Lesson Plan Lincoln’s First and Second Inaugural Addresses Government and Civics 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 Objective This lesson on President Lincoln’s two inaugural addresses is part of Gilder Lehrman’s series of Common Core State Standards–based units. These units enable students to understand, summarize, and analyze original texts of...
Spotlight on: Primary Source Lincoln on the execution of a slave trader, 1862 This stunning document, a refusal of clemency for a convicted slave trader, stands out among the papers of Abraham Lincoln, a man renowned for his mercy and willingness to pardon. In November 1861, Nathaniel Gordon was convicted of...