Abraham Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809 in Kentucky. When he was two, the Lincoln"s moved a few miles to another farm on the old Cumberland Trail. A year later, his mother gave birth to another boy, Thomas, but he died a few days later. When Lincoln was seven his family moved to Indiana. In 1818, Lincoln"s mother died from a deadly disease called the "milk-sick." Then ten years later his sister died and left him with .

             only his father and stepmother. Lincoln traveled to New Salem in April 1831 and settled there the following July. In the fall of 1836 he and Mrs. Bennett Abell had a deal that if she brought her single sister to New Salem he had to promise to marry her. When she arrived he was not to pleased with her because her skin was full of fat. Around seven months later he asked Mrs. Orville Browning to marry him but she said no. Lincoln met his wife to be, Mary Todd, at the grand cotillion in honor of the completion of the new capital building in 1839. They got engaged and a while later he broke off the engagement because she was seeing other men. Around a year later in Springfield on November 4,1842.

             Abraham and Mary got married. In 1844, Abraham and his wife were able to purchase their own house in Springfield. It was a one-and-a-half story frame cottage. In May 1843, the Lincoln"s had a son and named him Robert, after the addition to the family they made the house a full two-story house. Lincoln had three more sons Edward Baker, William Wallace, and Thomas. Edward died at the age of three; the cause of death was either consumption or pulmonary tuberculosis. .

             In 1832 Lincoln announced himself a candidate for the state legislature but he was defeated. Then a year later he was appointed postmaster of New Salem and in the fall he became deputy county surveyor. He really wanted a seat in the Illinois legislature so he ran again and was elected with bipartisan support. Lincoln was very interested in being a lawyer; he would walk fifteen miles just to watch the court cases in Boonville, Indiana.