Lincoln Bicentennial

Lincoln and Minnesota?

Surprising but true -- there are a number of connections between Abraham Lincoln and Minnesota!

1. Lincoln was the first president Minnesotans could vote for, because we had become a state just two years before his election.
2. Lincoln was president during the Civil War, and the first troops that volunteered to serve were from Minnesota.
3. Lincoln signed the Homestead Act, which encouraged settlement in Minnesota and other frontier states.

To honor the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birth, we’ve gathered information about this great president, his connections to Minnesota, and Minnesota during the Lincoln years.