Abraham+Lincoln

“Don’t worry when you are not recognized, but strive to be worthy of recognition”-Abraham Lincoln (Brainy quotes). Abraham Lincoln was once a man of little importance, but he strived to become more; to become the man that he eventually did. Abraham Lincoln had a different perspective on the world and he was a very interesting man. Many people were often curious and wondered about Abraham Lincoln’s life (Freedman 2). Today, he is considered one of the most important people in history. There is no doubt that there was something special about Abraham Lincoln.
 * Introduction**

Named after his pioneer grandfather, Abraham Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809 in Hodgenville, Kentucky (Freedman 7). Lincoln was very poor and grew up in a very poor environment (Mcpherson). Throughout Lincoln's early childhood, he lived in a log cabin with his father, Thomas Lincoln who was a farmer and a carpenter, his biological mother, Nancy Lincoln, and his older sister, Sarah Lincoln Grigsby (Freedman 29). Although Lincoln had a huge family, he had no family connections (Mcpherson).
 * Personal Background**

Weighting at 180lbs, Lincoln was a tall fellow; soaring high into the sky as a 6’4 giant. However, it wasn’t just his height that made him a giant, he was also known for his big feet, which were size 14 (Oates 34). Abraham Lincoln took part in multiple activities, such as being a member of a church and was known as an expert storyteller (Sandborg 301). Growing up, Lincoln had always despised his nickname, “Abe” and was never close with his father (Freedman 7). On November 4, 1842, Lincoln got married to Mary Todd who was at the age of 21 at the time. They had four sons: Edward, William, Thomas, and Robert (Freedman 32).

Death was a trivial subject. On October 5, 1818 in Spencer County, Indiana, Lincoln’s biological mother passed away after catching a disease known as “milk sickness” in the woods (Freedman 11). On January 20, 1828, Lincoln’s sister passed away while giving birth (Freedman 8). On February 1, 1850 Lincoln’s son Edward passed away at age 3 due to pulmonary tuberculosis (Freedman 32).

On January 17, 1851 Lincoln’s father passed away (Oates 36). Lincoln’s father’s death was the only one that he did not care for; he declined to visit his father’s last bed of sickness (Morris 30). Lastly, on February 20, 1862 William passed away at age 11 due to typhoid fever and on July 15, 1871, Thomas died from tuberculosis (Morris 205).At the age of 56, victim Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in the presidential box on April 15, 1865 when viewing a play at Ford’s Theater (Freedman 124). His killer John Wilkes Booth shot Lincoln in the back of his head (Freedman 123). Four days later on April 19, 1865 Lincoln’s funeral was held in the East Room of the White House. Three days later, a funeral train carried Lincoln to Springfield, Illinois where he was buried (Freedman 127).

Abraham Lincoln was a man of many personality traits. His personality traits differed around certain people and he often had changes of character, which explained his moodiness (Oates 45). Abraham Lincoln was known to be humorous because humor was, in a way, his therapy. He would always tell funny stories to his friends, family members, and other people that he encountered (Freedman 4). Abraham Lincoln’s friends labeled him as ambitious because he took the time to teach himself everything in life and he also did everything in his power to become successful (Oates 5). Lincoln was passionate about the government and he was passionate about everything he chose to do in life (Mcpherson).
 * Personality Traits**

William H. Herndom, Abraham Lincoln’s law partner, suggested that Abraham was secretive. There was never a way of knowing what Abraham Lincoln was thinking (Freedman 2). Abraham Lincoln was hardworking, determined and patient in life (Majerol). He was an inspiration to other politicians (Morris 13). Abraham Lincoln was often self-conscious about being uneducated (Freedman 19). Lincoln was a very logical person; he always spoke and wrote with logic and reason (Oates 40). One of Abraham Lincoln’s positive traits was his generosity. He contributed to many charities and causes (Oates 102). Abraham Lincoln was indeed an easy-going and amazing person (Freedman 4).

