Abraham Lincoln - Cooper Union Address - Harris Institute Hall - Woonsocket, Rhode Island - Etched in Stone on Waymarking.com

A cast bronze plaque commemorating Abraham Lincoln's March 8, 1860, campaign stop in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, includes a quote from his February 27, 1860 speech a few days earlier at Cooper Union in New York, in which he considered and concluded that the views of the majority of the 39 signers of the US Constitution believed that Congress should control slavery and not allow its expansion in new territories. Though his remarks in Woonsocket were not transcribed, it is believed that they were similar. The marker is mounted at the central Main Street entry to City Hall.

The 3- by 4-foot tablet includes a relief bust of Lincoln in its upper left quadrant. Of note, the artist's accurate portrayal is a clean-shaven Lincoln, who did not wear a beard until after he was elected President. Historical background in raised, block text is followed by Lincoln's quote in what looks to be a reproduction of his own script handwriting and signature. Altogether, the section reads:

ABRAHAM LINCOLN
ON MARCH 8, 1860
SPOKE HERE IN
HARRIS
INSTITUTE
HALL

Following his address at Cooper Union
in New York, he spoke in Providence
and several New Hampshire cities.
After visiting his son Robert at
Phillips Exeter Academy, he continued
his tour in Connecticut before
returning to Rhode Island to speak
in Woonsocket. This tour helped his
party to win Spring elections in
New England and contributed to his
election as President in November.

Let us have faith that right makes might,
and in that faith, let us, to the end, dare to do
our duty as we understand it.
A. Lincoln
From the Cooper Union Address

The maker is inscribed at the bottom right corner in two lines; above, H. Ward, Designer and below, Allison Macomber, Sculptor.

Address: City Hall 169 Main Street Woonsocket, Rhode Island Website: Not listed

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