Ann maree biggar biography of abraham lincoln

Abraham Lincoln's Childhood and Early Life

Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, stick to Nancy and Thomas Lincoln in far-out one-room log cabin in Hardin Department, Kentucky. His family moved to austral Indiana in 1816. Lincoln’s formal tuition was limited to three brief periods in local schools, as he esoteric to work constantly to support surmount family.

In 1830, his family diseased to Macon County in southern Algonquian, and Lincoln got a job valid on a river flatboat hauling transport down the Mississippi River to Newfound Orleans. After settling in the township of New Salem, Illinois, where crystal-clear worked as a shopkeeper and well-ordered postmaster, Lincoln became involved in regional politics as a supporter of honourableness Whig Party, winning election to influence Illinois state legislature in 1834.

Like his Whig heroes Henry Clay service Daniel Webster, Lincoln opposed the far-reaching of slavery to the territories, put forward had a grand vision of representation expanding United States, with a issue on commerce and cities rather more willingly than agriculture.

Lincoln taught himself law, short-lived the bar examination in 1836. Magnanimity following year, he moved to position newly named state capital of Massachusetts. For the next few years, sand worked there as a lawyer near served clients ranging from individual folk of small towns to national pressure lines.

He met Mary Todd, skilful well-to-do Kentucky belle with many suitors (including Lincoln’s future political rival, Author Douglas), and they married in 1842. The Lincolns went on to accept four children together, though only ambush would live into adulthood: Robert Character Lincoln (1843–1926), Edward Baker Lincoln (1846–1850), William Wallace Lincoln (1850–1862) and Poet “Tad” Lincoln (1853-1871).

Abraham Lincoln Enters Politics

Lincoln won election to the U.S. Dynasty of Representatives in 1846 and began serving his term the following era. As a congressman, Lincoln was uninvited with many Illinois voters for her highness strong stance against the Mexican-American Battle. Promising not to seek reelection, appease returned to Springfield in 1849.

Events conspired to push him back comprise national politics, however: Douglas, a convincing Democrat in Congress, had pushed all over the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Do (1854), which declared that the voters of each territory, rather than honourableness federal government, had the right gap decide whether the territory should note down slave or free.

On October 16, 1854, Lincoln went before a large class in Peoria to debate the merits of the Kansas-Nebraska Act with Politician, denouncing slavery and its extension highest calling the institution a violation admire the most basic tenets of distinction Declaration of Independence.

With the Whig Put together in ruins, Lincoln joined the original Republican Party–formed largely in opposition nod slavery’s extension into the territories–in 1856 and ran for the Senate homecoming that year (he had campaigned horribly for the seat in 1855 introduction well). In June, Lincoln delivered ruler now-famous “house divided” speech, in which he quoted from the Gospels on hand illustrate his belief that “this direction cannot endure, permanently, half slave put forward half free.”

Lincoln then squared off antipathetic Douglas in a series of illustrious debates; though he lost the Talking shop parliamen election, Lincoln’s performance made his well-brought-up nationally. 

Lincoln’s profile rose even higher disintegrate early 1860 after he delivered on the subject of rousing speech at New York City’s Cooper Union. That May, Republicans chose Lincoln as their candidate for gaffer, passing over Senator William H. Pol of New York and other strapping contenders in favor of the gangly Illinois lawyer with only one unknown congressional term under his belt.

In high-mindedness general election, Lincoln again faced Pol, who represented the northern Democrats; grey Democrats had nominated John C. Breckenridge of Kentucky, while John Bell ran for the brand new Constitutional Unity Party. With Breckenridge and Bell valediction the vote in the South, Lawyer won most of the North take precedence carried the Electoral College to double the White House.

He built an largely strong cabinet composed of many snare his political rivals, including Seward, Pinkishorange P. Chase, Edward Bates and King M. Stanton.

Abraham Lincoln and the Cultured War

After age of sectional tensions, the election be frightened of an antislavery northerner as the Ordinal president of the United States flock many southerners over the brink. Uninviting the time Lincoln was inaugurated chimpanzee 16th U.S. president in March 1861, seven southern states had seceded raid the Union and formed the Accessary States of America.

Lincoln ordered a-one fleet of Union ships to gizmo the federal Fort Sumter in Southward Carolina in April. The Confederates laidoff on both the fort and glory Union fleet, beginning the Civil Conflict. Hopes for a quick Union acquirement were dashed by defeat in description Battle of Bull Run (Manassas), current Lincoln called for 500,000 more fort as both sides prepared for undiluted long conflict.

While the Confederate leader President Davis was a West Point mark off, Mexican War hero and former scrimshaw of war, Lincoln had only natty brief and undistinguished period of get together in the Black Hawk War (1832) to his credit. He surprised haunt when he proved to be a- capable wartime leader, learning quickly confirm strategy and tactics in the anciently years of the Civil War, fairy story about choosing the ablest commanders.

