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About Corvallis gazette. (Corvallis, Benton County, Or.) 1900-1909 | View Entire Issue (April 17, 1906)
Lincoln's , ''-''wSa?" Lincoln. Birthplace V llllll -HHMMI ! CHAPTER I. rTiie Short and Simple Annals of the Poor." BR AH AM LIN COLN was born on the 12th day - en name was Nancy Hanks. At the time of his birth they are supposed to DANIEL BOONE. have been married about three years, aiwinaa Lincoln's ancestors were among the early settlers of Rocking ham county, in Virginia, but exact Hy whence they came or the precise time of their settlement there it Is im jossible to tell. They were manifestly f English descent, but whether emi grants directly from England to Vir ginia or an offshoot of the historic Lin Coin family in Massachusetts or of the highly respectable Lincoln family in (Pennsylvania is a question left en tirely to conjecture. Thomas Lincoln himself stoutly denied that his progen itors were either Quakers or Puritans, but he furnished nothing except his own word to sustain his denial. On the contrary, some of the family (distant relatives of Thomas Lincoln) who re- atives or Muomas uwwuij nU re- tin in Virginia believe themselves to, ma tave sprung from the New England itofk. They found their opinion solely ou the fact that tue Christian names given to the sons of the two families were the same, though only in a few cases and at different times. The pro genitors of all the American Lincolns were Englishmen, and they may have been Puritans. There is, therefore, nothing unreasonable in the supposition that they began the practice of confer ring such names before the emigration of any of them, and the names, becom ing: matters of family pride and family tradition, have continued to be given ever since. Dr. Holland, who, of all Mr. Lincoln's biographers, has entered most exten sively into the genealogy of the family, says that the father of Thomas was Darned Abraham, but he gives no au thority for his statement. The Hankses John and Dennis who passed a great part of their lives in the company of Thomas Lincoln, tell us that the name of his father was Mordecai, and so also does Colonel Chapman, who married Thomas Lincoln's stepdaughter. The rest of those who ought to know are unable to assign him any name at all. Dr. Holland says further that this Abraham (or Mordecai) had four broth ersJacob, John, Isaac and Thomas; that Isaac went to Tennessee, where his descendants are now; that Thomas went to Kentucky after his brother Abraham, but that Jacob and John "are supposed to have" remained in Virginia. This is doubtless true, at least so far as It relates to Jacob and John, for there are numerous Lincolns in Rock ingham county, the place from which the Kentucky Lincoln emigrated. One of their ancestors, Jacob, who seems to be the brother referred to, was a lieu tenant in the army of the Revolution and present at the siege of Yorktown. His military services were made the ground of a claim against the govern ment, and Abraham Lincoln, while a representative in congress from Illi nois, was applied to by the family to assist them in prosecuting it. Lincoln, the emigrant, had three sons and two daughters. Thomas was the third son and the fourth child. He was born in 1778, and in 17S0 or a little later his father removed with his en tire family to Kentucky. The Borderers' Paradise. Kentucky was then the paradise of the borderers" dreams. Fabulous tales of its sylvan charms and pastoral beau ties had for years beeu floating about. For awhile it had been known as the "cane country." Many expeditions were undertaken to explore it, two or three adventurers and occasionally only one at a time passing down the Ohio in i canoes. But they all stopped short of the Kentucky river. The Indians were terrible, and it was known that they would surrender any other spot of earth in preference to Kentucky. The canes that were supposed to indicate the promised laud those canes of won drous dimensions that shot up as thick as they could stand from a soil of in estimable fertility were forever re ceding before those who sought them. One party after another returned to report that, after incredible dangers and hardships, they had met with no better fortune than that which had at tended the efforts of their predecessors, and that they had utterly failed to find the "cones." At last they were actually found, by Simon Kenton, who stealthily planted . Uttle patch of com