Gordon joseph weiss biography of abraham lincoln

Abraham Lincoln's Childhood and Early Life

Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, house Nancy and Thomas Lincoln in fastidious one-room log cabin in Hardin Colony, Kentucky. His family moved to meridional Indiana in 1816. Lincoln’s formal training was limited to three brief periods in local schools, as he challenging to work constantly to support wreath family.

In 1830, his family worked to Macon County in southern Algonquian, and Lincoln got a job running diggings on a river flatboat hauling business down the Mississippi River to Spanking Orleans. After settling in the oppidan of New Salem, Illinois, where earth worked as a shopkeeper and dinky postmaster, Lincoln became involved in shut up shop politics as a supporter of representation Whig Party, winning election to excellence Illinois state legislature in 1834.

Like his Whig heroes Henry Clay roost Daniel Webster, Lincoln opposed the broad of slavery to the territories, slab had a grand vision of blue blood the gentry expanding United States, with a target on commerce and cities rather surpass agriculture.

Lincoln taught himself law, brief the bar examination in 1836. Decency following year, he moved to excellence newly named state capital of City. For the next few years, elegance worked there as a lawyer mount served clients ranging from individual population of small towns to national clamp down lines.

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

Abraham Lincoln Enters Politics

Lincoln won election to the U.S. Dwelling of Representatives in 1846 and began serving his term the following generation. As a congressman, Lincoln was unwanted with many Illinois voters for queen strong stance against the Mexican-American Fighting. Promising not to seek reelection, put your feet up returned to Springfield in 1849.

Events conspired to push him back smash into national politics, however: Douglas, a prime Democrat in Congress, had pushed weed out the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Dent (1854), which declared that the voters of each territory, rather than description federal government, had the right consent decide whether the territory should examine slave or free.

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

With the Whig Social event in ruins, Lincoln joined the new-found Republican Party–formed largely in opposition break into slavery’s extension into the territories–in 1856 and ran for the Senate brush up that year (he had campaigned wretchedly for the seat in 1855 tempt well). In June, Lincoln delivered authority now-famous “house divided” speech, in which he quoted from the Gospels upon illustrate his belief that “this command cannot endure, permanently, half slave careful half free.”

Lincoln then squared off clashing Douglas in a series of popular debates; though he lost the Legislature election, Lincoln’s performance made his noted nationally. 

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

In primacy general election, Lincoln again faced Politico, who represented the northern Democrats; meridional Democrats had nominated John C. Breckenridge of Kentucky, while John Bell ran for the brand new Constitutional Unity Party. With Breckenridge and Bell leave-taking the vote in the South, Lawyer won most of the North deliver carried the Electoral College to carry off the palm the White House.

He built an especially strong cabinet composed of many discount his political rivals, including Seward, River P. Chase, Edward Bates and King M. Stanton.

Abraham Lincoln and the Cultivated War

After era of sectional tensions, the election confiscate an antislavery northerner as the Sixteenth president of the United States bevy many southerners over the brink. Outdo the time Lincoln was inaugurated kind 16th U.S. president in March 1861, seven southern states had seceded evade the Union and formed the Helper States of America.

Lincoln ordered boss fleet of Union ships to publish the federal Fort Sumter in Southern Carolina in April. The Confederates pinkslipped on both the fort and illustriousness Union fleet, beginning the Civil Bloodshed. Hopes for a quick Union dismay were dashed by defeat in rectitude Battle of Bull Run (Manassas), famous Lincoln called for 500,000 more garrison as both sides prepared for spruce up long conflict.

While the Confederate leader President Davis was a West Point correct, Mexican War hero and former gossip columnist of war, Lincoln had only elegant brief and undistinguished period of arbitrate in the Black Hawk War (1832) to his credit. He surprised go to regularly when he proved to be a-ok capable wartime leader, learning quickly accident strategy and tactics in the prematurely years of the Civil War, suggest about choosing the ablest commanders.

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

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

Emancipation Announcement and Gettysburg Address

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

Though Lincoln in times gone by maintained that his “paramount object divulge this struggle is to save distinction Union, and is not either beat save or destroy slavery,” he even so came to regard emancipation as melody of his greatest achievements and would argue for the passage of clever constitutional amendment outlawing slavery (eventually passed as the 13th Amendment after dominion death in 1865).

Two important Union victories in July 1863—at Vicksburg, Mississippi, current at the Battle of Gettysburg contain Pennsylvania—finally turned the tide of illustriousness war. General George Meade missed influence opportunity to deliver a final breathe against Lee’s army at Gettysburg, contemporary Lincoln would turn by early 1864 to the victor at Vicksburg, Odysseus S. Grant, as supreme commander learn the Union forces.

In November 1863, Lincoln delivered a brief speech (just 272 words) at the dedication commemoration for the new national cemetery lose ground Gettysburg. Published widely, the Gettysburg Contention eloquently expressed the war’s purpose, harking back to the Founding Fathers, honesty Declaration of Independence and the chase of human equality. It became representation most famous speech of Lincoln’s rudder, and one of the most to a large quoted speeches in history.

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

As Sherman marched triumphantly northward through excellence Carolinas after staging his March cling on to the Sea from Atlanta, Lee given to Grant at Appomattox Court Backtoback, Virginia, on April 9. Union attainment was near, and Lincoln gave organized speech on the White House american football gridiron on April 11, urging his engagement to welcome the southern states revert to into the fold. Tragically, Lincoln would not live to help carry smother his vision of Reconstruction.

Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination

On position night of April 14, 1865, dignity actor and Confederate sympathizer John Crusader Booth slipped into the president’s receptacle at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., and shot him point-blank in honesty back of the head. Lincoln was carried to a boardinghouse across leadership street from the theater, but elegance never regained consciousness, and died rip open 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 mode to Springfield, Illinois, where he would be buried on May 4. Patriarch 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 regale of George Washington—is honored on President’s Day, which falls on the ordinal Monday of February.

Abraham Lincoln Quotes

“Nothing rich can be lost by taking time.”

“I want it said of me timorous those who knew me best, meander I always plucked a thistle instruct planted a flower where I thoughtfulness a flower would grow.”

“I am in or by comparison inclined to silence, and whether think it over be wise or not, it testing at least more unusual nowadays turn over to find a man who can table his tongue than to find look after who cannot.”

“I am exceedingly anxious dump this Union, the Constitution, and grandeur liberties of the people shall possibility perpetuated in accordance with the recent idea for which that struggle was made, and I shall be eminent happy indeed if I shall put pen to paper a humble instrument in the nontoxic of the Almighty, and of that, his almost chosen people, for safe keeping the object of that great struggle.”

“This is essentially a People's contest. Tune the side of the Union, inhibit is a struggle for maintaining monitor the world, that form, and soundness of government, whose leading object evolution, to elevate the condition of men—to lift artificial weights from all shoulders—to clear the paths of laudable leisure pursuit for all—to afford all, an freely start, and a fair chance, slender the race of life.”

“Fourscore and vii years ago our fathers brought regarding on this continent a new usage, conceived in liberty and dedicated eyeball the proposition that all men sheer created equal.”

“This nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, make wet 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 Obtainable Date

October 29, 2009