Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln was the son of Nancy Hanks Lincoln and Thomas Lincoln who later remarried to Sarah Bush Johnston Lincoln who became Abraham Lincoln’s stepmother. Lincoln became very close to Sarah, and would call her “mother”, however was quite distant to his father.

Lincoln later married Mary Todd Lincoln, and together they had four children; Robert Todd Lincoln, Edward “Eddie” Baker Lincoln, William “Willie” Wallace Lincoln and Thomas “Tad”  Lincoln. Robert Todd Lincoln was the only one of Lincoln’s children to survive to adulthood. Abraham and Mary shared the love for animals; Lincoln adored his horse “Old Bob” who was incorporated into Lincoln’s funeral procession. They also kept a dog called Fido and many other pets in the house as they were an important part of the Lincoln family.

Lincoln's first romantic interest was Ann Rutledge, whom he met when he first moved to New Salem; by 1835, they were in a relationship but not formally engaged. She died on August 25, most likely of typhoid fever.^[26] In the early 1830s, he met Mary Owens from Kentucky when she was visiting her sister. Late in 1836, Lincoln agreed to a match with Mary if she returned to New Salem. Mary did return in November 1836, and Lincoln courted her for a time; however, they both had second thoughts about their relationship. On August 16, 1837, Lincoln wrote Mary a letter suggesting he would not blame her if she ended the relationship. She never replied and the courtship was over.^[27]

In 1840, Lincoln became engaged to Mary Todd, who was from a wealthy slave-holding family in Lexington, Kentucky.^[28] They met inSpringfield, Illinois, in December 1839^[29] and were engaged the following December.^[30] A wedding set for January 1, 1841, was canceled when the two broke off their engagement at Lincoln's initiative.^[29][31] They later met again at a party and married on November 4, 1842, in the Springfield mansion of Mary's married sister.^[32] While preparing for the nuptials and feeling anxiety again, Lincoln, when asked where he was going, replied, "To hell, I suppose."^[33]

In 1844, the couple bought a house in Springfield near Lincoln's law office. Mary Todd Lincoln kept house, often with the help of a relative or hired servant girl.^[34] Robert Todd Lincoln was born in 1843 and Edward Baker Lincoln (Eddie) in 1846. Lincoln "was remarkably fond of children",^[35] and the Lincolns were not considered to be strict with their children.^[36] Edward died on February 1, 1850, in Springfield, likely of tuberculosis. "Willie" Lincoln was born on December 21, 1850, and died on February 20, 1862. The Lincolns' fourth son, Thomas "Tad" Lincoln, was born on April 4, 1853, and died of heart failure at the age of 18 on July 16, 1871.^[37] Robert was the only child to live to adulthood and have children. His last descendant, grandson Robert Todd Lincoln Beckwith, died in 1985.^[38]

The deaths of their sons had profound effects on both parents. Later in life, Mary struggled with the stresses of losing her husband and sons, and Robert Lincoln committed her temporarily to a mental health asylum in 1875.^[39] Abraham Lincoln suffered from "melancholy", a condition which now is referred to as clinical depression.^[40]

Mary Todd Lincoln (Abraham’s wife) was born on December 13th 1818 with a wealthy family background in Kentucky. She received a huge amount of education and lived a luxurious lifestyle. When she married Abraham her family disagreed with her choice because of his less wealthy background, however she loved him because “There never existed a more loving and devoted husband”.

Thomas Lincoln (Abraham’s Father) was a farmer from Kentucky, and married Nancy Hanks(Abraham’s birth Mother) on June 12th 1806 and had three children, Sarah, Abraham and Thomas, who died as a child. In 1818 Nancy died of milk sickness, so Thomas married Sarah Bush Johnston, (Abraham’s stepmother).

Robert Todd Lincoln (Abraham’s Son) was born August 1st 1843, with a short and stocky build, with a shy personality which is quite the opposite to Abraham Lincoln himself. Out of all Abraham’s children Robert was the only one to live to become an adult, graduating from Harvard College. He became a successful Lawyer and Businessman, with many different business relations.

Edward Baker Lincoln, William Wallace Lincoln and Thomas Lincoln (Abraham’s other sons) all died at a young age of 3, 11, and 18 respectively, to much bereavement to Mary Lincoln.