how did abraham lincoln get the nickname honest abe how did abraham lincoln get the nickname honest abe

Just as the Republican Party of the 1850s absorbed certain elements of Jacksonianism, so Lincoln, whose Whiggery had always been more egalitarian than that of other Whigs, found himself absorbing some of them as well. But Lincoln persisted with the policy of suspension in select areas. In 1941 he lost a close race for the U.S. Senate, amid allegations of fraud on both sides. [35][e] Abraham then became increasingly distant from Thomas, in part due to his father's lack of education. He emphasized defeat of the Confederate armies over destruction (which was considerable) for its own sake. [385][386], Lincoln's portrait appears on two denominations of United States currency, the penny and the $5 bill. The future president was first called "Honest Abe" when he was working as a young store clerk in New Salem, Ill. Corrections? The woods were full of wild animals and no one else lived nearby. On June 2324, 1862, President Lincoln made an unannounced visit to West Point, where he spent five hours consulting with Scott regarding the handling of the Civil War and the staffing of the War Department. "[107] The new Republican Party was formed as a northern party dedicated to antislavery, drawing from the antislavery wing of the Whig Party and combining Free Soil, Liberty, and antislavery Democratic Party members,[108] Lincoln resisted early Republican entreaties, fearing that the new party would become a platform for extreme abolitionists. He would spend the next 40 years in the military, leading troops in the War of 1812, Black Hawk War and Second Seminole War. [357][o] Between 1999 and 2011, Lincoln, John F. Kennedy, and Ronald Reagan have been the top-ranked presidents in eight public opinion surveys, according to Gallup. [200], In directing the Union's war strategy, Lincoln valued the advice of Gen. Winfield Scott, even after his retirement as Commanding General of the United States Army. [150] When Douglas was selected as the candidate of the Northern Democrats, delegates from eleven slave states walked out of the Democratic convention; they opposed Douglas's position on popular sovereignty, and selected incumbent Vice President John C. Breckinridge as their candidate. Secret Service agents, however, infiltrated the gang and were lying in wait to disrupt the operation. He worked a series of odd jobs and used his lanky frame to his advantage as a wrestler to chalk up a reported 299-1 record, earning him one of his first nicknames, "Grand Wrestler," and a spot in the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. Once a person came to buy an item and Abraham Lincoln did not give him the correct amount in change. When she asked where he was going Abe replied "I don't have five dollars" and she exclaimed "You are the most honest S.O.B. [220] In a letter of August 22, 1862, Lincoln said that while he personally wished all men could be free, regardless of that, his first obligation as president was to preserve the Union:[221], My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. [269] Later he served as a Captain in the state militia during the Black Hawk War seeing no combat. [123], Lincoln accepted the nomination with great enthusiasm and zeal. [67] In 1837, he declared, "[The] Institution of slavery is founded on both injustice and bad policy, but the promulgation of abolition doctrines tends rather to increase than abate its evils. Heres the story behind some legendary presidential nicknames: Virginia-born .css-47aoac{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:inherit;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:#A00000;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}.css-47aoac:hover{color:#595959;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;}James Madison co-authored the Federalist Papers with Alexander Hamilton and John Jay, earning the nickname Father of the Constitution for his role in drafting and championing the landmark document. Secretary of War Stanton had issued orders that Booth be taken alive, so Corbett was initially arrested to be court martialed. [75] He was assigned to the Committee on Post Office and Post Roads and the Committee on Expenditures in the War Department. The legitimacy of military commissions trying opposing combatants had been established during the Mexican War. [342] It is also suspected that he might have had a rare genetic disease such as Marfan syndrome or multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2B. [126] When informed of Lincoln's nomination, Douglas stated, "[Lincoln] is the strong man of the party and if I beat him, my victory will be hardly won. The remaining 38 were executed in the largest mass hanging in U.S. history. Defeated only. He was viewed by abolitionists as a champion of human liberty. [21], On December 2, 1819, Thomas married Sarah Bush Johnston, a widow from Elizabethtown, Kentucky, with three children of her own. [97], Leading up to his presidential campaign, Lincoln elevated his profile in an 1859 murder case, with his defense of Simeon Quinn "Peachy" Harrison who was a third cousin;[g] Harrison was also the grandson of Lincoln's political opponent, Rev. Biographer James G. Randall dissected Lincoln's successful techniques:[194]. The assassination of