[132] In the aftermath of the 1858 election, newspapers frequently mentioned Lincoln as a potential Republican presidential candidate, rivaled by William H. Seward, Salmon P. Chase, Edward Bates, and Simon Cameron. DIED: April 15, 1865, in Washington, D.C. TIME IN OFFICE: March 4, 1861, to April 15, 1865, VICE PRESIDENTS: Hannibal Hamlin (first term), Andrew Johnson (second term), POLITICAL PARTY: Republican (formerly Whig). Although opposed to slavery from the outset of his political career, Lincoln would not make its abolition a mainstay of his policy until several years into the war. 6. All Rights Reserved. He emphasized defeat of the Confederate armies over destruction (which was considerable) for its own sake. Through speeches such as the Gettysburg Address, Lincoln encouraged Northerners to keep fighting. Lincoln announced a Reconstruction plan that involved short-term military control, pending readmission under the control of southern Unionists. The 1862 Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act provided government grants for agricultural colleges in each state. NAME: Abraham Lincoln NICKNAMES: Honest Abe, the Great Emancipator BORN: February 12, 1809, near Hodgenville, Kentucky DIED: April 15, 1865, in Washington, D.C. TIME IN OFFICE: March 4,. [193] In the 1861 Trent Affair which threatened war with Great Britain, the U.S. Navy illegally intercepted a British mail ship, the Trent, on the high seas and seized two Confederate envoys; Britain protested vehemently while the U.S. cheered. [183] John Merryman, one Maryland official hindering the U.S. troop movements, petitioned Supreme Court Chief Justice Roger B. Taney to issue a writ of habeas corpus. Lincoln Sought the Republican Nomination in 1860 Lesson Plans On August 16, 1837, he wrote Owens a letter saying he would not blame her if she ended the relationship, and she never replied. For his design, Lincoln obtained Patent No. [294], In June 1864, Lincoln approved the Yosemite Grant enacted by Congress, which provided unprecedented federal protection for the area now known as Yosemite National Park. "[282] The men whose sentences he commuted were sent to a military prison at Davenport, Iowa. [351] According to historian Sean Wilentz:[351]. But he soon came into conflict with fellow Whigs, and his growing list of political enemies quickly dubbed him His Accidency. A man without a party, he briefly ran for election in 1844 before withdrawing his candidacy for lack of support. In July, the Confiscation Act of 1862 was enacted, providing court procedures to free the slaves of those convicted of aiding the rebellion; Lincoln approved the bill despite his belief that it was unconstitutional. [231], Lincoln spoke at the dedication of the Gettysburg battlefield cemetery on November 19, 1863. He led the U.S. thru the Civil War. Connect-Points Web Content & Design is a web development and hosting company that specializes in web design and copy writing for maximum usability and accessiblity. The emphasis shifted away from Lincoln the emancipator to an argument that blacks had freed themselves from slavery, or at least were responsible for pressuring the government to emancipate them. Historian Mark Noll places the speech "among the small handful of semi-sacred texts by which Americans conceive their place in the world;" it is inscribed in the Lincoln Memorial. Roosevelt, of course, ran and won, and the sphinx remains on display at his presidential museum. [262], After implementing the Emancipation Proclamation, Lincoln increased pressure on Congress to outlaw slavery throughout the nation with a constitutional amendment. Jackson lost a closely contested race in 1824, but Old Hickory prevailed in 1828, serving two controversial terms. From the Nat Geo Kids books Our Country's Presidents by Ann Bausum and Weird But True Know-It-All: U.S. Presidents by Brianna Dumont, revised for digital by Avery Hurt, Copyright 1996-2015 National Geographic SocietyCopyright 2015-2023 National Geographic Partners, LLC. Abraham 'Honest Abe' Lincoln had a number of nicknames America's 16th president came from famously humble origins, born in a one-room log cabin in Kentucky. [138] But Lincoln demonstrated intellectual leadership that brought him into contention. [97] The case is famous for Lincoln's use of a fact established by judicial notice to challenge the credibility of an eyewitness. But time and again during the war, Lincoln, after initial opposition, had come to embrace positions first advanced by abolitionists and Radical Republicans. On June 2324, 1862, President Lincoln made an unannounced visit to West Point, where he spent five hours consulting with Scott regarding the handling of the Civil War and the staffing of the War Department. [9] They had three children: Sarah, Abraham, and Thomas, who died as an infant. Lincoln was taller (at six feet four inches) than any other president. Abraham Lincoln spent hours reading books, including Life of Washington, Dilworth's Speller, and Blackstone's Commentaries (Hunt107). On April 14, 1865, just five days after the war's end at Appomattox, he was attending a play at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C., with his wife, Mary, when he was fatally shot by Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth. Lincoln managed his own successful re-election campaign. The Great Emancipator wasnt quite WWE material, but thanks to his long limbs he was an accomplished wrestler as a young man. [323] He never made a clear profession of Christian beliefs. His nomination was confirmed by the Senate on March 2, 1864. He used appointments to the Indian Bureau as a reward to supporters from Minnesota and Wisconsin. [96], Lincoln argued in an 1858 criminal trial, defending William "Duff" Armstrong, who was on