Abraham Lincoln: Life before the Presidency

The man who preserved the Union and issued the Emancipation Proclamation came into

the world on February 12, 1809. Abraham Lincoln was born in humble surroundings, a one-

room log cabin with dirt floors in Hardin County, Kentucky. His father, Thomas Lincoln, could

not read and could barely sign his name. He was a stern man whom young Abe never liked very

much. Himself born to impoverished parents, Thomas Lincoln was a farmer and carpenter who

moved the family from rural Kentucky to frontier Indiana when young Abe was seven years old.

Thomas built a crude 360-square foot log cabin where he lived with his wife, Abe, and elder

daughter, Sarah.

Lincoln's mother, Nancy Hanks, died when Lincoln was only nine years old. Although Lincoln

later said that he owed everything to her guidance, he seldom mentioned her in his

conversation or writings. Lincoln’s father, Thomas Lincoln, married Sarah Bush Johnston shortly

after Nancy's death, and young Abe immediately bonded with his stepmother. A bright woman,

she encouraged Abe's education, and took his side in the frequent arguments the young boy

had with his father.

Rural life was difficult in America's frontier during the early 1800s. Poverty, farm chores,

hard work, and reading by the light of the fireplace dominated young Abe's life until he was

seventeen, when he found work on a ferryboat. Enjoying the river, he built a flatboat two years

later and ran a load of farm produce down the Mississippi River to New Orleans. Selling the

boat for its timber, he then returned home. Upon reaching home he dutifully, but resentfully,

gave his full earnings to his father.

When Abe was twenty-one, the family again moved, this time to Illinois just west of

Decatur. The father and son built another log cabin not much bigger than the one they had

lived in before. Following this move, Abe built a second flatboat and made another run down

river, but this time as an independent operator. After that haul, he lived on his own, moving to

the town of New Salem, Illinois in 1831.

Political Ambitions

As a young man, Lincoln stood out from the crowd, tall and lanky at six-feet four-inches. He

arrived in New Salem and landed a job as a clerk in a general store. Soon thereafter, Lincoln

started to make a name for himself, successfully wrestling the town bully and amazing most of

his neighbors with his strength and ability to split rails and fell trees—a survival skill that he

developed as a child of the American frontier. In small towns during that era, the general store

was a meeting place, and thus Lincoln grew to know the community well. He delighted people

with his wit, intelligence, and integrity. For the less literate citizens of New Salem, Abe's ability

to read and write was invaluable. He quickly became a popular member of the town, endearing

himself to the locals as a good-natured and "bookish" young man.

Six months after his arrival in town, Abe let his ambitions get the best of him. He announced

his candidacy for a seat in the Illinois state legislature, declaring himself as an independent

candidate. A few weeks after throwing his hat in the ring, the Black Hawk War broke out, and

Lincoln volunteered to fight Indians. His fellow volunteers elected him the temporary captain of

their company, an honor that he valued more than his nomination for the presidency, and off

they marched to war. It was a thirty-day stint, and when it was up, Lincoln—having seen no

military action—signed on for another twenty days, and then again for a third term of thirty

days. In his last duty, he served as a private in the Independent Spy Corps, which unsuccessfully

tried to track down Chief Black Hawk in southern Wisconsin. As a soldier, Lincoln saw no action

in the war, but his tour of duty prevented him from campaigning for office.

Back home in New Salem, Lincoln resumed his campaign for the legislature, but there was

too little time left before the election for him to make himself known throughout the large

district. Although he won 277 of the 300 votes in New Salem, he lost in the county, coming in

eighth in a field of thirteen. Thereafter, he refocused his energies on studying law on his own,

arguing cases before the local justice of the peace even before passing the state bar exam in

1836, and getting his license in 1837. Lincoln also participated in Whig political functions,

serving as secretary in the party's meetings.

Despite his political leanings, Abe attracted attention from leaders of the time. Democratic

President Andrew Jackson appointed Lincoln postmaster of New Salem, even though Lincoln

had supported National Republican candidate Henry Clay in the 1832 presidential election that

reelected Jackson. Democrats allowed Lincoln's appointment probably because no local

Democrat wanted the job, and, additionally, his determination to avoid partisan posturing

made him acceptable to almost everyone in New Salem. To supplement his meager pay of $55

per year, Abe chopped wood, split rails, worked as a county deputy surveyor, and handled

routine legal work for small fees.

The Election of 1860

The Democrats met in Charleston, South Carolina, in April 1860 to select their candidate for

President in the upcoming election. It was turmoil. Northern democrats felt that Stephen Douglas had

the best chance to defeat the black republicans. Although an ardent supporter of slavery, southern

Democrats considered Douglas a traitor because of his support of popular sovereignty, permitting

territories to choose not to have slavery. Southern democrats stormed out of the convention, without

choosing a candidate. Six weeks later, the northern Democrats chose Douglas, while at a separate

convention the Southern Democrats nominated then VICE-PRESIDENT JOHN C. BRECKENRIDGE.

