Book Reviews

摘要

Before Abraham Lincoln became known as "the railsplitting frontiersman," "the savior of the union," or "the Great Emancipator," he was "grease"-an "ordinary attorney" in New Salem, Illinois for twenty-five years. Despite the myriad books written about Lincoln and the well known fact that he was an attorney before he became President, there is little discussion about his legal practice. Due to a lack of primary sources, many historians "gloss[ed] over" Lincoln's lawyer days. At most, they dedicated a chapter or two focusing on the same "four or five cases out of thousands that he handled." However, the completion of the Lincoln Legal Papers in 2000 enabled Lincoln historians to take a deeper look at his legal career. Brian Dirck combs through the Lincoln Legal Papers to provide a unique perspective concentrating primarily on Lincoln's legal practice and its impact on him.