Lincoln's First Love

[RJNorton]

I agree, Betty. I enjoyed this account, Gene. The best book on the subject IMO is The Shadows Rise: Abraham Lincoln and the Ann Rutledge Legend by John Evangelist Walsh. I have a predisposition on the romance, and it may be due to my upbringing in Illinois. Both in grade and high school I had teachers who taught the romance as absolute fact. I started hearing how much Abraham Lincoln loved Ann Rutledge in about 3rd or 4th grade. I didn't realize the subject was controversial until many years into adulthood. I have trouble trying to shake off what was taught to me in Illinois and look at the evidence objectively.