Richard Hanks, history professor, archivist, and descendant of President Abraham Lincoln, gives a personal look at Lincoln’s life and beliefs. The program is co-sponsored by the library and the Puget Sound Civil War Roundtable.

Family stories about Lincoln were a constant presence in Professor Hanks’s household. As an example, his father’s courtroom in Beardstown was the site of the famous Almanac trial where Lincoln successfully defended Duff Armstrong on murder charges in 1858.  Beardstown was also where Lincoln was chosen captain of the New Salem militia during the 1832 Black Hawk War.

Prof. Hanks will relate some of these stories and will also explore some of Lincoln’s core beliefs, formed during his early days in Illinois, which so profoundly shaped his character and political philosophy.