Abraham Lincoln: The Enigmatic President

The following memorandum explains how Lincoln's lecture on "Discoveries and Inventions" was preserved for posterity. I found a couple of things interesting about this memo. I have read accounts claiming that Mary and Lincoln argued on the morning of his departure from Springfield and, needing to be on time, he left without her. This argument was cited as the reason she had to catch up with his train a couple of days later. This memo, however, says that Mary's late arrival on the train was planned well in advance. It is also interesting to read a first-hand confirmation that Lincoln had a premonition that he would never return home. Memorandum of Certain Facts for Those Who Follow After (Emphasis mine.)   In the month of February 1861, being at that time a resident of Springfield, Illinois, I called one evening at the residence of my friend, Dr. John Todd. The doctor was an uncle of Mrs. Abraham Lincoln. While there Mr. Lincoln came in, bringing with him a well-fille...

  On April 6, 1858, Abraham Lincoln delivered his lecture on “Discoveries and Inventions” before the Young Men's Association of Bloomington, Illinois. Throughout the year, he gave the lecture four more times in Illinois towns. His law partner, William H. Herndon, explained, “He began preparation in the usual way by noting down ideas on stray pieces of paper, which found a lodgment inside his hat, and finally brought forth in connected form a lecture.” Lincoln was highly interested in inventions. Ten years earlier, he received a patent for an invention that lifted boats over shoals. Herdon claimed that Lincoln stopped giving the lecture because it was not well received. Five presentations in a fairly short time call that notion into question. Lincoln last presented “Discoveries and Inventions” just five days before his memorable Cooper Union address. It seems more likely that the celebrated New York City speech provided a robust launch for Lincoln’s presidential campaign, and that h...