Was Thomas Lincoln actually poor?

[irshgrl500]

(08-06-2012 08:29 AM)LincolnMan Wrote:  We all know the story of Abraham Lincoln being born and growing up in poverty. Is that actually the case? Certainly compared to others back East the Lincoln's were poor. But was Thomas Lincoln poor? I read he owned land, had farms, etc. By the standards of the West in his day-was he considered poor? Or have writers imposed their standards on the story? I wonder if Thomas would have considered himself poor?

Hello Bill,
I realize that it is nearly a year after your initial topic was started, which I am commenting. This is the very subject, which I too am posed. I've seen contradictions, over and over again, which state both that Thomas was very poor, and also that he was considered a prosperous landowner. Michael Burlingame has said in his books, and in interviews that it truly is an illusion to think that Thomas was some sort of prosperous landowner, and that he basically never rose much beyond poverty. I tend to trust Burlingame’s word, as it seems to be backed with tenacious research.

Karin