trial for the murder of James Preston Metzker. In the late 1970s, The New York Times noted that Reagan was a great communicator, and the apt phrase stuck, as Reagan mastered mass media as a new political tool. In 1917 he joined the newly-formed U.S. Food Administration, leading rationing and food conservation efforts upon Americas entry in the war. A copy of President Abraham Lincoln's short Gettysburg Address speech. Civil War victory came on April 9, 1865, at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, when Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant. In his first campaign speech after returning from his military service, Lincoln observed a supporter in the crowd under attack, grabbed the assailant by his "neck and the seat of his trousers", and tossed him. [89] Twice a year he appeared for 10 consecutive weeks in county seats in the Midstate county courts; this continued for 16 years. Democrat Stephen Johnson Field, a previous California Supreme Court justice, provided geographic and political balance. Biography and associated logos are trademarks of A+E Networksprotected in the US and other countries around the globe. I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so. At times he was presented as the plain-talking "Rail Splitter" and at other times he was "Honest Abe", unpolished but trustworthy. Responding to criticism of Grant after Shiloh, Lincoln had said, "I can't spare this man. Our politically correct friends won't even accept the possibility that this could be true of course. Lincoln Douglas Debates Classroom, Named "Best of the Web" in Nov. 2013 by NEH EDSITEMENT, July 31, 1846 Handbill on Infidelity (#16), July 1, 1850 Notes for a Law Lecture (#21), August 18, 1854 Letter to Richard Yates (#15), October 20, 1858 Letter to Norman B. Judd (#9), February 27, 1860 Cooper Union Speech (#20), January 11, 1837Speech Concerning the State Bank (#76), February 22, 1842Address to Washington Temperance Society (#121), February 25, 1842Letter to Joshua Speed (#78), October 5, 1842Letter to Joshua Speed (#79), January 12, 1848Speech on War With Mexico (#55), June 12, 1848Letter to William Herndon (#61), June 3, 1849Letter to Joseph Underwood (#136), July 28, 1849Letter to John Clayton (#130), July 1, 1854Fragment on Government (#103), September 8, 1854Letter to Richard Oglesby (#137), November 10, 1854Letter to Jonathan Scammon (#123), November 27, 1854Letter to Ichabod Codding (#124), August 11, 1855Letter to Owen Lovejoy (#96), August 24, 1855Letter to Joshua Speed (#138), September 8, 1856Letter to Fillmore Men (#105), August 1, 1858Definition of Democracy (#81), March 17, 1860Letter to E. Stafford (#125), March 24, 1860Letter to Samuel Galloway (#141), July 16, 1860Instructions for John Nicolay (#82), July 21, 1860Letter to Abraham Jonas (#144), September 1, 1862Meditation on Divine Will (#35), October 3, 1862Proclamation of Thanksgiving (#69), August 17, 1863Letter to James Hackett (#131), November 2, 1863Letter to James Hackett (#132), http://housedivided.dickinson.edu/sites/journal/2010/08/26/honest-abe/, http://hdl.handle.net/2027/spo.2629860.0018.10, http://www.lib.niu.edu/2009/iht09160116.html, http://hdl.handle.net/2027/spo.2629860.0016.203, Michael Burlingame, Honest Abe, multi-media excerpt from, Richard J. Carwardine, Lincoln, Evangelical Religion, and the American Political Culture in the Era of the Civil War,, Matthew Pinsker, Man of Consequence: Abraham Lincoln in the 1850s,, Mark E. Steiner, The Lawyer as Peacemaker: Law and Community in Abraham Lincolns Slander Cases,. Grant's bloody stalemates damaged Lincoln's re-election prospects, and many Republicans feared defeat. Anne Sarah Rubin, Contributing Editors A throng of passengers began to press the young man backwards, and he fell into the open space between the platform and a moving train. Carlisle, PA 17013 The law had little practical effect, but it signaled political support for abolishing slavery. 12 Presidential Nicknames and Their Unusual Origins, Photo: ullstein bild/ullstein bild via Getty Images, Photo: Universal History Archive/Getty Images, Every Candidate in the 2024 U.S. Presidential Race, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads. For example, Mentor Graham ran the ``blab school,'' a one-room schoolhouse where children repeated their lessons aloud over and over again. [114] Buchanan prevailed, while Republican William Henry Bissell won election as Governor of Illinois, and Lincoln became a leading Republican in Illinois. Your subscription to PDF Honest Abe Contextual Essay Grant then assumed command of Meade's army. Lincoln believed that slavery would be rendered obsolete if its expansion into new territories were prevented, because these territories would be admitted to the Union as free states, and free states would come to outnumber slave states. [18], Overcoming financial challenges, Thomas in 1827 obtained clear title to 80 acres (32ha) in Indiana, an area which became the Little Pigeon Creek Community. [82] The resolution was ignored in both Congress and the national papers, and it cost Lincoln political support in his district. Thomas and Nancy Lincoln had three children: Sarah, Abraham, and Thomas, who died in infancy. Lincoln gained the support of Congress and the northern public for these actions. Because a license was required to sell customers single beverages, Berry obtained bartending licenses for $7 each for Lincoln and himself, and in 1833 the Lincoln-Berry General Store became a tavern as well. He expanded his war powers, imposed a blockade on Confederate ports, disbursed funds before appropriation by Congress, suspended habeas corpus, and arrested and imprisoned thousands of suspected Confederate sympathizers. He did not defend the Confederacy and the people