Many accounts of Abraham Lincoln come to us via flawed human memory, personal agendas, unreliable sources, or dramatic license. Jonathan W. White, Lainey Hostetler, and Alanna Griffin have compiled a much-needed collection of trustworthy materials to help readers and experts alike create a more accurate image of the sixteenth president. By drawing on materials from eyewitnesses, the editors provide quotes from firsthand, contemporaneous accounts of Lincoln from letters, diaries, and news reports written within hours or, at most, days of the event. Diverse sources from a cross-section of nineteenth-century American society reflect his willingness to mix with the public and capture the humility, authenticity, and complexity that still define Lincoln today.

Deeply researched and accessible, A Portrait of Abraham Lincoln is a valuable collection for anyone interested in a towering historical figure.

Jonathan W. White is the Patrick C. Oxford Professor in the School of Civic Leadership at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author of many books, including the Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize-winning A House Built By Slaves: African American Visitors to the Lincoln White House. Lainey Hostetler and Alanna Griffin are independent scholars.