The first national park site Tom and I visited in October was Lincoln Home National Historic Site in Springfield, Illinois. We visited there once before, in 1988 when John was six months old. Because of his age, we did not take a tour of the house. All I remember doing is standing outside the house and saying, “Yeah, that was Lincoln’s house.” On this visit we took more time.
Lincoln Home National Historical Site is a collection of 15 homes and lots in a small Springfield neighborhood. The neighborhood has been restored to look, as much as possible, as it did during the years that Abraham and Mary Lincoln lived here. Abraham Lincoln arrived in Springfield in 1837 with only the belongings he could carry on his horse. He apprenticed with a lawyer and married Mary in 1842. They bought the house in 1844 and expanded it as Abraham’s law practice and prominence expanded. This was the only house that Abraham Lincoln ever owned.
After Abraham was elected President, he and Mary sold most of their furnishings and rented the house. Following Lincoln’s assassination, the house became the focal point for the nation’s mourning. On May 4, 1865, Lincoln’s funeral procession passed in front of the house on its way to Oak Ridge Cemetery. The family never lived in the house again. In 1887 Robert, Lincoln’s only surviving child, donated the house to the people of Illinois. The state of Illinois donated the house to the National Park Service in 1972.
Tom and I started our visit to the Lincoln home in the Visitors Center. We got our tickets for house tour and got oriented by watching the movie on Lincoln’s life in Springfield. When the movie was over, we gathered for our tour. Our tour was led by a volunteer docent from Springfield. He did an excellent job of pointing out which items in the home belonged to the Lincolns and which items were period appropriate furnishings. Most of the furniture did not belong to the Lincolns, but there were plenty of smaller objects that did.
Most of the other homes in the neighborhood have been repurposed as offices or mini-museums. The outsides look the way they would have during Lincoln’s day, but the insides serve many different purposes. The Arnold house highlights the story of the preservation work for the park. The Dean house has exhibits on the Lincoln house and the family. The Corneau house focuses on the residents of Springfield. There is an outside exhibit on the Underground Railroad and a heritage garden. You can take a virtual tour of the neighborhood by clicking here.
When you go to Springfield, there are other things to see as well. Lincoln’s tomb is north of town. The Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum is administered by a private non-profit group. The Old State Capitol is also an interesting place to visit.
I have read a lot about Abraham Lincoln as President, so it was interesting to learn more about him as a lawyer, husband, and father. Touring his house and seeing the neighborhood helped me get a better feel for him as a person who had a vision for his own, and his country’s future.