President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theater in Washington, D.C, 1865. [42][43][44], In the early 1830s, he met Mary Owens from Kentucky. "The best way to predict the future is to create it." -Abraham Lincoln. Less than four months after the executions, Lincoln issued General Order 100 that relates more to the Minnesota War than the Civil War. A few of those he had released due to the efforts of Bishop Henry Whipple. The nation had been arguing for more than a hundred years about enslaving people and each states right to allow it. Lincolns grappling exploits earned him an Outstanding American honor in the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. As a flatboatman, he made a voyage down the Mississippi River to New Orleans, Louisiana. Lincoln warned. But he was yet to demonstrate whatever other abilities he possessed. The 1933-1934 Chicago World's Fair included a replica building exhibit of the Lincoln-Berry store. He was successful after indicating to London and Paris that Washington would declare war on them if they supported Richmond. The law had little practical effect, but it signaled political support for abolishing slavery. Zachary Taylor was born in Virginia and grew up on the Kentucky frontier, the child of prosperous farmers. [297] He also closely watched the handling of the Trent Affair in late 1861 to make sure there was no escalation into a war with Britain. [109] Lincoln held out hope for rejuvenating the Whigs, though he lamented his party's growing closeness with the nativist Know Nothing movement. I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so. He gave the famous Gettysburg Address speech and the Great Emancipation that freed the slaves. [293], Lincoln is largely responsible for the Thanksgiving holiday. [382][383][384] Lincoln has often been portrayed by Hollywood, almost always in a flattering light. In late 1859, Lincoln was invited to give a speech in New York City. Abraham Lincoln's great laws of truth, integrity: A long career ruled by honesty by Gordon Leidner Mary Todd Lincoln once wrote to a friend that "Mr. Lincoln . [52][f] Lincoln "was remarkably fond of children"[54] and the Lincolns were not considered to be strict with their own. [166], Attempts at compromise followed but Lincoln and the Republicans rejected the proposed Crittenden Compromise as contrary to the Party's platform of free-soil in the territories. On April 12, 1861, Confederate forces fired on Union troops at Fort Sumter and began the fight. Two years after LBJ won his Senate seat, Richard Nixon was running a brutal campaign of his own in California. [322] He was private about his position on organized religion and respected the beliefs of others. His intransigence on the subject scuttled possibilities of a peace conference between the Union and the Confederacy in 1864. [134], Over the coming months, Lincoln was tireless, making nearly fifty speeches along the campaign trail. [376], By the 1970s, Lincoln had become a hero to political conservatives[377]apart from neo-Confederates such as Mel Bradford, who denounced his treatment of the white Southfor his intense nationalism, his support for business, his insistence on stopping the spread of slavery, his acting on Lockean and Burkean principles on behalf of both liberty and tradition, and his devotion to the principles of the Founding Fathers. Of course, when I came of age I did not know much. After a brief interview, Stanton declared him a patriot and dismissed the charge. Lincoln did believe in an all-powerful God that shaped events and by 1865 was expressing that belief in major speeches. Lincoln is enshrined in the Wrestling Hall of Fame. On February 23, 1861, he arrived in disguise in Washington, D.C., which was placed under substantial military guard. [341], Several claims have been made that Lincoln's health was declining before the assassination. Allen C. Guelzo states that Lincoln was a "classical liberal democratan enemy of artificial hierarchy, a friend to trade and business as ennobling and enabling, and an American counterpart to Mill, Cobden, and Bright", whose portrait Lincoln hung in his White House office. The goal was to demonstrate the power of "free labor", which allowed a common farm boy to work his way to the top by his own efforts. As a child, Ronald Reagan had been nicknamed Dutch by his father, who thought his son looked like a fat, little Dutchman. The nickname stuck and was frequently used by family and friends throughout his life. [203] McClellan then took months to plan his Virginia Peninsula Campaign. Lincoln is often ranked in both popular and scholarly polls as the greatest president in American history. He managed the factions by exploiting their mutual enmity, carefully distributing political patronage, and by appealing to the American people. Other versions of the quotation have been offered, including "He now belongs to the ages," "He is a man for the ages," and "Now he belongs to the angels." [138] But Lincoln demonstrated intellectual leadership that brought him into contention. Confederate Vice President Stephens led a group meeting with Lincoln, Seward, and others at Hampton Roads. [89] Twice a year he appeared for 10 consecutive weeks in county seats in the Midstate county courts; this continued for 16 years. He could draw crowds as a raconteur, but lacked the requisite formal education, powerful