Lincoln's Birth

[kerry]

I think the marriage of Lincolns' parents is even more impossible to substantiate than Lincoln's birth. At least we have Dennis for some remarks on the birth. I am inclined to believe every witness who later came forward was part of an effort to shut down the rumors swirling around the issue, and that their accounts were fabricated. Who was going to remember such a thing at that point? Few people would have been still alive. It wasn't notable at the time, as no one knew who their son would be. I believe earlier biographers were somewhat gullible for various reasons, but especially on this issue, because the implications were so scandalous at the time. It's quite possible there was no record, even if they were married - the community probably wasn't super on top of its paperwork.

It is odd how early rumors started about this, but I don't think they are credible either. People were out to damage Lincoln and like outrageous gossip. The Lincoln Financial files also have tons of letters from people who claim to know Lincoln's parentage, which are wildly ridiculous. There was a persistent rumor that Lincoln and Jefferson Davis shared a father. How anyone could buy into that is beyond me.