7 The 100 Most Influential World Leaders of All Time 7Early Life
Born in a backwoods
cabin in Kentucky,
Lincoln moved with his
family to southwestern
Indiana in 1816, then on
to Illinois in 1830. A tall
and lanky but muscular
young man, Lincoln
settled in the village of
New Salem, working a
variety of jobs and serv-
ing during the Black
Hawk War in 1832,
though he saw no real
action. Lincoln had lit-
tle formal education
but he loved reading.
Having taught himself
law, he passed the bar
examination in 1836
and soon after moved
to Springfi eld, Illinois.
In addition to his practice in the capital, he followed the
court as it made the rounds of its circuit and handled cases
for railroads and other businesses, becoming one of the
most distinguished and successful lawyers in Illinois.
Although stories were told of a grand romance in New
Salem between Lincoln and Ann Rutledge, who died at
age 22, in 1835, they are not supported by sound historical
evidence. So far as can be known, the fi rst and only real
love of Lincoln’s life was Mary Todd, a woman from a dis-
tinguished Kentucky family whom he married in 1842. Of
their four sons, only Robert, the eldest, survived to
Abraham Lincoln’s boyhood home,
Knob Creek, Kentucky, originally
built early 19th century. Wettach/
Shostal