Presidential Sites: Abraham Lincoln Home Springfield Ill

Visiting Springfield, Ill. is a fascinating experience for anyone who is a history buff and especially those who have an interest in Abraham Lincoln. In 1860 when Lincoln was elected president, he was living and practicing law in Springfield. He intended to return here when his second term of office was over. He came back to Springfield after his assassination to be buried here. His wife Mary, distraught and half-crazy with grief, never returned to the home they had shared. This may be a good thing because it remains pretty much as it was at the time that they left to go to Washington.

When the Lincolns purchased the house that you visit today, they had only one son, nine-month-old Robert. They would have three more sons, all born in this house. The home has 12 rooms and is what you would have expected a relatively successful Springfield lawyer to have in this time period. 

The home is now maintained by the National Park Service and is visited on a guided tour. You sign up for the tour which is free at the visitor center. The visitor center has two films that are worth watching and other displays relating to the Lincoln property and to his time in Springfield. We watched "Abraham Lincoln: A Journey to Greatness" which dealt with the arrival of Lincoln in Springfield in 1837 and the beginning of his career in this town. The other film is a tour of the house. They last between 20 and 25 minutes and run on the hour and half hour. 

In addition to the house visit and the visitor center, there are scheduled events on the property, it changes day to day and the meetings occur several times each day in the summertime. It might be a Union soldier who is available to speak with visitors as was the case during our visit but there are other options. They are listed on the website and takes place during the summer months only.

I visited in August and the temperature was in the upper 90's. The house and visitor center are air-conditioned so it was a treat to go inside. The house dates from 1839 and was originally built for Rev. Charles Dresser who was the minister who actually married Mary Todd and Abraham Lincoln. Two years after their 1842 wedding, he sold them the house. Today the houses nearby are not occupied, it looks like a neighborhood but actually, it is not.

The tour of the house takes about 20 minutes and you need to be able to climb stairs. Questions are encouraged and the more you engage your tour guide the more information they will impart. The guide that we had loved his job and with a little encouragement gave out a great deal of additional information. You will see Lincoln's bedrooms, the mirror that Mr. Lincoln used to shave in and the beds they slept in. The furniture is all original and the wallpaper, drapes, and carpets are to the period. The front parlor was a no children zone and it was where Mary loved to display her latest purchases. 

Free parking is available on the street if you are lucky or there is a parking lot at the visitor center. The Lincoln Home is located within an easy walk of many of the other sites that you will want to visit in Springfield including his law office and the Old State Capital Building. As you walk the streets near the home you will definitely get the feeling that you are walking in the footsteps of the great man since he often walked to both of these destinations.