(Satellite Location: Fairview) President Abraham Lincoln's Time in Erie County
President Abraham Lincoln's Time in Erie County
The first time Abraham Lincoln was in Erie County Pennsylvania was on Saturday morning, February 16, 1861, on the way to his inauguration. He traveled through the county by train, stopping three times to talk to the folks who had gathered there. He knew this twelve-day journey across the northern states would allow the populace to know him better, although he had run for the Illinois Senate seat in 1858 and his sentiments were known. Now in Erie, newspapermen waited, wanting a quote. His comment was about the fine food served to him at the Erie Depot. Four years later, on April 28, 1865, President Lincoln's second appearance in Erie and only stop in the county, was during the return trip to Springfield, Illinois on the way to his burial.
Location: Lincoln Community Center Library – 1255 Manchester Rd. Erie, PA 16505.
Date/Time: Monday, April 3 at 6:00 p.m.
Admission: FREE, please register in advance.
Parking: lot in front of building.
Sabina S. Freeman, B.A.
Sabina Shields Freeman holds a BA in Journalism from The Ohio State University. For several years she wrote a history column about Fairview for Girard’s Cosmopolite, later publishing these articles as books. She is a charter member of Erie Yesterday and served on the Perry 200 Commission. Freeman has researched and written several books on aspects of local and area history and has lectured on these subjects at the Jefferson Educational Society. She is currently working on a biography of Dan Rice, whom she believes was the most talented circus showman of the 19th Century.
