{"id":16,"date":"2013-06-08T12:39:56","date_gmt":"2013-06-08T12:39:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/?page_id=16"},"modified":"2016-08-19T11:13:07","modified_gmt":"2016-08-19T11:13:07","slug":"honest-abe","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/honest-abe\/","title":{"rendered":"Honest Abe"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/hd.housedivided.dickinson.edu\/node\/16507\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1658 aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/files\/2013\/06\/HD_lincolnA1847.jpg\" alt=\"HD_lincolnA1847\" width=\"485\" height=\"593\" srcset=\"https:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/files\/2013\/06\/HD_lincolnA1847.jpg 485w, https:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/files\/2013\/06\/HD_lincolnA1847-245x300.jpg 245w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 485px) 100vw, 485px\" \/><\/a>&#8220;Honest Abe&#8221; was a nickname that Abraham Lincoln embraced with pride. \u00a0He believed in his own integrity and worked diligently to maintain his reputation as an honest politician and lawyer &#8211;something that was not always easy in either of those fields. \u00a0To illustrate this theme within the Lincoln canon, we have pulled together a variety of documents mainly from Lincoln&#8217;s pre-presidential years that focus on his core beliefs and particular challenges to them. \u00a0There are documents here concerning Lincoln&#8217;s main political and economic policy doctrines, his legal principles and his struggle with religious beliefs. The political documents sometimes involve campaign experiences, but we have tried to exclude general campaign materials from this category (you will find them in The Railsplitter theme) and instead have concentrated here on moments in Lincoln&#8217;s political career when his ethics seemed to be in jeopardy by the circumstances of his first chosen profession.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Essential Question<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/did-lincoln-deserve-the-nickname-honest-abe\/\">Did Lincoln deserve the nickname, &#8220;Honest Abe&#8221;?<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Featured Documents<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/handbill-on-infidelity-july-31-1846\/\">July 31, 1846 &#8211;Handbill on Infidelity (#16)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/notes-for-a-law-lecture-july-1-1850\/\">July 1, 1850 &#8211;Notes for a Law Lecture (#21)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-richard-yates-august-18-1854\/\">August 18, 1854 &#8211;Letter to Richard Yates (#15)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-norman-judd-october-20-1858\/\">October 20, 1858 &#8211;Letter to Norman B. Judd (#9)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/cooper-union-speech-february-27-1860\/\">February 27, 1860 &#8211;Cooper Union Speech (#20)<br \/>\n<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Additional Documents<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/speech-concerning-the-state-bank-january-11-1837\/\">January 11, 1837\u2014Speech Concerning the State Bank (#76)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/address-to-washington-temperance-society-february-22-1842\/\">February 22, 1842\u2014Address to Washington Temperance Society (#121)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-joshua-speed-february-25-1842\/\">February 25, 1842\u2014Letter to Joshua Speed (#78)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-joshua-speed-october-5-1842\/\">October 5, 1842\u2014Letter to Joshua Speed (#79)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/speech-on-war-with-mexico-january-12-1848\/\">January 12, 1848\u2014Speech on War With Mexico (#55)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-william-herndon-june-12-1848\/\">June 12, 1848\u2014Letter to William Herndon (#61)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-joseph-underwood-june-3-1849\/\">June 3, 1849\u2014Letter to Joseph Underwood (#136)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-john-clayton-july-28-1849\/\">July 28, 1849\u2014Letter to John Clayton (#130)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/fragment-on-government-july-1-1854\/\">July 1, 1854\u2014Fragment on Government (#103)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-richard-oglesby-september-8-1854\/\">September 8, 1854\u2014Letter to Richard Oglesby (#137)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-jonathan-scammon-november-10-1854\/\">November 10, 1854\u2014Letter to Jonathan Scammon (#123)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-ichabod-codding-november-27-1854\/\">November 27, 1854\u2014Letter to Ichabod Codding (#124)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-owen-lovejoy-august-11-1855\/\">August 11, 1855\u2014Letter to Owen Lovejoy (#96)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-joshua-speed-august-24-1855\/\">August 24, 1855\u2014Letter to Joshua Speed (#138)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-fillmore-men-september-8-1856\/\">September 8, 1856\u2014Letter to Fillmore Men (#105)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/definition-of-democracy-august-1-1858\/\">August 