The Insanity File

Reviews / Votes

"[This book] combines the discipline of historical writing with the forward march of a detective story. And it is painstakingly fair to both the pathetic Mary and the tortured Robert. Filled with confident insight and careful documentation, this book must already be considered as an essential addition to the Lincoln bookshelf." -Harold Holzer, ChicagoTribune

"One of the saddest stories in the Lincoln family saga unfolds in detail for the first time in The Insanity File-the1875 jury trial to declare Mary Todd Lincoln insane and the role played in it by Robert Todd Lincoln, her firstborn and only surviving son."-Herbert Mitgang, New YorkTimes BookReview

"Neely and McMurtry had to acquaint themselves with the principals in the case, study the judicial procedures and medical practices prevailing in the 1870s, piece together from here and there items of information relating to the trial, and trace historical controversies that have unfolded through the years. Their sensitive and thorough research has led them to the conclusion that Mrs. Lincoln was treated fairly, that human considerations and civil justice did not work to Mrs. Lincoln's disadvantage."-Myron A. Marty, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

"A fair-minded, comprehensive account based on new documents. Unlike their predecessors, Neely and McMurtry have placed Mary Lincoln's trial within the legal, social, and medical context of the times. So viewed, what happened to Mary Lincoln was governed as much by procedures and collective attitudes as by personal motivations."-Jean Baker, American Historical Review