Abraham Lincoln and his life in central Illinois portrayed, “Obscurity to Greatness”

 

[July 30, 2022] 

After the Looking for Lincoln film screening of “1875 Emancipation Proclamation: A Grand Old-Style Barbeque in Atlanta, Illinois” held on July 21, 2022, there was another in-person presentation.

Kevin ‘Lincoln’ Wood presented “From Obscurity to Greatness: Illinois and Lincoln from 1830-1861.”

Wood is a well-known speaker who has presented in over 31 states and two countries.

In the back of Missy’s Sweet Shoppe in Atlanta, while portraying Abraham Lincoln, Wood shared many stories about that era.

This presentation focused on the Abraham Lincoln that central Illinois residents knew and loved.

Lincoln’s early years in Illinois

Abraham Lincoln and his family came to Illinois in March 1830 with his father, stepmother, stepsisters and brother and their families. The Lincoln family initially settled in Macon County just north of where Decatur is now.

The first year was especially difficult for the family. Lincoln wondered at times if they had made a mistake leaving Indiana. Their corn crop did not yield much that first year. Plus, some of the family came down with malaria.

Unfortunately, the worst was yet to come. That winter brought snow with 16-foot drifts. Lincoln called it the winter of the deep snow. Some people froze or starved to death during the winter. Lincoln had to cross the river to find food and nearly froze his toes off, but the whole family survived the winter.

Lincoln’s parents soon headed back to Indiana, but only got as far as Coles County near Charleston. They decided to give Illinois another try and spent the rest of their lives in Coles County.

Then, Lincoln headed west. At age 22 with little formal educational, Lincoln said he was “apparently not destined for much.” He entered this new phase of life with fear and trepidation but also high hopes.

In 1830, Illinois had only been a state for 11 years and was the fifth smallest state. The population of the whole state was a little over 150,000 then. That was less than the population of New York City.

Many people in Illinois had come from the south northward. Most then lived in the southern part of the state. Illinois then was “unknown and undeveloped, not destined for greatness.” That could also describe Abraham Lincoln at that time.
 

Little did anyone know the next 31 years would see a great transformation of both Illinois and Abraham Lincoln.

Tension over the slavery issue was a problem in the 1830s. The nation was divided between 12 free states in the north and 12 slave states in the south. The issues would continue to rise during Lincoln’s time in Illinois.

Though Illinois was a free state in 1830, there were actually a few slaves here. In Indiana, another free state, it was the same situation.

Both states were created out of the Northwest Territory. Ordinances made an exception for original settlers of these states who had slaves.

As new settlers arrived in Illinois, many came from Kentucky, Virginia and Tennessee. Some were allowed to keep their slaves. One who had slaves was Illinois’ first governor Shadrach Bond.

Once Illinois became a state, Illinois could decide for itself whether to have slavery. The first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818 specifically allowed for slavery in the salt mines near Shawnee town on the Wabash River. That was a very important source of income.

Additionally, the constitution stipulated any slave currently in the state would remain a slave. The children would be free upon reaching adulthood.

Given the large number of settlers from the south including slave owners, there was a strong movement at the time to legalize slavery in Illinois.

For the first six years of statehood, Lincoln said the issue of slavery was hotly debated.

A vote was taken in 1824 whether to call a convention to adopt a pro-slavery constitution. Nearly 12,000 people voted with 5,000 saying yes to make Illinois a slave state.

With just 1,000 more yes votes, Illinois would have become a slave state as of 1824. Lincoln asked everyone to imagine how the state’s history would have been different if that had happened. Imagine how the nation’s history would have been different if Illinois had become a slave state.

If Illinois had been a slave state, Lincoln’s father would have never come to Illinois.

Though the first governor had slaves, Illinois’ second Governor, Edward Coles was part of the anti-slavery movement. Coles was a former slave owner who had inherited slaves in Virginia. He brought his slaves to Illinois to set them free and bought them land to get them started on their own.

Some Illinois residents converted their slaves into indentured servants employing them in their households.

During this time, the Illinois General Assembly passed laws known as the Black Codes, which were designed to limit the freedom of Black persons.

