Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park, KY

In 2001, the Park Trust awarded a grant of $10,000 to Preservation of Lincoln’s Kentucky Heritage, Inc. allowing them to obtain an option to buy the 228-acre Knob Creek Farm. Exercising the option kept the land from being sold to someone else while the group raised almost $1,000,000 to buy it. The Park Trust contributed another $10,000 for administrative costs, to complete the deal in 2001. The farm transferred to the National Park Service in 2002.

The land purchased is the farm where Abraham Lincoln lived from age 2 to 7, saying it was the “earliest remembrance” of his life. The farm contains the original 30 acres that Lincoln’s father farmed. The park of which it is part was dedicated on the 100^th anniversary of Lincoln’s birth, February 12, 1909, by President Theodore Roosevelt. It was the first national memorial dedicated to President Lincoln.

Project Details:

Project Years: 2001-2002

Parcel Size: 228 acres  

Project Cost: approx. $1 million

Long Term Significance of the Acquisition:

• The land upon which Abraham Lincoln was raised is permanently protected 
• Any cultural or archeological resources on the site are preserved
• Combined with Lincoln’s birthplace, the lands upon which Lincoln lived for the first 7 years of his life are under NPS management

Value to the Park and Public:

• The public has access to, and can walk the same ground that Abraham Lincoln did.  It is possible to have much more personal contact with his life 

• The Knob Creek Farm allows the National Park Service to connect the public directly with the places and stories of Lincoln’s boyhood