5 Things About Lincoln and the Jews
Honest: Abe Lincoln made Jews part of his life and work at a time when we were a barely visible minority in the young nation. The Forward turned to renowned Lincoln scholar Harold Holzer, chief historical adviser on the New York Historical Society’s exhibition Lincoln and the Jews, for five fast facts about Honest Abe and the Children of Abraham:
-
Lincoln had a Jewish doctor — Issachar Zacharie, an English-born chiropodist who cured his corns and bunions.
-
A Jewish photographer took the first picture of Lincoln with a beard — Samuel Alschuler, who made a portrait of the President-elect with the initial stubble in Chicago two weeks after his election to the presidency.
-
Until Lincoln helped change the law, American military chaplains had to represent “some Christian denomination.”
-
The last biblical quote Lincoln used in a speech came from the Old Testament — “The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether,” from Psalms — at his second inaugural
-
Before the martyred Lincoln was eulogized at Easter Sunday services on April 17, 1865, he was memorialized at synagogues the day before — the final Sabbath of Passover week — and lauded as an American Moses.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30