friends, and money, and lost the election. It is likely that had he lived, Lincoln would have followed a policy similar to Johnson's, that he would have clashed with congressional Radicals, that he would have produced a better result for the freedmen than occurred, and that his political skills would have helped him avoid Johnson's mistakes. "[141], On May 910, 1860, the Illinois Republican State Convention was held in Decatur. He used a loophole in California law to register on both the Democratic and Republican ballots, and then sent out mailers to hundreds of thousands of potential voters, some that falsely claimed that Nixon was a Democrat and others that tried to obscure his party affiliation altogether, in an attempt to attract voters who considered Douglas too radical. His willingness to get into the muck with his men earned him their undying loyalty and the nickname Old Rough and Ready. He became a national star thanks to his victories during the Mexican-American War at Palo Alto, Monterrey and Buena Vista, earning him comparisons to George Washington and Jackson. There he worked from time to time as storekeeper, postmaster, and surveyor. Lincoln was correct in supporting the Union, which opposed slavery. [256] Lincoln said: Fondly do we hopefervently do we praythat this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Defeated only once in approximately 300 matches, Lincoln reportedly talked a little smack in the ring. [264] With ratification, it became the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution on December 6, 1865. People recognized his integrity and were soon asking him to act as judge or mediator in various contests, fights, and arguments. Mary kept house with the help of a hired servant and a relative. You dont have a Christian Science Monitor Additional Credits Many others gathered along the tracks as the train passed with bands, bonfires, and hymn singing[315] or in silent grief. [347] Many soldiers and religious leaders from the north, though, felt the fight for liberty and freedom of slaves was ordained by their moral and religious beliefs. Now, at the end of three years struggle the nation's condition is not what either party, or any man devised, or expected. In his view, the Union was worth saving not only for its own sake but because it embodied an ideal, the ideal of self-government. [199] Lincoln saw the importance of Vicksburg and understood the necessity of defeating the enemy's army, rather than merely capturing territory. Lincoln suffered from "melancholy", a condition now thought to be clinical depression. Updates? 3. He is the strong man of his party-full of wit, facts, dates-and the best stump speaker, with his droll ways and dry jokes, in the West. In an effort to shed the weight, Taft consulted a British dietician who put him on a restricted (for Taft, anyway) diet of high proteins and low carbs and insisted he keep a food diary. [38] He made his home in New Salem, Illinois, for six years. Sherman's capture of Atlanta in September and David Farragut's capture of Mobile ended defeatism. One of his greatest preoccupations as a political thinker was the issue of self-governance and the promise and problems that could arise from it. The Confederate government evacuated Richmond and Lincoln visited the conquered capital. For many, Abraham Lincoln has gone down in history as something of a martyr for his country. [155] Though he did not give public appearances, many sought to visit him and write him. Lincoln commented on his thought process, "We need the strongest men of the party in the Cabinet. Permissions and Citations [291], The Lincoln Administration presided over the expansion of the federal government's economic influence in other areas. [344] Diggins notes, "Lincoln presented Americans a theory of history that offers a profound contribution to the theory and destiny of republicanism itself" in the 1860 Cooper Union speech. Lincoln warned that Douglas' "Slave Power" was threatening the values of republicanism, and accused Douglas of distorting the Founding Fathers' premise that all men are created equal. The law opened land for a lease of three years with the ability to purchase title for the freedmen. It also directed the Army and Navy to "recognize and maintain the freedom of such persons" and to receive them "into the armed service of the United States." [188] On August 6, 1861, Lincoln signed the Confiscation Act that authorized judicial proceedings to confiscate and free slaves who were used to support the Confederates. He sought to heal the war-torn nation through reconciliation. Practical information. His father was a pioneer and a farmer, and his mother was a deeply religious woman who died when Lincoln was young. By the spring of 1863, Lincoln was ready to recruit black troops in more than token numbers. [135][136], On February 27, 1860, powerful New York Republicans invited Lincoln to give a speech at Cooper Union, in which he argued that the Founding Fathers of the United States had little use for popular sovereignty and had repeatedly sought to restrict slavery. He sought to persuade the states to agree to compensation for emancipating their slaves. Major Northern newspapers, however, demanded morethey expected victory within 90 days. He used appointments to the Indian Bureau as a reward to supporters from Minnesota and