Looking For Lincoln

FAT BEAR WEEK HAS BEGUN! THIS IS NOT A DRILL!

For those unaware, Fat Bear Week is an annual tournament highlighted by the National Park Service, where bears are critiqued on their ability to become extremely large in preparation for winter.

The Abraham Lincoln National Heritage Area (Looking for Lincoln) is a proud partner of the National Park Service, and their National Heritage Area System.

Held in Katmai National Park & Preserve the tournament is single elimination bracket competition. Each matchup features two bears/family groups who have spent the year doing what bears do best: eating enormous quantities of food and becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish from a furry boulder.

You vote for the bear you believe best represents success. Along the way, you learn about bears, salmon, the unique Alaskan ecosystem, and how to best use infuse the phrase “certified chonk” into everyday conversation.

The bear with the most votes advances. The bear that comes up short couldn’t care less, because the bears have absolutely no idea that we’re fussing over their diet plans and turning their winter gains into a competition.

Eventually, only one remains.

One bear. One crown. One extremely important question: Does the camera really add 10 lbs? If only 10…

Click the link for bear matchups, how to vote, bear information, and educational resources: https://explore.org/fat-bear-week

Info an photo from the National Park Service.

THIS DAY IN LINCOLN HISTORY On September 22, 1862, Abraham Lincoln issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation which gave Confederate states until January 1, 1863 to rejoin the Union or those they enslaved would gain legal freedom.

In July 1862, President Lincoln read his "preliminary proclamation" to his Cabinet, then decided to wait for a Union military victory to issue it. On September 22, 1862, following the victory at Antietam, he signed the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, formally alerting the Confederacy of his intention to free all persons held as slaves within the rebellious states.

One hundred days later, with the Confederacy still in full rebellion, President Abraham Lincoln issued the final Emancipation Proclamation.

Info from the National Archives. Photo is from the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum exhibit of Lincoln meeting with his cabinet in the White House.

Learn more about visiting the museum at:
https://presidentlincoln.illinois.gov/

Pictured is an early souvenir of the Lincoln Home!

This odd object is actually a pincushion. Between the two thin wooden badges, there is a red velvet pad where straight pins could be stuck. Not the most practical, since the pins could only be inserted in the narrow sides, but fun as the pins would have made it look like fireworks bursting around the Home.

The image on the pincushion is also a little unusual in that is shows the Lincoln Home's north side, as well as the typical front (west). Did you notice that nearly all of the second-floor shutters are closed?

The original photograph this image was taken from in summer, and at that time, the only way to keep a room cool and most of the flying insects out of the house with open windows, would be to close the shutters.

Since the caretaker lived upstairs (that's him in the hat near the far corner of the Lincoln Home in the photo), keeping the shutters closed made it a little more survivable inside during the hot summer months.

Even today, visitors seek out items to remember their visit to the home.

This post of is to help celebrate the 'WE WANT MORE HISTORY' initiative, coming up on September 26, 2026. The initiative's goal is to bring more history programming to he public. Visit the website to learn more, and find an event or site to visit:
https://www.wewantmorehistory.org/

Learn more about visiting the Lincoln Home at:
https://www.nps.gov/liho/index.htm

Alt-text: Photo shows wooden shield-shaped badge with black ink image of Lincoln Home with people in street and large tree on right.

THIS DAY IN LINCOLN HISTORY On September 20, 1856, Abraham Lincoln, Stephen Douglas, and others appear at rallies in Olney, IL.

Why a pic of a white squirrel? The city is famous for it's well-loved population of white squirrels, but the community did not share their love for Lincoln.

According to Democratic reporter, Lincoln's crowd is so small he soon gives up. From the Collected Works for Abraham Lincoln:

Lincoln tried his best to get up steam, but with all his tact in that line, it was a dead failure. But about thirty listened. Said he, “I am an old one; if twelve of you will sit down and look at me, I will talk to you, if not, I will desist.” The twelve sat down, he spoke a few minutes, and throwing up his hands in disgust and despair, said— “Oh, I can’t interest this crowd,” and left the stand.

The Civil War brought a great deal of turmoil to the county as there were sympathies for both sides. Lincoln and Stephen Douglas spoke at separate political rallies in Olney on September 20, 1856. The Olney paper was said to be the first newspaper to endorse President Lincoln.

While most citizens rallied around the Union it was necessary to have troops stationed in Olney to enforce the draft as union deserters found refuge among local citizens. Overall, the county was pro-Union and an estimated 1,700 Richland County citizens fought for the Union in the Civil War.

Learn about Olney's history at:
https://www.ci.olney.il.us/index.php

Info from Roy P. Basler, ed., The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1953), 2:376, with additional information from the City of Olney. Pic from the City of Olney website.

The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum is inviting visitors on the International Day for the Deaf on Sunday, Sept. 27!

Enjoy FREE museum admission from 4–6 p.m., with ASL interpreters available to help make the museum experience more accessible for deaf and hard of hearing visitors and their families.

No registration required. Everyone is welcome!

The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum documents the life of the 16th U.S. president, Abraham Lincoln, and the course of the American Civil War. Combining traditional scholarship with 21st-century showmanship techniques, the museum ranks as one of the most visited presidential libraries.

Its library, in addition to housing an extensive collection on Lincoln, also houses the collection of the Illinois State Historical Library, founded by the state in 1889.

