The People Lincoln Knew

The Lincoln neighborhood in Springfield was a lively community of people of different ages, ethnicities, and religious beliefs, where many residents, like Lincoln, had come hoping to improve their lives. Lincoln formed deep relationships with many of the people there, and they helped Abraham Lincoln become the person known today. Nearby lived Jameson Jenkins, a free African American who gave Lincoln a ride to the Great Western Depot train station on the day Lincoln left to begin his presidency. A few houses away lived Mrs. Sprigg, one of Mary Lincoln's closest friends, who was from Germany, and whose daughter sometimes looked after the Lincoln boys. Lincoln could also be found playing with local children such as Lizzie Decrastos, the daughter of one of the Lincolns' Portuguese hired girls, and he often gave her piggyback rides to school. Several of the Lincolns' hired help were African American or came from overseas; among the hired girls they employed, at least three were Irish, three were Portuguese, and six were African American. Mariah Vance worked for the Lincolns from 1850 to 1860, the longest period of any servant in the family, and Robert Lincoln later sent her a monthly pension check after visiting her for dinner in 1900. Charlotte de Souza, a Portuguese immigrant, sewed dresses for Mary Lincoln when she was a young woman, including dresses Mary may have worn at the White House.

Springfield, Illinois · United States