Lincoln and Ann Rutledge

[LincolnToddFan]

I've certainly never dismissed Ann Rutledge as Herndon's or anyone's invention. What I have always rejected is the idea that her memory kept him from moving on and loving again. And I also think it's utterly foolish to say that she was the guiding force behind his great speeches, like the Gettysburg Address and the Second Inaugural(as Edgar Lee Masters implied in his Spoon River Anthology)

The evidence simply doesn't support it.

[Whether Lincoln was gay or not does matter though, because it suggests that he lived a double life and was not entirely honest about who he was. Was gayness so taboo in those days that it would be next to impossible to admit it to oneself, let alone to anyone else, including or especially to one's wife?]// quote

Kate,

Men-and women-did not "come out" in the 19th century. Not only was homosexuality considered taboo, it could destroy a person's life, career, prospects and even land you in jail or an asylum.

If AL was gay, who would he have admitted it to? The best-the only way, for him to have lived a life of integrity IF he had been gay and had acknowledged it at least to himself, would have been to remain a lifelong bachelor which certainly was not unheard of. James Buchanan did it. So did Oscar Wilde.

However, I do not believe AL was a dishonest man and he certainly never lacked integrity. He was not forced to marry and begin a family. He did those things because he wanted to, imo.