The Republicans met in Chicago that May and recognized that the Democrat's turmoil actually

gave them a chance to take the election. They needed to select a candidate who could carry the North

and win a majority of the Electoral College. To do that, the Republicans needed someone who could

carry New Jersey, Illinois, Indiana and Pennsylvania — four important states that remained uncertain.

There were plenty of potential candidates, but in the end Abraham Lincoln had emerged as the best

choice. Lincoln had become the symbol of the frontier, hard work, the self-made man and the American

dream. His debates with Douglas had made him a national figure and the publication of those debates in

early 1860 made him even better known. After the third ballot, he had the nomination for President.

A number of aging politicians and distinguished citizens, calling themselves the

CONSTITUTIONAL UNION PARTY, nominated JOHN BELL of Tennessee, a wealthy slaveholder as their

candidate for President. These people were for moderation. They decided that the best way out of the

present difficulties that faced the nation was to take no stand at all on the issues that divided the north

and the south.

With four candidates in the field, Lincoln received only 40% of the popular vote and 180

electoral votes — enough to narrowly win the crowded election. This meant that 60% of the voters

selected someone other than Lincoln (RESULTS ON NEXT PAGE). With the results tallied, the question

was, would the South accept the outcome? A few weeks after the election, South Carolina seceded from

the Union.

Lincoln’s First Inaugural Address Abraham Lincoln became president at a time when the United States looked sure to split apart over the

issue of slavery. Learn more about what he said about this problem in his First Inaugural Speech and

why he hoped that it would help keep the country from descending into a civil war.

Summary of the Speech

Abraham Lincoln's election to the presidency as a Republican in 1860 was not welcomed by the

Southern slave states. Those states saw the Republicans as not supportive of keeping the institution of

slavery alive in the South, or even worse, as a group of abolitionists who wanted to set all the slaves

free. Abraham Lincoln wanted to calm the leaders of these states and keep them from seceding from

the United States, so he tried to put them at ease in his First Inaugural Address.

President Lincoln gets right down to talking directly to the Southern (or slave) states, saying that

he only wants to talk about the big issue that he knows everyone cares about. He goes on to reassure

the South that even though he is a Republican, he is not interested in taking away their 'property' -

slaves - or their peace. He goes on to quote himself from past speeches saying that he is not interested

in making slavery illegal in order to prove that he has always been against using force of any type to end

slavery.

President Lincoln continues by reassuring the South that he is not even interested in ending the

Fugitive Slave Act, a law which made it so that any slaves escaping from a slave state to a free state

were still not considered free by the government and could be sent back to their owner. He notes that

he and his government will uphold the Constitutionally-protected laws of the country, including that

one. He also says that even though there is disagreement whether the Fugitive Slave Act should be

enforced by the states or the federal government, that is a minor disagreement in the scheme of things

and should not be a reason for the Southern states to panic.

Continuing on, President Lincoln stresses that the country could not legally be broken up and

that the Constitution binds the states together. He points out that when states tried to strike out on

their own and not be bound under one federal power, it did not work out so well (when the U.S. was

under the Articles of Confederation). The Constitution, Lincoln says, was created because we already

tried to go it alone as separate states, and that attempt was a failed experiment.

Furthermore, President Lincoln says that signing the Constitution is like signing a 'contract.' In

other words, unless all states choose to dissolve the contract, no one state or group of states is allowed

to leave. The president wants the South to know that the North will not agree to let them violate the

contract by seceding from the United States.

Finally, President Lincoln addresses the issue with slavery moving into the territories that were

not yet states, but that would one day become states. President Lincoln knew that the slave states were

worried that new states would mostly choose to be free, and once there were enough free states, those

states would have the votes in Congress to band together and to end slavery by law. He points out that

even though the Constitution does not answer what to do about slavery in the territories, the Supreme

Court will help to answer that question, and the states must come together and compromise about

what to do in order to keep the minority of slave states happy and secure. However, if a minority of

states just leaves the Union, that would set a bad precedent where any minority, whether one or a

group of states, could just leave the United States at any time it felt slighted.

In closing, President Lincoln tells the Southern states that they can choose to peacefully work

with the free states to come up with a solution, but that if they are aggressive and they secede from the

United States, the president will have to answer that aggression in order to protect the U.S. from

breaking up. He asks them, and everyone in the United States, to choose to be friends rather than

enemies and to not pursue any actions that could lead to a civil war.