Wisconsin. [228], With the abolition of slavery in the rebel states now a military objective, Union armies advancing south liberated all three million slaves in the Confederacy. Lincoln also had to reinforce Union sympathies in the border slave states and keep the war from becoming an international conflict. [144] In 1860, Lincoln described himself: "I am in height, six feet, four inches, nearly; lean in flesh, weighing, on an average, one hundred and eighty pounds; dark complexion, with coarse black hair, and gray eyes. [243] Lincoln reacted to Union losses by mobilizing support throughout the North. Despite the controversies surrounding his election, Hayes proved a competent, though cautious president, and easily won re-election in 1880. [343] Lincoln called the Declaration of Independencewhich emphasized freedom and equality for allthe "sheet anchor" of republicanism beginning in the 1850s. [294] Thanksgiving had become a regional holiday in New England in the 17th century. 1. New Salem State Park, 10 twisty miles off Interstate 55 in central Illinois, is a perfectly reconstructed 1830s pioneer settlement. Meanwhile, Lincoln and the Republican leadership agreed that the dismantling of the Union could not be tolerated. In Tennessee and Arkansas, Lincoln respectively appointed Johnson and Frederick Steele as military governors. New Salem, Ill. After being aboard a steamboat that ran aground on low shoals and had to unload its cargo, Lincoln, who loved tinkering with machines, designed a method for keeping vessels afloat when traversing shallow waters through the use of empty metal air chambers attached to their sides. purchase. When WWI began in 1914, Hoover was a millionaire engineer, but his Quaker upbringing led him to answer the call when famine threatened to kill millions of citizens in Europe. Lincoln's wife, Mary Todd Lincoln, was an abuser. [342], Lincoln's redefinition of republican values has been stressed by historians such as John Patrick Diggins, Harry V. Jaffa, Vernon Burton, Eric Foner, and Herman J. 6. As a flatboatman, he made a voyage down the Mississippi River to New Orleans, Louisiana. [312], Two weeks later, Booth, refusing to surrender, was tracked to a farm in Virginia, and was mortally shot by Sergeant Boston Corbett and died on April 26. The oft-told story of Taft getting stuck in a White House bathtub isnt true, but he did have specially designed and sized tubs installed for his use. An example of his candor is the following excerpt from a letter to Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker in early 1863: "I have placed you at the head of the Army of the Potomac. [215] Meade followed Lee north into Pennsylvania and beat him in the Gettysburg Campaign, but then failed to follow up despite Lincoln's demands. //120x600, created 1/24/08 Lincoln attended artillery and cannon tests and met at the White House with inventors demonstrating military prototypes. His Marriage Was Rocky. Abraham Lincoln's strong spiritual sense became one of his defining characteristics, and his obvious lack of false piety led to his tremendous appeal to his constituency. John Wilkes Booths brother saved the life of Lincolns son. All Rights Reserved. Drawing by Beighaus, courtesy National Park Service, (AD) "Weird But True Know-It-All: U.S. Presidents". [295], Lincoln's philosophy on court nominations was that "we cannot ask a man what he will do, and if we should, and he should answer us, we should despise him for it. [5] His children, including eight-year-old Thomas, Abraham's father, witnessed the attack. Lincoln was the tallest president among all US presidents so far. She was the daughter of Alexander and Abigail Herring (ne Harrison). In 1876 a gang of Chicago counterfeiters attempted to snatch Lincolns body from his tomb, which was protected by just a single padlock, in Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield, Illinois. Copperheads criticized Lincoln for refusing to compromise on slavery. In a letter to Tennessee military governor Andrew Johnson encouraging him to lead the way in raising black troops, Lincoln wrote, "The bare sight of 50,000 armed and drilled black soldiers on the banks of the Mississippi would end the rebellion at once". At the time, Great Britain was the world's low cost and leading producing country of steel. [349] Lincoln shared the sympathies that the Jacksonians professed for the common man, but he disagreed with the Jacksonian view that the government should be divorced from economic enterprise. I ever met! The only place to buy anything is the snack bar and gift shop -- which has an excellent collection of new and used books on the Civil War and Lincoln. Earlier that same year Lincoln called for the end of the enslavement of people in his Emancipation Proclamation speech. He served one term in the U.S. House of Representatives but lost two U.S. Senate races. [360], Lincoln's assassination left him a national martyr. His Amnesty Proclamation of December 8, 1863, offered pardons to those who had not held a Confederate civil office and had not mistreated Union prisoners, if they were willing to sign an oath of allegiance. [62] He later said of his legal education that "I studied with nobody. He suggested that postmodernism and multiculturalism have diluted greatness as a concept. If God now wills the removal of a great wrong, and wills