‘The Most Interesting Document Lincoln Ever Wrote’ Is Now on Display
The 1854 letter replaces the current Emancipation Proclamation exhibit at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.
Springfield, Ill. (AP) -- An 1854 letter hinting at Abraham Lincoln's transition from prairie legislator to political powerhouse, donated to the state of Illinois, was unveiled Thursday at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.
The short missive, which a scholar once labeled “in a sense, the most interesting document Lincoln ever wrote,” explains his decision not to return to the Illinois House of Representatives so that he could remain viable for the U.S. Senate. The choice opened the door to the White House and Lincoln's preservation of the nation during the Civil War.