States Secede from the Union

Secession had a long history in the United States—but as a threat rather than as an actual

dissolution of the Union. Pro-secessionists found philosophical justification for altering or abolishing a

government and instituting a new one in the Declaration of Independence. More specifically, those who

held that the Union was simply a compact among the states argued that states could secede from that

compact just as they had earlier acceded to it.

While never counseling secession, James Madison and Thomas Jefferson had clearly enunciated

the states’ rights-compact doctrine in the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions of 1798. Their political

opponents, New England Federalists, briefly considered withdrawing from the Union at the Hartford

Convention in 1814. The Mississippi question elicited hints of secession from proslavery states, but the

famous Missouri Compromise (1820) temporarily quieted the agitation. South Carolinians, however,

went to the very brink of secession in the 1830s over the tariff question.

From the 1840s to 1860, Southerners frequently threatened to withdraw from the Union as

antislavery sentiment in the North grew stronger. The Compromise of 1850 eased some of the sectional

strife, but the problem of permitting or prohibiting slavery in the western territories continued to

inflame opinion on both sides throughout the 1850s.

The Republican Party formed during this decade around the idea that the territories should

remain free; i.e., slaveholding should not be permitted in them. Southerners vowed that the election of

a Republican president in 1860 would make secession a certainty. When the Democratic Party

disintegrated in 1860 over the slavery-extension question, Lincoln was elected as the first Republican

president.

On December 20, 1860, by a vote of 169-0, the South Carolina legislature enacted an

"ordinance" that "the union now subsisting between South Carolina and other States, under the name

of 'The United States of America,' is hereby dissolved." As GRIST had hoped, South Carolina's action

resulted in conventions in other southern states. Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and

Texas all left the Union by February 1. On February 4, delegates from all these states except Texas met

in Montgomery, Alabama, to create and staff a government called the Confederate States of America.

They elected PRESIDENT JEFFERSON DAVIS. The gauntlet was thrown. How would the North respond?

Lincoln waited a month after his inauguration before deciding to send provisions to Fort Sumter

in the harbor of Charleston, S.C. On April 12, 1861, Confederate guns opened fire on the fort, and the

Civil War began. Forced now to make a choice between the Union and the Confederacy, the states of

the upper South—Virginia, North Carolina, Arkansas, and Tennessee—voted to secede.

The following map shows the states that seceded from the Union before the fall of Fort Sumter,

those that seceded afterwards, the slave states that did not secede, and the Union states.

Lincoln’s Accomplishments

Abraham Lincoln is remembered for his vital role as the leader in preserving the Union during

the Civil War and beginning the process that led to the end of slavery in the United States. He is also

remembered for his character and leadership, his speeches and letters, and as a man of humble origins

whose determination and perseverance led him to the nation's highest office.

President Lincoln endured extraordinary pressures during the long Civil War. He carried on

despite generals who weren't ready to fight, assassination threats, bickering among

his Cabinet members, huge loss of life on the battlefields, and opposition from groups such as

the Copperheads. However, Lincoln remained brave and persevered. He didn't give in to the pressures

and end the war early. He kept fighting until the Confederacy was defeated.

The Emancipation Proclamation didn't immediately free any slaves because it only applied to

territories not under Lincoln's control. The actual fact is that legal freedom for all slaves in the United

States did not come until the final passage of the Thirteenth Amendment in December of 1865. Lincoln

was a strong supporter of the amendment, but he was assassinated before its final enactment.

President Lincoln's domestic policies included support for the Homestead Act. This act allowed

poor people in the East to obtain land in the West. He signed the Morrill Act which was designed to aid

in the establishment of agricultural and mechanical colleges in each state. Also, Lincoln signed legislation

entitled the National Banking Act which established a national currency and provided for the creation of

a network of national banks. In addition, he signed tariff legislation that offered protection to American

industry and signed a bill that chartered the first transcontinental railroad. Lincoln's foreign policy was

geared toward preventing foreign intervention in the Civil War.

Lincoln's most famous speech was the Gettysburg Address. In the address Lincoln explained that

our nation was fighting the Civil War to see if we would survive as a country. He stated it was proper to

dedicate a portion of the Gettysburg battlefield as a remembrance of the men who had fought and died

there. Lincoln said that the people who were still alive must dedicate themselves to finish the task that

the dead soldiers had begun which was to save the nation so it would not perish from the earth.

One important way Lincoln effects contemporary society is that we look back on his presidency

as a role model for future generations. Lincoln's high character affects us because we compare present-

day politicians to the example Lincoln set. Another effect is in the area of quotations. Politicians love to

quote Abraham Lincoln because Lincoln is considered America's wisest president. A major effect Lincoln

has on the U.S. today is simply through the good example he set when it came to leadership and

integrity. Many American politicians in our time try to emulate his thinking by using Lincoln quotes in

their speeches.