Abraham Lincoln, just as any person would, faced many hardships in life and had to overcome obstacles. As stated before, Lincoln struggled with his personal life, his losses, and his work. All of these factors caused Lincoln to fall into the state of depression, which slowed him down and caused him to give up on many things (Oates 40). One of Lincoln’s personal struggles was the national debt. Lincoln had a $1,100 debt because of a business that failed (Freedman 22). Another one of Lincoln’s personal struggles was the many deaths that he faced. He lost family members, including his children, his sister, and his parents (Freedman 15).
 * Obstacles**

Most of Lincoln’s struggles came from him being the president of the United States. Lincoln was a republican, making it was difficult for him to win the election because the democratic party dominated presidency (Oates 66). Lincoln went through many unsuccessful bids for senate, but he never gave up (Freedman 55). Abraham Lincoln was also charged with constitutional violations (McPherson). People were often disappointed in Lincoln because he delayed the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. This was because the civil war had started and Lincoln had to set it aside (Majerol). In addition to this, Stephen Douglas, Lincoln’s political rival, passed the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which overturned the Missouri Compromise (Freedman 50). Being the most unpopular president, Lincoln was called a tyrant and an amateur by critics (Freedman 5).

Abraham Lincoln was a man of great importance and he strove to become a figure that many people looked up to. Lincoln possessed many important qualities that were needed in order to be successful in life. Lincoln, being intelligent and intellectual, was a self-taught lawyer; he taught himself everything that he knew (Freedman 4). Lincoln passed the bar examination in 1836 and earned the reputation of “Honest Abe” (Abraham Lincoln). He participated in 243 cases and won most of them with his law partner, Willian H. Herndom (Oates 51). He also defended Duff Armstrong in the most famous murder trial (Freedman 38). Lincoln did not stop at this; he became the sixteenth president of the United States and he was also the first republican president (Morris 97). He won presidency in November 1860 without the support of any of the southern states (Majerol).
 * Historical Significance**

Not only was Abraham Lincoln the president of the United States, but he also entered the Illinois legislature at the age of 25 and eventually became the leader of the state party (Oates 51). Although, he was not successful the first time he tried to join the legislature. Abraham Lincoln failed, but he tried again and won the reelection to legislature in 1838, serving four terms (Freedman 28). Lincoln was a great writer and public speaker, which lead him to be commander in chief during the Civil War (Mcpherson). He was found to be a wise military strategist and a sharp leader (Abraham Lincoln). During the Civil War, Lincoln claimed that he would declare all the slaves in the rebel states free by signing the Emancipation Proclamation. It was delayed for a long while, but Lincoln eventually signed it on January 1, 1864 (Oates 109). Therefore, Lincoln made the first big step in freeing the slaves in every country. Lincoln’s promise in presidency was to contain the spread of slavery and he kept his word to the end. By May 8, 1865, more than half a million slaves were free and slavery was abolished in six other states (Majerol).

 As if that was not enough, Lincoln became senate in 1858 and rose to be the Whig Party leader (Freedman 55). In addition to everything stated before, Lincoln received the United States Patent Number 6469 for a device enabling river streamers to lift themselves over the shallows (Morris 32). One of the things Lincoln is most famous for is the Gettysburg Address. Lincoln delivered the speech in November 1863 and his speech became one of the most important speeches in history. The Gettysburg Address was a speech that expressed the war’s purpose, the Declaration of Independence, and the pursuit of human equality (Abraham Lincoln). Abraham Lincoln is still a man of great importance to this day because of his huge impact on history. Lincoln is, without a doubt, one of the greatest presidents in the history of the United States.

"Abraham Lincoln." //History.com//. A E Networks, 1 Jan. 2009. Web. 19 Mar. 2015. .
 * References**

"Abraham Lincoln Quotes." //Brainy Quotes//. BrainyQuote, 1 Jan. 2011. Web. 4 Mar. 2015.

B. Oates, Stephen. __Abraham Lincoln: The Man Behind the Myths__. New York: Harper and Row. 1984. Print. **SE#5**

Freedman, Russell. __Lincoln: a Photobiography.__ New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1987. Print. **SE#3**

Majerol, Veronica. "THE EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION". //New York Times Upfront//. 07 Jan. 2013: 24. //eLibrary//. Web. 25 Sep. 2014. **SE#1**

Carmichael, S, Peter. "The Lincoln Legacy". //Civil War Times Vol XLVI No. 4.// June 2007: 30-35. //SIRS Issues Researcher.// Web. 02 Oct. 2014. **SE#2**

Morris, Jan. __Lincoln: A Foreigner's Quest.__ New York City: Simon and Schuster, 2000. Print. **SE#4**

Sandburg, Carl. __Abraham Lincoln: The War Years.__ Sangamon ed. Vol. 5. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1939. Print. **SE#6**