One law said any free Black person had to register in the county seat posting a $1,000 bond. This bond was in case they may find themselves in trouble later. As Lincoln asked, how many Black persons had an extra $1,000 in the 1820s?

Lincoln said these codes would be on the books into the 1850s when the slavery question would continue to create issues.

The tension created in Illinois by the coming together of southerners and northerners would set a pattern of life in Illinois.

Over the decades, Illinois would continue to attract a diverse mix of people. These people would need to learn to get along for the state to survive.

In 1830, the Governor of Illinois was Ninian Edwards. Lincoln remembered meeting Governor Edwards and his son Ninian Wirt Edwards. The Governor’s son was married to a woman named Elizabeth Todd, who had a younger sister named Mary.

Lincoln’s first job

The first job Lincoln had in Illinois was working as a flat boatman for a man in Springfield. Lincoln, his cousin and others built the flat boat. They were taking it down the Illinois, Sangamon and Mississippi Rivers all the way down to New Orleans.

As the group was going down the Sangamon River, they had difficulty and got hung up in a dam next to a village.

The boat began to take on water and Lincoln had to do quick thinking. They brought another boat alongside their boat and moved goods onto the other boat. The group then drilled a hole in the front of their boat to let water drain out.

After getting water out of their own boat, the men plugged up the hole and went on their way.

By this time, a crowd of people had gathered to watch what was happening and were quite impressed. The man who had hired Lincoln and the others then decided to open a store in the village. This man asked Lincoln to be the store clerk.

The name of the town was New Salem, and it was where Lincoln would spend the next six years.

Some people bragged Lincoln was big and strong. Jack Armstrong, strongest man in town, came into the store and was challenged to take Lincoln on. The two men “wrestled” evenly until Armstrong’s friends joined in.

Since Lincoln held his own until Armstrong’s friends joined in, Armstrong and his friends accepted Lincoln as a friend. Soon the whole town accepted him as friend.

First run for political office

With his newfound popularity, Lincoln said he decided to run for political office as a member of the Whig Party in 1832. He put his name in to represent the people of Illinois in the state legislature, the Illinois General Assembly.

A handbill printed in a local paper announced Lincoln’s campaign. This handbill told what Lincoln would do if elected.

In running as Whig, Lincoln campaigned for internal improvements especially the widening of the Sangamon River to allow for better navigation. Lincoln also spoke against usury, which is the illegal action of lending money at high interest rate. Finally, Lincoln supported education, calling it the most important thing in which people can be engaged in.

More excitement was soon to come. The Sauk, Kickapoo and Fox Tribes had previously made an agreement with the governor in which these tribes were removed to the western side of the Mississippi River.

In 1832, Chief Blackhawk, the Sauk leader, led a large party back across the river to the Illinois side.

Illinois Governor John Reynolds then called for a militia. Lincoln said he joined the New Salem boys, becoming captain of the volunteer army. Lincoln called that one of his greatest honors.

Many of the men signed on with the militia for one month. However, Lincoln said he signed on for an additional two months. He did not see much action, but Lincoln joked in congress years later he saw mighty bloody battles with the mosquitoes.

When Lincoln arrived back in New Salem, he said it was just one week before the election. There was hardly any time to campaign, so it came as no surprise that he was defeated.

Of 13 candidates, only the top four would be elected. Lincoln came in eighth, though he won nearly all the votes in New Salem where people knew him.

Deciding he needed to make himself known throughout the whole region, Lincoln set about doing that.

In 1834, Lincoln won the election for his first term in the Illinois House of Representatives. Between 1834 and 1842, Lincoln served four terms in the Illinois House of Representatives.

Over the coming years, Lincoln said he was always learning new skills and trying new things. He was a postmaster, then a surveyor.

Later Lincoln owned a general store with his good friend William Berry, but they were not good at business. After losing money, they had to close the store. Lincoln said he took on his partner’s debt and owed over $1,000 with no way to pay it back. He vowed to work hard to pay it back even if it took ten years, which it did.

Because of paying back the debt, people nicknamed Lincoln “Honest Abe.”

While the store was still in business, Lincoln said a fellow sold them a barrel. This man believed there were old books in the barrel not worth anything.