The library and museum is located at 212 N 6th St, Northeast corner of 6th and Jefferson, in Springfield, IL. It is overseen as an agency of the Illinois state government. Unlike the fifteen other presidential libraries and museums, it is not currently affiliated with the National Archives and Records Administration.

THIS DAY IN LINCOLN HISTORY On September 18, 1858, Lincoln-Douglas debate in Charleston, the 4th debate in a series of seven.

Charleston has an excellent museum and interpretive site. Visit this first-class facility located on the debate site, and take a self-guided tour.

The museum offers exhibits and interactive displays that tell the story of the debates through film, audio selections, artifacts, and photos. The museum also offers a children's hands-on area.

The hours of operation are from 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. every day of the year for self-guided tours.

Learn more at:
https://www.charlestonillinois.org/departments/parks___recreation/lincoln_douglas_debate_museum.php

We are grateful to Rep. Mike Bost for being a strong supporter of our National Heritage Area!

Plus, we are appreciative of the Alliance of National Heritage Areas in highlighting his important work on the behalf of all of us! Thank you!

The newest member of The National Heritage Area Caucus, Rep. Mike Bost sponsored legislation to expand the footprint of Looking For Lincoln in his Illinois district.

Thank you for joining the Caucus and supporting the role that NHAs play in preserving and sharing America's stories.

The Lincoln Log Cabin Foundation and Lincoln Log Cabin State Historic Site will host the annual Harvest Frolic Sept. 26-27 at the historic site near Charleston. This free, family-friendly event celebrates autumn with activities inspired by mid-19th-century agricultural fairs.

Weekend activities will include live music, hearth cooking, food preservation demonstrations, apple c***r pressing, children’s crafts and games, candle dipping and traditional craft demonstrations. Visitors can also watch blacksmithing, chair caning, rope making, tinsmithing, wood carving, leatherworking, spinning, weaving and pottery demonstrations.

An Abraham Lincoln impersonator will be on site throughout the day Saturday and Sunday morning. Entertainment will include a one-ring circus, performances by Clockwork Clown, Highland Games, vintage base ball games on Saturday and historic cricket games on Sunday.

The event is part of the We Want More History initiative, a nationwide celebration of history programming taking place Sept. 25-27, coinciding with National Public Lands Day.

Lincoln Log Cabin State Historic Site a gateway site for the Abraham Lincoln National Heritage Area, was the 1840s home of Abraham Lincoln’s father and stepmother, Thomas and Sarah Bush Lincoln. The site is located at 402 S. Lincoln Highway in Lerna.

A full schedule is available on Lincoln Log Cabin Harvest Frolic webpage: (https://www.lincolnlogcabin.org/harvestfrolic.html). For more information, call 217-345-1845 or email [email protected].

THIS DAY IN LINCOLN HISTORY On September 15, 1858, the third Lincoln-Douglas debate takes place in Jonesboro, Illinois between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas.

Douglas came from Cairo, IL with several carloads of supporters, although the audience is smallest of series.

It was reported: "The country people came into the little town with ox teams mostly, and a very stunted breed of oxen, too. Their wagons were old-fashioned and looked as though they were ready to fall in pieces."

The Lincoln–Douglas debates were a series of seven debates in 1858 between Abraham Lincoln, the Republican Party candidate for the United States Senate from Illinois, and incumbent Senator Stephen Douglas, the Democratic Party candidate.

Until the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which provides that senators shall be elected by the people of their states, was ratified in 1913, senators were elected by their respective state legislatures. Therefore, Lincoln and Douglas were trying to win the people's votes for legislators in the Illinois General Assembly, aligned with their respective political parties.

Learn about visiting Jonesboro and the surrounding beautiful area of Illinois at:
https://southernmostillinois.com

Info from https://thelincolnlog.org/ and Wikipedia

Herndon & Weik, II, 118; Third Debate with Stephen A. Douglas at Jonesboro, Illinois, 15 September 1858, CW, 3:102-44.

A letter by Abraham Lincoln was recently restored by the Conversation Center in Chicago, and returned to the Danville, IL community.

Lincoln practiced law in Danville for nearly 18 years while traveling the Eighth Judicial Circuit throughout Illinois. The city still has several sites connected to his time there, including the Vermilion County Museum, which replicates the early local courthouse, and the Fithian Home.

The Conversation Center noted: For our client, bringing the letter back to Danville was an important part of the project: “Danville is only 2 and 1/2 hours from Chicago! That document was written here and I’m happy to bring it back to Danville in 1 piece!” our client said.

The letter is a legal document, but it is also a rare example of Lincoln’s handwriting in practice. Our client shared the history of the case:

“This document is a complete demurrer written entirely in the hand of Abraham Lincoln in the case of O. M. Conkey & Co. v. Draper & Curtis. Lincoln, together with local attorney George W. Lawrence (whom Lincoln had examined for admission to the Illinois bar four years earlier), represented Constable John P. Draper and his surety Handy K. Curtis. The plaintiffs sought to recover on Draper’s official bond after the constable failed to collect several judgments. Lincoln’s demurrer challenged the legal sufficiency of the declaration, addressing both the general counts and a specific final count involving the estate of a deceased surety. Judge David Davis sustained the demurrer, allowing the plaintiffs to amend.”

You can read the full story of the letter's conservation at:
https://www.theconservationcenter.com/articles/handwritten-letter-abraham-lincoln

Learn more about visiting Danville and the Vermilion County Museum and Fithian Home at:
https://vermilioncountymuseum.org/