Meet Springfield’s best-known resident and revered icon

Two centuries after his birth, Springfield’s best-known resident remains a revered icon, a leader who bore the weight of destiny to his untimely demise. Born in dire poverty and selfeducated, Abraham Lincoln rose to lead our nation during its darkest time. His words inspired Americans during the Civil War, and they inspire us today.

Lincoln was born in Kentucky, grew up in Indiana and came into his own in Illinois. As a young man, he arrived in New Salem. A year later, he was elected captain of a militia company in the Black Hawk Indian wars. When the pioneer village helped elect Lincoln to the state legislature, he had to borrow money to purchase a suit. At the age of 28 he moved to Springfield without enough money to buy a bed. Through initiative, hard work and talent, he became an established, respected lawyer; was elected to the U.S. Congress; debated Stephen Douglas in an unsuccessful bid for the U.S. Senate; and, in 1860, was elected the 16th president of the United States.

As Lincoln left for the nation’s capital in 1861 and the Civil War appeared imminent, he prophetically told a crowd assembled at the train station in Springfield: “I now leave, not knowing when, or whether ever, I may return, with a task before me greater than that which rested on Washington.”

After Lincoln’s assassination, a grieving nation cast him as a mythic figure. Over the years Springfield has become a destination for many American pilgrimages. But in Lincoln’s hometown you’ll find not only the remnants of Honest Abe the railsplitter, you’ll also discover a more complex, shrewd and wondrous man than the one likely encountered in your high school textbooks.

Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum

The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum is intended to serve current and future generations as both first and last stops on a learning journey. Whether you’re a Lincoln researcher or just curious about the life of the Great Emancipator, you should begin your visit at the museum, on the north side of Jefferson Street. Parking is available across the street to the northwest, on Sixth Street. You will want to plan three hours or more for your visit to the museum and a half-hour to an hour more for a first visit to the library.

All museum exhibits are located on the ground floor, and all facilities are in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. On the entryway floor, a compass points visitors to the plaza where the historical tour begins. Visitors see a replica of Lincoln’s boyhood home in Indiana and the front of the White House as it appeared in 1861. From that sunny atrium-like area, with its 70-foot ceiling, visitors may proceed to any of six display areas.

Many will be drawn naturally to the more rustic setting of the log cabin, where “The Journey” — the title of this odyssey through Lincoln’s life — begins. Children who are not as fascinated with Lincoln lore as their elders may enjoy a visit to Mrs. Lincoln’s Attic, a supervised playroom where they may participate in a variety of hands-on activities, including dress-up, playing with giant Lincoln Logs and exploring a large dollhouse