Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln's Birthday

Abraham Lincoln's Birthday

February 12
Abraham Lincoln Websites

Historic Lincoln Sites
http://www.netins.net/showcase/creative/lincoln/sites/sites.htm
Take a virtual tour of the important places in Lincoln's life in Salem and Springfield, Illinois. See his office, homes, church and even the courthouse where he tried cases.
Abraham Lincoln – Official Biography
http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/al16.html
This is the official Whitehouse biography of Abraham Lincoln.

Abraham Lincoln Research Site - Discovering the Man and the President
http://rogerjnorton.com/Lincoln2.html
This attractive, award-winning site by a former U.S. history teacher R.J. Norton has a link embedded biography of Lincoln, many of his writings, information about his family, and lots of background on Lincoln folklore. Anything of value on the web is linked from this site.

A Lincoln: Timeline, Photos, Words
http://www.historyplace.com/lincoln/index.html
This timeline hotlinks to more information about key events in Lincolns' life.

The Lincoln Institute
http://abrahamlincoln.org/projects/index.html
This is a set of five websites on topics related to Abraham Lincoln: Mr. Lincoln's White House; Mr. Lincoln and the Founders; Mr. Lincoln and Freedom; Mr. Lincoln and Friends; and Mr. Lincoln and New York.

Abraham Lincoln’s Classroom
http://www.abrahamlincolnsclassroom.org/
Here are links to maps, cartoons, and a changing featured article and primary source related to Lincoln’s life and presidency.

Documents

Lincoln's Speeches and Writings
http://www.netins.net/showcase/creative/lincoln/speeches/speeches.htm
This site has 25 important speeches and letters written by Abraham Lincoln between 1832 and 1865.

First Inaugural Address
http://www.bartleby.com/124/pres31.html
The national tragedy of secession and a looming war to preserve the nation were grim realities at Abraham Lincoln's inauguration. There is also a portrait at this site.

Second Inaugural Address
http://www.bartleby.com/124/pres32.html
In this short speech on March 4, 1865, Lincoln ushers in his second term promising "...with malice toward none, and charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive to finish the work..." of the civil war and rebuild the nation. Compare the two inaugural speeches to see how America had changed in those four short years.

Emancipation Proclamation
http://www.nps.gov/ncro/anti/emancipation.html
This is the text of Abraham Lincoln's proclamation on January 1, 1863 freeing the slaves in the states still in rebellion against the Union. The commentary by Douglas Miller at the end of the document helps put the Proclamation in historical context.

Gettysburg Address
http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/gettyb.htm
This is the full text of Abraham Lincoln's speech at Gettysburg during the Civil War and one of the most famous speeches in history.

Abraham Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/alhtml/malhome.html
The complete Abraham Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress collection is organized into three "General Correspondence" series that include incoming and outgoing correspondence and enclosures, drafts of speeches, and notes and printed material. Most of the 20,000 items are from the 1850s through Lincoln's presidential years, 1860-65. Treasures include Lincoln's draft of the Emancipation Proclamation, his March 4, 1865, draft of his second Inaugural Address, and his August 23, 1864, memorandum expressing his expectation of being defeated for re-election in the upcoming presidential contest.

Classroom Activities

Abraham Lincoln: President and Leader During the Civil War
http://www.eduref.org/cgi-bin/printlessons.cgi/Virtual/
Lessons/crossroads/sec3/k2/unit6/u6g1l1.htm
This lesson supports Adler's Picture Book of Abraham Lincoln. Students can choose from a wealth of activities to learn key history-social science concepts. Elementary

Just Like Abraham Lincoln - Classroom Activities
http://lincoln.lib.niu.edu/teachers/lesson1.html
Using Bernard Waber's book Just Like Abraham Lincoln, students explore other print resources and the web to create a book of facts about Lincoln to compare everyday life during his childhood with their own lives. One of the activities is a virtual classroom visit to Lincoln's childhood home in Lincoln City, Indiana. Elementary

What Events Led to Lincoln's Assassination?
http://www.historynow.org/12_2005/lp4.html
The murder of Lincoln, whom most historians consider one of the country’s two most important presidents, had major consequences for our nation and for the Reconstruction period that followed the Civil War. John Wilkes Booth’s premeditated attack was a carefully orchestrated plot involving at least eight other participants. Students explore the events that led to the conspiracy and to Booth’s actions. Elementary