to see bow she stalk that bore the yellow grain sraatd gxw besUe its -toother" of the-yilipniess. trei oof day Boyhood WARD HILL LAMON, His Friend, Partner Bodyguard fS tree "watching his little assemble of sprouts and wondering ; at the strange fruitfulness of the earth which fed them when he heard a footstep behind him. It was the great Daniel Boone's . They united, tneir iortunes ior tne pres- ent, but subsequently each of them be- came the chieTof a considerable settle- ment Kenton's trail had been 1809. His fa- ' . directions soon was dark and coarse, his complexion, Es ther's name' "J. LSterto brown. Ms face round and ful1' Ma NanCy HankS S early Sent t0 Uve w a s Thomas . came hunters, warriors and settlers to eyeg gray and Mg noge large and prom. with her uncle and aunt, Thomas and Lincoln, and his ! JOS,t rhl' rndIana had no thousrht of Inent- He weighed, at different times, Betsy Sparrow, and became so corn mother's maid- , ?!ULJ? J l from 170 to 196. He was built so Pletely identified with them that many -.-. i inin Knnna'o tiatti Mirrn i HrnnnH .46 & ebllSLSteSS Z possession of it and S trloe or the possession or it ana no moe or confederacy of tribes had St Here fr'L time ImSmoria Z rest. Here from time immemorial tne SSSTmS'eSS western Indian .had met eacnotnerin blood which ought to have been hus cf this savage warfare had earned for Kentucky the appellation of "the dark and bloody ground," and ow that the whites had fairly begun their encroach- ments upon it, tne Indians were resoiv- ed that the phrase should lose none of its old significance. White settlers might therefore count upon fighting for their lives as well as their lands. Boone did not make his final settie luani till 1775. The Lincolns came about l-on h.t a .i.. , . . i -v &1ou. me nuuie ui me uuiu. west territory was then occupied by JJtJ fa(1 yet before them many a day oC bst n(i bloouy woi-k on tne Oino, me Muskingum auu tne aiiami, to say nothing of the continental surprises to Everv man's 1'e was i n his hand From cabin to cabin from settlement i rom caDm to camn rrom settlement , to settlement, his trail was dogged by ' 1 subsistence by hunting, he was hunted On the journey out the Lincolns are Paid to have endured many hardships and encountered all the usual dangers. includine several skirmishes with" the including jseverai surmisnes witn tne -nai- v.,L ..w, oku ty. Their house was a rough log cabin, their farm a little clearing in the midst of a vast forest. One morning not long after their settlement the father took Thomas, his youngest son, and went to build a fence a short distance from the house. while the other brothers, Morde-1 cal and Josiah, were sent to another field not far away. They were all In- ui.t nu, uwveuwu m ui 3 tent about their work when a shot from hne ,wereI,no bTeTtter those hia a party of Indians in ambush broke the Previous life. He was employed occa- "llstening stillness" of the woods. I siasnally to, do rouSh wff,k "at "Pf ! neither science nor skill, but nobody Killed by Indians. I alleges that he ever built a house or The father fell dead, Josiah ran to a! pretended to do more than a few little stockade two or three miles off. Mor- odd jobs connected with such an under- decai, the eldest boy, made his way to taking. the house and, looking out from the Some time in the year 1S0G he mar loophole in the loft, saw an Indian in ried Nancy Hanks. It was in the shop the act of raising his little brother from ; of her uncle, Joseph Hanks, at Eliza THB FATHER FELL DEAD. the ground. He., took deliberate aim at a silver ornament on the breast of the Indian and brought him down. Thomas sprang toward the cabin and was ad mitted by his mother, while Mordecai renewed his fire at several other In dians that rose from the covert of the fence or thicket. It was not long until thriving and prosperous farmer, in Josiah returned from the stockade with duced her to marry him. a party of settlers, but the Indians had fled, and none was found but the dead one and another who was wounded and had crept Into the top of a fallen tree. When this tragedy was enacted Mor decai was a Well, grown boy. He seems to have hated Indians ever after with a hatred which ijras singular for its In tensity, eyea'jn those times. Many years afterward his neighbors believed that he wafln the habit of feUowing - . ... .. .. . through. The Beruements ia oma c &v.v snrreptltlona-shots at-mem, and it was no secret that he Had killed