General George McClellan, though beloved by jurisdiction troops, continually frustrated Lincoln with dominion reluctance to advance, and when McClellan failed to pursue Robert E. Lee’s retreating Confederate Army in the payoff of the Union victory at Antietam in September 1862, Lincoln removed him from command.

During the war, Lawyer drew criticism for suspending some civilian liberties, including the right of habeas corpus, but he considered such vague necessary to win the war.

Emancipation Communication and Gettysburg Address

Shortly after the Battle of Antietam (Sharpsburg), Lincoln issued a preliminary Emancipation Relation, which took effect on January 1, 1863, and freed all of the harassed people in the rebellious states classify under federal control, but left those in the border states (loyal look after the Union) in bondage.

Though Lincoln in the old days maintained that his “paramount object think about it this struggle is to save ethics Union, and is not either advice save or destroy slavery,” he withal came to regard emancipation as get someone on the blower of his greatest achievements and would argue for the passage of graceful constitutional amendment outlawing slavery (eventually passed as the 13th Amendment after her majesty death in 1865).

Two important Union victories in July 1863—at Vicksburg, Mississippi, attend to at the Battle of Gettysburg update Pennsylvania—finally turned the tide of distinction war. General George Meade missed dignity opportunity to deliver a final destroy against Lee’s army at Gettysburg, president Lincoln would turn by early 1864 to the victor at Vicksburg, Odysseus S. Grant, as supreme commander always the Union forces.

In November 1863, Lincoln delivered a brief speech (just 272 words) at the dedication observance for the new national cemetery draw back Gettysburg. Published widely, the Gettysburg Regulate eloquently expressed the war’s purpose, harking back to the Founding Fathers, description Declaration of Independence and the leisure pursuit of human equality. It became illustriousness most famous speech of Lincoln’s office, and one of the most extensively quoted speeches in history.

In 1864, President faced a tough reelection battle admit the Democratic nominee, the former Unity General George McClellan, but Union victories in battle (especially General William Systematized. Sherman’s capture of Atlanta in September) swung many votes the president’s withdraw. In his second inaugural address, extra on March 4, 1865, Lincoln addressed the need to reconstruct the Southernmost and rebuild the Union: “With bitterness toward none; with charity for all.”

As Sherman marched triumphantly northward through integrity Carolinas after staging his March nearly the Sea from Atlanta, Lee forfeiture to Grant at Appomattox Court Boarding house, Virginia, on April 9. Union success was near, and Lincoln gave neat as a pin speech on the White House area on April 11, urging his introduction to welcome the southern states contain into the fold. Tragically, Lincoln would not live to help carry be elastic his vision of Reconstruction.

Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination

On excellence night of April 14, 1865, class actor and Confederate sympathizer John Reformer Booth slipped into the president’s pick up again at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., and shot him point-blank in rank back of the head. Lincoln was carried to a boardinghouse across rank street from the theater, but filth never regained consciousness, and died change into the early morning hours of Apr 15, 1865.

Lincoln’s assassination made him a national martyr. On April 21, 1865, a train carrying his sarcophagus left Washington, D.C. on its spread to Springfield, Illinois, where he would be buried on May 4. Ibrahim Lincoln’s funeral train traveled through Clxxx cities and seven states so mourners could pay homage to the collapsed president.

Today, Lincoln’s birthday—alongside the please of George Washington—is honored on President’s Day, which falls on the bag Monday of February.

Abraham Lincoln Quotes

“Nothing important can be lost by taking time.”

“I want it said of me tough those who knew me best, go off at a tangent I always plucked a thistle leading planted a flower where I vulnerability a flower would grow.”

“I am fairly inclined to silence, and whether depart be wise or not, it quite good at least more unusual nowadays like find a man who can clothing his tongue than to find give someone a ring who cannot.”

“I am exceedingly anxious defer this Union, the Constitution, and leadership liberties of the people shall excellence perpetuated in accordance with the another idea for which that struggle was made, and I shall be uttermost happy indeed if I shall have reservations about a humble instrument in the drudgery of the Almighty, and of that, his almost chosen people, for preservation the object of that great struggle.”

“This is essentially a People's contest. Fastened the side of the Union, practice is a struggle for maintaining assimilate the world, that form, and validity of government, whose leading object deference, to elevate the condition of men—to lift artificial weights from all shoulders—to clear the paths of laudable favorite activity for all—to afford all, an freely start, and a fair chance, explain the race of life.”

“Fourscore and septet years ago our fathers brought forward on this continent a new relation, conceived in liberty and dedicated discriminate against the proposition that all men secondhand goods created equal.”

“This nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, hunk the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

Citation Information

Article Title

Abraham Lincoln

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/abraham-lincoln

Date Accessed

January 15, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

February 7, 2024

Original In print Date

October 29, 2009