In the barrel, Lincoln found a complete set of William Blackstone’s Commentaries on the Laws of England. He became fascinated and the book absorbed his mind.

A lawyer friend from Springfield named John Todd Stuart then lent Lincoln some law books.

After much studying of the book and passing the bar exam, Lincoln said he became a lawyer.

Stuart invited Lincoln to come work in Springfield with him.

Illinois continues to grow

Meanwhile, Illinois continued to grow. Lincoln said he fostered the growth of the state by the undertaking of infrastructure improvements. These would now be considered public works that include building roads and bridges, constructing canals, establishing railroads and improving navigation down the rivers.

In New York, the state was transformed by the construction of the Erie Canal. This canal inspired other public funded canals in places like Pennsylvania and Ohio. Lincoln said Illinois did not want to be left out.
 

Even before Illinois became a state, there was talk of a canal from the Chicago River to the Illinois River connecting Lake Michigan and the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River. This proposal became intertwined with Illinois becoming a state.

According to the Northwest Territories, when you start making states, the southern tier of states ought to have as their northern boundary the southern tip of Lake Michigan.

When Indiana became a state in 1816, Lincoln said they recognized that [boundary] was not fair and gave them no shoreline. The border of Indiana was then moved up by 10 miles to include shoreline.

In 1818, Lincoln said the plan was to give Illinois 10 miles of shoreline, but it would leave out the Chicago River. Illinois wanted to move the border up about 50 miles further north. Congress went along with it.

By moving the border of Illinois, Lincoln said it gave Illinois an additional 8,500 square miles of land. Once the boundaries of Illinois were moved north, the need for a canal became evident.

The canal project had floundered for 15 years when Lincoln was first part of the General Assembly. There were debates about whether Illinois should build a canal.

From 1836 to 1837, Lincoln said the Illinois General Assembly authorized canal improvements of all the larger rivers and navigations. They also chartered 16 railroad companies to build railroads throughout the state.

One question was how to pay for the canal.

Bonds were issued for the improvements hoping for the growth of the state. The state also took out a $500,000 loan to pay for the canal. Lincoln said the state hoped to pay off the loan based on the state’s anticipated growth.

Construction of the canal began in 1836 and they hoped it would be completed in a few years. As Lincoln joked, you know how construction in Illinois goes.

Later the state would default on interest payments for bonds.
 

State Capital moves to Springfield

Another important discussion Lincoln said they had during this time was the relocation of the state capital, which was then in Vandalia. Springfield, Peoria, Quincy, Champaign and Decatur all wanted to be chosen to be the state’s capital.

Lincoln said he was one of 96 legislators to push moving the capital to Springfield. As of 1839, Springfield became the state capital.

Diversity in Illinois in the 1830s

In the 1830s, Lincoln said there was much diversity. Just as northerners and southerners had to learn to live together, so did those on different parts of the political spectrum. This spectrum included Democrats and Whigs, Liberal and Conservatives.

For Illinois to survive, Lincoln said these groups needed to come together.
 

Lincoln’s political rise

In 1837, Lincoln became John Todd Stuart’s junior partner in the law firm. Lincoln said he joined the Young Men’s Lyceum and other civic organizations.

Soon, Lincoln said he began to meet influential people like the Todd family. This family included Mary Todd. Lincoln said he was impressed with Mary, who was very intelligent, pretty and 10 years younger than he was. She also liked to talk politics.

Getting up the nerve to ask Ms. Todd to dance, Lincoln said, “Ms. Todd, I would like to dance with you in the worst way.” Mary Todd accepted and later told her friends he had danced in the worst way. Despite that, Lincoln and Mary Todd began to court.

Continued growth of Illinois

Illinois continued to grow during these years. Lincoln said the 1840 census showed Illinois had 475,000 people. In its first 10 years as a state, the population of Illinois had tripled. Of the 26 states at that point, Illinois was the 14th largest.

As “Abe’s” first decade in Illinois ended, the change in him was remarkable. He was now an attorney at law and a respected and popular member of the Illinois General Assembly. Lincoln was living in the state’s capital having helped get the capital moved to Springfield. Lincoln was courting Mary Todd, who was from a respectable family. His future looked bright.

