Yes, it is calculated that roughly eight thousand people passed through the White House on the first of January 1864 and that the President shook hands with nearly all of them. For this occasion, he wore white gloves, but even so, when he removed them, his hands were both worn and even bloody from the exercise.

This New Year’s Day at the White House was the first time that any African Americans were in attendance. The record states that four black men—without any wives accompanying them—passed through the executive mansion that day.