Abraham Lincoln — biographical portrait
65 Scenes · Script 100% Complete

Abraham Lincoln

1809 – 1865

A documentary is being written about Abraham Lincoln — and you can help shape it. Read the script, pitch scenes, share what you know. When it's done, you'll be first to watch.

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Abraham Lincoln — Official Trailer

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The Production

We're turning Abraham Lincoln's story into a documentary. Here's where we are — and where we need your help.

Documentary 2h 14m
Script
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Storyboard
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Community
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Storyboard Gallery

65 scenes across 6 acts · 2h 14m
Scene 1: A Cabin in Kentucky
Scene 1
1:48
A Cabin in Kentucky
filmed
4 shots
Scene 2: Knob Creek
Scene 2
1:26
Knob Creek
filmed
4 shots
Scene 3: Crossing the Ohio
Scene 3
2:30
Crossing the Ohio
filmed
4 shots
Scene 4: Little Pigeon Creek
Scene 4
2:22
Little Pigeon Creek
filmed
4 shots
Scene 5: The Milk Sickness
Scene 5
2:17
The Milk Sickness
filmed
4 shots
Scene 6: A Stepmother's Gift
Scene 6
1:55
A Stepmother's Gift
filmed
4 shots
Scene 7: Reading by Firelight
Scene 7
1:46
Reading by Firelight
filmed
4 shots
Scene 8: The Rail Splitter
Scene 8
3:39
The Rail Splitter
filmed
4 shots
Scene 9: Flatboat to New Orleans
Scene 9
1:42
Flatboat to New Orleans
filmed
4 shots
Scene 10: Leaving Indiana
Scene 10
3:08
Leaving Indiana
filmed
4 shots
Scene 11: New Salem
Scene 11
1:28
New Salem
filmed
Scene 12: The Wrestling Match
Scene 12
1:27
The Wrestling Match
filmed
Scene 13: Black Hawk War
Scene 13
1:43
Black Hawk War
filmed
Scene 14: First Campaign
Scene 14
2:15
First Campaign
filmed
Scene 15: The Statehouse
Scene 15
2:19
The Statehouse
filmed
Scene 16: Ann Rutledge
Scene 16
3:29
Ann Rutledge
filmed
Scene 17: Reading Blackstone
Scene 17
1:26
Reading Blackstone
filmed
Scene 18: Springfield Arrival
Scene 18
3:43
Springfield Arrival
filmed
Scene 19: Stuart and Lincoln
Scene 19
2:10
Stuart and Lincoln
filmed
Scene 20: Mary Todd
Scene 20
3:39
Mary Todd
filmed
Scene 21: The Broken Engagement
Scene 21
3:07
The Broken Engagement
filmed
Scene 22: The Wedding
Scene 22
2:16
The Wedding
filmed
Scene 23: Riding the Circuit
Scene 23
3:14
Riding the Circuit
filmed
Scene 24: One Term in Congress
Scene 24
2:31
One Term in Congress
filmed
Scene 25: The Peoria Speech
Scene 25
1:21
The Peoria Speech
filmed
Scene 26: The New Party
Scene 26
2:00
The New Party
filmed
Scene 27: Lincoln vs. Douglas: Ottawa
Scene 27
3:08
Lincoln vs. Douglas: Ottawa
filmed
Scene 28: The Freeport Doctrine
Scene 28
2:47
The Freeport Doctrine
filmed
Scene 29: Seven Debates
Scene 29
2:31
Seven Debates
filmed
Scene 30: Cooper Union
Scene 30
1:59
Cooper Union
filmed
Scene 31: The Wigwam
Scene 31
2:15
The Wigwam
filmed
Scene 32: The Wide Awakes
Scene 32
2:46
The Wide Awakes
filmed
Scene 33: Election Night
Scene 33
1:46
Election Night
filmed
Scene 34: The Long Journey
Scene 34
1:43
The Long Journey
filmed
Scene 35: Inauguration
Scene 35
2:57
Inauguration
filmed
Scene 36: Fort Sumter
Scene 36
1:44
Fort Sumter
filmed
Scene 37: Team of Rivals
Scene 37
2:51
Team of Rivals
filmed
Scene 38: Bull Run
Scene 38
2:48
Bull Run
filmed
Scene 39: The Blockade
Scene 39
2:27
The Blockade
filmed
Scene 40: McClellan's Frustration
Scene 40
1:31
McClellan's Frustration
filmed
Scene 41: The Trent Affair
Scene 41
3:17
The Trent Affair
filmed
Scene 42: Shiloh
Scene 42
3:37
Shiloh
filmed
Scene 43: Willie's Death
Scene 43
1:51
Willie's Death
filmed
Scene 44: Antietam
Scene 44
2:56
Antietam
filmed
Scene 45: Firing McClellan
Scene 45
1:40
Firing McClellan
filmed
Scene 46: Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville
Scene 46
3:41
Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville
filmed
Scene 47: The Draft Riots
Scene 47
2:35
The Draft Riots
filmed
Scene 48: Grant Takes Command
Scene 48
2:52
Grant Takes Command
filmed
Scene 49: The Preliminary Proclamation
Scene 49
2:09
The Preliminary Proclamation
post-production
Scene 50: January First, 1863
Scene 50
1:37
January First, 1863
post-production
Scene 51: Black Soldiers
Scene 51
1:31
Black Soldiers
post-production
Scene 52: The Gettysburg Address
Scene 52
2:18
The Gettysburg Address
post-production
Scene 53: The Overland Campaign
Scene 53
2:34
The Overland Campaign
post-production
Scene 54: The Crater and the Siege
Scene 54
1:40
The Crater and the Siege
post-production
Scene 55: The Dark Summer of 1864
Scene 55
2:19
The Dark Summer of 1864
post-production
Scene 56: Sherman Takes Atlanta
Scene 56
1:45
Sherman Takes Atlanta
post-production
Scene 57: The Thirteenth Amendment
Scene 57
2:57
The Thirteenth Amendment
post-production
Scene 58: Second Inaugural
Scene 58
2:31
Second Inaugural
post-production
Scene 59: Richmond Falls
Scene 59
3:16
Richmond Falls
post-production
Scene 60: The Surrender
Scene 60
2:53
The Surrender
post-production
Scene 61: The Last Speech
Scene 61
2:01
The Last Speech
post-production
Scene 62: Ford's Theatre
Scene 62
2:54
Ford's Theatre
post-production
Scene 63: Now He Belongs to the Ages
Scene 63
2:50
Now He Belongs to the Ages
post-production
Scene 64: The Funeral Train
Scene 64
2:13
The Funeral Train
post-production
Scene 65: The Marble Temple
Scene 65
2:28
The Marble Temple
post-production

