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© Abraham Lincoln OnlineEdwards Place
700 N. 4th Street
Springfield, IllinoisLincoln in Springfield Photo Tour
When Benjamin and Helen Dodge Edwards made their home a center of Springfield's early social and political life, they attracted Abraham and Mary Lincoln as occasional visitors. Built in 1833 by Thomas Houghan, this is the oldest house in Springfield still on its original foundation. In Lincoln's time it was set in a 14-acre grove of elm, walnut, and maple trees on the northern edge of town. The Edwards's bought it in 1843 and enlarged it to 15 rooms -- with enough space to host the entire Illinois Legislature for dinner.
© Abraham Lincoln OnlineBenjamin Edwards, born 10 years after Lincoln, was the son of Ninian Edwards, first Territorial Governor of Illinois. His older brother, also named Ninian, had married Elizabeth Todd, Mary Todd Lincoln's older sister. Both Benjamin (Yale Law School) and Ninian (Transylvania University) became lawyers and moved to Springfield.
© Abraham Lincoln OnlineThe house contains seven portraits by George P.A. Healy, former court painter to King Louis Phillippe of France. Healy is famous for his Lincoln portraits which hang in places such as the White House, National Portrait Gallery, and Chicago Historical Society. As you walk around the first-floor rooms, you will see his oil likenesses of Benjamin and Helen, Ninian and Elizabeth Edwards, and others from Springfield. The house also contains artifacts connected to the Lincolns, such as the black horsehair sofa from their courting days which belonged to Ninian Edwards, whose house is no longer standing, and a wooden picture frame made of floorboards from the Lincoln home.
Now owned by the Springfield Art Association, the beautifully preserved mansion offers you historical tours and a gallery filled with contemporary art. Tour times are Tuesdays through Saturdays at 11 a.m., noon, 1:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. Suggested donation is $3. For more information call 217/523-2631.
Davenport, Don. In Lincoln's Footsteps: A Historical Guide to the Lincoln Sites in Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky. Revised edition, Trails Books, 2002.
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