19. An upsetting letter
There’s a moment in the film where the higher ups discuss Ryan’s case. One of the generals pulls out a letter written by Abraham Lincoln.
The man himself
The letter is addressed to Mrs. Bixby. It’s famously referred to as the ‘Bixby letter’.
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It is a letter of condolence from Lincoln to Bixby detailing the loss of her 5 sons during the American Civil War.
The famous letter
Despite it being praised as one of Lincoln’s best pieces of writing, it turns out that Bixby’s 5 sons did not all perish.
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It only later came to light that only 2 of Bixby’s children perished. One of them supposedly deserted, another was discharged and the other died out of battle.
They fought in the American Civil War
There’s even contention over whether Lincoln himself wrote the letter. Controversial, eh? Who’d have thought it…
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