supporting slavery. He sought to persuade the states to agree to compensation for emancipating their slaves. But his razor-thin, 87-vote victory was upheld, and the new Senator Johnson returned to Washington with a new nickname he found hard to shake: Landslide Lyndon. Despite how hed earned his seats, Johnson became one of the most powerful Senators in history, then vice president and finally president, where, in 1964, he truly did win a landslide victory, capturing more than 60 percent of the popular vote (still a record) and more than 90 percent of electoral votes. Less than a week after people celebrated the end the Civil War, the country was mourning yet again. In 1939, as Roosevelt was deciding to run for an unprecedented third presidential term this inscrutability was on full display, leading reporters and political cartoonists to dub him the Great Sphinx, for his refusal to answer their questions. The Lincolns' last descendant, great-grandson. Determined to reunite the nation and not alienate the South, Lincoln urged that speedy elections under generous terms be held. Have Any U.S. Presidents Decided Not to Run For a Second Term? Taylor was a down-to-earth, unpretentious leader who readily shared the difficulties and privations of his fellow soldiers. It had been sporadically proclaimed by the federal government on irregular dates. Though much less prosperous than some of his Lincoln forebears, Thomas was a sturdy pioneer. The Lincoln memorial postage stamp of 1866 was issued by the U.S. Post Office exactly one year after Lincoln's death. The left-leaning Douglas was accused of having communist ties (no small fear at the height of the Red Scare), and her Democratic primary opponent had dubbed her the Pink Lady. Nixon capitalized on the accusations, but also made sure he covered his political bases. [67] In 1837, he declared, "[The] Institution of slavery is founded on both injustice and bad policy, but the promulgation of abolition doctrines tends rather to increase than abate its evils. Peter Cartwright. Getty Images Lincoln always opposed slavery, but it would be simplistic. [52][f] Lincoln "was remarkably fond of children"[54] and the Lincolns were not considered to be strict with their own. The 1930 film Abraham Lincoln features Lincoln's time as a storekeeper at the Lincoln-Berry store during the first act. He said "A majority held in restraint by constitutional checks and limitations, and always changing easily with deliberate changes of popular opinions and sentiments, is the only true sovereign of a free people. Lincoln as commander in chief was honest and straightforward with his generals, always telling them directly what he did and did not appreciate about them. Edward Baker Lincoln (Eddie), born in 1846, died February 1, 1850, probably of tuberculosis. Lincoln refused to negotiate with the Confederacy as a coequal; his objective to end the fighting was not realized. Two years later, however, he found himself running against the same man for the presidency. Afterward he joked that he had seen no live, fighting Indians during the war but had had a good many bloody struggles with the mosquitoes. Meanwhile, aspiring to be a legislator, he was defeated in his first try and then repeatedly reelected to the state assembly. Secretary of War Stanton had issued orders that Booth be taken alive, so Corbett was initially arrested to be court martialed. Abraham Lincoln was said to be one of the most honest presidents who has ever served our country, that's where he was given the nickname . But this political powerhouse Founding Father was also the shortest president in American history, likely standing just 5 feet 4 inches tall. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. New Salem, Ill. [235], Defying his prediction that "the world will little note, nor long remember what we say here", the Address became the most quoted speech in American history. [citation needed] Once word reached the other bands of Chippewa, he had no way of knowing how they would react to his sending the Fond Du Lac on the warpath. In 1858 he made a bid for the Senate in a much-publicized race which he ultimately lost but which transformed him into a nationally recognized political figure. [45] Late in 1836, Lincoln agreed to a match with Owens if she returned to New Salem. The little river town was the site of Lincoln's first public act of cool-headedness. FACT CHECK: We strive for accuracy and fairness. [330] After Willie's death, he questioned the divine necessity of the war's severity. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. By winning the war, he achieved both these objectivesreunion and abolition. [361] Historians have said he was "a classical liberal" in the 19th-century sense. The party did the leg work that produced majorities across the North and produced an abundance of campaign posters, leaflets, and newspaper editorials. [350] Nevertheless, Lincoln admired Andrew Jackson's steeliness as well as his patriotism. Finally, at age 25 he would be elected to the State Assembly from this frontier town of 100 persons, mostly farmers who cut below the tough prairie sod to find some of the richest soil in the world. The family then migrated west, passing through New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. Follow Abraham Lincoln from a frontier cabin to the White House where he guided America through the Civil War, Learn how Abraham Lincoln's frontier childhood and early appetite for reading shaped his character, U.S. Presidents and Their Years in Office Quiz, What Pop Culture Got Wrong About Abraham Lincoln, Learn how reading Shakespeare and the King James Bible helped Abraham Lincoln compose his best-remembered address in American history.
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