Abraham Lincoln spent 6 years of his young adulthood in New Salem, which is about 20 miles from Springfield, Illinois. This is where he studied to become a lawyer and where he supposedly fell in love with Ann Rutledge, who sadly passed away at the age of 22.

I happened upon New Salem on July 8, 2006, on what was a "Descendant's Reunion". This meant that descendants of people who had lived in the town between 1828-1840 were wandering the area wearing badges stating the surnames of their ancestors. This was the first time this had ever been done and it marked the 175th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's arrival in town. It certainly made for an interesting afternoon.

To see Trent, Rutledge, Regnier, Onstot.... descendants excitingly experiencing the town brought the place to life even more. Did these folks look like their ancestors, I wondered?

The cooper(barrelmaker),Henry Onstot, took down and re-erected his shop, when his family moved to nearby Petersburg. It remained on Petersburg's Main Street until 1922, when it was returned to New Salem. This is the only original building on the site today. It was common for people to take their buildings with them when they moved. This is why there is only one original today.

There were people in traditional garb explaining the occupants of each building as you wandered through. They were extremely knowledgable and seemed to be meticulous in trying to find out any new fact. The Descendant's Reunion gave them new family details that they would be able to pass on to people coming there in future years.

You can go on a virtual tour of this state historical park by going to: http://www.lincolnsnewsalem.com/

Photos taken on July 8, 2006
Ms Raff's History Classroom - http://home.roadrunner.com/~raff/