requesting the hatmaker to "make up a purple silk velvet headdress." From the date of that letter (now in the Huntington Library), the date of the present letter can be determined to be 2 December 1861:

"I wrote to you on yesterday. I will also get you to make a real black velvet head dress twisted as you did the crimson, the true real velvet bow & strings behind of your richest velvet—also a bow on the top. A bow also on the purple with a loop—in case I take off the flowers. Remember a bow & loop in front on each. To be made in your handsomest style. In front & behind a handsome bunch of black berries—with those peculiar leaves—your richest berries—without they are of the best & most stylish, I do not want them. Remember under the flowers of each—bows & loops. Please send them by Wednesday or Thursday Express." In a postscript, Mrs. Lincoln reiterates, probably unnecessarily, "All of the richest velvet."

The Turners misdated the letter regarding a "purple silk headdress" as 21 November, because Mary Lincoln misdated the original manuscript as 31 November—a date that does not exist. She apparently got confused and neglected to advance the month. Correctly dating the present letter to 2 December also helps explain its urgent tone: Mrs. Lincoln may well have wanted the new black velvet hat for a levee at the White House on 17 December, which the Washington Star described as "the opening public reception of the season."

Ruth Harris was born in Poland, probably around 1808. She gave birth to a son, Morris, when she was just fifteen. Nothing is known about Morris's father, including whether he married Ruth. However, in the 1851 census, as well as in New York City directories of the day, Ruth Harris is described as a widow. She and Morris emigrated about 1841–1842 to London, where they worked as furriers. About a decade later, the Harrises left London for the United States. In New York City, Harris established a French millinery on Broadway called Madame R. Harris & Son. An advertisement in Frank Leslie's Monthly in 1860 claimed that Harris & Son "make a specialité of most exquisite Parisian flowers for garniture and head-dresses. During a late visit to the French capital, Madame Harris made arrangements to become the branch house of the celebrated Duteis, the great artist in flowers to the Empress Eugenie, and whose perfect and natural creations are the passion and delight of the Parisiennes." Harris also advertised regularly in the first English-language Jewish weekly newspaper in the United States, New York's The Asmonean: A Family Journal of Commerce, Politics, Religion, and Literature Devoted to the Interests of the American Israelites.

Although Ruth Harris’s connection to Mrs. Lincoln is well documented, her Jewish identity has gone unrecognized in the literature; genealogical research now establishes her and her son's Jewish Identity. Their advertising in The Asmonean places them firmly within New York’s Jewish commercial network.

The 1860 U.S. census records Ruth living with Morris, his wife Selina, and their son Reuben; Morris is listed in the millinery and fur trade, aligning with the family business. Ruth remained part of this household during the firm’s operation. Morris married Selina Prince in 1856 in a ceremony officiated by Rabbi Rev. M. R. de Leeuw. Selina was the daughter of Abraham Prince, a silk hat and fur manufacturer of Edinburgh, whose 1822 marriage to Nancy Moses is the earliest recorded Jewish marriage in that city, linking two families in related trades.

Jewish communal ties are further documented: Selina’s funeral invited Congregation Shaaray Tefila; Morris’s funeral was conducted by a rabbi of the Hebrew Congregation in Washington, D.C.; and both were buried in Beth Olom Cemetery, New York, with records appearing in JewishGen. During the Civil War, Ruth Harris acted as Mary Todd Lincoln’s New York milliner, maintaining ongoing correspondence. The First Lady was a demanding and precise client, placing repeated orders for bonnets and headwear and frequently requesting adjustments rather than one-time purchases. The letters show her detailed instructions and high expectations; despite criticism and cost concerns, she continued to rely on Harris, who remained professional, responsive, and adaptive.

Harris’s role was especially significant after Willie Lincoln’s death in 1862, when she supplied Mary with a formal mourning bonnet and veil, meeting her exacting standards during a period of personal grief. Ruth Harris left the United States before the end of the war, after which the business continued under Morris Harris.