Honest Abe

Honest Abe
Graphite on Paper

I took advantage of a beautiful warm sunny day today.  Quite unusual for January in Central Illinois.  I decided to go for a drive and ended up in a small town 15 miles from my home.  Metamora, Illinois.  There is an old courthouse there.  It was built in the mid 1800's.  It had a sign on it that said OPEN, so I decided to see what was inside.

The bottom floor of the courthouse is a community museum which displays things that were used in the community during the mid 1800's.  I asked the docent if there was more upstairs.  He said yes, it was the original courthouse of the 8th circuit.  It is where Abraham Lincoln defended 72 people including two people accused of murder.

His last case was defending a 70 year old woman who was accused of murdering her husband.  I was fascinated listening to the story and seeing the room where it all took place.   Lincoln's defense desk is still there, with a cut out on one side so his long legs would fit under the desk.  If you are a history buff you might enjoy reading about this case in Metamora.  You can read about it here.  It has quite a surprise ending.

This drawing is from a photo I took of a statue that is in the park in front of the old courthouse.  At first I thought the statue of the woman with Lincoln was his wife.  But in fact, it is Mrs. Goings the woman he defended for murder charges.

  I can't believe I have lived within 15 miles of this landmark all these years and didn't realize it was there.