Full Script

FADE IN: .EXT. KENTUCKY — WIDE SHOT — 1809 — DAY The year is 1809. We are in Kentucky. As the 16th President of the United States, Lincoln guided the nation through the Civil War, its bloodiest conflict and greatest moral, constitutional, and political crisis. When he took office in March 1861, seven Southern states had already seceded from the Union, and the nation stood on the precipice of war. His cabinet included several men who had opposed his nomination and who held radically different political views. @NARRATOR (V.O.) Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) stands as one of the most revered figures in American history, a man whose leadership during the nation's darkest hour preserved the Union
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Community

Help Write the Story

Community Feed 25 contributions
?
L. Dubois Fact Check Aug 22, 2025
The documentary implies Lincoln was always opposed to slavery. In reality, his public position evolved significantly. As late as 1858, he stated he was not in favor of social and political equality of the white and Black races.
Source: https://www.nps.gov/liho/learn/historyculture/debate4.htm
F
F. Mbeki Scene Pitch Nov 24, 2025
The Ford's Theatre scene should include the detail that Lincoln's bodyguard, John Parker, left his post to get a drink at the Star Saloon next door. This is well documented.
Source: https://www.fords.org/lincolns-assassination/john-parker/
S
S. Petrov Story Sep 18, 2025
Lincoln once defended a woman accused of poisoning her husband. He won the case by proving the arsenic came from contaminated well water, not deliberate act. The case files are in the Sangamon County archives.
S
K. O'Brien Story Aug 7, 2025
The Wide Awake movement of 1860 was essentially the first modern political campaign organization. Young men in military-style capes carried torches through every northern city.
?
K. O'Brien Fact Check Jul 22, 2025
The quote 'Now he belongs to the ages' attributed to Stanton is disputed. Some scholars argue Stanton actually said 'Now he belongs to the angels.' The debate hinges on a single handwritten account by James Tanner.
Source: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/angels-or-ages-stanton-lincoln/
S
T. Williams Story Dec 13, 2025
Lincoln carried a copy of Shakespeare's plays in his saddlebag on the circuit. His favorite was Macbeth, particularly the soliloquy about life being 'a tale told by an idiot.'
Source: https://www.shakespeareandlincoln.com/favorites
S
R. Patel Story Oct 22, 2025
Lincoln's mother Nancy Hanks may have been illegitimate, which caused Lincoln great embarrassment. He rarely spoke of his mother's family background.
F
E. Kowalski Scene Pitch Sep 8, 2025
The Gettysburg scene needs to capture how brief the speech was. Edward Everett spoke for two hours before Lincoln. The photographer was still setting up his camera when Lincoln sat down.
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R. Patel Fact Check Jan 20, 2026
The text states Lincoln won with 'less than forty percent' of the popular vote. The precise figure was 39.8% — accurate but worth noting he won 180 of 303 electoral votes, a decisive margin.
Source: https://www.270towin.com/1860_Election/
S
M. Washington Story Oct 6, 2025
My family has an 1864 letter from a Union soldier at Petersburg who describes Lincoln visiting the trenches. He says Lincoln shook every man's hand and asked where they were from.
?
J. Hernandez Fact Check Sep 21, 2025
The claim that 620,000-750,000 soldiers died is based on the revised estimate by J. David Hacker (2011). The traditional figure of 620,000 from Thomas Livermore's 1900 study is now considered too low.
Source: https://www.binghamton.edu/news/story/1584/
F
N. Kim Scene Pitch Feb 3, 2026
For the inauguration scene, note that sharpshooters were posted on rooftops along Pennsylvania Avenue. Winfield Scott had artillery positioned to defend the Capitol.
Source: https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/minute/Lincoln_Inauguration.htm
