Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Site

Abraham Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809 in a log cabin in rural Kentucky, at a place known as Sinking Spring Farm. He was the second child of Thomas and Nancy Lincoln, their first boy.

Entrance to Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Park – January 13, 2024

His log cabin was a simple building, with just one room. Today a slightly-scaled down replica of the cabin is located inside the Memorial Building. The Memorial Building was constructed between 1909 and 1911.

Memorial Building at Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Park
Replica cabin inside the Memorial Building

Young Abraham only lived at Sinking Spring Farm for two years. The family was forced to move in 1811 as a result of a property dispute. Surveying in the early 19th century was not an exact science and disputes over land titles and property lines were not uncommon.

The family would move just a few miles to the north, to an area known as Knob Creek farm where they would reside for the next five years. Once again, land title issues forced the family to move, this time to Indiana.

Lincoln Tavern (background) and Gollaher Cabin (front)

There are two buildings on site at Knob Creek today. One is the Lincoln Tavern which was built in 1933. The second is known as the Gollaher Cabin. This cabin was likely built around 1800. It was moved to the current site to represent what the Lincolns’ cabin would have looked like during their time at Knob Creek. It is belived the cabin was lived in by Austin Gollaher’s family at the time the Lincoln’s lived at Knob Creek. (Knob Creek Farm is 228 acres but the Lincolns only lived on and farmed 30 acres of it.)

I was fortunate enough to visit both locations on January 13, 2024. You can see that video in the YouTube link above.

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