1, 1858\u2014Definition of Democracy (#81)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-e-stafford-march-17-1860\/\">March 17, 1860\u2014Letter to E. Stafford (#125)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-samuel-galloway-march-24-1860\/\">March 24, 1860\u2014Letter to Samuel Galloway (#141)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/endorsement-may-17-1860\/\">May 18, 1860\u2014Endorsement (#142)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/instructions-for-john-nicolay-july-16-1860\/\">July 16, 1860\u2014Instructions for John Nicolay (#82)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-abraham-jonas-july-21-1860\/\">July 21, 1860\u2014Letter to Abraham Jonas (#144)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/meditation-on-divine-will-september-1-1862\/\">September 1, 1862\u2014Meditation on Divine Will (#35)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/proclamation-of-thanksgiving-october-3-1863\/\">October 3, 1862\u2014Proclamation of Thanksgiving (#69)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-james-hackett-august-17-1863\/\">August 17, 1863\u2014Letter to James Hackett (#131)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/letter-to-james-hackett-november-2-1863\/\">November 2, 1863\u2014Letter to James Hackett (#132)<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Multi-Media Resources<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Mary Beth Donnelly, <a href=\"https:\/\/sites.google.com\/site\/alincolnphilosopherinchief\/\" target=\"_blank\">Philosopher in Chief,<\/a>\u00a0Google, Understanding Lincoln, Fall 2013<\/li>\n<li>Marsha Greco, <a href=\"http:\/\/prezi.com\/blpjcqnfa_d8\/abraham-lincolns-religion\/?utm_campaign=share&amp;utm_medium=copy\" target=\"_blank\">Abraham Lincoln&#8217;s Religion,<\/a>\u00a0Prezi, Understanding Lincoln, Fall 2013<\/li>\n<li>Dustin Hudak, <a href=\"https:\/\/prezi.com\/i8qz8lher_t6\/lincoln-and-the-creation-of-thanksgiving\/?utm_campaign=share&amp;utm_medium=copy\" target=\"_blank\">Creation of Thanksgiving<\/a>, Prezi, Understanding Lincoln, 2016<\/li>\n<li>Todd Jansson, <a href=\"http:\/\/theinnerlincoln.weebly.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">The Inner Lincoln<\/a>, Weebly, Understanding Lincoln, 2016<\/li>\n<li>Ian McDougall, <a href=\"http:\/\/lincolnsfatalism.weebly.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Abe Lincoln: Fatalist<\/a>, Weebly, Understanding Lincoln, 2016<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Further Reading<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Michael Burlingame, \u201cHonest Abe,\u201d multi-media excerpt from\u00a0<em>Abraham Lincoln: A Life\u00a0<\/em>(2008),\u00a0<em>Journal Divided,<\/em>(August 26, 2010)\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/journal\/2010\/08\/26\/honest-abe\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external\">http:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/journal\/2010\/08\/26\/honest-abe\/<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Richard J. Carwardine, \u201cLincoln, Evangelical Religion, and the American Political Culture in the Era of the Civil War,\u201d<em>Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association\u00a0<\/em>18 (Winter 1997),\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/hdl.handle.net\/2027\/spo.2629860.0018.104\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external\">http:\/\/hdl.handle.net\/2027\/spo.2629860.0018.10<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Matthew Pinsker, \u201cMan of Consequence: Abraham Lincoln in the 1850s,\u201d <i>Illinois History Teacher 16 <\/i>(2009), <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lib.niu.edu\/2009\/iht09160116.html\">http:\/\/www.lib.niu.edu\/2009\/iht09160116.html<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Mark E. Steiner, \u201cThe Lawyer as Peacemaker: Law and Community in Abraham Lincoln\u2019s Slander Cases,\u201d <i>Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association <\/i>16 (Summer 1995), \u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/hdl.handle.net\/2027\/spo.2629860.0016.203\">http:\/\/hdl.handle.net\/2027\/spo.2629860.0016.203<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Honest Abe&#8221; was a nickname that Abraham Lincoln embraced with pride. \u00a0He believed in his own integrity and worked diligently to maintain his reputation as an honest politician and lawyer &#8211;something that was not always easy in either of those fields. \u00a0To illustrate this theme within the Lincoln canon, we have pulled together a variety [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-16","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/16","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16"}],"version-history":[{"count":30,"href":"https:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/16\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4590,"href":"https:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/16\/revisions\/4590"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/housedivided.dickinson.edu\/sites\/lincoln\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}