The Most Amazing Story Abraham Lincoln Argument 1- Introduction Abraham Lincoln was born in Hodgenville, Kentucky on February 12, 1809. Abraham lived in a one room, log cabin in Hardin County, Kentucky with his parents and two siblings. During his childhood he got a little education because he constantly had to work to support his family. When Lincoln was nine his mom passed away which led his dad to remarry and move to Illinois. Lincoln later went on to become a shopkeeper, postmaster, boat driver, and lawyer. Abe married Mary Lincoln and had four kids, he unfortunately lost one. He was a republican whose ideas included opposing slavery, wanting to expand the United States, and wanting to focus on trade and relationships with other countries. He first ran for state legislature and won, then tried to run again but unfortunately lost; which led him to run for president. He went on to win the presidency against John Breckinridge in 1860. During his first term he worked with the north to help win the civil war. With his help they won the war and successfully freed the slaves. This led to the 13th amendment being written. The 13th amendment is that the act of slavery or involuntary servitude is illegal except for the punishment of crime. This means that slavery of any kind of than for crime is illegal, this lead to many African American Salves being freed. Along with freeing the slaves he also spoke two of the most important speeches in American history and he showed his selflessness by helping the south rebuild after the war. During his presidency he also signed the first of the Homestead Acts, allowed poor people to purchase land, and signed the Moral Land-Grant Act which allowed many universities and colleges to be built. All these great accomplishments lead to him getting assassinated in 1865, this event devastated the nation. Argument 2- Civil War In the time period slavery was a large continuing issue. Abe Lincoln firmly believed that slavery violated the rights of the enslaved people. These rights of the enslaved people were found in the Bill of Rights. It was hard to be on the side of freeing the enslaved people because most people wanted to keep the slaves, it was the less popular option. He was discouraged at first because many people in his state do not believe in this. This led him to try to join a group specifically devoted to freeing the slaves. This group helped Abe build supporters and have like minded people around him. That eventually helped him win the presidency of the north. When he was elected president he started the Civil War . This war went on for about 4 years and was between the Confederate States of America, also known as the South and/or the Confederates, and the United States of America, also known as the North. The reasons behind this war were Slavery, States’ Rights, Expansion, and Farming vs. Industry. The North believed that slavery was wrong, the north wanted to keep expanding the United States, and also started to become industry states which lead them not need slaves. On the other hand the South believed they needed slaves to manage their farms, along with too many state rights being taken by the federal government, and they believed with the expansion of America was making the power between the North and South unfair. More disagreements behind the civil war were Bleeding Kansas, Presidency, and the Succession. Bleeding Kansas is when Kansas was given power by the government to decide if they wanted slaves or not, this caused issues in the state because many people either wanted the slaves or didn't think it was right. The issues with the presidency is that the South believed Abraham was against them and was not supposed to be president. The last issue of the war is the succession, the Succession is when the south states felt they had the right to leave because they didn’t like the president. The North believed they didn’t have the right to leave so he sent troops to go get them, which resulted in the start of the Civil War. He helped the North win that war, which resulted in the freedom of all slaves and the North’s stances carried out. The war established a stronger federal and overall government along with a few new amendments being written. This is one of the most important wars in American history because this is our first and only Civil War. It is also known as one of the bloodiest, both parties were very passionate about their beliefs. (Ducksters) Argument 3- Important Speeches Another reason why Abraham was the most important person to U.S. history was that he was the writer of two very important speeches, the Gettysburg address and the Emancipation Proclamation. The Gettysburg Address is considered to be one of the most if not the most important speeches in U.S. history. The Gettysburg Address was recited on November 19,1863 in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. In the speech he talks about how human equality is in the Declaration of Independence and how we should all be treated as equals. It also mentioned a new birth of freedom for our country. The speech also mentioned a cemetery to be dedicated on the battlefield for the fallen soldiers. Shortly after the speech, the north went into battle in Gettysburg against the south and ended up winning that battle. The speech