WHO AM I? (1809-1861)

Let me introduce myself to you.  My name is Abraham Lincoln.  
Most of you know me as the 16th President of the United States.  
You may not know much about me prior to that time of my life 
so I thought it would be nice to tell you a little bit about 
myself before I became President.

I was born February 12, 1809 in Hardin, Kentucky.  I’m told 
that my great-grandfather was a Quaker and his name was 
Abraham, same as my own.  I grew up in the backwoods and even 
at an early age (six or seven), I did my share of fishing, 
setting rabbit traps and I even did some racoon hunting.  
Quite a exciting life for a boy my age.

When I was eight years old, my pappy moved us to Indiana (part 
of the reason for this was because Kentucky became a slave state) 
and my pappy didn’t approve of it.  When I was ten years old my 
mother, Nancy Hanks,  passed away of the "milk" sickness.  She 
was the most loving mother and dearest to me.  My pappy married 
Sally Johnston a year or so later and she was a wonderful and 
kind mother to me as well.

It was at this time that we built the log cabin that people seem 
to think I was born.  I wasn’t born there but it was the place I 
lived for quite a while.  I remember it was one room that 
measured 18 x 20, it had no windows but it had a loft and that was 
where I slept.  I remember climbing those pegs to get up there!

I didn’t have much schooling but I did teach myself to read, write 
and I could cipher to the rule of three.  I remember my first pen 
was a turkey buzzards feather!  What a treat that was.  I used a 
wood board to carve my letters on when I didn’t have paper or a 
slate.  I remember that I loved to read and I would read whenever 
I had the chance.

I moved to Illinois when I turned twenty-one and I spent my first 
year in Macon County and I worked as a laborer splitting rails 
for $12.00 a month.  It was in 1832 that I first ran for the 
legislature and I was defeated.  I campaigned again in 1833 for 
the state legislature and this time I won!  I then decided to do 
something that nobody in my family had ever done -- I taught 
myself law. 

By 1837 I had moved to Springfield and was practicing law.  I 
remember that even with my career as a prairie lawyer, I was 
lonesome.  Then something wonderful happened to me, I met Mary 
Todd.  I hate to admit it, but we were to be married in 1841 and 
I got cold feet.  But after a short time, Mary and I did finally 
get married.

Mary and I have three sons, Tad, Willie and Robert, we lost another 
son Eddie when he was very young.  In Springfield we lived in a 
2-story farmhouse that had a outhouse in back and stable behind that.  
I had my horse Bob, which I took care of and I milked the one cow we 
had and I sawed my own wood.  It was during these eleven years in 
Springfield that Mary and I had a good and satisfying life.

It was the Missouri Compromise that aroused my desire to get back 
into politics.  It was my wrong to let slavery exist in the new 
territories so I decided to run for the Senate.  Most of you may 
know something about the Lincoln-Douglas debates.  The prairies 
were on fire with my stump speaking and debates with Stephen Douglas.  
I lost the Senate election but the following year the people voted 
to send me to the White House as your 16th President.