Durango semi-weekly herald., 1907-05-16
Benjamin Hanks in Massachusetts in

sone ulBCOVeTeu tuht oue Vi HID nOho,
William, moved to Virginia. and that
in the latter part of the eighteenth
century his children formed In Amelia |
county Of that state large settle |
ment. All the records Of these fami-
lies she found In the Hall of Records
In Richmond When the migration in
to Kentucky began, late in the cen
tury, 1t was Joined by many members
of the Hanks settlement in Amelia
county. Among others to go was
Joseph Hanks with his wife. Nancy
Shipley Hanks, and their children
Mrs. Hitchcock traced this Joseph
Hanks, by means of land records. TO
Nelson county, Kentucky, where she
found that he died In 1893, leaving
behind will, which She discovered in
the records of Bardstown, Ky. This
will shows that at the time OF his
death Joseph Hanks had eight living
children, to whom he bequeathed prop.
erty. The youngest of these was my
daughter Nancy" as the will puts 1t.
Mrs. Hitchcock's first query, on
reading this will, was: Can 1t be that
this little girl--she was but years
old when her father died--is the Nan
cy Hanks who sixteen years later be
came the mother of Abraham Lin
| coln?" She determined to find out.
She learned from relations and friends
OF the family of Joseph Hanks still
living that, soon after her fathers
| death, Nancy went to live with an un-
| Gle, Richard Berry, who the records
showed, had come from Virginia to
Kentucky at the same time that Jo-
| seph Hanks came. A little further re-
search, and Mrs. Hitchcock found that
there had been brought to light
through the efforts of friends OF Abra-
ham Lincoln all the documents to
show that in 1906 Nancy Hanks and
Thomas Lincoln were married at
Beechland. Ky. Now. one Of these
documents was marriage bond. 1t
was signed by Richard Berry, the un-
Gle OF the little girl recognized in
| the will of Joseph Hanks. Here, then,
was the chain complete. The mar.
riage bond and marriage returns not
only showed that Nancy Hanks and
Thomas Lincoln were married. regu-
larly three years before the birth oi
Abraham Lincoln, thus setting forever
at rest the story of Lincoln's illegiti
macy. but they showed that this Nan
will. The suspicion in regard to the
origin Of Lincolns mother was re
moved by this discovery OF the will
for the recognition OF any one as his
child by man in his will is con
sidered by the law as sufficient proof
of paternity.
Now what sort of people were Thorn
as Lincoln and Nancy Hanks? /,
has been inferred by those who have
made no investigation OF Thomas Lin
coins life that Nancy Hanks made q
very poor choice Of q husband. The
facts do not entirely warrant this the
ory. Thomas Lincoln had been forced
from his boyhood to shift for himself
in young and undeveloped country
He is known to have been a mar
who in spite of his wandering life con
tracted no bad habits. He was tenn
perate and honest. and his name is re
corded In more than one place in the
records OF Kentucky. He was churci
goer. and. If tradition may be believed
a stout defender of his peculiar re
ligious Views. He held advanced ideas
of what was already an important
i question In Kentucky. the right tt
hold negroes as slaves. One OF his
old friends has said OF him and his
wife. Nancy Hanks. that they were
Just steeped full of notions about
the wrongs of slavery and the rights
of men, as explained by Thomas JET
ferson and Thomas Paine" Thes,
facts show that he must have been 4
man OF some natural intelligence. He
had a trade and owned farm.
That the two people who endured its
hardships and made In spite of them
a home where boy could conceive
and nourish such ideals and enthusi
asms as inspired Abraham Lincoln
from his early years should have their
names darkened by unfounded suspi.
cions is cruel injustice against
which every honest and patriotic
American ought to set his face. II
in carrying out the noble project of
making a National park OF the Ken
lucky farm where Thomas Lincoln and
Nancy Hanks made their first home
the directors do nothing more than
to set forth the facts Of the parentage
of Abraham Lincoln they will justify
their undertaking.
THE owIN0LINo FoREsTs AND
HOW TO SAVE THEM.