OCRed data provided
for searching only. register of herndon's informants
as sources were solicited by the editors and are on ‚le at the Knox College Library, Galesburg, Illinois.
abell, elizabeth (ca. 1804¬?)
The wife of Dr. Bennett Abell and the sister of Mary Owens, Elizabeth Abell was described by AL's close friend William Butler as ¿a cultivated womanÜvery supe‚rior to the common run of womenî in frontier Illinois. AL lived for a time with the Abells, and Butler believed that it was ¿from Mrs. Able [sic] he ‚rst got his ideas of a higher plane of lifeÜthat it was she who gave him the notion that he might improve himself by reading &c.î In 1836 she promoted a courtship between AL and her sister. (Reep; Federal Census of Menard County, 1880; Burlingame)
armstrong, hannah (1811¬90)
Hannah Armstrong's husband, Jack, leader of the notorious Clary's Grove boys, became a close friend of AL after their famous wrestling match. Thereafter, AL was a familiar presence in the Armstrong home, where Hannah Armstrong laundered and mended his clothes. After her husband died, she appealed twice to AL for help, and he responded by defending her son William ¿Duff î Armstrong, who was ac‚cused of murder, and later ordering his discharge from the Union army. (CG)
armstrong, john (1814¬77)
Postmaster of Spring‚eld under AL's administration, Armstrong was a respected Sangamon County contractor and builder. In 1859 he was on the executive com‚mittee of the Republican party in Spring‚eld, of which AL was also a member. (CW; ISJ, December 24, 1877)
arnold, isaac newton (1815¬84)
A Chicago attorney and of‚ceholder who became acquainted with AL at the bar and in Illinois politics, Arnold wrote two of the earliest biographies of AL: History of Abraham Lincoln and the Overthrow of Slavery (Chicago, 1866); and The Life of Abraham Lincoln (Chicago, 1885). (ALE)
ashley, james mitchell (1824¬96)
An abolitionist lawyer and editor from Toledo, Ohio, Ashley was elected to Con‚gress in 1858. He introduced in 1863 the constitutional amendment abolishing slavery. (BDATG)
baker, edward l. (1829¬97)
The son of David J. Baker, a prominent Illinois attorney and short-term U.S. sen‚ator. In 1855 Baker and a partner purchased the Illinois State Journal, the Spring‚‚eld newspaper with which AL was strongly identi‚ed. (HEI)
baker, george e.
An associate of William H. Seward, Baker edited Seward's Works before the Civil
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