In this memorandum, Lincoln deftly prohibits the efforts of Louisiana planters to hold an election under a state constitution that preserved slavery. Instead Lincoln insists on a state constitutional convention that would implement antislavery measures. Thus Lincoln subtly signals that Louisiana will not be readmitted to the Union until slavery is abolished. Lincoln skillfully cloaks […]

Lincoln came under fire for wartime measures that suspended the writ of habeas corpus, jailed newspaper editors, and tried civilians in military tribunals. Responding to critics who decried his violations of civil liberties, Lincoln argued that such acts were essential to the nation’s survival. This memo to Stanton, however, shows that Lincoln did not always […]

As an active commander in chief, Lincoln personally tested the innovative Spencer repeater carbines, or “navy rifles.” Despite being pressured to approve the weapon, Lincoln demanded its flaws be corrected before it was issued to his troops. This letter shows Lincoln’s sense of responsibility—in word and deed—to the troops and his insistence on high standards. […]

When Major John J. Key became the only Union officer to be court- martialed and discharged for “uttering disloyal sentiments,” the final appeal came to Lincoln. Having reviewed the arguments on both sides, Lincoln used his legal expertise to distill his response into a few words. Such disloyalty was “wholly inadmissible,” and Key was to […]

Volk made a plaster life mask of Lincoln in April 1860 in preparation for a bust and full-length statue for the Illinois State Capitol. Sixteen years after the assassination, Volk wrote an account of the time he spent with Lincoln. His reminiscence portrays Lincoln as a modest, easygoing man with a self-deprecating sense of humor. […]

In this memo, probably composed to impress his fiancée, Mary Todd, Lincoln compiled a record of his increasing vote tallies in his first three political campaigns. No doubt he was heartened to see his six-year record rise from 657 to 1,716 votes. To forestall any skepticism from Mary or her family, Lincoln had the document […]

In the midst of the 1860 presidential campaign, Lincoln paused to write a letter of consolation to a friend of his son Robert, George C. Latham, who had been denied admission to Harvard. Lincoln wrote this letter of encouragement declaring, “It is a certain truth that you can enter and graduate in Harvard University; and […]

The Thirteenth Amendment, abolishing slavery, was the only ratified constitutional amendment signed by a president. The Constitution does not require a president’s signature; an amendment needs to be approved only by two thirds of both houses of Congress and ratified by three fourths of the states. With his signature, Lincoln emphatically signaled to the world […]

During the Civil War, the British philosopher and economist J. S. Mill wrote extensively in support of the North. In “The Contest in America” (1862), Mill argued: “The world knows what the question between the North and South has been for many years, and still is. Slavery alone was thought of, alone talked of. Slavery […]

The devastating losses of the Civil War made the composition of condolence letters one of Lincoln’s regular, dismal duties. He wrote this deeply felt letter to the twenty-two-year-old Fanny McCullough only ten months after the death of his son Willie. Lincoln offers words of solace on the death of McCullough’s father, telling her that “In […]