It was Monday, November 5. The year was 1860, and it was the eve of an election that would make Abraham Lincoln president of the United States and spark the American Civil War.
A group of young men gathered in Southold, ready to march down the streets of the town in a torchlight parade for Lincoln’s campaign. In the parade, some carried a banner that read: LINCOLN AND HAMLIN – MATTITUCK – WIDE AWAKE CLUB.
That same banner was unveiled last week at the Southold Historical Society Ann Currie-Bell House.
More than 150 years later, it’s been restored to its former glory, thanks to a grant from the Greater Hudson Heritage Network and the hard work and generosity of several local sponsors.
The Wide Awakes were a political club, best known for their support of Lincoln and their nighttime parades to promote his candidacy. There were thought to be about around 100,000 Wide Awake members in the entire country, though some estimate there were up to 400,000 active members during the 1860 election.
Wide Awake clubs existed in Mattituck, Southold, Greenport and Orient. Members of the North Fork clubs all paraded through Southold the night before the election to voice their support for Lincoln.
“In that time period, it was very rare for candidates to do their politicking themselves,” historical society director Karen Lund-Rooney said. “It was all grassroots, groups like the Wide Awakes, drumming up local support.”
Mattituck’s club bore the banner on a large wooden pole as they marched through the streets. The next day, Lincoln would win the election — a four-way race — with nearly 40 percent of the vote, with New York as one of the 18 states he carried.
After the war, the banner was put to new use, with patches sewn on the front and back that said “Welcome Home” and “Union Forever.” The banner was paraded once more through Southold, this time in a welcoming parade for Civil War soldiers.
When it came into the hands of the historical society, it was found to be the only Wide Awakes’ banner on the island, and thought to be the only existing welcome home banner for Union troops in New York.
The historical society bought the banner from a local antiques dealer several years ago. At first, they did not recognize it for what it was underneath the added patches. The banner was worn, the original message just a trace after being repurposed. The original lettering had been removed, and what was left was just a vague outline of the words once stitched there.
“We didn’t know, but we discovered very quickly that there was something underneath it. We knew we had something very, very special,” Lund-Rooney said. “We sent it to a conservator.”
Southold Historical Society turned it over to Textile Conservation Workshop in South Salem, New York, to restore it. The price wasn’t cheap: more than $14,000.
To help pay for the professional conservation, Greater Hudson Heritage Network awarded the historical society a $7500 Conservation Grant last year.
“We’re incredibly grateful to them, and to our local supporters,” Lund-Rooney said. “This would not have been possible without them.”
Cathie Dunn, of Cutchogue, took a personal interest in the banner last April.
Dunn had just returned from a trip to Washington D.C., where she took a tour of the Ford Theater and the route that John Wilkes Booth took after assassinating Lincoln.
“I’ve always loved history, particularly American history,” Dunn said. “I was really into the Civil War time period when I heard about the banner.”
Dunn works at Jeni’s Main Street Grill, adjacent to the historical society administrative office on Main Road. While chatting with someone who worked next door, she heard about the banner, and the funds needed to preserve it.
“I knew that we had to keep that banner here in Southold, and that meant we needed to restore it,” Dunn said. “In order to get a grant, you need to show that you’re going to be able to get the rest of the money. I thought, ‘I can help with that.’”
Dunn jumped into action. On April 10, she and other staff at Jeni’s donated all their tips for the day to the restoration. Dunn spent the day telling her customers about the ‘Honest Abe’ Chinese auction fundraiser she helped organize, to be held the next night at the Peconic Recreation Center.
At the end of the following night she had raised close to $6,000 between the tip donations and the proceeds from the fundraiser, bringing the society close to its goal. The rest of the funds would soon be made up in donations from numerous small donors.
“They invited me to the unveiling last week,” Dunn said. “It was so beautiful — I teared up when I saw it hanging there, believe it or not.”
The banner is impressive, taking up almost an entire wall in the Ann Currie-Bell House, which is part of the society’s Museum Complex on Main Road in Southold. It was deconstructed and restored piece by piece. There is a little fraying at the bottom, a few blank spots here and there. The two patches sewn on to welcome the troops home are on display right next to the blue and silver banner.
The exhibit will be on permanent display, Lund-Rooney said.
“Most of our exhibits come and go, but something like this… this deserves to be on display here for a long time.”
