Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 23
Was Abe Lincoln a
North Carolinian?
SUCCESS DOES HAVE MANY FATHERS,
BUT AS MANY AS 17 CANDIDATES FOR
THE PRESIDENTIAL PATERNITY?
by Kimberly Button
COULD PRESIDENT ABRAHAM LINCOLN have been
born in a small town in North Carolina - and not
Kentucky? Though the revelation would dramatically
alter American presidential history, convincing evidence
does seem to exist at the Bostic Lincoln Center
in Bostic, North Carolina.
Honest Abe's past might be more checkered than
our country is willing to admit. Drawing from photographs
and family histories passed down over the
generations, the Bostic Lincoln Center aims to prove
that Lincoln was born out of wedlock to his mother
in North Carolina, before a marriage to Tom Lincoln
was arranged and she was moved out of the state to
Kentucky.
"People don't want to change history," says Lydia
Clontz, Museum Director. "All of this is puzzling,
and ironically, it all started at Puzzle Creek."
Puzzle Creek was the location of an estate owned
by Abraham Enloe. The Bostic Lincoln Center asserts
that Enloe is likely the real father of Abraham
Lincoln, although "there are 17 possible fathers for
Abe," says Clontz.
What no one can argue is the fact that Lincoln's
mother, Nancy Hanks, did live in the western North
Carolina foothills near Bostic before moving to
Kentucky. After that, facts become a little fuzzy.
Clontz recounts a well-known story of Nancy
Hanks being "bound out" by her mother to Enloe,
because Nancy's mother could no longer support her.
Hanks worked for the much older man for several
years before stories claim that she became pregnant
with Enloe's child.
No pictures exist of Abraham Enloe, but a photo
of one of his 16 children shockingly resembles the
iconic features of President Lincoln, whereas pictures
of Tom Lincoln, the man assumed to be Lincoln's
natural father, bear little resemblance.
Stories recounted by Clontz suggest that Enloe
took care of Nancy after her son's birth, finding a
suitor in his employee Tom Lincoln and paying him
to take her to Kentucky where Enloe continued to
support them. This would mean that President
Lincoln was born several years before his widely
accepted birth date of 1809, possibly as early as 1804.
The Bostic Lincoln Center became a non-profit
organization in 2005, but reports of Lincoln's birth
in North Carolina have been publicized since 1899
when James Cathey first wrote about it in "The
Genesis of Lincoln."
Visitors are welcome to browse the museum's
artifacts."If they were skeptics when they came in,
they are believers when they leave," Clontz says.
No photos exist of
Abraham Enloe, the
possible father of
Abraham Lincoln, but
one of his 16 children
keenly resembles the
president.
WANT MORE?
bosticlincolncenter.com
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015 | 23
http://www.bosticlincolncenter.com
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015
Letters
From the Editor & Digital Help Guide
Mill Creek Stories
Creature Feature
The Hike
Great Buys
Mountain Report
Country Roads
Creature Feature
Festivals & Events
The Curios: Our Annual Compendium of the Strange
North Georgia: A Foodie Haven
Why We Travel: The Photoessay
The 2015 Blue Ridge Country Travel Guide: A Year of Experiences
The Weekend: Harpers Ferry and Western Maryland
The Old Stone Chimney
Cabin in the Woods: Fiddler’s Roost
Mountain Garden
Guest Column: Author Stephanie Jeffries
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Intro
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Cover1
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 2
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 3
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 4
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Letters
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - From the Editor & Digital Help Guide
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 7
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Mill Creek Stories
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Creature Feature
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - The Hike
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 11
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Great Buys
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Mountain Report
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 14
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 15
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Country Roads
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 17
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 18
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Creature Feature
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Festivals & Events
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 21
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 22
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - The Curios: Our Annual Compendium of the Strange
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 24
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 25
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 26
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - North Georgia: A Foodie Haven
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 28
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 29
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 30
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 31
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 32
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 33
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Why We Travel: The Photoessay
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 35
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 36
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 37
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - The 2015 Blue Ridge Country Travel Guide: A Year of Experiences
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 39
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 40
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 41
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 42
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 43
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 44
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 45
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 46
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 47
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 48
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 49
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 50
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 51
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 52
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 53
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - The Weekend: Harpers Ferry and Western Maryland
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 55
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 56
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 57
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 58
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 59
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - The Old Stone Chimney
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Cabin in the Woods: Fiddler’s Roost
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 62
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 63
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Mountain Garden
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - 65
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Guest Column: Author Stephanie Jeffries
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Cover3
Blue Ridge Country - January/February 2015 - Cover4
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