Lincoln in Springfield – Lincoln’s move from New Salem to Springfield, Illinois in April 1837 was a pivotal turning point in his life. Lincoln joined a booming community whose population had tripled to around 1,800 individuals over the previous six years. Lincoln had played a significant role in this boom, as one of the primary advocates in the Illinois General Assembly for the move of the state capital from Vandalia to Springfield. After teaching himself the law through borrowing legal texts from friends and proving himself as a man of good moral character, Lincoln was admitted to the bar the same year.
Over the next two decades, as Springfield transformed into a bustling community, Abraham Lincoln transformed along with it, becoming increasingly prominent as both a politician and attorney. Departing Springfield in February 1861 to assume the presidency, he remarked, “To this place, and the kindness of these people, I owe everything.”