Growing up learning about Abraham Lincoln was always fascinating to me, he is the only president I truly enjoyed learning about. Abraham Lincoln was born in Hodgenville, Kentucky. Growing up Lincoln’s mother always emphasized the importance of education, she really wanted to make Lincoln to succeed.
Unfortunately Abraham Lincoln lost his mother at nine, after her death Lincoln was determined to succeed. People would refer to Abraham Lincoln as “ Honest Abe”, because he never told lies. When running for president Abraham Lincoln’s main goals were to free the slaves and expand the United States. While being president, Lincoln was able to free the slaves by signing the Emancipation Proclamation, he also amended the 13th amendment, which forbid forced labor.
Abraham Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, in Hodgenville, Kentucky. Throughout his life Lincoln would constantly move from state to state. At the age of nine, Lincoln’s mother passed away which left him devastated. Shortly after his mother’s death, Lincoln’s father left him and his sister to find a new wife. Lincoln and his sister were left alone for six month, they suffered by starving, as there was barely any food for them. Lincoln remember how much his mother emphasized the importance of learning so growing up one of his biggest interest was reading. He witnessed his father work hard just so they had enough to eat, another interest of his was working, and he would always try to go out of his way to help his father. During some of Lincoln’s childhood, James Madison was president. At the time the War of 1812 was going on between the United States and the United Kingdom.
Going to school for Abraham Lincoln was very different from what most of us are used to. Lincoln didn’t attend a traditional elementary school, Lincoln attended schools that were referred as “ ABC” schools. These type of schools were only held for a couple months, and Lincoln had to walk 2-3 miles just to get there. His interest in elementary school was reading, he would always read in any class he was in. Since school was very limited for him, he decided not to go to high school and just self-taught himself the important subjects such as reading, writing, and math. In his high school years, Lincoln started to develop an interest in law. In the early 19th century people didn’t need a degree in order to study law. Therefore, Lincoln didn’t attend college or get a degree. Since his interest in law was so big he continued to study it, he eventually took an exam where he got a license in law that allowed him to get jobs within that field. Around this time Texas was trying to declare its independence from Mexico in the Battle of Alamo, which Texas won and got its independence and later joined the US.
Besides always working with his father, Lincoln also worked as a clerk in a general store at the age of 21. He was responsible for helping customers that came in and for keeping the store clean. Later on Lincoln decided to become a soldier, even though he never went to war many people viewed him as a leader, it was because of that his responsibility was to lead by example. Lincoln’s interest in law continued to grow and he later went on to become state legislator of Illinois. A lot of people were excited, Lincoln was basically responsible for the state of Illinois. Around this time Texas was still fighting for its independence from Mexico.
Abraham Lincoln ran for president in 1860 in behalf of the Republican Party. Lincoln served one term from March 4, 1861 to April 15, 1865. The first lady during Lincoln’s presidency was Mary Todd Lincoln, he also had 4 sons, Robert Todd Lincoln, William Wallace Lincoln, Tad Lincoln, and Edward Baker Lincoln. During his presidency Lincoln was able to accomplish many things that led him to be a great president. For example, Lincoln played a huge role in the Civil War, as he did not let the confederate states separate from the union. He wanted to keep all states united even after the war, without punishing those that were fighting against him. One of his biggest goals when running for president was to free the slaves, which he was able to do by signing the Emancipation Proclamation.
By the time the Civil War had ended Abraham Lincoln’s term was over, but he decided to run again for a second term in which he won. After being reelected, his main was to reconstruct the south and rebuild the union. Shortly after Abraham Lincoln got reelected he was murdered by John Wilkes Booth. Lincoln was able to inspire many people and leaders such as Ulysses S. Grant, who later went on to become president. Many viewed him as a great person and a great leader. Hours before Lincoln was assassinated he created the secret service, he also had a dream about him getting assassinated the night before his death. It is really sad that shortly after he got reelected he was murder, it is safe to say that he would have had a very successful second term, just as successful as his first term.
In conclusion, I really enjoyed doing this research project on Abraham Lincoln. I was able to learn more about his childhood that I didn’t know much about before doing this project. Abraham Lincoln has a valid reputation, as he only tried to do good for the country. He never went out of his way to punish the confederate states for fighting against him, instead he decided to help them rebuild again, something that other presidents wouldn’t have considered doing. Abraham Lincoln’s legacy was being able to save the union and free the slaves.
