Abraham Lincoln
The Great Emancipator
O
n November 19, 1863, Abraham Lincoln spoke at
the dedication of the national cemetery at Gettysburg
(Pennsylvania). The Battle of Gettysburg had turned the tide
of the Civil War in favor of the North. With 50,000 casualties
Born: February 12,
at that battle alone (dead and wounded), Lincoln’s heart was
1809, in Hardin County,
Kentucky
heavy. He gave one of the most famous speeches of all time. His
“Gettysburg Address” began: “Fourscore and seven years ago our
Died: April 15, 1865, in
Washington, D.C. (buried
fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived
in Springfield, Illinois)
in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are
Famous for: being the
created equal.” After speaking for about two minutes, he ended,
16th President, freeing the
saying: “. . . that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not
slaves, and ending the
have died in vain; . . . and that government of the people, by the
Civil War
people, and for the people shall not perish from the earth.”
The Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., portrays a serious
and contemplative (thinking) Lincoln. Born poor to frontier farmers, Abraham Lincoln was
fiercely ambitious. Growing up, he was determined to educate himself, and as he worked in the
fields, he propped a book up on his plow. At night he read by the glow of the fireplace. Very tall
and very thin, Lincoln was known for his incredible strength and skill with an ax. Even though
he was well liked, and had a quick sense of humor, he was highly critical of himself. He worked
splitting timber, as a boatman on the Mississippi River, as a storekeeper, and as a postmaster. He
wanted to be a lawyer, and passed the Illinois bar exam without ever going to law school.
In 1858, Lincoln decided to run against Stephen A. Douglas for the U.S. Senate. The
candidates agreed to a series of seven debates, mainly over the issue of slavery. Lincoln argued
against extending slavery to any U.S. territory not yet a state. Brilliant and inspiring, Abraham
Lincoln was soon famous (although he lost the election). Committed to preserving the Union
at all costs, Lincoln was chosen as the first Republican candidate to run for President. In 1860
he won that election. Lincoln despaired when the South fired on Fort Sumter in April of
1861, which marked the start of our Civil War. As the war progressed, Lincoln became more
determined to abolish slavery. He issued the Emancipation Proclamation (1863), which freed the
slaves. The Thirteenth Amendment to our Constitution (1865) made it official.
In his second inaugural address, Lincoln promised to bind up the nation’s wounds “with
malice toward none; with charity for all.” It was not to be. Five days after the South’s General
Robert E. Lee surrendered, ending the war (1865), Lincoln and his wife, Mary Todd, celebrated
at Ford’s Theater. A crazed actor, John Wilkes Booth, entered the President’s theater box and shot
him. Abraham Lincoln died the next day, leaving a grieving and seriously wounded nation.
34
Comprehension-Boosting Crosswords: Famous Americans © Silvia Charlesworth, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Comprehension-Boosting Crosswords
Name
Abraham Lincoln
2
1
3
4
5
6
8
7
10
9
11
E
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
DOWN
ACROSS
1.Lincoln passed the Illinois bar and became
a successful
.
1.Robert E.
surrendered to General
Grant at Appomattox Court House.
2.To
4.Lincoln was named for his grandfather,
.
means to set free, to liberate.
3.Lincoln had four children with his
wife,
Todd Lincoln.
9.Lincoln was born in the state of
5.Skilled with an
, Lincoln cleared
farmland and split timber.
10.Lincoln had a good sense of
although he worried and brooded.
6.Lincoln’s tomb (as well as the only home
Lincoln ever owned) is in
, Illinois.
12.Lincoln worked as a boatman on the
.
,
.
7.The U.S.
War is also called the
War Between the States.
13.There were almost 50,000 casualties (both
sides) at
, where Lincoln gave his
famous address.
8.Stephen A.
and Abraham Lincoln
had seven famous debates.
15.
means the desire to harm others;
charity means love and good will.
11.Lincoln was determined to preserve the
at all costs.
17.The Thirteenth
outlaws slavery.
14.Lincoln and his wife attended the
to celebrate the war’s end.
18.In Washington, the Lincoln
Washington Monument.
16.John Wilkes
in Ford’s Theater.
19.The Civil War began when the South fired on
Fort
.
assassinated Lincoln
to our Constitution
Comprehension-Boosting Crosswords: Famous Americans © Silvia Charlesworth, Scholastic Teaching Resources
faces the
35
Answer Key
ABRAHAM LINCOLN
(page 34)
Down:
1. lawyer
2. emancipate
3. Mary
5. ax
6. Springfield
7. Civil
8. Douglas
11. Union
14. theater
16 . Booth
Across:
1 . Lee
4 . Abraham
9 . Kentucky
10 . humor
12 . Mississippi
13 . Gettysburg
15 . malice
17 . Amendment
18 . Memorial
19 . Sumter
60
Comprehension-Boosting Crosswords: Famous Americans © Silvia Charlesworth, Scholastic Teaching Resources