Born: February 12, 1809
Died: April 14, 1865 Place of Birth: Hardin County, Kentucky
Major Notes:
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States and one of its greatest visionaries.
He was the second child born to Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Hawks who were poorly educated but excelled in working off the land.
Lincoln's father was a carpenter and generally could look after supporting his family.
Young Abraham learned to do the chores expected on a frontier and became an expert on using the axe.
In 1816 the Lincolns and some of Nancy Hawks' family moved to Pigeon Creek, Indiana.
He lost his first mother to milk sick, a disease caused by impure milk, in 1818 but his father remarried to Sarah Bush Johnston a year later.
Lincoln's stepmother is credited as encouraging him to read for the sake of knowledge.
Lincoln can be said to be self-educated as he had only one year of what could be termed formal education.
In 1830, the Lincolns moved to Decatur, Illinois, being encouraged by the Hanks who had already moved to Illinois.
Lincoln was hired to work in a small general store in New Salem, near the growing town of Springfield.
He was well-liked by the community and, because he could read and write, often was asked to make out legal papers for others.
In 1832, Lincoln was unsuccessful in running for a term of office in the Illinois House of Representatives.
He opened a general store in partnership with William F. Berry but the store failed only a few months later.
Lincoln then became Postmaster of the Salem post office for $60 a year plus a percentage of profits.
He ran again in 1834 for the Illinois legislature and, because he was well-known and popular, won his election this time.
It was in this term of office that Lincoln made his views known that he was against the practice of slavery.
Encouraged by John T. Stuart, he studied law and became an attorney in 1836 which brought a substantial income.
He married Mary Todd in 1842; of their four children, only one lived to be an adult.
From 1847- 1849, Lincoln sat as a Member of the US Congress.
Lincoln decided in 1858 to run for Senator without success but he gained a national reputation and was nominated as the Presidential candidate
for the Republican party in the successful 1860 election.
Before he was inaugurated, the Confederate States of America had been formed and an insurrection was underway.
The Civil War was fought with Lincoln keeping a tight reign on government and war matters resulting in victory for the north.
He was assassinated in 1865 by John Wilkes Booth while attending a musical play performance at the Ford Theater.
Abraham Lincoln has consistently been named by many historians as the greatest US President.
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