This photographic series from 1860-1865 shows how quickly Abraham Lincoln aged while in office
Abraham Lincoln’s physical appearance changed dramatically during his tenure as President of the United States, from March 4, 1861 to April 14, 1865. The magnitude of his apparent aging is often demonstrated by showing a photograph from the start of his first term compared to one taken a few months before his death.
1860
February – Delivers Cooper Union Address
May – Nominated for President of the United States
October – Receives suggestion from a young girl that he should grow a beard
November – Elected President of the United States
December – South Carolina secedes from the Union
1861
February – Confederate States of America is formed
March – Inaugurated as 16th President of the United States
April – Attack on Fort Sumter, SC
May – Family friend Elmer Ellsworth killed in Alexandria, VA
July – Battle of First Bull Run (Manassas)
November – Trent Affair with Great Britain
1862
February – Battles of Fort Henry and Fort Donelson
February – Son William (Willie) dies from typhoid fever
April – Battle of Shiloh
May – Stonewall Jackson in the Shenandoah Valley
June – Battle of Seven Days’August Battle of Second Bull Run (Manassas)
September – Battle of Antietam (Sharpsburg)
September – Issues Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation
December -Battle of Fredericksburg
1863
January – Issues Final Emancipation Proclamation
May – Battle of Chancellorsville
July – Battle of GettysburgJuly Surrender of Vicksburg, MS
September – Battle of Chickamauga
November – Delivers Gettysburg Address
November – Contracts mild case of smallpox
November – Battle of Chattanooga
1864
March – Appoints U.S. Grant Commander-in-Chief of Union Army
May – Battle of the Wilderness
June – Battle of Cold Harbor
June – Siege of Petersburg, VA begins
September – Battle of Atlanta
November – Re-elected President of the United States
December – Battle of Nashville
December – Capture of Savannah, GA
1865
January Congress Passes 13th Amendment to the Constitution
March Delivers Second Inaugural Address
April Robert E. Lee Surrenders to U. S. Grant
April Assassinated by John Wilkes Booth
