Lincoln Fires McClellan
Mary Todd Lincoln to Abraham Lincoln
Holograph, November 2, 1862
Gift of Robert Todd Lincoln, 1923
Manuscript Division
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In response to Lincoln's concern about the slow
pace of the Union troops under General George McClellan, the general
responded "You may find those who will go faster than I, Mr. President;
but it is very doubtful if you will find many who will go further."
Mary Todd Lincoln, who believed her great antipathy to the general
was shared by the public, advised her husband in this letter to
remove McClellan from the command. Whether she influenced her
husband's decision is unknown, but on November 5, 1862, Lincoln
placed the Union forces under the command of General Burnside.
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