Six Months at the White House

In February of 1864, Francis Carpenter left New York for the White House to fulfill a dream born of the previous year's issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation. With Lincoln's enthusiastic support, Carpenter would paint the now-famous life-sized portrait of the President and his Cabinet depicting the first reading of the Proclamation.

For six months, Carpenter had almost daily access to Lincoln, often sketching quietly in the President's office while Lincoln worked and met with visitors. H...