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At the Institute’s core is the Gilder Lehrman Collection, one of the great archives in American history. More than 85,000 items cover five hundred years of American history, from Columbus’s 1493 letter describing the New World through the end of the twentieth century.

Lincoln, Abraham (1809-1865) to Mary Owens

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC08085 Author/Creator: Lincoln, Abraham (1809-1865) Place Written: Springfield, Illinois Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 7 May 1837 Pagination: 2 p. ; 32 x 19.2 cm. Order a Copy PDF Download(s):

To the woman he almost married: "Whatever woman may cast her lot with mine, should any ever do so, it is my intention to do all in my power to make her happy and contented." Owens rejected Lincoln's marriage proposal in 1837, the second of the three main loves of Lincoln's life; Anna Rutledge, Mary Owens and Mary Todd.

Basler, Roy P. The Collected Works Of Abraham Lincoln.
(New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 1953), Vol. I
1824 - 1828.

Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865
Vineyard, Mary Owens, 1808-1877

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