Denton Offutt was a 19th-century

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

general store operator who hired future

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

for his first job as an adult in New Salem,

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. After Lincoln and his family had moved there from

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in 1830, he was hired by Offutt near

Decatur, Illinois Decatur ( ) is the largest city and the county seat of Macon County in the U.S. state of Illinois, with a population of 70,522 as of the 2020 Census. The city was founded in 1829 and is situated along the Sangamon River and Lake Decatur in Ce ...

to take a

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load of cargo downriver to

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
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for a sum of $60 and 50 cents per day.Townsend, William H. "Lincoln and the Bluegrass: Slavery and Civil War in Kentucky." University of Kentucky Press, 1955, pg. 34 With his stepbrother John D. Johnston and cousin John Hanks, Lincoln departed on a three-month journey. Lincoln had reached

adulthood An adult is a human or other animal that has reached full growth. In human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social and legal concepts. In contrast to a " minor", a legal adult is a person who has attained the age of major ...

during his travels, and Offutt offered to hire him to tend the counter at his general store in the flourishing village of New Salem. From July 1831 to 1832 when the business failed and Offutt moved on, Lincoln used much of the time not conducting the store's business to educate himself. Supposedly, the young Abraham had accidentally overcharged a customer, and traveled many miles to return the money, which earned him the nickname "Honest Abe". The little known fact is that "Honest Offutt" forced Abe to run those many miles.

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