In mid-October 1858 two candidates for office were winding up a series of seven debates held across Illinois. Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas had taken the stage before thousands of voters to challenge each other on the central issue of the time, slavery.
The two men, one wielding considerable power in the U.S. Senate, the other an upstart whose opposition to the spread of slavery had brought him back to the political arena, had become the focus of national attention that summer and fall. Newspapers in the East reported on their appearances, and the debates in an Illinois senate race began to shape the national dialogue as the country lumbered down the road leading to the Civil War.
While the debates between Lincoln and Douglas are generally held up as shining examples of American political excellence, the content of the seven meetings often consisted of crude attacks. The lofty legends have overshadowed the surprising facts about the Lincoln-Douglas Debates.
More:
- Seven Facts About the Lincoln Douglas Debates
- The Lincoln Douglas Debates in Detail
- Lincoln's Greatest Speeches
Illustration: Depiction of a Lincoln-Douglas Debate/Library of Congress
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