A Visit to the Land of Lincoln, Indiana

A Visit to the Land of Lincoln, Indiana

A Visit to the Land of Lincoln, Indiana















History of the Park
The 1700-acre Lincoln State Park was established in 1932 to honor Abraham Lincoln's mother, Nancy Hanks Lincoln, and to preserve the area Lincoln lived as a child. Nancy Hanks Lincoln's grave is in the Lincoln Boyhood Memorial, adjacent to the park. This was during the Great Depression, thus many of the structures in the park and the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built some of the trails. The park and surrounding area include many of the places important to a young Abraham Lincoln as he grew into a man.


Lincoln's Boyhood in Indiana
The Lincoln family moved to Indiana in 1816 from Kentucky after Abraham's father Thomas Lincoln lost his land due to faulty land titles. After learning that Indiana had better land title laws, Thomas moved the family north of the Ohio River to Indiana. The Lincolns were also strongly opposed to slavery. Kentucky was a slave state, Indiana a free state, so Thomas chose Indiana.
Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial
The National Memorial includes four major features, the museum, Nancy Hanks Lincoln's grave, the Pioneer Village and the Trail of Twelve Stones. Visitors can hike to the Memorial from Lincoln State Park or drive. The Memorial is across Indiana State Road 162 from Lincoln State Park.
The Museum

Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial Museum

The museum includes two meeting rooms and a collection of artifacts, documents and memorabilia from the Lincoln family. Visitors will find an informational desk staffed by park rangers who can answer a wide range of questions about the museum, the Lincolns and the surrounding area.
Grave of Nancy Hanks Lincoln
About two years after the move to Indiana, Nancy Hanks Lincoln died of "milk sickness." Cattle grazing on a local plant, white snakeroot, cause milk sickness. White snakeroot contains a poison that can sicken or kill anyone that drinks the milk.
Pioneer Village

Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial Pioneer Village

Near the Memorial, visitors will find a Pioneer Farmstead. It depicts life during the time the Thomas Lincoln and his family lived here. During the summer months, actors staff this farm. They grow crops, tend livestock and perform household chores the same way the Lincolns and their neighbors did a century and a half ago. Archeologists have also preserved the foundation and chimney of Thomas Lincoln's cabin nearby.
Trail of Twelve Stones

Trail of Twelve Stones

The Trail of Twelve Stones forms a connecting trail between the Thomas Lincoln home site, where Abraham Lincoln grew up, with the cemetery that holds the remains of his mother, Nancy Hanks Lincoln. You can walk the Trail of Twelve Stones from either direction. It connects with the main trail just before it passes the Pioneer Cemetery if walking from the Lincoln Boyhood Memorial. It is best to walk it from the direction of the Pioneer Farmstead, as the story begins on that end. The stones along this short trail are all from places instrumental in the life of Abraham Lincoln, from a chimney stone from the cabin where he was born in Kentucky, to a stone from his tomb in Springfield, Illinois.
Hiking at Lincoln State Park
The eleven miles of hiking trails offer a variety of habitat. These habitats include lakefront hiking and deep forestland. Lake Lincoln has a sand beach where swimmers may bask in the sun and a boat rental for those wishing to fish or just tool around the lake. Some of the trails at Lincoln State Park hug the Lincoln Lake shore and others wend their way through the rich, southern Indiana forests, tracing the steps that Lincoln walked as a boy.
Camping at Lincoln State Park
The campground is equipped with flush toilets, hot water and showers. Occupancy is limited to fourteen consecutive nights. The sites will accommodate trailers.
Other Activities at Lincoln State Park
In addition to exploring the historical aspects of Abraham Lincoln's boyhood, visitors to Lincoln State Park can hike the trails, swim in the lake at the beach, and rent a canoe or rowboat and picnic. Families will find playgrounds and fields for outdoor games. Visitors can also attend plays about Lincoln's boyhood at the Lincoln Amphitheatre located in the park.

Lincoln Amphitheatre

Other Attractions
Lincoln State Park is near the amusement park Holiday World, St. Meinrad Arch abbey and the beautiful Ohio River Scenic Byway. Santa Clause Indiana is also nearby, offering a Christmas theme year round with its many shops and activities. Wine lovers will also find two wineries tucked into the southern Indiana hills.
Lincoln State Park
P.O. Box 216
Lincoln City, IN 47552
(812) 937-4710
Mapping Address:
Indiana 162
Lincoln City, IN 47552

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