Cuy. Falls Historical Society - Lincoln Home Restoration

Restoration of Lincoln’s home topic of Feb. 13 Cuy. Falls Historical Society meeting

The Weds., Feb. 13 meeting of the Cuyahoga Falls Historical Society will feature a video and discussion of the restoration of President Abraham Lincoln’s home in Springfield, Ill.

The meeting, which is free and open to the public, will be held at 7 p.m. in the Sutliff meeting room at the Cuyahoga Falls Library, 2015 Third St. 

Speaker for the event will be Dale Leach, program chairperson for the historical society and an avid fan of Civil War history. 

The Lincoln’s Greek Revival-style house, located at 8^th and Jackson streets in Springfield, was home to Lincoln and his wife Mary from 1844-1861. Three of the four Lincoln sons were born in this house.

In 1860, when Lincoln became his party’s candidate for president, the home was flocked by reporters.  Following Lincoln’s assassination, mourners picked blades of grass from the yard and paint chips off the house as mementos. 

In 1987, the home, which is today operated as part of the Lincoln Home National Historic site, underwent significant restoration – including reinforcing the foundation to accommodate the millions of visitors to the home and replicating the lightning rods that Lincoln installed to calm his wife’s fear of lightning.