Abraham Lincoln Bio

Abraham Lincoln was the 16th president of the United States (1861–65), who preserved the Union during the American Civil War and brought about the emancipation of enslaved people in the United States. He was born on February 12, 1809, near Hodgenville, Kentucky, U.S. and died on April 15, 1865, Washington, D.C..

Lincoln had very little formal education, but read voraciously when not working on his father’s farm. He was a self-taught lawyer and Whig Party politician.

Lincoln served in the Illinois House of Representatives from 1834 to 1842 and in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1847 to 1849. He was elected the 16th president of the United States in 1860 and served until his assassination in 1865.

During his presidency, Lincoln led the Union through the American Civil War to defend the nation as a constitutional union and succeeded in abolishing slavery, bolstering the federal government, and modernizing the economy.