Two weeks ago I discovered in the Walpole Historical Society a framed article from the September 1994 Yankee Magazine describing a stop at Walpole's Mapledell Farm in 1848 by Abraham Lincoln and a discussion he had there with a young woman concerning his future intentions regarding slavery. I wondered whether this could be an accurate story as I was not aware of a Lincoln visit to New England before a visit to Concord in the presidential electon of 1860, and I wondered why anyone, including Lincoln himself, would identify him with the slavery issue twelve years earlier.
Through some quick Internet research, my wife Sue found that Lincoln did, in fact, travel through New England in 1848 campaigning for Zachary Taylor for President, and she nailed down some dates in September, at least, when Lincoln gave several speeches over 10 days in Massachusetts. (There's an extensive research project called Lincoln Day by Day that has attempted to detail where Loncoln was and what he was doing every day of his adult life, and you can check it out at http://www.stg.brown.edu/projects/lincoln/index.php.) Lincoln Day by Day does NOT show Lincoln in New Hampshire during that period, but there ARE some dates without verified entries. So it might be possible that he made a quick trip up to the Granite State and stopped in Walpole.
So...the point of all this is that we have a possible Lincoln visit to our town, and it would be interesting if we could nail it down with some solid information. (BTW, the woman who wrote the Yankee story has long since died, and Ed Jennison, currently living at Mapledell Farm, has no informatoin about the young girl's diary of the visit referred to in Yankee.)
If anyone is interested in pursuing this story with me or has information about it, I would appreciate hearing from them. Maybe we can fill in another day or two in Lincoln Day by Day AND add an interesting chapter to our town's history in time for Lincoln's Birthday.
Chuck Bingaman