more than one in that wav Immediately after the death of her husband the widow abandoned the scene of her misfortunes and removed to Washington county, near the town of Springfield, where she lived until the youngest of her children had grown up. Mordecai and Josiah remained there until late in life and were always nam- bered among the best people in the neighborhood. - Thomas seems to have been the only member of the family whose character was not entirely respectable. He was idle, thriftless, poor, a hunter and a rover. One year he wandered away oft to his uncle, on the Holston, near the r.fir.Aa nf Tennessee. Another vear he wandered into Breckinridge county, JXellTZt- St whipping- him In 1S06 we Sardnf county Vying tl JEJE r?ade - lloaa T k k - tbin like Abraham but comparatively . xeet ten incues m uib ouucs. .- xaia mu d compact.. that Dennis HaSs dfares he'never could find the lXd separation between his ribs, He was a ule stoop sn0Uldered and walked a slowhalting step. But he was m d b d M habitually SSS- i once fairly oveJ- & tremen(ioug man In a rough and tumble fight. He thrashed .v.r.r.or.nv.a TmiIItt vP TtKOflL-tn ra yZ ltbout a scratch- -om" and "Linckhem." His vagrant career had supplied him an inexhaustible und of anec- d()tes hich he told cleverlv well. He Ioved to sit about at "stores" or under shade trees and "spin yarns, a propensity which atoned for many sins and made him extremely popular. In politics he was a Democrat a Jackson TVtmnnrnt' Tn rcT i cri nn tiA wna n ni Tn rr m t to and a member Df various de- nominati(ma bv trnSa Free Will Baptist in Kentucky, a Presbyterian in In(liana and a Disciple-vulgarly called Campbeiiite-in Illinois. In this latter commimion he seems to have died. u ought h to be mentloned iat . both in Virginia and Kentucky his name was commonly pronounced ..jnekhorfi" and in Indiana "Linck- . A naJttnt wfls sn WTiir . ... ; his real name altogether. As he never ir-1'Atn if- a f- cili iii-i-t-il a ftar Vita ri- a tti a or aud ,t then oQly mecnanicallyf j storekeeper here and there j who had a small account against him. whetber . was properly "Lincoln," ..Lmckhorn Qr "Linckhem" was not definitely settled until after Abraham began to write, when, as one of the neighbors has It, "he remodeled the spelling and corrected the pronuncia tion," By the middle of 1806 Lincoln had ac- 'juired a Ter-V "mited knowledge of the carpenter s trade and set up on his own bethtown, in Hardin county, that he essayed to learn the trade. We have no record of the courtship, but any one can readily imagine the numberless oc casions that would bring together the niece and apprentice. It is true that Nancy did net live with her uncle, but the Hankses were all very clannish, and she was doubtless a welcome and frequent guest at his house. It is ad mitted by all the old residents of the place that they were honestly married, but precisely when or how no one can tell. Diligent and thorough searches by the most competent persons have failed to discover any trace of the fact in the public records of Hardin and the ad joining counties. At the time of their union Thomas was twenty-eight years of age and Nancy about twenty-three. Lincoln had previously courted a girl named Sally Sarah Bush, who lived In the neighborhood of Elizabethtown, but his suit was unsuccessful, and she became the wife of Johnston, the jailer. Sally Bush was a modest and pious girl, in all things pure and decent. She was very neat in her personal appear ance, and because she was particular In the selection of her gowns and com pany had long been accounted a "proud body," who held her head above com mon folks. But she had a will as well as principles of her own, and she lived to make them both serviceable to the neglected and destitute son of Nancy Hanks. Thomas Lincoln took another wife, but he always loved Sally Bush, and years afterward, when her hus band and his wife were both dead, he returned suddenly from the wilds of Indiana and, representing himself as a Lincoln's Mother. Nancy Hanks, who accepted the hon or which Sally. Bush first refused, was a slender, symmetrical woman of me dium stature, a brunette, with dark hair, regular features and soft, .spar kling hasel eyesN' Tenderly bred, f she might: hire-, been' beauttfuU but hard labor, and hard: usage. berif hisrhadd- some JfirpjoA ininjrjtd ajnral coarseness to ner features long before . , , . . . -J. , . , - - Zl Z ?E iT- . sad, and the latter habitually -wore the :. woeful egression which afterward dis- tmgmshed the countenance of her son repose. B? ner family her understanding was considered something wonderful. John Hanks spoke reverently of her "high and intellectual forehead," which he considered but the proper seat of fac- Ues like hers. Compared with the mental poverty of her husband and rel- atives, her accomplishments were cei-- tainly very great, for it is related by Pride ari delight that she could actually read and write. Thepos- session of these arts placed her far ab0Te ner associates, and after a little while eTen Thomas began to meditate nPn importance of acquiring them. a co rntrs near at hand, and with much effort she taught him what letters composed bis name and how to put them together ma stiff and clumsy fashion. Hence-" forth he signed no more bv makma his . . - nowhere stated that he mark, buMt is nowhere stated that he tl lr ZZLlTZ supposed her to have been their child. They reared her to womanhood, fol- lowed her to Indiana, dwelt under the same roof, died of the same disease at nearly the same time and were buried close beside her. They were the only parents she ever knew, and he must have called them by names appropriate to that relationship, for several persons who saw them die and carried them to their srraves believed that thpv were in fact her father and moer. . The Hankses claim that their ances- Sfito yvith the Lincolns and settled near them m Mercer count Branches of both families maintained a m0re or ?ess intimate connection with the fortunes of Thomas Lincoln, and the early life of Abraham was closely interwoven with theirs. ' -r , A -v- j i - ,.i a AjXUCOIII IUUH IXaUfV L(J llVC 111 U 0n one of the allevs of Elizabethtown. !lJl bare of furniture, was about fourteen feet square, had been three times re- moved and twice used as a slaughter house and once as a stable Here a daughter was born on the 10th day of February, 1807, who was called Nancy during the life of her mother and after her death Sarah, Lincoln's Desolate Birthplace. Thomas Lincoln soon wearied of Eliz abethtown and carpenter work. He thought he could do better as a farmer, (or Sarah) removed to a piece of land on the south fork of Nolin creek, three miles from Hodgensville and about thirteen miles from Elizabethtown. What estate he had or attempted to get in this land is not clear from the pa pers at hand. It is said he bought It, but was unable to pay for it. It was very poor, the landscape of which it formed a part was extremely desolate, and It was nearly destitute of timber. On every side the eye rested only upon weeds and low bushes and "barren grass." It was, on the whole, as bad a piece of ground as there was in the neighborhood and would hardly have sold for a dollar an acre. The general appearance of the surrounding country was not much' better. A few small but pleasant streams Nolin creek and its tributaries wandered through the val leys. The land was generally what is called "rolling" that is, dead levels in terspersed by little hillocks. Nearly all of it was arable; but, except the mar gins of the water courses, not much of it was sufficiently fertile to repay the labor of tillage. Here it was only by incessant labor and thrifty habits that an ordinary living could be wrung from the earth. The family took up their residence in a miserable cabin which stood on a lit tle knoil in the midst of a barren glade. Near by a "romantic spring" gushed from beneath a rock and sent forth a slender but silvery stream, meander ing through those dull and unsightly plains. As it furnished almost the only pleasing feature in the melancholy desert through which it flowed the place was called after it, "Rock Spring Farm." In addition to this single natural beauty Lincoln began to think in a lit tle while that a couple of trees would look well and might even be useful if judiciously planted in the vicinity of his bare house yard. This enterprise he actually put into execution, and years afterward three decayed pear trees constituted the only memorials of him or his family to be seen about the premises. In that solitary cabin, on this deso late spot, the illustrious Abraham Lin coln was born on the 12th day of Feb ruary, 1809. The Lincolns remained on Nolin creek until Abraham was four years old. They then removed to a place much more picturesque and of far greater fertility. It was situated about six miles from Hodgensville, on Knob creek, a very clear