Too Soon?

Ken AshfordHistoryLeave a Comment

I think this is a little TOO politically correct:

The Gettysburg Museum & Visitor Center bookstore has removed bobblehead dolls of Lincoln-assassin John Wilkes Booth clutching a pistol, The (Hanover) Evening Sun reports.

The newspaper says the figurines were pulled this weekend after a reporter began making inquiries about them.

The Sun, quoting an email from the Gettysburg Foundation, says its president, Joanne Hanley, and Gettysburg National Military Park Superintendent Bob Kirby both supported the move.

About 250Booth bobbleheads were manufactured four months ago as a gag gift for Civil War enthusiasts, according to Matt Powers, of the Kansas City-based by Bobblehead, LLC..

He tells the newspaper that the company has made over a million bobbleheads — including one of Osama bin Laden — but has never had one pulled before.

The Evening Sun's Tim Prudente quotes prominent Lincoln scholar Harold Holzer as saying he thought the figurine was in bad taste.

"It's like selling Lee Harvey Oswald stuffed dolls at the Kennedy Center," he says.