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An auction of precious Abraham Lincoln artifacts raised close to $8 million Wednesday, meaning a likely seven-figure windfall for a cash-strapped Springfield foundation that was selling part of its Lincoln collection to pay down a multimillion-dollar debt.<\/p>\n
The Lincoln Presidential Foundation\u2019s decision to auction off about 10% of its collection was a jolt to Illinois\u2019 history world, but it posed a rare opportunity for Lincoln collectors to buy museum-quality relics that can go generations without being on the market.<\/p>\n
In Wednesday\u2019s auction, an unidentified bidder known only as \u201cPaddle 1231\u201d snatched up some of the most expensive and historically dramatic items for sale, including blood-stained gloves and a handkerchief Lincoln had with him the night he was fatally shot at Ford\u2019s Theater.<\/p>\n
The gloves were the most expensive thing sold Wednesday, drawing a winning bid, with fees included, of $1.51 million<\/a>.<\/p>\n The buyer also finished the day with a ticket stub to Ford\u2019s Theater the night Lincoln was assassinated, a reward poster for his assassin, some White House drinking glasses, a pair of Lincoln portraits signed by the 16th president and a purported lock of Lincoln\u2019s hair, among other things.<\/p>\n All told, that particular buyer spent $4 million at the auction, but it\u2019s not clear who the person is.<\/p>\n Two other items fetched hefty sums from other buyers.<\/p>\n A monogrammed cuff button that had been on one of Lincoln\u2019s sleeves when he was assassinated went for $445,000<\/a>. And, the earliest known sample of Lincoln\u2019s writing \u2014 a yellowed sheet on which a teenage Lincoln had done mathematical calculations and composed a poem \u2014 sold for $521,200<\/a>.<\/p>\n A page that shows the earliest known example of Abraham Lincoln\u2019s handwriting is on display at Freeman\u2019s | Hindman in West Loop, Chicago, May 15, 2025. The document sold for $521,200 at auction.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and First Lady MK Pritzker have a history of buying Lincoln artifacts at auction and have donated two items to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield in the past.<\/p>\n But asked multiple times by WBEZ if the state\u2019s billionaire governor was participating in the auction or, in fact, was Paddle 1231, a Pritzker aide would not say before, during or after the sale.<\/p>\n \u201cStill declining to comment, thanks!\u201d Pritzker spokesman Alex Gough wrote.<\/p>\n