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HUMBLE BEGINNINGSI was born in a log cabin in Kentucky. My parents, Thomas and Nancy, were hard working pioneer farmers. They had very little education, but they knew what was right and fair. They did not believe in slavery and taught me respect for others. My father was also a great storyteller who loved to tell funny tales, and always tried to see the lighter side of life. He passed those traits on to me.When I was seven, my father moved our family to Indiana. I wasn’t happy working on the farm, as it was hard work. And life became even more difficult when my mother died suddenly. I was just nine years old.After that, my father struggled with the farm, especially as he did not believe in having slaves work for him. I understood his thinking. Why couldn’t we treat people with equality and respect?My father remarried, and I immediately bonded with Sarah, my new stepmother. She encouraged my education.LOCAL LAWYERI knew that farming was not the kind of work that I wanted to do. So when I was 22, I decided to make a different life. I took a canoe down the Sangamon River to New Salem, where I landed a job as a clerk in a general store.I stood out, not only because I was six-feet four-inches tall, but also because of my strength and my ability to read and write. Because I worked in the general store, I came to know the community. People came to trust and respect me.<div><img src="https://cdn.builder.io/api/v1/image/assets%2Fb3b13b7f131f44b8b9040dab74852379%2F50bb24ba108c4ca79baf30281c20cf64" alt="" style="width: 304.171px; height: 378.312px;"></div>My interests lay in law and politics, but I only had a year of proper education. I decided to educate myself by reading. The Life of George Washington, the Bible and the works of Shakespeare became important guides on the way I lived my life and on my relationships with people.When the Black Hawk War broke out in 1832 between the United States and Native Americans, the volunteers in the area elected me to be their captain. I made some important political connections.In 1836, even though I did not attend law school, I passed the exam and qualified as a lawyer. I wanted to see improved living conditions and fairness for all.In 1840, I met Mary Todd. I liked her, but she was the daughter of an important slave-owning family. Naturally, they did not approve of my views. But Mary and I married in 1842 and had four sons. Sadly, only one survived to adulthood.In 1846, I was elected a member of the US House of Representatives. In 1849, when my term was up, I returned to my law practice. However, the issue of slavery brought me back to politics.PRESIDENTIAL HOPESI began to be talked about as a presidential prospect in the upcoming election of 1860. Unlike many other politicians, who seemed to prefer the sound of their own voice, I kept my speeches short and to the point, using my wit and observations.My strong views about stopping slavery were well known. ‘Slaveocracy’ had no place in a fair society, or a democracy. Southerners talked of secession or breaking away.On 6 November 1860, I was elected the 16th president of the United States of America, winning a majority in all but two of the states. Huge challenges lay before me: the union of the US, which I wanted, or having a number of states break away.We faced a war of American against American. It angered me, and I remarked, “Whenever I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally”. During the fighting, my son Willie died from an illness, devastating our family.An act was passed to free slaves in January 1863, but the war continued. Former slave-owners were supposed to now employ their former slaves and pay them, but many did not.<img src="https://cdn.builder.io/api/v1/image/assets%2Fb3b13b7f131f44b8b9040dab74852379%2Fbbb4db52c15948f1a2d1833c72f0e83a" alt="" style="width: 318.527px; height: 411.547px;"> In time and thanks to brave soldiers, over three million slaves were freed. Over 160,000 men had fought and won a battle for the principle that slavery was wrong.THE UNION REMAINSIn the lead up to the 1864 election, the Republicans proposed the 13th&nbsp;Amendment to abolish slavery. I was elected with a huge increase in my majority and in 1865, the amendment was passed.&nbsp;<img src="https://cdn.builder.io/api/v1/image/assets%2Fb3b13b7f131f44b8b9040dab74852379%2Fc3a4f673fd19426f8e1f37d4b4c4decd" alt="" style="width: 406.43px; height: 328.641px;"> In time and thanks to brave soldiers, over three million slaves were freed. Over 160,000 men had fought and won a battle for the principle that slavery was wrong.THE UNION REMAINSIn the lead up to the 1864 election, the Republicans proposed the 13th Amendment to abolish slavery. I was elected with a huge increase in my majority and in 1865, the amendment was passed.&nbsp;There were those who continued to fight against us, but I remained hopeful that America would remain one nation and flourish as a democracy without slavery.GLOSSARYPioneer – a person who is one of the first to settle in an area.Slaveocracy – the political power held by slave owners during the years before the Civil War.Secession – the action of withdrawing of 11 southern states from the US Union in 1860.Amendment – a change of an addition to a law.LEGACY AND RECOGNITION<ul><li>On 14 April 1865, Abraham Lincoln was shot, while at the theatre. He was the first president to be killed in US history.&nbsp;</li><li>‘Honest Abe’, as Abraham Lincoln was known, is remembered as one of America’s best presidents, as few have ever faced a greater crisis or ever accomplished as much.</li><li>Abraham Lincoln’s speech, known as the Gettysburg Address, is thought to be one of the most important speeches in American history.&nbsp;</li><li>Abraham Lincoln is one of the four presidents whose face appears on Mount Rushmore. The others are George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Theodore Roosevelt.</li><li>There are lots of places in the US named after Abraham Lincoln, including 205 towns and cities, 16 counties, and hundreds of streets.</li><li>Lincoln established Thanksgiving Day, an annual national holiday, which Americans celebrate on the fourth Thursday of November.</li><li>People called him "Honest Abe" because he was so fair and kind, and he is remembered as one of America’s greatest presidents. Lots of places in the U.S. are named after him, like towns, cities, and streets.</li><li>Abraham Lincoln’s face is carved on a big mountain called Mount Rushmore, along with three other presidents: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Theodore Roosevelt.&nbsp;</li><li>Abraham Lincoln started Thanksgiving as a special holiday, and now Americans celebrate it every year on the fourth Thursday in November.</li></ul>IMAGE CAPTIONS AND CREDITSAbraham Lincoln (1860), Lithographer: Leopold Grozelier, Painter: Thomas Hicks, Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsEmancipation Proclamation, Engraving by W. Roberts., Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsThe Gettysburg Address, David Bachrach, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

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