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Washington Chronicle:
The New President:
The new president, Andrew Johnson, hailed from Tennessee. A US Senator before the secession of his state, Johnson had been one of the most prominent War Democrats and supporters of Lincoln. Johnson replaced first-term Vice President Hannibal Hamlin for Lincoln's reelection campaign, in an attempt to enlarge the party's base.
Johnson had served as vice president for little more than a month at the time of Lincoln's assassination. He was sword into office as the nation's 17th president on the morning of April 15 by Chief Justice Salmon Chase.
An Attempted Assassination:
Then-Vice President Andrew Johnson was among John Wilkes Booth's list of assassination targets. George Atzerodt was tasked with killing Johnson in the vice president's hotel suite at the Kirkwood House Hotel.
The evening of the assassination, Atzerodt spent hours drinking in the hotel bar, unable to gain the courage to perform the assigned deed. At the military trial of the conspirators, Atzerodt's lawyer defended his client, saying "This man is a constitutional coward... if he had been assigned the duty of assassinating the Vice President, he could never have done it."
"No Friend of Our Race":
Many historians agree that Andrew Johnson failed to uphold the promises made to African Americans by his predecessor. He vetoed a civil rights bill and approved of the so-called "Black Codes" passed by the states, severely limiting the freedom of former slaves. In a letter to Missouri Governor Thomas Fletcher, Johnson wrote, "This is a country for white men, and by God, as long as I am President, it shall be a government for white men."
Frederick Douglass witnessed this side of Johnson at Lincoln's second inauguration. As Johnson noticed Douglass, a look of contempt crossed his face. "Seeing that I observed him," Douglass later recalled, "he tried to assume a more friendly appearance; but it was too late; it was useless to close the door when all within had been seen... I turned to Mrs. Dorsey and said, 'Whatever Andrew Johnson may be, he certainly is no friend of our race.' " |