Actors inside Logan County Courthouse, Greenfield Village, 1983

THF121387 / Actors inside Logan County Courthouse, Greenfield Village, 1983
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Artifact Overview

Between 1840 and 1847, Abraham Lincoln tried cases as a traveling lawyer when this courthouse was located in Postville (later Lincoln), Illinois. With new leadership at Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village in the early 1980s, museum staff worked to re-create courthouse activities in frontier communities of the 1840s--resulting in dramatic role-playing performances like this one.

Artifact Details

Artifact

Photographic print

Subject Date

1983

Location

Not on exhibit to the public.

Object ID

EI.1929.880

Credit

From the Collections of The Henry Ford.

Material

Paper (Fiber product)

Technique

Gelatin silver process

Color

Black-and-white (Colors)

Dimensions

Height: 10 in
Width: 8.125 in

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    Artifact

    Logan County Courthouse

    Between 1840 and 1847, Abraham Lincoln tried cases here as a traveling lawyer. Visiting once or twice a year, he worked mostly on cases resolving neighbors' disagreements over land, contracts, and debts. As Lincoln traveled, people got to know him because he always took time to talk to them. This helped him earn votes later when he went into politics.
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Related Content

  • "First Court House of Logan County where Abraham Lincoln Practiced Law, Lincoln, Ill.," 1927 Postcard
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    Logan County Courthouse: Where Abraham Lincoln Practiced Law

    • 15 Artifacts
    Between 1840 and 1847, Abraham Lincoln tried cases as a traveling lawyer in this courthouse when it was located in Postville (later Lincoln), Illinois. When the Logan County seat moved to Mt. Pulaski, this courthouse was reused as a general store, jail, post office, and private dwelling. Henry Ford purchased it in 1929 and brought it to Greenfield Village.