Economic problems

Unfortunately, in 1840, Illinois and the rest of the nation had a big problem.

Just when projects got underway in the late 1830s, trouble came about in the form of an economic crisis. The sale of land was greatly reduced, and the prices of land and stock plummeted. Banks failed. Factories closed. Unemployment surged.

By 1840, Illinois was running out of money and work stopped on many internal improvement projects, but not the canal.

In 1841, Illinois defaulted on its interest payment. What resulted was a sharp reduction in the value of its bonds.

Illinois was deep in debt at a time of severe economic regression.

Popularity wanes

During this time, Lincoln said he went from being one of the most popular in the general assembly to the least popular. In 1841, he decided not to seek reelection. It looked like Lincoln’s once promising political career was over.

The engagement between Lincoln and Mary Todd was also over. Her family was against them marrying. They advised Mary she would be throwing her life away by marrying someone with “Abe’s” background, lack of formal education and lack of social graces.

Additionally, Lincoln was still paying off the debt from the failed store.

Then, Joshua Speed, “Abe’s” roommate and best friend, announced he would be returning to his family in Utah.

This combination of political difficulties, a broken engagement and the impending departure of his best friend gave Lincoln a deep feeling of melancholy.

The melancholy got so bad; Lincoln stopped attending legislative sessions. He did not even leave his room for a week. Finally, he put himself under the care of a physician calling it necessary to his existence.

Writing a letter to Stuart, Lincoln said, “I am now the most miserable man living. If what I feel were equally distributed to the whole human family, there would not be a single cheerful face on the whole earth.”

The letter continued: “To remain as I am is impossible. I must die or be better.” Thankfully, Lincoln’s difficult times began to improve.

After more than a year apart, Lincoln and Todd were brought back together by mutual friends and again began courting. This time, the two did not tell their families until the day they decided to get married.

When Mary told her sister the plans, the sister suggested they wait a day and get married properly at the Todd mansion.

Abe Lincoln and Mary Todd then got married November 4, 1842. The couple moved into the [Springfield] boarding house he lived in, and that is where their son Robert was born.

A few years later with their debts paid off, the Lincolns bought a house on the corner of Eighth and Jackson Street in Springfield. They purchased it from the minister who had married them.

When the Lincolns bought the house, Lincoln said it was a cottage with one and a half stories and five rooms. Years later, they would finally have enough money to add on a full second floor. In 1846, their son “Teddy” was born.

By 1846, Lincoln said his career had progressed. He had formed his own law practice in 1844 with William Herndon as a junior partner.

In 1839, Lincoln had begun travelling the Eighth Judicial Circuit. He travelled the entire circuit in the fall and spring. During this time, Lincoln said he often came to Logan County. It was one of two counties on the circuit all the years Lincoln rode it.

As Lincoln continued to have an interest in political matters, he was elected to United States Congress in 1846.

The big issue then was the Mexican War, to which the Whig party was opposed. Lincoln said it was unnecessary, unjust and unconstitutional. He saw the war as a land grab on the part of President Polk.

At one point, Lincoln gave a speech on the floor of the House of Representatives denouncing the war. He demanded the President demonstrate the spot of land blood was shed on was part of American soil. President Polk did not answer him. This speech became known as the “Spot Resolution” and earned him the nickname “Spotty Lincoln” (not a compliment.)

Lincoln said he learned the hard way it is not popular to oppose a war. Another friend who learned the same lesson said, “In the future, I shall be in favor of war, pestilence and famine.”

Again, Lincoln found himself unpopular in Illinois. For the second time, it looked like his political career was over.

Adopting the slogan “If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em,” a hero of the Mexican War, General Zachary Taylor was nominated for president.

After Lincoln gave a speech to help get President Taylor elected, Lincoln hoped to be rewarded.

President Taylor offered Lincoln the governorship of the Oregon Territory. Lincoln said he liked the sound of Governor Lincoln. However, when he went home to tell Mary, she said, “Oregon? We are already pretty far west here Illinois. Besides, there are mostly Democrats out there. Not much of a future for you.”

