Following ABRAHAM LINCOLN

  Nashville, Tennessee, United States
Monday, July 23, 2007

Abraham Lincoln Home National Historic Site 2

I arrived at the Abraham Lincoln Home National Historic Site in Springfield, Illinois at 9AM.  It was a great site with numerous blocks closed off to cars and commercialism so they could be viewed as a community of the mid 1800's.  I took a guided tour of Abraham Lincoln's home in which he lived in for 17 years prior to becoming president and had had three of his four children there.  During that time, Lincoln built his law practice and started his political career.

Abraham Lincoln Home National Historic Site

Abraham Lincoln Home National Historic Site 1

 

Abraham Lincoln Home National Historic Site 4

Abraham Lincoln Home National Historic Site 6

Abraham Lincoln Home National Historic Site 3

Abraham Lincoln Home National Historic Site 7

Next I visited the Old Capitol Building in Springfield.  This is where Lincoln gave his famous "House Divided" speech.

Old Springfield Capitol

Old Springfield Capitol for "House Divided" speech

Then I drove a few miles to visit Lincoln's Tomb.  The tomb is made of granite and is 117 feet tall.  At the entrance is a bronze bust of Lincoln.  Inside, Abraham Lincoln is buried along with his wife and three children.

Abraham Lincoln's tomb

Abraham Lincoln's tomb 2

Abraham Lincoln's tomb 3

Abraham Lincoln's tomb 4

After, I got in my car and drove a few hours into Indiana where I visited Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial.  Lincoln had spent 14 years here from age seven to twenty-one.  This is where he discoverd his love for reading and desire for knowledge/learning.  I visited the cabin site memorial that commemorates the cabin built by the Lincolns in 1829.

Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial, Indiana 1

Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial, Indiana 2

I continued driving a couple more hours into Kentucky.  I passed the city of Elizabethtown which reminded me of the moview of the same name about road trips.


I visited Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Site.  The site recognizes the place hwere Lincoln was born in a log cabin on June 12, 1809.  Now at the park is a large modern memorial building and inside is a replica (over 100 years old) of the log cabin Lincoln was born in.

Abraham Lincoln Birthplace Nat'l Historic Site 4

Abraham Lincoln Birthplace Nat'l Historic Site 5

Abraham Lincoln Birthplace Nat'l Historic Site 1

My final stop of the day was Lincoln-less.  I visited Mammoth Cave National Park.  This is the longest cave system in the world extending 250 miles.

Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky 1

I spent the night in Nashville, Tennessee.