Nancy Hanks
Encyclopedia
Nancy Hanks Lincoln was the mother of Abraham Lincoln
(the 16th President of the United States
) and of Sarah Lincoln
after her marriage to Thomas Lincoln
. After the family moved from Kentucky to Spencer County, Indiana
, Nancy Lincoln died of milk sickness
at the Little Pigeon Creek settlement. That fall several people died of the condition at the village, including her maternal aunt and uncle Elizabeth (Hanks) and Thomas Sparrow, with whom Nancy had spent years as a child.
Nancy Hanks was born the illegitimate daughter of Lucy Hanks in what was then part of Hampshire County
, Virginia
. Today it is Mineral County
, West Virginia
. Years later, her son Abraham's law partner William Herndon reported that Abraham told him that Nancy's father was "a well-bred Virginia farmer or planter." In 1863 during the American Civil War
, West Virginia
, where slavery was limited and many people supported the North, was admitted to the Union as a separate state, having seceded from the Confederate
state of Virginia.
Lucy Hanks moved with Nancy to follow her sister Elizabeth Hanks Sparrow and her husband Thomas to Washington County, Kentucky
. There she married Thomas' brother Henry Sparrow. Lucy placed her daughter Nancy with Elizabeth and Thomas Sparrow, who essentially raised the girl. Nancy would have learned the skills and crafts a woman needed on the frontier to cultivate crops, and clothe and feed her family. Hanks became an excellent seamstress, working at that before her marriage.
. Lincoln had proposed to her in his childhood home at what is now Lincoln Homestead State Park
in Washington County, Kentucky
. A record of their marriage license is held at the county courthouse. They had three children:
In 1816, the Lincoln family moved to Spencer County
in southern Indiana and proceeded to homestead at Little Pigeon Creek Settlement. That year Indiana became a state.
" on October 5, 1818. Several people died that fall from the illness, including her maternal aunt Elizabeth and uncle Thomas Sparrow. It was caused by settlers drinking the milk or eating the meat of cows that had eaten the white snakeroot
. The plant contains the potent toxin
temetrol, which is passed through the milk. The migrants from the East were unfamiliar with the Midwestern plant and its effects. In the nineteenth century before people understood the cause of the illness, thousands in the Midwest died of milk sickness. Nancy Lincoln was thirty-four when she died. Her nine-year old son Abraham assisted his father in the making of her coffin by whittling the wooden pegs that held the planks together. The eleven-year-old Sarah cared for Abraham until their father remarried the next year.
Nancy Hanks Lincoln's grave is located in what has been named the Pioneer Cemetery, also known as the Nancy Hanks Lincoln Cemetery. At least twenty unmarked and eight marked graves are at the site; Lincoln is buried near Nancy Rusher Brooner, a neighbor whom she cared for, but who died from milk sickness two weeks before Lincoln. Also buried here are Elizabeth (Hanks) and Thomas Sparrow, Nancy Lincoln's maternal aunt and uncle. The cemetery is located on the grounds of the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial
, a National Historic Landmark District managed by the National Park Service
in present-day Lincoln, Indiana
.
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
(the 16th President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
) and of Sarah Lincoln
Sarah Lincoln Grigsby
Sarah Lincoln Grigsby was born in Elizabethtown, Kentucky to Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Lincoln on February 10, 1807. She was the older sister of the future president Abraham Lincoln and cared for him when they were young...
after her marriage to Thomas Lincoln
Thomas Lincoln
Thomas Lincoln was an American farmer and father of President Abraham Lincoln.-Ancestors:Thomas Lincoln was descended from Samuel Lincoln, a Puritan from East Anglia who landed in Massachusetts in 1637...
. After the family moved from Kentucky to Spencer County, Indiana
Spencer County, Indiana
As of the census of 2000, there were 20,391 people, 7,569 households, and 5,752 families residing in the county. The population density was 51 people per square mile . There were 8,333 housing units at an average density of 21 per square mile...
, Nancy Lincoln died of milk sickness
Milk sickness
Milk sickness, also known as tremetol vomiting, or in animals as trembles, is characterized by trembling, vomiting, and severe intestinal pain that affects individuals who ingest milk or other dairy products, or meat from a cow that has fed on white snakeroot, which contains the poison...
at the Little Pigeon Creek settlement. That fall several people died of the condition at the village, including her maternal aunt and uncle Elizabeth (Hanks) and Thomas Sparrow, with whom Nancy had spent years as a child.
Early life and education
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. Today it is Mineral County
Mineral County, West Virginia
Mineral County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is part of the Cumberland, MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 28,212. Its county seat is Keyser.-Ancient history:...
, West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
. Years later, her son Abraham's law partner William Herndon reported that Abraham told him that Nancy's father was "a well-bred Virginia farmer or planter." In 1863 during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
, where slavery was limited and many people supported the North, was admitted to the Union as a separate state, having seceded from the Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
state of Virginia.
Lucy Hanks moved with Nancy to follow her sister Elizabeth Hanks Sparrow and her husband Thomas to Washington County, Kentucky
Washington County, Kentucky
Washington County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2000, the population was 10,916. Its county seat is Springfield. The county is named for George Washington. Washington County was the first county formed in the Commonwealth of Kentucky when it reached statehood...
. There she married Thomas' brother Henry Sparrow. Lucy placed her daughter Nancy with Elizabeth and Thomas Sparrow, who essentially raised the girl. Nancy would have learned the skills and crafts a woman needed on the frontier to cultivate crops, and clothe and feed her family. Hanks became an excellent seamstress, working at that before her marriage.
