Nanny and Nanko

Nanny and Nanko were two goats that were presidential pets owned by Abraham Lincoln.^[1][2][3] Lincoln gifted the goats to his son, Tad Lincoln, who wanted a goat.^{[4][5][6][7][8]} Tad and his brother William Wallace Lincoln played with Nanny and Nanko inside and outside of the White House.^[9]

Biography

In the 1860s, Lincoln shared his home with Nanny and Nanko.^[10] Sometimes, they chewed up the furniture of the White House.^[11] They grazed on the grounds of the White House. After Abraham Lincoln was assassinated, his widow Mary Todd Lincoln, gave the goats to a friend.^[12][13] According to Lincoln, they were the best and kindest goats in the world.^[14][15]