Thomas Lincoln ("Tad") was the fourth and last child of Abraham and Mary Todd.
He was born on April 4, 1853. Tad was named after Thomas Lincoln, Abraham's
father who had died in 1851. Tad's head was unusually large at birth. Abraham,
viewing the contrast between the large head and tiny baby figure, thought he
resembled a tadpole which was the origin of a nickname that stuck for the rest
of Tad's life.

As a young lad growing up, Tad had an appealing boyish face with dark hair like
his dad's. His eyes were dark. Tad was quick in his movements, talked rapidly,
and had a marked speech impediment. He had a partially cleft palate and spoke
with a lisp. He was imaginative, sensitive, exasperating, loving, and highly
emotional. Tad's behavior and manners were often unpredictable and sometimes
difficult to deal with.

Tad was 8 when the Lincoln family moved into the White House in 1861. . Although Tad was more
rambunctious than his brother, Willie, both boys enjoyed
playing pranks around the Executive Mansion. In the White
House Tad sprayed dignitaries with the fire hose, broke
mirrors, locked doors, interrupted Cabinet meetings,
constructed wagons and sleds out of chairs, set up a food
shop in the lobby, rang the call bells, and drilled the
servants (as if they were soldiers). Abraham generally
laughed at his sons' tricks, and any kind of discipline was generally lacking. Tad
seemed to enjoy the idea of throwing the White House and
its staff into a dither. Because of the times, some of Tad's
games were war-related. He received a pretend military
commission from Secretary of War Edwin Stanton. Mrs. Lincoln hired
tutors for the boys, but only Willie took education seriously.
Regarding Tad the President's secretary, John Hay, wrote,
"He had a very bad opinion of books and no opinion of
discipline." The attitude of the parents was basically "let the children have a
good time."

                     Like Abraham and Mary Todd, young Tad loved the theater. At
                     Grover's Theatre Tad often went to rehearsals and became a
                     familiar figure backstage. He became quite a hit with the stage
                     workmen. He personally appeared in at least two plays when his dad
                     was in the audience.

                     When his father was shot by John Wilkes Booth at Ford's Theatre,
Tad was with his tutor at Grover's Theatre watching Aladdin or the Wonderful
Lamp. During the play information about the President's shooting was whispered
in the tutor's ear. After Tad had departed, theatre manager C. D. Hess stepped
onto the stage and announced the tragedy to the audience. Tad was taken back to
the White House and comforted by a member of the White House staff, Tom
Pendel. Pendel put Tad to bed around midnight. The next morning when Mary
Todd returned from the Petersen House and news of Abraham's death spread,
Tad put his arms around his mother's neck and said, "Don't cry so, Mamma! Don't
cry, or you will make me cry, too! You will break my heart!"

                    One morning several days after the assassination, Tad faced up to his new situation in
                    life. He said to a White House servant, "Pa is dead. I can hardly believe that I shall
                    never see him again. I must learn to take care of myself now. Yes, Pa is dead, and I am
                    only Tad Lincoln now, little Tad, like other little boys. I am not a President's son now.
                    I won't have many presents anymore. Well, I will try and be a good boy, and will hope
                    to go someday to Pa and brother Willie, in heaven."
 

The Lincoln family moved to Chicago, and Mary became increasingly concerned
about Tad's lack of schooling. In 1865 at age 12 he could not write and was
almost completely illiterate despite having been tutored in the White House. Tad
began to attend school in Chicago in January of 1866. When the family moved to
a new location in Chicago, Tad began attending the Brown School on Warren
Avenue. There Tad was editor of the school newspaper. In 1867 Tad and his
brother traveled to Washington to testify in the trial of John Surratt (who was
accused of conspiring with John Wilkes Booth).

In 1868 Mary Todd decided to travel to Europe. On October 1, 1868, Mary and
Tad sailed out of New York. It would be 2 1/2 years before Tad would set foot
on American soil again. The two Lincolns settled in Frankfurt, Germany, and Tad
was enrolled in a boarding school operated by Dr. Hohagen. The school had an
excellent reputation. Tad and his mother were very close. In December, 1869,
Mary wrote to her friend, Sally B. Orne, "Taddie is like some old woman with
regard to his care of me. His dark, loving eyes watching over me remind me so
much of his dearly beloved father's." In 1870, because of the Franco-Prussian
War, the Lincolns moved to England. There Tad had a private tutor.

In 1871 Mary decided to return to the United States. On May 11 Mary and Tad
arrived in port, and on May 15 they left for Chicago. It seems Tad had caught a
cold during the ocean voyage and was not well when he arrived in Chicago.

By late May Tad developed difficulty in breathing when lying down and had to
sleep sitting up in a chair. By early June he was dangerously ill. He then rallied
for a short time. As July approached he weakened again. Tad's pain and agony
worsened as his face grew thinner. On Saturday morning, July 15, 1871, Tad
passed away at the age of 18. The cause of death was most likely tuberculosis.

Simple funeral services were held for Tad the next day in Robert Lincoln's
Chicago home. Tad was to be buried in the Lincoln Tomb in Springfield, and
Robert accompanied the casket on the train. Mary was too overcome to make the
trip. In Springfield more formal funeral services were held at the First
Presbyterian Church. Then Tad's remains were transported to Oak Ridge
Cemetery to be placed with the remains of his father, Abraham, and two
brothers, Eddie and Willie.