Lincoln Around Kentucky

Learn about the life and legacy of Abraham Lincoln from his childhood home to the Lincoln Memorial and the Lincoln Museum.

Lincoln Memorial:

  • Dedicated in the summer of 2009, the Lincoln Memorial at Waterfront Park was part of the bicentennial celebration of Lincoln’s birth. The Commonwealth of Kentucky, the family of Harry S. Frazier, Jr., and the Kentucky Historical Society/Kentucky Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission funded the memorial. It selected nationally renowned Louisville artist Ed Hamilton to create the Lincoln statue and the basreliefs.
  • The memorial features a 12-foot statue of Lincoln seated on a rock, looking out over the river. Four bas-reliefs (a sculpture carved from flat surrounding stone) illustrate Lincoln’s ties to Kentucky. The memorial site, designed by landscape architects from Hargreaves Associates, features an amphitheater facing the river with granite seating that includes engravings of four famous Lincoln quotes. The canopy of trees that lead to the amphitheater includes several species that were favorites of Lincoln.
  • Location: Louisville Waterfront Park, 406 E River Rd, Louisville, KY

Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Site & Boyhood Home:

  • An early 19th-century Kentucky cabin, symbolic of the one in which Lincoln was born, is preserved in a memorial building at the site of his birth. Climb the memorial’s 56 steps, one for each year of Lincoln’s life, and visit the “Sinking Spring,” where the Lincoln family drew water.
  • The home where Abraham Lincoln lived until he was eight years old. It was here on the 228-acre Knob Creek farm that he first saw slaves transported along the public road.
  • Location: 2995 Lincoln Farm Road, Hodgenville, KY

The Lincoln Museum:

  • The museum portrays Lincoln’s life through a series of life-size dioramas. Civil War memorabilia, along with an art exhibit, is also part of the collection.
  • Location: 66 Lincoln Square, Hodgenville, KY

Washington County Courthouse:

  • This is Kentucky’s oldest courthouse in continuous use, with records dating from 1792. The marriage documents of Lincoln’s parents, Nancy Hanks and Thomas Lincoln, can be seen here.
  • Location: 100 E. Main St. Suite 100, Springfield, KY