Abraham Lincoln
http://www.siec.k12.in.us/~west/proj/lincoln/index.html
This site was developed for Mrs. Payton's first grade class before their visit to Lincoln's Boyhood Memorial in Lincoln City, Indiana. There are class activities, a picture gallery, and a treasure hunt that will be great for any class. Elementary

To Tell the Truth: Abraham Lincoln
http://socialstudies.com/c/@ab3xgEbtKt_4fU/Pages/article.html?article@SHL177
Three class members will be chosen to pretend that they are Abraham Lincoln. They will stand next to each other in the front of the room facing the class. During the game, the three will be asked questions by other students in class. The questions will be about Abraham Lincoln's life and the students will "Tell the Truth" as if they were Lincoln. Middle School and Upper Elementary

The Emancipation Proclamation through Different Eyes
http://www.historynow.org/12_2005/lp3.html
The Emancipation Proclamation is the document that Lincoln felt would cement his name in history. It stated that all enslaved people within the states in rebellion were free. Although the document was not accepted in the Confederacy and therefore did not immediately free any slaves, it is considered one of the most important in American history. The proclamation, controversial in its own time, laid down a pathway for the future and provided a commitment to ending slavery. Middle School

Lincoln: A Photobiography
http://www.sdcoe.k12.ca.us/score/linc/linctg.html
This unit provides resources for students to focus on Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War. Using Russell Freedman's 1988 Newberry Medal winner, Lincoln: A Photobiography as a jumping off place, students write an essay comparing and contrasting Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis, research the presidential campaign of 1860 and create a campaign poster for Lincoln, view photography from the Civil War and write a newspaper article to accompany a photograph, create a biography poster illustrating a chapter from Lincoln: A Photobiography showing the difficulties Lincoln faced throughout his life, design a Dialog Jacket and/or Character Map using Lincoln's famous quotes and writings. Middle School

Lincoln's Spot Resolutions
http://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/lincoln-resolutions/
In the winter of 1845-46, as relations between the United States and Mexico deteriorated, there was no express delineation of powers between Congress (with the power to declare war) and the President (with the power of Commander in Chief). Lincoln was a freshman Congressmen from Illinois during this period. Along with other Congressmen, he argued that Polk had pushed America into war by declaring that Mexico had invaded U.S. territory and "shed American blood upon America's soil." Lincoln questioned whether the "spot" where blood had been shed was really U.S. soil. Middle School

Freedom of Speech: Cooper Union Address (1860)
http://www.billofrightsinstitute.org/instructional/resources/Lessons/Lessons_List.asp?
action=showDetails&id=139&ref=showCatD&catId=8
One primary purpose of the First Amendment is to safeguard the individual’s right to participate in political discourse and the political process. Abraham Lincoln's 1860 Cooper Union Address, which he delivered as an unannounced presidential candidate, spotlights the way the First Amendment empowers individuals to express their political views in America's constitutional democracy. Middle and High School

Attitudes Toward Emancipation
http://edsitement.neh.gov/view_lesson_plan.asp?id=290
The Emancipation Proclamation carried Americans across an important frontier in the political growth of the nation. Through the Internet, students can return to this frontier and explore the many obstacles and alternatives we faced in making this passage toward "a more perfect Union." They may view the evolution of the document by examining the various stages in its writing. Middle and High School

Lincoln's Reconstruction Plan
http://www.historynow.org/12_2005/lp2.html
The Civil War was perhaps the most momentous event that the United States endured in its history. The key personality in that contest was President Abraham Lincoln, who had the arduous task of steering this nation through the war and also the more difficult challenge of determining a course for peace and Reconstruction. As war leader and peacemaker, he faced criticism from political opponents as well as from members of his own party. This lesson will allow students to explore Lincoln’s words, speeches, and proclamations in order to understand his views on secession, amnesty, and Reconstruction as well as his hopes for the nation. Middle and High School

Abraham Lincoln on Slavery and Race
http://www.historynow.org/12_2005/lp1.html
Slavery played a prominent role in America’s political, social, and economic history in the antebellum era. The South’s “peculiar institution” was at the forefront of discussions ranging from the future of the nation’s economy to Western expansion and the admission of new states into the Union. The public discourse in the first half of the nineteenth century exposed the nation’s ambivalence about slavery and race. Politicians were increasingly pressured to make their opinions known, and Abraham Lincoln was no exception. Students examine primary documents—the letters and speeches of Abraham Lincoln—in order to analyze Lincoln’s position on slavery. Middle and High School