President Abraham Lincoln

President Lincoln's leadership of the United States of America through the cataclysm of the Civil War ranks as one of the finest presidencies in American history.

Abraham Lincoln spent more years as an Illinois state representative than his entire time as U.S. congressman and U.S. president combined. His service in the state legislature was marked by both triumph and failure, and instilled in Lincoln the need to govern while balancing political idealism with political reality.

Abraham Lincoln lived in Indiana for 14 years, from age 7-21. He grew up on this southern Indiana soil.

Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln and their sons lived in the house in Springfield, Illinois between 1844 and 1861. Archeological excavations uncovered evidence of their everyday lives, ranging from decorated dishes and glassware used during large parties to medicine bottles and children’s toys.

Robert Todd Lincoln, son of President and First Lady Lincoln, had the misfortune to be at the site of three Presidents of the United States. Read about occassion and how Robert Todd Lincoln was connected.

LIHO Wayside: The People Lincoln Knew, stop on LIHO wayside self-guided tour

When the South decided to secede from the Union on the eve of the Civil War in 1860, perhaps no political figure was more adamant than Abraham Lincoln himself about why this was dangerous - not just for America, but the world.

Thomas Lincoln was a farmer, carpenter, and father of the 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln.

The death of his mother was a tragic blow for the young Abraham Lincoln. But as pointless as it may have seemed to him at the time, her passing opened a door through which another remarkable person was able to step into his life. In 1819, after a year of mourning, Thomas Lincoln remarried. Sarah Bush Johnston Lincoln, Abraham's new stepmother, picked up where Nancy left off in guiding him along paths of knowledge.

Nancy Hanks Lincoln, mother of Abraham Lincoln, is buried in the pioneer cemetery, located south of the Lincoln's Indiana home.