Books from the Archive Library
Housed in our archive library, our collection of books is a mix of contemporary research books that focus on the Lincoln family and books owned by President and Mrs. Lincoln and their descendants.
 
Included in our collection is the President’s personal copy of “The Works of Lord Byron.” Lord Byron was a poet in the late 18th century and is considered an artist of the Romantic Movement. This book was in Lincoln’s law office in Springfield, Illinois and he would often recite poems from this volume from memory. A note written by William Herndon, Lincoln’s law partner, gifting this book to Francis Carpenter in 1866 is at the front of the book along with the President’s signature. We were gifted the book from the great granddaughter of Francis Carpenter, Clara Sherer.

Another book in our collection is President Lincoln’s personal copy of “The Signers of the Declaration of Independence,” which he used while he was writing his Cooper Union Address. The main premise of this address was that the founding fathers were not opposed to limits on slavery and he uses this book as a primary resource to support this claim. 

Some other items of interest: 

Robert and Mary’s son Jack’s geography textbook, inside of which he wrote: “This is the Property of A. Lincoln” and dated 1886. We have several other books in our collection that Jack practiced writing his signature in – a signature that looks a bit like his grandfather’s.  

Mary Todd Lincoln’s personal Psalms and Hymns, and two volumes of Anna Jameson’s  “Characteristics of Women” and “Celebrated Female Sovereigns.” Jameson was a first-generation feminist author and as Mary Lincoln was an intelligent and educated woman, it is not surprising these books were in her collection.