The Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial

February 12, 2009 marked the 200th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln. Born to poor farmers in a humble backwater, Lincoln lacked the distinguished pedigree of many of his presidential predecessors. This product of a border state caught between the free North and the slave South, however, represented the last, best chance to ensure, “that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” We present here a collection of resources on Abraham Lincoln. Included are many of Lincoln’s most notable speeches and letters, commentary and lectures by leading historians and political scientists, original lesson plans developed by history professors and master classroom teachers, and links to additional web resources.

Speeches and Letters

• Executive Branch
• Civil War
• Lincoln-Douglas Debates

Commentary and Lectures

• Lincoln-Douglas Debates
  by Lucas Morel
• Lincoln Over the Years
  by Mackubin T. Owens
• The Election of 1860
  by Lucas Morel
• Lincoln on Language
  by Peter W. Schramm
• The Emancipation Proclamation
  by Allen Guelzo
• Lincoln, Reconstruction, and the Post-Civil War Amendments
  by Herman Belz
• Lincoln as War Leader
  by Mackubin T. Owens
• Abraham Lincoln and Statesmanship
  by David Tucker

Lesson Plans on Lincoln

• A Fitly Spoken Word
  by Lucas Morel and Constance Murray
• Terrible Swift Sword
  by John Moser and Lori Hahn
• A House Dividing: The Growing Crisis of Sectionalism in Antebellum America
  by Lucas Morel and Constance Murray
• The Politics of Reconstruction
  by Julie Ponzi and Mark Baker

External Links on Lincoln

• White House Lincoln Exhibit
• Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Exhibit
• Library of Congress Lincoln Papers
• State of Kentucky Lincoln Bicentenntial Page
• State of Illinois Lincoln Bicentennial Page
• State of Indiana Lincoln Bicentennial Page
• The Abraham Lincoln Institute
• Lincoln’s Birthplace
• Harper’s Weekly cartoons of Lincoln