The Wolff's Tale: Lincoln Home National Historic Site

One of the purposes of our trip to Illinois and St. Louis was to explore Springfield, the location of the only home that Abraham Lincoln ever owned. On the top of our list was the Lincoln Home National Historic Site, a restored area in the middle of Springfield. We have previously been to Lincoln's birthplace (in Kentucky) and his boyhood home (in Indiana) but hadn't yet made it to the third state that claims the sixteenth president of the United States.

Follow in the footsteps of Abraham Lincoln as you explore the historic neighborhood surrounding his home of seventeen years. Restored to its 1860 appearance, the four-block area contains twelve historic structures dating back to Lincoln's time.

As you take a self-guided stroll through the neighborhood, you will find outdoor exhibits introducing Mr. Lincoln's neighbors and daily life in 1860s Springfield. The Dean House and the Arnold House are open to the public and contain exhibits on the Lincoln Home and the restoration and preservation of the neighborhood.
--from Lincoln Home NHS website

Our first stop was at the visitor center.

This exhibit was fun to see as once you go into the house itself you of course cannot touch anything.

I also appreciated the opportunity to look at a model of the area to learn what it was like.

Before too long we headed outside to explore the neighborhood. It really did feel like walking through a previous century. Once you got out of easy view of cars and other neighborhoods it was obvious that a good job was done restoring the area.

The Dean House owes its name to the property owner of record during 1860, Abraham Lincoln’s final full year of residence in Springfield, Illinois, before he departed for Washington to assume the presidency early in 1861. Mrs. Harriet Dean held title to the property from 1849 until 1860, the year of her death, after which her son, Frederick Irwin Dean, inherited.
--from Lincoln Home NHS website

Inside the Dean House are a number of exhibits about the area.

Just over a year after they were married the Lincolns purchased this house on Eighth Street in May 1844. The price was $1,500.

The house was remodeled in the late 1840s to make a number of small improvements like fireplaces and some minor repairs.

Another remodel in the 1850s consisted of removing the roofs and creating a full second story to accommodate the growing Lincoln family.

Outside we encountered an example of a kitchen garden.

As we walked by the Lincoln Home again a tour was preparing to enter. We'd decided to save the house tour for another day (which will be covered in a future post).

According to the 1860 census, the house was rented to Henson Lyon, a farmer. The Lyon family had moved to Sangamon County in 1834 and operated a farm two and a half miles east of Springfield. By 1860, Lyon, his son, Thomas, Huldah Burge and her three children, and three other persons resided in the structure.
--from Lincoln Home NHS website

The Beedle house was built around 1840-41. By 1860 the house was rented by William Beedle, a railroad fireman who occupied the house with one servant, Kate Tierney. The house is a wood frame 26'2" x 49'6" 2 story Italianate style house with a hip roof, a 1 story front porch, and a 1 story rear porch.... The house was restored to it's 1860 appearance in 1984.
--from Lincoln Home NHS website

Arnold would reside in the house from 1850 until 1879. Arnold was a political ally of Abraham Lincoln, both being members of the Whig party. He served twice as the County Sheriff on the Whig Ticket.

By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a series of families made their home on this corner lot. Additions were made to the original structure. By 1917, Springer's early home had been encased in brick and siding.

By the mid 1990s, restoration work was begun on the Arnold House, Springer's structure was found to still survive as part of the later structure. The original structure, freed from the later additions, was rotated and moved back to the front of the lot and restored to it's 1860s appearance. Today, the Arnold House is open to the public, and houses exhibits on the Lincoln neighborhood and its restoration and preservation.
--from Lincoln Home NHS website

The exhibits inside the Arnold house were very interesting as they covered the restoration process and history of the buildings.

The preservation process actually started fairly early in American history with the purchase of a former George Washington headquarters home in 1850, followed shortly thereafter by the creation of the Mount Vernon Ladies Association in 1858. Preservation of the Lincoln home began when it was donated to the state of Illinois in 1887 by the family. These objects in this case were found during the restoration of local homes--inside walls, beneath floorboards, or other nooks and crannies of the buildings.

There were a number of signs covering each of the families that owned these buildings when the Lincolns lived in the area.

Archaeology is also an invaluable part of the restoration process--for example you can find much by excavating the ground where outhouses used to stand, for many people used them to throw away household trash.

Did you know that sometimes seeing how wood was joined together in part of a house can help to date the construction?

Plaster types can also be used to help identify age.

These beautiful blooms were next door to the Cook house.

In 1860 and 1861, Mrs. Sarah Cook rented the property. A widow with a number of children, Mrs. Cook rented some of the rooms in the house. Earlier, Mrs. Cook had operated a photographic studio in Springfield. The house passed through numerous owners before being aquired by the National Park Service.
--from Lincoln Home NHS website

The Jenkins lot doesn't have a house standing on it, but there is an augmented reality app. I think things like this are an excellent way to continue interpretation when conditions have changed or there is no longer a building to preserve.

The original Robinson house was built around 1859-60. It was significantly altered in 1863. This house belonged to Henson Robinson, a Springfield businessman and civic leader. He and his wife had five children during the time they lived here.

The beautifully restored home is a two-story, front gabled Greek Revival wood frame structure.
--from Lincoln Home NHS website

The streets were quite pleasant and often shaded.

The Shutt House was built prior to 1859, the house was rented to lawyer George Shutt in 1860. This young lawyer was active in politics of the Democratic party, unlike most of Abraham Lincoln's politically active neighbors. Shutt supported Stephen A. Douglas in the presidential Campaign of 1860... The house was restored to an 1860 exterior appearance in 1989. It is used as leased office space, and in 2006 housed the Springfield office of U.S. Senator Dick Durbin.
--from Lincoln Home NHS website

This house was built around 1858 for Jesse K. Dubois. It served as the home of his family from 1859 to 1864. During the years that he and his family lived in the house, Dubois served as the Illinois State Auditor.

Dubois was one of the most important political allies of Abraham Lincoln within the neighborhood. Dubois was a confidant of Lincoln, and a powerful Republican politician and office-holder. The Lincoln and Dubois families moved in the same social circles, and the Duboises named one of their sons for Lincoln.
--from Lincoln Home NHS website

The Sprigg House was constructed about 1851 by John B. Weber. Mrs. Julia Sprigg, a widow, purchased it in 1853 for use as a residence for herself and her children. While living in the house, Mrs. Sprigg became close friends with neighbor Mary Lincoln. The Lincolns' youngest son, Tad, was a frequent visitor to the Sprigg house.
--from Lincoln Home NHS website

Before we headed back to the visitor center we stopped back by the Lincoln home and found this display that encouraged guests to take a photo from the angle that most photos of the house have been taken.