"As the Civil War raged, President Abraham Lincoln spent many hours in the War Department's telegraph office, where he received all his telegrams. Morning, noon, and night Lincoln would visit the small office to receive the latest news from the armies at the front. The place was a refuge for the president, who waited for incoming dispatches and talked while they were being deciphered.David Homer Bates, one of the first military telegraphers, recollects those presidential visits duri...

Given the amount of time that Abraham Lincoln spent in the telegraph office of the War Department next door to the White House, it is unfortunate that there are no photos of him there. But we have this fascinating account of his time there. During times of crisis, tension, and victory, Lincoln spent hours and hours in the company of his "boys" in that office.There are many Lincoln anecdotes you will not read anywhere else and they help to complete a view of this extraordinary presi...