Lincoln Speaks in Augusta
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Lincoln campaigns in Augusta during his 1858 campaign for the US Senate against Steven Douglas. Looking for Lincoln wayside exhibits tell the stories of Lincoln’s life and times in Illinois. Each wayside exhibit tells a unique Lincoln story and a local story. Many of the waysides share little-known stories about Lincoln and the individuals he interacted with. There are over 260 Looking for Lincoln waysides in the Abraham Lincoln National Heritage Area.
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
Lincoln campaigns in Augusta during his 1858 campaign for the US Senate against Steven Douglas. Looking for Lincoln wayside exhibits tell the stories of Lincoln’s life and times in Illinois. Each wayside exhibit tells a unique Lincoln story and a local story. Many of the waysides share little-known stories about Lincoln and the individuals he interacted with. There are over 260 Looking for Lincoln waysides in the Abraham Lincoln National Heritage Area.
On August 25, 1858, the Chicago Press and Tribune reported on Lincoln's speech. The article stated, "At two o'clock the people flocked over to a beautiful grove near the village. . . . It was fully as large as Dug's "3,000 meetings,'" though I do not put the number of voters present higher than 1,200. Mr. Lincoln spoke about two hours in an earnest, calm, convincing manner. The bulk of his audience were from the Slave States---and two-thirds of them had been Clay Whigs. The first hour of his speech was devoted to an examination of Clay's principles on the Slavery question, and to repelling the charges, made against the speaker, that he was an "Abolitionist," in favor of "negro equality" and "amalgamation." He made clean work of these points as he went along, and I don't think there was a man on the ground but he satisfied, and pleased, and there were hundreds who voted for Fillmore in 1856. The last hour he spent in showing up the great conspiracy in which Douglas is engaged to Nationalize slavery and Africanize this continent. I will not attempt to give even a synopsis of his arguments. Suffice it to say that he drove home conviction of the truth of his charges into the minds of almost every man who listened to him. His speech will do great good in this section of country..."
Learn more at: https://www.lookingforlincoln.org/explore/sites/95/lincoln-speaks-in-augusta
Sources
Accessed December 3rd 2021. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/l/lincoln/lincoln3/1:3?rgn=div1;view=fulltext.
https://www.lookingforlincoln.org/explore/sites/95/lincoln-speaks-in-augusta