Lincoln lives to be old

What if Abraham Lincoln lived till 1901? not just what might he do with his second term, which has been gone over a lot, but what might he do with a long post-Presidency?
 
President Lincoln takes a trip around the world following his retirement from office in the spring of 1869. His successor in the presidency is likely someone other than Grant.
 
For some reason I have this idea in my head whenever this gets brought up that Lincoln becomes the governor of Washington state.
 
In Up With the Star he wins re-election with Vice-President Butler due to the Civil War at an end by November by a landslide. His second term sees him approve of Grant's crackdown, but in his second term he authorizes some disastrous US foreign ventures in East Asia, and due to slightly faster technological progress ends his second term under clouds of scandal. He writes memoirs entitled Up With the Star that serve as the Northern version of Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government and spends his old age helping with war memorials and becomes an elder statesman of the Republican Party.

His Reconstruction blends a harsher reaction to immediate postwar CS violence with a more limited type of black suffrage more acceptable due to the nature of the ATL Civil War's end. His reputation is positive, but not as hagiographed as OTL because he lives long enough for a second term to sour his memory instead of being a tabula rasa for hypothetical utopian Reconstructions.
 
Some early film footage of abe lincoln?

I personally doubt it. There's very little footage of people who were actually president around the turn of the century (McKinley and Cleveland), or of Queen Victoria. Lincoln probably wouldn't have attended many occasions where a cine camera was present, and I don't see anyone seeing the need to film a man of possibly limited function in his 80s or 90s who used to be president so that future generations can see him. But it's not impossible.
 
I personally doubt it. There's very little footage of people who were actually president around the turn of the century (McKinley and Cleveland), or of Queen Victoria. Lincoln probably wouldn't have attended many occasions where a cine camera was present, and I don't see anyone seeing the need to film a man of possibly limited function in his 80s or 90s who used to be president so that future generations can see him. But it's not impossible.

World's Columbian Exposition maybe? its a matter of how health and active Lincoln would be
 
Judging by what his contemporaries did post presidency:

Fillmore - Ran unsuccessfully for President in 1858, retired to his home, died 3-8-74, age 74
Pierce - After an extensive tour of Gt. Britain & Europe, retired to his home - died 10-8-69, age 64
Buchanan - retired from politics to his home - died 6-1-68, age 77
Johnson - elected to the US Senate 1874 - died 7-31-75, age 66
Grant - 3 year tour of the world, ran for GOP nomination in 1880, Wall Street Banker, wrote his memoirs - died 7-23-85, age 63
Hayes - retired from politics but participated in various philanthropic enterprises - died 1-17-93, age 70

I would imagine...
Lincoln - Departs Washington DC by train for an across the continent train trip. He drives the golden spike at Promontory Point, Utah to mark the completion of the Transcontinental Rail Road. He visits Oakland & San Francisco, California before departing by boat for Hawaii. He visits Panama and various islands in the Carribbean before sailing up the Mississippi to his home. After returning home Lincoln made very few public appearances and stayed out of national politics. In 1872 he became a trustee at Illinois State University. - Died 11-12-81, age 72.
 
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World's Columbian Exposition maybe? its a matter of how health and active Lincoln would be

Do we even have footage of the World's Columbian Exposition OTL? If there's any chance he could become Chief Justice of the Supreme Court then we might get footage of him at an inauguration. But despite his legal background, surely it's a very slim chance? Filming him because "he used to be president" isn't the sort of thing that used to happen in those days.
 
Do we even have footage of the World's Columbian Exposition OTL? If there's any chance he could become Chief Justice of the Supreme Court then we might get footage of him at an inauguration. But despite his legal background, surely it's a very slim chance? Filming him because "he used to be president" isn't the sort of thing that used to happen in those days.

how about filming him because he saved the Nation and is the American Jesus, look at how loved Grant became, and thats even after his crappy two terms as President, Lincoln would likely be in the same light, its matter of how well 1861-1869 goes on how much of a saint he is, but even if he balls that up he's still the guy that saved the Union
 
According to Jeopardy, June 21, 2009: The final Jeopardy clue was "Filmed signing a bill into law, in 1895 he became the first U.S. President to appear on moving film." The correct answer: "Who is Grover Cleveland?"

An octogenarian Abraham Lincoln is unlikey to be in the public eye very much and very unlikely to appear on moving film. However, given the he did SAVE THE UNION, if he lives long enough, a Final Jeopardy-like clue in TTL's present might be something like, "This former president's 1895 funeral was the first presidential funeral recorded on moving film." The correct answer: "Who is Abraham Lincoln?"
 
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For some reason I have this idea in my head whenever this gets brought up that Lincoln becomes the governor of Washington state.

As a resident of Washington, I think that would have been pretty cool. Unfortunately, Washington didn't become a state until 1889 when Lincoln would have been about 80 years old, making him very very healthy, or a somewhat short-term Governor.
 
As a resident of Washington, I think that would have been pretty cool. Unfortunately, Washington didn't become a state until 1889 when Lincoln would have been about 80 years old, making him very very healthy, or a somewhat short-term Governor.
Well, I meant the territory, I just said state because of habit and to differentiate from DC.
 
If there's any chance he could become Chief Justice of the Supreme Court then we might get footage of him at an inauguration. But despite his legal background, surely it's a very slim chance?

Cool idea, I can't imagine him wanting to, but maybe he'd accept out of duty if Grant nominated him?
 
Cool idea, I can't imagine him wanting to, but maybe he'd accept out of duty if Grant nominated him?

1874 (the Waite appointment) would be the perfect opportunity for a Lincoln appointment. And he could probably persuade his friend and former campaign manager David Davis *not* to resign in 1876.

As Chief Justice, and *per the OP that Lincoln lives to 1901*, then Lincoln will appear in the 1897 and perhaps the 1901 film footage that exists today. Of course, he might be too infeeble and therefore wouldn't appear. But I'm sure his presence and the historicity of the man, albeit lessened, would cause someone to film him at some point inbetween the years 1895 and 1901. And especially his 1901 State Funeral.

Also, his son, Robert Todd, doesn't suffer from his "President-cursing" mindset. This may or may not help Robert Todd's political career. As for Mary Todd... he's going to have to reign in her spending when he returns to DC, if she's not already in the asylum (his lack of death-in-front-of-her should help that).
 
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