Lincoln College’s sesquicentennial – and flag
In 1865 – 150 years ago – the U.S. was the scene of two historic moments: the end of the Civil War and the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. It was also the year a college named for the president was founded, a college that possesses a significant flag connected to his election.
Chartered in 1865, Lincoln College was named for the 16th president. Located – where else? – in Lincoln, Illinois, the state where the president lived for many years and where he is buried. The college has the distinction of being the only institution of higher learning named for the president during his lifetime. Ground was broken for the first building on February 12, his last birthday.
The town of Lincoln, named 12 years before the college’s founding, proclaims that it’s “the only city in the world named for and christened by Abraham Lincoln before he became President.” In fact, he was involved as a lawyer in chartering the town.
Thus, a city named for the Great Emancipator became the location of a college named in his honor in the year that saw the end of his life.
And that brings us to a special flag connected to Lincoln. The Lincoln Heritage Museum, located at the college, has among its holdings many items related to the president, including furniture from his home in Springfield, Illinois, a campaign banner from his 1860 run for the presidency, and a rare flag.
The museum describes the campaign banner as “one-of-a-kind” and “featuring an axe and a maul.” It carries the words “The Nation’s Choice” and images connected to “Lincoln’s presidential run….It was used in several rallies…and undoubtedly helped launch Lincoln from a grassroots candidate to a national candidate.”
he museum also houses a unique flag that was sewn by area women for the presidential campaign. Anne Moseley, acting director of the museum, said that it was made “by ten to fifteen ladies from Middletown for the first Republican candidate” for president. Middletown is near Lincoln.
“Their sewing circle would meet once or twice a week,” she continued. “Their husbands were friends of Lincoln, and since the women couldn’t vote, they showed their support by going to rallies and speeches.”
The flag they created is enormous, Ms. Moseley said, estimating it at eight feet by sixteen feet. At that immense size, the women’s love for Lincoln must have been enormous.