bit ofane spent quite a time traveling with her uncle james buchanan. visitors during their time in the white house. one of the most interesting groups they had visit them was the japanese delegation. the japanese delegation came to the white house in 1860 and came bearing all types of gifts. what can see here are some of the list of things they brought. paper fold and objects. oragami. this is a little dictionary in japanese. harriett and her friends found all of these things intriguing. here we are in harriet's lane's bedroom. it is furnished in the same way it might have been furnished when she was living here. these are pieces she owned after her marriage. behind me, you will see her original wardrobe where she would have stored her beautiful gowns that she purchased from paris. she had a penchant for european fashions. most of her clothes were handmade for her in paris. her signature style of first lady differed radically from this dress. she would wear full gowns with many layers of ruffles. she was also known for her low neckline. that was someth

james buchanan. in 1848, they moved here. this was the place she would call home until the age of 36 when they moved to baltimore. >> this is the place where harriet lane would have served tea to friends, write letters, spent time together. very much like we would use the family room today. here we have harriet lane's piano. it was a gift from her uncle. this was probably purchased sometime in the mid to late 1860's. we have her music book here. it is embossed with her name on the front. it contains a number of her favorite pieces, including italian classics. we alsve songs. one of her uncle's favorite things to do was to sit here and listen to his niece playing religious hymns. he was a devout presbyterian. to listen to those hymns was something that brought a great amount of joy to him. harriet lane was very enthusiastic about all things european. when her uncle was elected as minister in the court of st. james, she was over the moon about the idea that she might get to accompany him. upon presentation to queen victoria,mis

in politics, if they'd paint lincoln, imagine what they would hurl at james buchanan. lincoln memorial. erin mcpike is on the scene there. this is a symbol of american unity. you have lots of tourists that come there. they're probably wondering who these jerks are that tried to trash it. >> reporter: we don't know yet and there is a video and the park police say they will release it to the public if they need help catching the public. >> the national park service is really disappointed this national icon is damaged. it has paint splatter on it. it is not permanent damage. it can be cleaned. we have very good historic preservation crews up there now cleaning it as we speak and it will be back in the shape it was. >> reporter: i just ran up the stairs. there are suds all over abe and a little green paint but i think he's going to make it. >> good to know that everything is going to work out for abe. >> breaking news in our buried lead. those are the stories we think aren't getting enough attention elsewhere. in the last few minutes, the white house just announced that ar

she was followed by harriet lane , the niece of james buchanan. she was the first first lady to welcome a member of the british royal family as a formal guest at the white house. this being edward, prince of 1860. in she had listened to the mockingbirds dedicated to her --ed -- to her grade it will dedicated to her. her relationship to the royal family raise questions of england during the civil war. there are people who set the time that it was because of ms. lanes friendship with the world family they did so. she entertained the prints during the beginning of the secession movement. view -- withd in mary todd lincoln in the white house, her purchase of china, her decorating the white house, which had been done by others, it was severely criticized as action insensitive to the needs and conditions of the country. mrs. lincoln said that it was part of her duty to dress in find and expensive clothes as a way of lifting the morale of the nation. she felt that this was her duty, and that boil republicans -- loyal republicans loathe their jobs to her

. >> this is the home of president james buchanan. 1848, they moved here. this was the place she would call home until the age of 36 when they moved to baltimore. >> this is the place where harriet lane i have served tea to france, like letters, spent time together. very much like we would use the family room today. >> this was a gift manufacturers -- manufactured in boston. as you see, we have her music book. it is embossed with her name on the front. it contains a number of her favorite pieces, including italian classics. we also have some patriotic songs. one of her uncle's favorite things to do was to sit here and listen to his knees playing religious hymns. he was a devout presbyterian. to listen to those hems brought a great amount of joy to him. hyms brought in great amounts of -- hymns brought a great amount of joy to him. upon presentation to queen e made a, miss lan great impression and the queen was impressed with her. as a result, the two formed a great friendship that would continue throughout both of their lives. this place is actually a gift

james buchanan, the 15th president of the united states, a lifelong bachelor, speculation endures about because check this out for 14 entire years he lived with william rufus king who was a senator from alabama and also happened to be the vice president under franklin pierce. now, historians say buchanan was our nation's very first gay president. >> that is fascinating. >> really the only one. because i haven't heard of another gay president since, have you? >> i think you will hear about one -- that sounds like you're -- >> am i asking for it? >> it is legal. >> it's totally fine to be gay. back in the 1800s. >> not so much. >> more taboo than now. >> definitely. their relationship so close, andrew jackson referred to them as ms. nancy and aunt fancy. him and his friend. aunt fancy. >> rufus king. i wonder which one was aunt fancy. >> aunt fancy was his friend. >> his friend. nothing wrong with having friends. what if they were good colleagues that liked to live together? >> is that so wrong? >> i don't think so. >> want to hear more about the cages and whips you said. >> i'm just sayi

she followed by harriet lane, the niece of james buchanan. harriet lane was the first first lady to welcome a member of the british royal family as a formal guest at the white house. this being edward, the prince of wales in the year 1816. youthful, popular, she had listened to the mockingbird named after her, dedicated to her. she made the low neck lace bertha popular. it was her personal relationship with the royal family which raised question about england's role during the civil war. england, of course, remained neutral. there were many people who said at the time that was because of ms. lane's personal friendship with the royal family that they did so. she entertained the prince just during the beginning of the secession movement about a month before abraham lincoln was elected president. with mary todd lincoln in the white house during the civil war, her perfect of state china which had been done by other first ladies, her decorating the white house, which had also been done by other first ladies was severely criticized as action incent

she was suspect and harriet lane, james buchanan's niece who was the hostess met with the couple and said that lincoln resembled the irish door keeper. i do have to tell my students in ireland that's not meant as a compliment. and it's reported that mrs. lincoln is western, loud, and unrefined. so this is what mary lincoln was up against. and i will say i use the term mary lincoln because we did have this is such a wonderful occasion to get to meet and discuss the biography of dolly madison because we were talking about the todd connection that isn't a real connection but it seems that everywhere mary todd lincoln is the name. when i first started working on the research and said i was writing on mary lincoln, people said who? i would say mary todd lincoln. they would know this name. the early 20th century when the todd family began to commission some work, including the painting that now hangs in the white house of mary lincoln that "todd" got inserted. not to say that mrs. lincoln was not proud of her family heritage. she indeed was someone who greatly treasured the southern her ta