Lincoln’s wife was always looking out for him. Lincoln said it was Mary who turned the job down for him.

The 1840s

The 1840s was an interesting decade for Lincoln and the state of Illinois. Both finally got over their financial troubles.

In the summer of 1845, Illinois was finally ready to start work on the Illinois and Michigan (I & M) Canal. They had to scale it back to 46 feet deep and 60 feet wide.

The size of the canal did not allow for steamships, but did allow for cargo to be transported on barges. It also allowed for passengers to be transported on boats.

The I & M Canal begun in 1836, was finished in the spring of 1848 for a total of 12 years construction.

Despite long delays and high costs in construction, the I & M Canal became one of the few canals in the United States to pay for itself.

This canal revolutionized transportation and manufacturing. Products such as limestone, coal, sand and gravel could be quarried in the settlement of Chicago.

New industries developed such as manufacturers of glass, bricks, and cement. Grain, lumber and manufactured goods could be sent east. Goods from the southern states like oranges, molasses, sugar and tobacco could be shipped directly to Chicago.

The canal served to expand agriculture in the northwest from subsistence farming to profitable market-based farming.

The I & M Canal also revolutionized passenger travel. People could now take a trip from Chicago to LaSalle along the canal. They could get on a steamboat and continue all the way to St. Louis in just three days or less.

With the east, north and southwest connected by water, there was a vast increase in the movement of people, goods and ideas.

People going out to California during the Gold Rush made some of their route on the I & M Canal. Unfortunately, Lincoln said the canal was also a means by which Cholera arrived in Chicago.

In 1847, Lincoln made the first trip to Chicago to the Rivers and Harbors Convention, the first national convention held there. In 1847, the year the Chicago Tribune was founded, it was also the year Cyrus McCormick opened a factory for processing wheat.

By 1848, Lincoln said the Chicago Board of Trade was organized.

1850-1861

By 1850, the population of Illinois was 851,000.

As Illinois grew, Lincoln’s political rise continued. Twice, Lincoln ran against Stephen Douglas.

In 1858, as Illinois’ Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, Lincoln faced incumbent Democrat Senator Stephen A. Douglas. The men participated in seven debates. Most concerned the issue of the slavery extension in the territories. Douglas ended up being reelected, but Lincoln had gained popularity.

By 1860, Lincoln had experienced quite a transformation. Abraham Lincoln, born and raised in humble conditions and self-taught, would soon be president.

Once he was done being president, Lincoln said they decided they would return to Illinois. The Lincolns did not sell their Springfield house but instead rented it out. Lincoln told Herndon they would come back when his Presidency ended.

As the train prepared to depart from Illinois, Lincoln looked out at the well-wishers seeing him off.

Though Lincoln had not prepared a speech, he shared some parting words. The address started with: “My friends, no one in this situation can appreciate my feeling of sadness at this parting.”

In his address, Lincoln went on to talk about all he owed to the people’s kindness and all the years he had spent in Illinois raising a family. As Lincoln said, he did not know when or if he may return.

Without the Divine Being’s assistance, Lincoln said he “would not succeed. With his assistance, “he could not fail.” He hoped all would be well.

Finishing the address, Lincoln said, “To his care commending you, as I hope in your prayers you will commend me, I bid you an affectionate farewell.”

Lincoln never returned to live in Illinois. As the scriptures say, “Our lives are like a vapor. Here today and gone tomorrow.”

Quoting one of his favorite poets Robert Burns, Lincoln said, “The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.”

When Lincoln left Illinois in 1861, 31 years after his family had arrived, the state now had the nation’s fourth largest population with over a million people.

Illinois was full of energy and promise. It was a microcosm of the whole nation. It had a mix of Southerners and Northerners, Liberals and Conservatives, rural and urban, native-born and foreign-born people.

These groups clashed at times, but also learned how to live and work together for the interest of all.

Lincoln became the president of a nation on the verge of crisis and disunion, perhaps even civil war. He believed his years in Illinois helped prepare him for what he would face.

This review of history showed how from 1830-1861, there was a profound transformation of both Illinois and Abraham Lincoln.

[Angela Reiners]