Abraham Lincoln - 16th President of the United States

Abraham Lincoln is born in a one-room log cabin to Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Hanks Lincoln. The family moves to a better farm at Knob Creek when Abraham is two years old.

The Lincoln family moves to southern Indiana, a free territory, primarily because of land title disputes in Kentucky. Lincoln's mother Nancy dies of milk sickness in 1818 when he is nine. His father remarries Sarah Bush Johnston, who encourages Lincoln's reading.

The Lincoln family moves again, this time to Macon County, Illinois. Lincoln helps his father build a log cabin and split rails for fences. At age 21, he becomes legally independent and settles in the village of New Salem.

Lincoln enlists in the Illinois militia during the Black Hawk War and is elected captain of his company. He serves for three months but sees no combat. He later jokes that the only blood he shed was fighting mosquitoes.

Lincoln is elected to the Illinois General Assembly as a Whig from Sangamon County. He serves four consecutive two-year terms, becoming a leader of the Whig Party in the state.

After teaching himself law by reading Blackstone's Commentaries, Lincoln is licensed to practice law in Illinois. He moves to Springfield in 1837 and enters a law partnership with John T. Stuart.

Lincoln marries Mary Todd, a well-educated Kentucky woman from a wealthy slave-holding family. The marriage produces four sons: Robert, Edward, Willie, and Tad.

Lincoln serves a single term in the US House of Representatives, opposing the Mexican-American War and proposing a bill to abolish slavery in the District of Columbia. He does not seek re-election and returns to his law practice.

The Kansas-Nebraska Act, sponsored by Stephen A. Douglas, opens territories to slavery through popular sovereignty, repealing the Missouri Compromise of 1820. Lincoln, outraged, returns to political activism, delivering powerful speeches against the spread of slavery.

Lincoln becomes a member of the newly formed Republican Party, founded by anti-slavery activists, and is mentioned as a potential vice-presidential candidate at the first Republican National Convention. He delivers his "Lost Speech" at the Illinois Republican convention.

Lincoln challenges incumbent Senator Stephen A. Douglas to a series of seven debates across Illinois. Lincoln delivers his famous "House Divided" speech: "A house divided against itself cannot stand." Though Lincoln loses the Senate election, the debates give him national prominence.

Lincoln wins the 1860 presidential election as the first Republican president, defeating three opponents (Douglas, Breckinridge, and Bell). His victory triggers the secession of seven Southern states before his inauguration.

Lincoln is inaugurated. In his inaugural address, he pledges not to interfere with slavery where it exists but declares he will hold federal property and preserve the Union. By this time, seven Southern states had seceded and formed the Confederate States of America.

Confederate forces fire on Fort Sumter, a federal fort in Charleston Harbor. Lincoln responds by calling for 75,000 volunteers to suppress the rebellion, prompting four additional Southern states to secede. The American Civil War has begun.

After the Union victory at Antietam, Lincoln issues the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, declaring that slaves in states still in rebellion on January 1, 1863, "shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free.

Lincoln signs the final Emancipation Proclamation, freeing slaves in Confederate states and authorizing the recruitment of Black soldiers into the Union Army. Though limited in immediate scope (it does not apply to border states), it transforms the war into a fight against slavery.

The Battle of Gettysburg, the largest battle ever fought in North America, ends with a Union victory after three days of fighting. Over 50,000 casualties make it the bloodiest battle of the Civil War. Combined with the fall of Vicksburg the next day, it marks the war's turning point.

Lincoln delivers the Gettysburg Address at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery. In 272 words, he redefines the war as a struggle for the principle that "all men are created equal" and calls for "a new birth of freedom." It becomes one of the most famous speeches in American history.

Lincoln is re-elected president, defeating Democratic candidate George B. McClellan (the former Union general he had fired). Lincoln's victory is seen as a mandate to continue the war to its conclusion and pursue the Thirteenth Amendment.

The US House of Representatives passes the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution, permanently abolishing slavery throughout the United States. The Senate had passed it in April 1864. Lincoln had lobbied and worked extensively to secure the necessary votes.

Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrenders his Army of Northern Virginia to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House. The surrender effectively ends the Civil War, though other Confederate forces continue surrendering in subsequent weeks.

While attending a performance of "Our American Cousin" at Ford's Theatre, Lincoln is shot by Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth. He dies the following morning at 7:22 AM at age 56. His death deeply traumatizes the nation and alters the course of Reconstruction.