also that we of the North as well as you of the South, shall pay fairly for our complicity in that wrong, impartial history will find therein new cause to attest and revere the justice and goodness of God. Thats in part because of his assassination by John Wilkes Booth, which happened to occur on Good Fridaya connection that has been drawn time and again. He was self-educated and became a lawyer, Whig Party leader, Illinois state legislator, and U.S. [163] The upper South and border states (Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Missouri, and Arkansas) initially rejected the secessionist appeal. In 1858 he made a bid for the Senate in a much-publicized race which he ultimately lost but which transformed him into a nationally recognized political figure. The National Union Party was united by Lincoln's support for emancipation. But Berry became an alcoholic, was often too drunk to work, and Lincoln ended up running the store by himself. Lincoln didnt move to Illinois until he was 21. [22] Abraham became close to his stepmother and called her "Mother". Suddenly, a hand reached out and pulled the presidents son to safety by the coat collar. In 1860 he was nominated at the Republican National Convention to be the partys presidential candidate, and he embarked on a presidential campaign that he would win. It was Mr. Rutledge's daughter, Ann, who became Lincoln's first close female confidante, according to Jim Patton, the working blacksmith at New Salem today. In 1863, Lincoln declared the final Thursday in November of that year to be a day of Thanksgiving. Historian Allan Nevins argued that the newly inaugurated Lincoln made three miscalculations: underestimating the gravity of the crisis, exaggerating the strength of Unionist sentiment in the South, and overlooking Southern Unionist opposition to an invasion. Benjamin Franklin isnt the only American political leader who demonstrated an inventive mind. Research Guide, Editor: Matthew Pinsker The Christian Science Monitor has expired. [338] He took blue mass pills, which contained mercury,[339] to treat constipation. Abraham 'Honest Abe' Lincoln had a number of nicknames America's 16th president came from famously humble origins, born in a one-room log cabin in Kentucky. As Reagan made the transition from actor to public speaker to politician, he used the skills hed developed to craft a unique persona and way of addressing his audience (and later voters) to twice win election as governor of California. After an opposing witness testified to seeing the crime in the moonlight, Lincoln produced a Farmers' Almanac showing the moon was at a low angle, drastically reducing visibility. [330] After Willie's death, he questioned the divine necessity of the war's severity. They called him "Honest Abe" because he was always honest with people. Lincoln soon moved to Springfield, Ill, and began his law practice, a profession at which he admitted there was a "popular belief that lawyers are necessarily dishonest." [328][m], In the 1850s, Lincoln asserted his belief in "providence" in a general way, and rarely used the language or imagery of the evangelicals; he regarded the republicanism of the Founding Fathers with an almost religious reverence. [6][c] Thomas then worked at odd jobs in Kentucky and Tennessee before the family settled in Hardin County, Kentucky, in the early 1800s. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Edward Baker Lincoln (Eddie), born in 1846, died February 1, 1850, probably of tuberculosis. Science Monitor has expired. Lincoln ordered Gen Pope send all of the trial transcripts to Washington where he and two of his staff pored over the trials. Connect-Points Web Content & Design is a web development and hosting company that specializes in web design and copy writing for maximum usability and accessiblity. Taft once again lost weight after leaving the White House, but the damage had been done and he died of heart disease in 1930. Into the second group went forty. [180] Donald concludes that, "His repeated efforts to avoid collision in the months between inauguration and the firing on Ft. Sumter showed he adhered to his vow not to be the first to shed fraternal blood. Lincoln never slept in the Lincoln Bedroom. [95] His legal reputation gave rise to the nickname "Honest Abe". The only resolution of these contradictory positions was for the confederates to fire the first shot; they did just that."[181]. [159] His victory in the Electoral College was decisive: Lincoln had 180 votes to 123 for his opponents. Some one gave him the wrong amount of change, so. The president's death at the end of the Civil War unsettled the fragile nation. But his razor-thin, 87-vote victory was upheld, and the new Senator Johnson returned to Washington with a new nickname he found hard to shake: Landslide Lyndon. Despite how hed earned his seats, Johnson became one of the most powerful Senators in history, then vice president and finally president, where, in 1964, he truly did win a landslide victory, capturing more than 60 percent of the popular vote (still a record) and more than 90 percent of electoral votes. www.fpri.org Copyright 20002023. [133] In January 1860, Lincoln told a group of political allies that he would accept the presidential nomination if offered and, in the following months, several local papers endorsed his candidacy.