Abraham Lincoln, the son of a farmer, was born near Hodgenville, Kentucky, on 12th February, 1809. Although his parents were virtually illiterate, and he spent only a year at school, he developed a love of reading. In March 1830, the Lincoln family moved to Illinois.
After helping his father clear and fence his father's new farm, Lincoln moved to New Salem, where he worked as a storekeeper, postmaster and surveyor. He took a keen interest in politics and supported the Whig Party. In 1834 Lincoln was elected to the Illinois State Legislature where he argued that the role of federal government was to encourage business by establishing a national bank, imposing protective tariffs and improving the country's transport system.
In his spare time Lincoln continued his studies and became a lawyer after passing his bar examination in 1836. There was not much legal work in New Salem and the following year he moved to Springfield, the new state capital of Illinois.
In November, 1842, Lincoln married Mary Todd, the daughter of a prosperous family from Kentucky. The couple had four sons: Robert Lincoln (1843-1926), Edward Baker Lincoln (1846-50), William Lincoln (1850-62) and Thomas Lincoln (1853-1871). Three of the boys died young and only Robert lived long enough to marry and have children.
In 1844 Lincoln formed a legal partnership with William Herndon. The two men worked well together and shared similar political views. Herndon later claimed that he was instrumental in changing Lincoln's views on slavery.
After helping his father clear and fence his father's new farm, Lincoln moved to New Salem, where he worked as a storekeeper, postmaster and surveyor. He took a keen interest in politics and supported the Whig Party. In 1834 Lincoln was elected to the Illinois State Legislature where he argued that the role of federal government was to encourage business by establishing a national bank, imposing protective tariffs and improving the country's transport system.
In his spare time Lincoln continued his studies and became a lawyer after passing his bar examination in 1836. There was not much legal work in New Salem and the following year he moved to Springfield, the new state capital of Illinois.
In November, 1842, Lincoln married Mary Todd, the daughter of a prosperous family from Kentucky. The couple had four sons: Robert Lincoln (1843-1926), Edward Baker Lincoln (1846-50), William Lincoln (1850-62) and Thomas Lincoln (1853-1871). Three of the boys died young and only Robert lived long enough to marry and have children.
In 1844 Lincoln formed a legal partnership with William Herndon. The two men worked well together and shared similar political views. Herndon later claimed that he was instrumental in changing Lincoln's views on slavery.
WHAT MAKES ABRAHAM LINCOLN SPECIAL?
Abraham Lincoln was a curious and thoughtful man. As a child his curiosity led him to become far more learned than the average farm boy. His thirst for knowledge kept him up long winter nights to read by the light of pine knots. After leaving home, he was reported to pack his saddlebags full of newspapers and books to read during his travels. The world around him provided endless fascination.
Mr. Lincoln's innocent curiosity was rarely tainted with intellectualism or the appearance of learned behaviors. Occasionally, he was inclined to read such as the Iliad. Most commonly, Mr. Lincoln was found reading newspapers, much to the dismay of his friends and associates. He compared the press's view of world events from any source he could find. The news was his passion. When he wasn't reading about it, he was usually writing about it. His commentary and correctional letters to news editors were a regular occurrence throughout his life. Perhaps his close relationship with the press explains his unexpectedly successful political life.
SOME OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN QUOTES
· The ballot is stronger than the bullet.
· You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you can not fool all the people all of the time.
· Towering genius disdains a beaten path. It seeks regions hitherto unexplored.
· I have always found that mercy bears richer fruits than strict justice.
· It is best not to swap horses while crossing the river.
· Whatever you are, be a good one.
· Human action can be modified to some extent, but human nature cannot be changed.
· If I am killed, I can die but once; but to live in constant dread of it, is to die over and over again.
· We shall sooner have the bird by hatching the egg than by smashing it.
· When you have got an elephant by the hind leg, and he is trying to run away, it's best to let him run.
· Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.
· Let us have faith that right makes might, and in that faith let us to the end dare to do our duty as we understand it.
· Leave nothing for tomorrow which can be done today.
· Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed, is more important than any other one thing.
· If we could first know where we are, and whither we are tending, we could better judge what to do, and how to do it.