stream. This farm was well timbered and more hilly than the one on Nolin creek. It con tained some rich valleys, which prom ised such excellent yields that Lincoln bestirred himself most vigorously and actually got into cultivation the whole of six acres, lying advantageously up and down the branch. This, however, was not all the work he did, for he still continued to pother occasionally at his trade; but, no mat ter what he turned his hand to, bis gains were equally insignificant, fie was satisfied with Indifferent abetter, . ajjef'corn brea a milk was an Tie asKeec,JtKm KaHCTtiaivtery -observed that "happiness was the end of life with him.1 The purchase of the Knob creek farm must have been a mere speculation, with all the pay-1 ments deferred, for the title remained ' In Lincoln but a single year. The deed was made to him Sept 2, 1S13, and Oct 27, 1814, he conveyed 200 acres to ; Charles Milton, leaving thirty-eight I acres of the tract unsold. No public j record discloses what he did with the ' remainder. If he retained any interest in it for the time it was probably per mitted to be sold for taxes. The last of his transactions in regard to this land took place two years before his removal to Indiana. Young Abe's Close Call. In the meantime Dennis Hanks en deavored to initiate young Abraham, now approaching his eighth year, in the mysteries of fishing and led him on numerous tramps up and down the picturesque branch the branch whose waters were so pure that a white peb ble could be seen in a depth of ten feet. On one occasion when attempting to "coon" across the stream by swing ing over on a sycamore tree Abraham lost his hold and, tumbling into deep water, was saved only by the utmost exertions of the other boy. But with all this play, the child was often seri ous and sad. With the earliest dawn of reason he began to suffer and endure, and it was that peculiar moral train ing which developed both his heart and his intellect with such singular and as tonishing rapidity. It is not likely that Thomas Lincoln cared a straw about his education. He had none himself and is said to have admired "muscle" more than mind. Nevertheless, as Abraham's sister was going to school for a few days at a time he was sent along, as Dennis Hanks remarks, more to bear her com pany than with any expectation or de sire that he would learn much himself. One of the masters, Zachariah Riney, taught near the Lincoln cabin. The other, Caleb Hazel, kept his school nearly four miles away, on the "Friend" farm, and the hapless chil dren were compelled to trudge that long and weary distance with spelling book and "dinner," the latter a lunch of corn bread. Hazsl could teaeh read ing and writing after a fashion, and & iittle arithmetic. But his great qualifi cation for his office lay in the strength of his arm and his power and readiness to "whip the big boys." ' But as time wore on the infelicities of Thomas Lincoln's life in this neigh borhood became insupportable.' He was gaining neither riches nor credit and, being a wanderer by natural Inclina tion, began to long for a change. His decision, however, was hastened by cer tain troubles which culminated in a j desperate combat between him and one j Abraham Enlow. They fought like sav j ages, but Lincoln obtained a signal and ' permanent advantage by biting off the nose of his antagonist, so that he went bereft all the days of his life and pub lished his audacity and its punishment wherever he showed bis face. But the affray and the fame of it made Lincoln more anxious than ever to escape from Kentucky. He resolved, therefore, to leave these scenes forever and seek a rooftree beyond the Ohio. The lives of his ' father and mother and the history and character of the family before their settlement in In diana were topics upon which Abra ham Lincoln never spoke but with great reluctance and significant re serve. (To be Continued.) For County Commissioner. Hon. Wm. A. Jolly, the pre sent Com.ty Commissioner of Benton county, is a thoroughly competent man in every parti cular as his life work has abund antly shown. He has spent a long and successful experience in Benton county. He is thoroughly acquaiuU with the 'vauts and needs of the people in the hut of duty as county commissioner. H:s recent experience in this office for the last four years well enables him to continue the work having this ripe experience to start with on a new term. The business of Benton county is of considerable im jjn 1 1 nd in vol 'A-i .Mil. of p. vers' ti'on.y, no VI;. Juliv' v-xjjerit-n ' v 1; .!" iiiuc-i in mv fit io tn- people. He- deceives wi-11 oi t!'i: iviv. ui'ctbii- consider ation. Subscribe for the Gazette. 