''Lincoln the Lawyer'', also known as ''The Young Circuit Lawyer'', ''Young Lincoln'' or simply ''

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 ...

'', is a

Lorado Taft Lorado Zadok Taft (April 29, 1860, in Elmwood, Illinois – October 30, 1936, in Chicago) was an American sculptor, writer and educator. His 1903 book, ''The History of American Sculpture,'' was the first survey of the subject and stood for decad ...

sculpture now located on the 1000 block of Race Street,

Urbana, Illinois Urbana ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Champaign County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, Urbana had a population of 38,336. As of the 2010 United States Census, Urbana is the List of municipalities in Illinois, 38th-most pop ...

, across from Urbana High School in Carle Park. The statue was dedicated by Taft on July 3, 1927. It was moved to the eastern entrance of Carle Park on December 4, 1927, when it was first placed on a pedestal facing due east. Taft requested a slightly different placement, facing southeast, and the statue was moved about 20 feet north to the present site in December 1955. It was restored in 2003, and added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

on March 10, 2004.National Register of Historic Places Nomination
/ref> Lincoln had ridden as a circuit lawyer on the 8th Judicial Circuit through Urbana from 1837 to 1848. The statue was paid for by a bequest of Mrs. J.O. Cunningham who, with her husband, had been friends of Lincoln since his time as a circuit lawyer. The bequest of $10,000 was funded by the sale of her house on nearby Green Street. This amount was less than half of Taft's usual commission for work in bronze, but he may have accepted the commission because of his close ties to the community. He had been raised in nearby

Champaign Champaign ( ) is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, United States. The population was 88,302 at the 2020 census. It is the tenth-most populous municipality in Illinois and the fourth most populous city in Illinois outside the Chicago metropo ...

. File:Snowfall on Carle Park, Urbana, IL, 2004-12-26.jpg, Carle Park, December 2004 File:Tafts Lincoln the Lawyer.JPG, June 2010 File:Honest Abe Lincoln.JPG

References

External links

''Lincoln the Lawyer''
Smithsonian Institution Research Information System (SIRIS) 1927 sculptures Statues of Abraham Lincoln Bronze sculptures in Illinois Buildings and structures completed in 1927 National Register of Historic Places in Champaign County, Illinois Outdoor sculptures in Illinois Sculptures by Lorado Taft Monuments and memorials on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois Statues in Illinois Sculptures of men in Illinois 1927 establishments in Illinois Monuments and memorials to Abraham Lincoln in the United States {{ChampaignCountyIL-NRHP-stub