Lincoln re-enactor born for the role

MASSENA — A near-spitting image of Abraham Lincoln told stories about himself Sunday at the annual Civil War Weekend at Robert Moses State Park.

John R. "Jack" Baylis, a re-enactor, said he has tried to be a mere foot soldier but can't help how his appearance — at 6 feet, 4 inches tall, the same height as Lincoln, with a dark beard and lank figure — makes others view him.

"I had a wonderful time as a private, but everyone called me Lincoln," he said.

Mr. Baylis, Cassville, was joined in a talk about the Lincoln era by his "wife," Mary Todd Lincoln, played by Judee A. Synakowski, Coxsackie.

In a flowered print dress, lace collar, mesh gloves and pulled-back hair, Mrs. Synakowski bears a striking resemblance to Lincoln's widow, and she defends her character. The real Mary Todd Lincoln lost her mother at the age of 6, went to several boarding schools, and saw three of her sons and her husband die before she was committed to a mental institution by her sole surviving son.

"She had a lot of things going on," Mrs. Synakowski said. "Back then, women didn't speak up like they do now, and she was a woman who spoke her mind."

The two-day re-enactment, presented by the St. Lawrence County Historical Association and hosted by the 2nd Michigan, Company E, included several mock battles, a fashion show, artillery demonstrations, historical talks and various displays.

Deborah A. Pierce, Winthrop, found the event mesmerizing.

"This is the first time I've been. I'm fascinated by it," she said. "It's the way the people lived, how they fought back then."