resulted in a turning point in the Civil War. This turning point later helped the North win the war. (History) Another important speech Abraham Lincoln wrote, is the Emancipation Proclamation. The Emancipation Proclamation is the 95th presidential proclamation. It was issued on September 22, 1862 during the Civil War. The Emancipation Proclamation claimed on the first day of 1863 that all slaves that escape control of the Confederate government shall be set free forever. The slaves would either have to run away and cross union lines or advance through federal troops. There were 10 different states the slaves could run to. This freed 3.5 million enslaved people. This outraged The Southerners because this man if their slaves escaped they would lose it forever, this also led them to be more cautious of what their slaves were doing. When most slaves escaped they later went on to help the north fight. The Emancipation Proclamation created a turning point in the Civil War, it also helped The creation of the 13th amendment. (Wikipedia) Argument 4- Miscellaneous Contributions At the end of the Civil War, The North had won which was led by Abraham Lincoln. Even though the South lost the North decided to help them rebuild their fallen structures. This shows that Abe Lincoln was a good teammate and always caring for the sake of the country. It also shows he had good sportsmanship and he cared about the lives of those who didn’t care about the lives of other people, he still gave them the benefit of the doubt. This was especially hard to do because they had been rooting against him from the very beginning. These very people would even end up being part of the reason he was murdered. Another reason Abraham Lincoln is one of the most influential presidents is that he signed the first of the Homestead Acts, established the Department of Agriculture, and signed the Moral Land Grant Act. During Lincoln's presidency the Homestead act of 1862 was passed. This gave ownership of land at little or no cost, anyone could purchase it if they were 21 or older including freed slaves and women. They could file a federal law grant and reside on the land for five years and had to show evidence of the land improving. On May 15, 1860 the Department of Agriculture was established by Abraham Lincoln. It is responsible for executing government policy on farming, agriculture, forestry, and food. It was also known as the People’s Department. Lincoln also signed the Moral Land Grant Act which was signed on July 2, 1862. This act allowed the creation of colleges as long as they would teach military tactics, engineering and agriculture. This led to some of the greatest colleges in the United States that are still open today. There are many more great contributions that Lincoln has made to the United States, for example income tax and The National Banking System. Those are just a few more of his already amazing contributions he has made. (Anirudh) Argument 5- Conclusion From this we can conclude that Abe Lincoln is the most influential person in US history. He was so influential and people were so scared of the good he would do that he was shot and killed. Lincoln was shot on April 14, 1865 in the Ford’s Theatre which is in Washington, DC. He was shot by a Confederate sympathizer, supporter, named John Wilkes Booth. People were so upset with the fact that he had freed the slaves but they hired someone to shoot him in the head. After John Wilkes Booth shot him he ran away to the south, he had the help of many southern supporters. Lincoln went on to die later, in the morning the next day in the Petersen house. This outraged many people in The United States, this led them to take the hunt for John more seriously. After 15 days, Booth was found in Port Royal, Virginia. Booth was burned alive in the Garrett Farm barn. Lincoln's funeral and services were held in Washington, DC and then he was transported by train to Springfield, Illinois to be buried. Many people lined up and cheered on the train that carried this great hero. Many were truly devastated by what happened to this incredible president all because people couldn’t deal with the fact that they lost a war and didn’t get their way. Along with the fact that they would not let leaves have basic human rights. With his death, it brought America together after the war and truly showed how much of a hero he was. Many people inspire his courage to fight for the right and to never give up even when people don’t necessarily agree with you and it’s not the common thing to do. He was truly an inspiration and helped shape American History. Without him we wouldn’t be where we are today in America. (Fords) Works Cited Anirudh, et al. “Anirudh.” Learnodo Newtonic, 24 June 2020, learnodo-newtonic.com/abraham-lincoln-accomplishments.com “American Civil War.” Ducksters, www.ducksters.com/history/civil_war/causes_of_the_civil_war.php. “Emancipation Proclamation.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 13 Feb. 2021, en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emancipation_Proclamation. “What Happened to Lincoln.” Fords Theatre, www.fords.org/lincolns-assassination/lincolns-death/. “The Gettysburg Address.” Google, Google, www.google.com/amp/s/www.history.com/.amp/topics/american-civil-war/gettysburg-address.
