PAPERS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN FOCUSES ON LINCOLN'S RETURN TO CAMPAIGNING

[Anita]

9/26/2022

By Dr. Daniel Worthington

"On October 1, 2022, the Papers of Abraham Lincoln will enter an exciting new phase of its mission to share all known Lincoln documents online. Project editors will begin a year-long initiative to edit and publish 500 documents from March 1856 to October 1858, a pivotal period in Lincoln’s private life and public career.

As March 1856 opens, Lincoln is concentrating on his law practice and nursing his wounds after failing to get elected to the United States Senate in February 1855. Politics is never far from his mind, however, and by May, Lincoln shifts part of his focus to state and national affairs. The political correspondence and speeches of this period follow Lincoln as he participates in the creation of the Republican Party, agonizes over the Dred Scott decision and “Bleeding Kansas,” and grapples with pro-slavery ideology and growing sectional antagonism."

"The Papers of Abraham Lincoln has released all Lincoln documents up to February 1856, covering his childhood, legislative career and time in Congress. It is in the midst of editing and publishing 3,800 documents from the period when he was often campaigning for U.S. Senate seats and then the presidency. The next step in that process is releasing these 500 documents from March 1856 to October 1858.

Ultimately, the project expects to release 70,000 documents by or to Lincoln, along with thousands of supporting documents providing important context.

PAL employees can devote themselves full-time to editing and publishing this treasure trove of materials to The Papers of Abraham Lincoln Digital Library thanks to ongoing and generous financial support from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). They have been enthusiastic backers of the project’s mission to identify, image, transcribe, annotate, and publish online all documents written by or to Abraham Lincoln during his lifetime (1809-1865)."

https://presidentlincoln.illinois.gov/Bl...blog-post/