Biography
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States. He is most known for the Emancipation Proclamation, the decree that freed all slaves in the Union, and he played a key role in leading the American Civil War. He is also on both the penny and the five-dollar bill.
Abraham Lincoln was born on February 12 in Harding County, Kentucky in 1809 to a moderate family. At the age of 9, his mother died, and Lincoln became distant from his father who often made young Lincoln participate in strenuous manual labor. When Lincoln's father remarried, Lincoln bonded with his step-mother who encourage him to read. It is stated that young Lincoln was very fond of reading and would often travel long distance to acquire books to read.
At the age of 22, Lincoln moved out of home, and worked on manual labor. Standing in at six feet four, it is said that Lincoln was very handy with an axe. He later moved to New Salem Illinois where he rose from shopkeeper to postmaster to general store owner. In 1832 in the Black Hawk War, locals elected Lincoln to be their their captain. Although he was never involved in combat, this position began Lincoln's political career.
Lincoln then was elected into the Illinois state Legislature as a Whig party member in 1834. He then decided to pursue a career in law, teaching himself to be a lawyer from reading and passing the bar exam in 1837. In 1842, Lincoln married Mary Todd. Although Lincoln did serve a term in the House of Representative in 1847, his views were unpopular and decided to return to the law firm after his term.
The 1854 passing of the Kansas-Nebraska Act directly lead to the formation of the Republican Party, which Lincoln joined in 1856. With the Democratic Party split over the topic of slavery in the election of 1860, Lincoln, the Republican representative, was able to secure the presidential seat and become the 16th president of the United States. However, before his inauguration, seven states seceded from the Union and started the Civil War.
During the war, Lincoln made many famous moves in American History. The Emancipation Proclamation and the Gettysburg Address both are deeply ingrained in American history.
During Lincoln's second term in presidency, he was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth at Ford's Theater on April 14th, 1865.
Political Beliefs
Abe Lincoln was a believer of ending slavery. However, he viewed slavery as an obstacle in the economy rather than an obstacle on human liberty. He also believed in improving the national infrastructure, and he supported the protective tariff. After the Civil War, Lincoln also was a proponent of minimum retribution from the Confederate States.
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