Two Rivals — One Nation

The Civil War began long before the fighting actually broke out. 

It began in places like this, the Old State Capitol.  The building opened in 1839 as the fifth Illinois statehouse.  Here, long-time political rivals Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas battled over slavery’s future, freedom’s meaning, and America’s destiny.

The decades-long struggle between the two men for power and prestige continued with the sectional conflict and debate over slavery that led to the Civil War’s outbreak in 1861.  The Old State Capitol is a reconstruction of the capitol building that was the frequent setting for the Lincoln-Douglas rivalry.

As the seat of Illinois government from 1839 to 1876, the capitol housed all functions of state government — executive, legislative, and judicial.

Memories of Lincoln, Douglas, and their nation-shaping rivalry linger everywhere in the Old State Capitol.  One can almost catch a glimpse of Lincoln checking election results in the Secretary of State’s Office, researching a speech in the State Library, or arguing a case before the Illinois Supreme Court with Judge Douglas on the bench. 

Faint echoes of their voices can almost be heard upstairs in the Hall of Representatives, where they directed speech after speech at one another.  It was in Representatives Hall that Lincoln launched his 1858 Senate campaign against Douglas with his famous “House Divided” speech. 

In the spring of 1865, Lincoln’s body was brought here to lie in state as grief-stricken mourners streamed past the open coffin. 

Walk in their footsteps.  Hear their words.  Learn their story.