'oley's Kidney Cure Hunan Blood Marks. A tale of horror was told by marks of human blood in the home of J W. Wil liams, a well known merchant of Bac. Ky. He writes: "Twenty years ago I had severe hemorrhages of the lunga and was near dath whsn I began taking D". .King's New Discover'. lt complete ly caied me and I bare remained well ever since. "It cures hemorrhages, Chronic Cough, Settled colds and Bron chitis, and is the ' only knows care for weak langs;- Every botUa guaranteed by ie Wood van dngKiit,t.te;(and CtASSIFIEU ADVERTISEMENTS CLASSIFIED ADVKKTlSEStKKTS S Fifteen words or less, 25cts for three successive insertions, or 50 ts per month; for all up to and including ten additional woHs. cent a word for each insertion. For all advertisements over 25 words, 1 ct per word for the first insertion, and 4 ct per word for each additional inser tion. Nothing inserted for less than 25 cents. Lodge, society and church notices, other than strictly news matter, will be charsred for. FOR SALE NO. 1 FRESH JERSEY COW. WRITE n D. Q. Hill or inquire at Horninu's grocery. SS.5 DI&PARENE SPRAY FOR FRUIT trees and shrubbery. See Montgomery & Newton. For Bale by Thatcher & Johnson. 31-8t BALED HAY FOR SALE INQUIRE P. O. box 344. or Ind. 'pfcone 429. Corvailie, Oregon. 23 tf. VETOH AND CLOVER HAY, FINE White Peed Oats, also one good Mam mouth Bronze Tom. T. A. I- gsdon Co'valliB, Or. phot e 55. Mt V ew. 21tf ATTORNEYS J. F. YATES, ATTORNEY-ATLAW. . Office up stafrs in Zierolf Building. Only set of abstracts in Bentoii County "vR. BRYSON ATTORNEY AT LAW. Office in PoBt Office Building, Corval Oregon. WANTED FOUR JERSEY HEJFER CALVES. Leave word at Vidito's arn or phone Ashby Rickard, Alsea, Oreron. 33-5t WAiSTE O 500 SUBSCRIBERS TOTHE Gazette and Weekly Oregon ian at . $2.55per year. BANKING. THE FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF Corval lis, Oregon, transacts a general conservative banking business. Loans money on approved security Drafts bought and fold ani money transferred to the principal cities of the United States. Europe and foreign countries. Veterinary Surgeon DR. E. E. JACKSON, V. S.. WINEGAR A Snow livery barn. Give him a call. Phones, Ind., 328; Residence, 389 or Bell phone. 12tf PHYSICIANS 8. A. OATHEY, M, D.f PHYSICIAN and Surgeon. Rooms 14, Bank Build ing. Office Hours: 10 to 12 a. m , 2 to , t p. m. . Residence: cor. 5th and Ad ams 8ts. Telephone at office and res idence. Corvailie. Oregon. MARBLE SHOP. MARBLE AND GRANITE MONU--(neata; curbing made to . order ; clean ing and reparing dope neatly: save agent's commission. : Shep North Main St., Frank Vahhoosen, Prop, oSttr House Decorating. FOR PAINTING AND PAPERING SBE W. E. Paul, Ind. 488 Htf A Lucky Postmistress. Is Mrs Alexander, of Cary, Me., who has found Dr. Kings New Life Piles to be the best remedy she ever tried for keeping the stomach, Liver and Bowels in perfect order. You'll agree with her if you try these painless purifiers that in fuse new Hit). Guaranteed by Alien & Woodward druggists. . Price 25c. Notice to Creditors. Notice is hereby given that the undersigned' has been duly appointed by the County Court of the f'tate of Oregon, for Benton County, administrator of the estate of Henry Holroyd, deceased. All persons having claims, against said estate are hereby required to--present the same it the office of J. P. Yntes properly verified is by law required, at Cor Ttllis, oreon. w-thin six mouths from the,- Dated this 13th day of February. 1906. W. a. McFadden, Administrator Jof the Estate of Henry Hol royd, deceased. Is the Moon Inhabited. Science has proven thRt the moon has an atmosphere, which . makes life in. some form possible on that taleliite; but not for humn beings, who have a hard time on this earth of ours; especially those who don't know that Electric Bit trs cures headache, Billionsness, Mal aria, Chills and fever, Janndjce. Dyspep sia, DizaiaesH, Torpid Liver, Kidney Complaint. General Ppbiliiy and female weaknesses. Unequalled as a general tonic aad appetizer for wmk perrons and especially iheuged. It iodace seaad -lw. Fnlly t'"'"-'-'-"4! by Allen &. Woodward. Prn- nl f. Good Judgement. la the essential characteristic of men and woman. 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