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This lapel pin dates from Abraham Lincoln’s 1864 re-election campaign. In the 1860 presidential contest, he had pioneered use of this kind of item—and specifically the reproduction of ferrotype photographs, which involves developing the image on a thin metal sheet, onto pins or pendants for large-scale distribution. With its black fabric border, it also served as an appropriate mourning brooch. Lincoln was assassinated on 10 April 1865; his death represented the second instance of a national mourning, following the death of President George Washington in 1799.