Lincoln had a benevolent leadership style in contrast to oppressive (authoritarian), participatory

(democratic), or laissez-faire (hands-off). When there was disagreement among advisors and himself, his

leadership style often involved telling a story that demonstrated his point. Lots of times this method

worked, and people admired and respected him for it. He could virtually disarm his enemies with his

highly moralistic, skillful leadership. Lincoln possessed qualities of kindness and compassion combined

with wisdom. In fact, one of his nicknames was "Father Abraham." Like George Washington, Lincoln

demonstrated an extraordinary strength of character, but Lincoln's unique style of leadership involved

telling stories which explained his actions and influenced others to follow his lead.

Perhaps the most important action Lincoln took was his decision to fight to preserve the Union.

In the end this decision to fight the Civil War resulted in the USA remaining one nation rather than

splitting into two separate countries. Although Lincoln was criticized for stepping over the traditional

bounds of executive power, he was faced with the greatest threat to federal authority in the history of

the country. He felt his job was to protect the Union from disintegrating. Also, Lincoln's contribution in

the area of freedom for the slaves is extremely important. He got the ball rolling with the Emancipation

Proclamation. We honor Abraham Lincoln for his actions in preserving the Union and beginning the

process of freedom for slaves.

SUMMARY OF MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENTS

1. Abraham Lincoln made the decision to fight to prevent the nation from splitting apart.

2. Abraham Lincoln was an unfaltering commander in chief during the Civil War which preserved the

United States as one nation.

3. Abraham Lincoln's foreign policy was successful in preventing other countries from intervening in

America's Civil War.

4. Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation which began the process of freedom for

America's slaves. The document also allowed black soldiers to fight for the Union.

5. Abraham Lincoln was a strong supporter of the Thirteenth Amendment that formally ended slavery in

the United States.

6. Legislation Abraham Lincoln signed into law included the Homestead Act, the Morrill Act, the National

Banking Act, and a bill that chartered the first transcontinental railroad.

7. Abraham Lincoln set an example of strong character, leadership, and honesty which succeeding

presidents tried to emulate.

8. Abraham Lincoln gave a series of great speeches before and during his presidency including the House

Divided Speech, the Cooper Union Address, the First Inaugural Address, the Gettysburg Address, and

the Second Inaugural Address.

The Emancipation Proclamation

When the Civil War in America broke out President Lincoln focused on support of the

war based on the fact of preserving the Union instead of getting rid of slavery. President Lincoln

knew that slavery was very wrong, but also understood that there was little in the way of

argument against slavery in the north.

It’s important to know that the support of the northerners in the Civil War was a major

concern to winning. Creating a situation where the slavery of the south would be freed, would

not be very popular. By the middle of 1862, when thousands of slaves were fleeing to the north

to join the Union Army, Lincoln became convinced that if he planned it right, abolishing slavery

would be a good military strategy.

President Lincoln came to the conclusion that he wanted to create a law using his

Executive Power to override any existing laws. He brought the idea to his cabinet and told them

he would take suggestions, but that his mind was made up. He did accept one suggestion,

which was that it would be well-received if they were close to victory against the south and the

southerners would not be able to fight it.

On September 22, 1862, after the Antietam victory, President Lincoln issued a

preliminary copy of the Emancipation Proclamation, indicating that it would be in effect January

1, 1863. It related to all slaves in the rebellious states “shall be then, thenceforward, and

forever free”. It was an important time in the war as it turned the fight around from preserving

the nation to a fight for human freedom.

The Emancipation Proclamation was an excellent political move on the part of President

Lincoln as it achieved one of the goals that he wanted, which was to get rid of slavery, and it

also put those that might be against the freedom in a particular position where they couldn’t

voice their opinions, as the President position his cause based on the fact that southern slaves

themselves were a contributing factor to help the south fight the war.

The move to create the Emancipation Proclamation allowed the freedom of 3.1 million

of the then 4 million slaves in the country. The only states that didn’t have to obey the

proclamation were those states that were on the border of the Union states and didn’t have

slaves that were contributing to the southern war effort. Lincoln himself tried to convince these

states to free their slaves, even with promises of payment from the federal government.

During the next 2 ½ years, 180,000 former slaves fought in the Union Army as free men,

10,000 served in the Navy. The Emancipation Proclamation contributed to the war effort and

changed the tide. Lincoln later referred to it in his Gettysburg Address as “a new birth of

freedom”.

The freeing of the slaves eventually destroyed most of the south, as they depended on

slaves for every living and business function. It reduced their forces in such amounts and sent

them north, thereby helping to win the Civil War by the Northern Union armies.