FRIDAY, MARCH 8, 1861.
Rather a cool day but cloudy with indications of rain at night. Shepherd Patrick of Norwalk Ohio called upon me today. I showed him round the office. This Evening was the first Levee of Mr Lincoln at the “White House.” Myself, Brother C R, and Julia went. The crowd was so great in the House that hundreds left without seeing the Prest. It was a perfect jam. Elegant Ladies dresses and Elegant Officers uniforms fared bad in the crowd. Got home about 10 and staid there quite as long as was desirable to us.
The three diary manuscript volumes, Washington during the Civil War: The Diary of Horatio Nelson Taft, 1861-1865, are available online at The Library of Congress.