Marriage and family
On June 12, 1806, Hanks married Thomas LincolnThomas Lincoln
Thomas Lincoln was an American farmer and father of President Abraham Lincoln.-Ancestors:Thomas Lincoln was descended from Samuel Lincoln, a Puritan from East Anglia who landed in Massachusetts in 1637...
. Lincoln had proposed to her in his childhood home at what is now Lincoln Homestead State Park
Lincoln Homestead State Park
Lincoln Homestead State Park is a park located just north of Springfield, Kentucky in Washington County. The park encompasses , and features both historic buildings and reconstructions associated with Thomas Lincoln, father of the president Abraham Lincoln....
in Washington County, Kentucky
Washington County, Kentucky
Washington County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of 2000, the population was 10,916. Its county seat is Springfield. The county is named for George Washington. Washington County was the first county formed in the Commonwealth of Kentucky when it reached statehood...
. A record of their marriage license is held at the county courthouse. They had three children:
- Sarah Lincoln Sarah Lincoln GrigsbySarah Lincoln Grigsby was born in Elizabethtown, Kentucky to Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Lincoln on February 10, 1807. She was the older sister of the future president Abraham Lincoln and cared for him when they were young...
(February 10, 1807 – January 20, 1828) - Abraham LincolnAbraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
(February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) - Thomas Lincoln (died in infancy, 1812)
In 1816, the Lincoln family moved to Spencer County
Spencer County, Indiana
As of the census of 2000, there were 20,391 people, 7,569 households, and 5,752 families residing in the county. The population density was 51 people per square mile . There were 8,333 housing units at an average density of 21 per square mile...
in southern Indiana and proceeded to homestead at Little Pigeon Creek Settlement. That year Indiana became a state.
Death
While living at Little Pigeon Creek Settlement, Nancy Hanks Lincoln died of "milk sicknessMilk sickness
Milk sickness, also known as tremetol vomiting, or in animals as trembles, is characterized by trembling, vomiting, and severe intestinal pain that affects individuals who ingest milk or other dairy products, or meat from a cow that has fed on white snakeroot, which contains the poison...
" on October 5, 1818. Several people died that fall from the illness, including her maternal aunt Elizabeth and uncle Thomas Sparrow. It was caused by settlers drinking the milk or eating the meat of cows that had eaten the white snakeroot
White Snakeroot
White Snakeroot , also known as White Sanicle or Tall Boneset, is a poisonous perennial herb in the family Asteraceae, native to eastern North America...
. The plant contains the potent toxin
Toxin
A toxin is a poisonous substance produced within living cells or organisms; man-made substances created by artificial processes are thus excluded...
temetrol, which is passed through the milk. The migrants from the East were unfamiliar with the Midwestern plant and its effects. In the nineteenth century before people understood the cause of the illness, thousands in the Midwest died of milk sickness. Nancy Lincoln was thirty-four when she died. Her nine-year old son Abraham assisted his father in the making of her coffin by whittling the wooden pegs that held the planks together. The eleven-year-old Sarah cared for Abraham until their father remarried the next year.
Nancy Hanks Lincoln's grave is located in what has been named the Pioneer Cemetery, also known as the Nancy Hanks Lincoln Cemetery. At least twenty unmarked and eight marked graves are at the site; Lincoln is buried near Nancy Rusher Brooner, a neighbor whom she cared for, but who died from milk sickness two weeks before Lincoln. Also buried here are Elizabeth (Hanks) and Thomas Sparrow, Nancy Lincoln's maternal aunt and uncle. The cemetery is located on the grounds of the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial
Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial
Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial is a United States Presidential Memorial, a National Historic Landmark District in present-day Lincoln City, Indiana. It preserves the farm site where Abraham Lincoln lived with his family from 1816 to 1830. During that time, he grew from a 7-year-old boy to a...
, a National Historic Landmark District managed by the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
in present-day Lincoln, Indiana
Lincoln, Indiana
Lincoln is an unincorporated town in Jackson Township, Cass County, Indiana....
.
Honors
- 1941, Katherine K. DavisKatherine K. DavisKatherine Kennicott Davis was a composer, pianist, and author of the famous Christmas tune "The Little Drummer Boy".-Biography:...
, who co-wrote the lyrics to "The Little Drummer Boy", wrote the ballad "Nancy Hanks"as a tribute to Lincoln's mother. The song uses as its lyrics the Rosemary Benét poem "Nancy Hanks" (originally published in Stephen Vincent BenétStephen Vincent BenétStephen Vincent Benét was an American author, poet, short story writer, and novelist. Benét is best known for his book-length narrative poem of the American Civil War, John Brown's Body , for which he won a Pulitzer Prize in 1929, and for two short stories, "The Devil and Daniel Webster" and "By...
's A Book of Americans):
-
- If Nancy Hanks
- Came back as a ghost
- Seeking news
- Of what she loved most... etc.
- November 2008, the Mineral County Historical Society and the Mineral County Historic Landmarks Commission officially recognized the researched site of the birthplace of Nancy Hanks in Mineral County, West Virginia, which was first identified in 1929. They had a memorial placed at the site.
- On February 12, 2009, on the bicentennial of the birth of Abraham Lincoln, the West Virginia House of Delegates passed a resolution recognizing Nancy Hanks Lincoln for her contributions and her birth site in Mineral County, West Virginia.