Fun Fact Friday - For Leg Lovers

That almost felt like too much alliteration in the title there, huh? But only almost. Anyway, here's a quick fun fact for you, dear reader.

Fun fact: Daniel Sickles, a Civil War general, lost his leg at Gettysburg but often visited it in the Army Medical Museum.

"At least I still have my mustache!" - General Sickles

Now, I know this fun fact probably doesn't need an explanation. I mean, it's the classic tale of man loses leg, man donates leg to museum, man visits leg on their anniversary. But just in case you haven't watched that many rom-coms, I'll elaborate.

General Sickles was a Union general during the Civil War and was having what I can only imagine to be a lovely day when a cannonball up and hit him in his leg, Righty McWalkable. It had to be amputated. Though the general dried his tears with his bushy mustache because cruel fate had separated him from his one true love, he knew there was hope. A new museum was opening in Washington, D.C. - a museum that was looking for bits of bodies.

Sickles donated his leg (and the cannonball) to the museum. On the anniversary of the amputation, the general would visit his leg. I assume he also took it out to dinner. Or gave it a pretty necklace.

"I miss my general..." - Righty McWalkable

The leg can now be found in the National Museum of Health and Medicine. If you'd leg to pay Righty a visit, I am sure he will recount fondly his time with Sickles. I have heard though that since Sickles passed in 1914, Righty has had a rather torrid affair with James A. Garfield's vertebrae, which also apparently hangs out at the NMHM.

A love affair for the ages, dear reader! Much like ours...