June 16th 1858: Lincoln’s ‘House Divided’ speech

On this day in 1858 in Springfield Illinois, Abraham Lincoln gave his famous speech after receiving the Republican nomination for an Illinois Senate seat. Lincoln then fought, unsuccessfully, against Stephen A Douglas for the Senate seat. The speech focused on the dangers posed by slavery to the union of America and is one of future President Lincoln’s best known speeches.

“A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure, permanently, half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved - I do not expect the house to fall - but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing or all the other”