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T. Williams Fact Check Feb 17, 2026
Lincoln's height is often given as 6'4" but contemporary measurements vary. The most reliable source is his 1860 physical description filed with the Republican Party listing him at six feet three and three-quarter inches.
F
L. Dubois Scene Pitch Feb 5, 2026
For the Cooper Union scene, the hall should be packed to the rafters with 1,500 people. Contemporary accounts say the audience repeatedly interrupted Lincoln with applause and that he spoke for ninety minutes.
Source: https://www.cooperunion.edu/about/history
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F. Mbeki Fact Check Dec 4, 2025
The 272-word count for the Gettysburg Address varies by version. Lincoln wrote five known copies, each slightly different. The Bliss copy, generally considered authoritative, contains 272 words.
F
K. O'Brien Scene Pitch Feb 13, 2026
The Antietam scene should show Lincoln towering over McClellan in their famous tent meeting. Photographs from that day show Lincoln literally looking down at his general — a perfect visual metaphor for their power dynamic.
S
J. Hernandez Story Jan 9, 2026
The log cabin at Knob Creek wasn't actually where Lincoln was born — that was Sinking Spring Farm. The family moved to Knob Creek when Abraham was two. Many documentaries conflate the two locations.
Source: https://www.nps.gov/abli/learn/historyculture/lincoln-birthplace.htm
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A. Nakamura Fact Check Jan 13, 2026
The Emancipation Proclamation did NOT free all enslaved people. It explicitly exempted the border states (Kentucky, Missouri, Maryland, Delaware) and Union-occupied areas of the Confederacy like Tennessee and parts of Louisiana.
Source: https://www.archives.gov/exhibits/featured-documents/emancipation-proclamation
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E. Kowalski Fact Check Nov 25, 2025
The number of Black soldiers (nearly 200,000) is accurate. The precise figure from the National Archives is 186,097 who served in the United States Colored Troops, with approximately 40,000 dying during the war.
Source: https://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/blacks-civil-war
F
B. Okafor Scene Pitch Jul 28, 2025
The funeral train scene should show the eleven-car train draped in black crepe. At every stop, even at 2 AM, thousands stood in silence as the train passed.
S
L. Dubois Story Dec 7, 2025
After Willie died, Lincoln reportedly said to his secretary John Nicolay: 'My boy is gone — he is actually gone!' and broke down completely. It was the only time staff saw him lose composure.
Source: https://www.whitehousehistory.org/willie-lincoln
S
D. Chen Story Aug 20, 2025
My great-great-grandfather served in the 54th Illinois Infantry and kept a diary that mentions seeing Lincoln at a Springfield rally in 1858. He wrote: 'The tall man spoke for two hours and not a soul stirred.'
Source: https://www.fold3.com/document/54th-illinois
F
C. Rodriguez Scene Pitch Dec 8, 2025
The flatboat scene should show the cramped quarters. Lincoln and Gentry slept on the cargo and took turns steering. They were attacked by seven enslaved men trying to rob them near Baton Rouge.
S
A. Nakamura Story Jul 8, 2025
There's a lesser-known story about Lincoln rescuing a pig stuck in the mud while riding circuit. He ruined his only suit but said he couldn't leave a fellow creature in distress.
F
H. Johansson Scene Pitch Jan 19, 2026
In the Richmond scene, freed people literally fell to their knees in the street. Admiral David Porter, who was with Lincoln, described it as the most affecting scene he ever witnessed.
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89 stories shared 112 scenes on the shortlist 46 facts verified
In Their Words
“

government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth

— An Overview

“

his own mother, having been so young when she died, but developed a deep affection for his stepmother, whom he called

— Early Life

“

half slave and half free

— Career