Abraham Lincoln for Kids | Biography about Abraham Lincoln | What is the Emancipation Proclamation?

**Sanitized Transcript:**

Abraham Lincoln is the well-known and honored 16th president of the United States. He made valuable contributions to our country, and his face is on the penny as well as the five-dollar bill.

Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, in Kentucky. His family was very poor and lived in a one-room log cabin. They eventually moved to Indiana. A short time later, when Lincoln was only nine years old, his mother suddenly died. He was then raised by his sister until his father remarried. Lincoln attended school for only one year and educated himself at home by reading many books that he borrowed from others. His family eventually moved to Illinois, where Lincoln had a variety of jobs, including postmaster, surveyor, and shopkeeper. At age 25, he became an Illinois legislator, which is someone who helps make laws for their state. Lincoln studied law and worked as a lawyer. He later became a member of Congress, which helps make laws for the entire nation, not just their states. Lincoln ran for senator but was not elected.

When Lincoln was 33, he married a woman named Mary Todd, and they eventually had four children together. In 1860, Lincoln ran for President and won the election. He was the tallest president at 6 feet 4 inches, and his nickname was “Honest Abe.”

One of the most important things Lincoln is known for is his desire to end slavery. He became very well-known across the country as he argued against it. A slave is a person who becomes the legal property of another person. Back then, it was legal for people to buy other people and become their owners. Slavery began on the continent of Africa, and the United States began buying slaves from Africa during the 1600s. People from all 13 colonies owned slaves, and slavery was also practiced in other parts of the world, including Europe. Many people bought African men, women, and children and forced them to become their slaves. The enslaved individuals worked for the enslavers, and many were treated very poorly. When the enslaved had children, those children automatically became enslaved as well. Slavery was one of the worst practices in history, and it continued in the United States during the 1800s, especially in the Southern states.

Soon after Abraham Lincoln was elected president, a civil war broke out in America, with slavery being one of the biggest reasons the war began. A civil war is when people who live in the same country go to war against each other. Eleven Southern states decided that they no longer wanted to be part of the United States. They wanted to keep owning slaves because they depended on them to raise their crops. These 11 states wanted to create a new nation for themselves, called the Confederate States or the Confederacy. They were angry that Abraham Lincoln and others in the Northern states wanted to set all enslaved individuals free. So, the Northern and Southern states began to fight each other, and this war became known as the Civil War.

During the Civil War, on September 22, 1862, Abraham Lincoln signed an order called the Emancipation Proclamation. This proclamation ordered 10 Southern states to free all of their enslaved individuals within 100 days. The 10 states were Texas, South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Virginia, Kentucky, and Louisiana. However, those 10 Southern states had already decided they were no longer part of the United States and were now the Confederacy. This meant that the Northern states and the president had no power over them anymore. The South did not want to free their enslaved individuals. In fact, after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed, they only freed about 20,000 out of nearly four million enslaved individuals. When Lincoln revealed that the South refused to free all their enslaved individuals, many people from the Northern states joined his armies to fight against the South. During the war, thousands of enslaved individuals were set free every day, and many of those who were now free also joined the Northern armies to help fight against the South.

In addition to the 11 Confederate states, there were five other states that also owned enslaved individuals but were not part of the Confederacy. These states were called Border States and included Kentucky, Missouri, Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia. Because these states were loyal to the North, they were not required to free their enslaved individuals. Tennessee and some areas within Virginia and Louisiana didn’t have to free their enslaved individuals either. However, before the end of the Civil War, some of these states finally ended slavery as well.

The Civil War lasted four years and ended on April 9, 1865. Lincoln hoped the country would heal, rebuild, and forgive each other. The Emancipation Proclamation eventually did free millions of enslaved individuals, though it was not a law and did not make slavery illegal. However, it led to the passing of the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution on December 6, 1865, which finally made slavery illegal in the United States. Sadly, Abraham Lincoln did not live to see that historical day; he was assassinated just eight months earlier, on April 15, 1865, while attending a play at Ford’s Theater in Washington, D.C. The shooter, John Wilkes Booth, was a well-known actor and a Confederate sympathizer from Maryland.

Another very important thing that Lincoln is well-known for is a speech he gave on November 19, 1863, called the Gettysburg Address. Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, was the place where Lincoln gave that speech during the dedication of a national cemetery. Many of the men who fought for the North during the Civil War were buried in this cemetery, which was established to honor those who died in the Battle of Gettysburg. People gathered that day to honor the Northern soldiers who had died while fighting for freedom.

The Battle of Gettysburg had taken place six months before Lincoln gave his speech. During this battle, one of the South’s most famous generals, Robert E. Lee, and his troops were defeated by the North. About 3,155 Northern soldiers died during that battle, and more than 14,000 were wounded. The Gettysburg Address was only a couple of minutes long, but it has become one of the most famous speeches in history. Lincoln spoke about the importance of freedom and fairness, emphasizing that no one is better than anyone else. He also talked about the past, present, and future of the country. One of the reasons the speech is still popular is because its message remains relevant today.

Lincoln spoke about the founding fathers of the United States, like George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, stating that they founded the nation for everyone and that all people are created equal. He honored those who had died on the battlefield at Gettysburg while fighting for the freedom of the country. He told those who were listening that the proper thing to do was to honor the dead and that we should never forget them or their sacrifice. President Lincoln then ended the speech by talking about God and freedom for all people, stating that the government should be for the people and do the will of the people. The full speech is carved into stone on one of the walls of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.

Abraham Lincoln is still considered one of the greatest U.S. Presidents. The state of Illinois is called “the Land of Lincoln,” and the Lincoln Memorial, the Lincoln Tunnel, and his face on Mount Rushmore have all been named or built in his honor.