National Historical Parks · Kentucky
Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park
National Park Service source material · single source. Source dates and reuse information are available beside each field.
Check the official park website for current access, conditions and visitor information.
Introduction
Background: 1
For over a century people from around the world have come to rural Central Kentucky to honor the humble beginnings of our 16th president, Abraham Lincoln. His early life on Kentucky's frontier shaped his character and prepared him to lead the nation through Civil War. Visit our country's first memorial to Lincoln, built with donations from young and old, and the site of his childhood home.
Geography
Designation: 3
National Historical Park
State or territory: 4
Kentucky
Park Map - Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park: 5
Map scope: Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park
Map of Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park in Kentucky. The park is shown in green against an empty beige background, and roads are shown in peach.
History and culture
Places: 6
The experiences of the early years in the life of Abraham Lincoln on the frontier of Kentucky instilled him with values that remained with him throughout his life. Although he did not remember his time at the Sinking Spring Farm some of the landmarks associated with Lincoln's time and the early farm remain. You may learn more about these landmarks by exploring the places listed below.
History & Culture: 7
Born in a one-room log cabin on his father's Sinking Spring Farm on Sunday, February 12, 1809, Abraham Lincoln's early years on the Kentucky frontier helped to shape his character and prepare the boy who would grow up to become the 16th President of the United States to lead the nation through the tragic and turbulent times of the Civil War. His legacy of liberty and equality remains relevant today and continues to impact people around the world.
Nature
Ecology; Nature & Science: 8
Visitors at both the Birthplace Unit and Kentucky Boyhood Home Unit have an opportunity to experience nature. From the waters of Sinking Spring and Knob Creek, to the varied wildlife and hike amid the hardwood forests of Central Kentucky - there is something for everyone. For more information about hiking within the park please visit Hiking Trails - Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park . The park is part of the Cumberland Piedmont Network which consists of 14 parks with diverse cultural and natural resources distributed across seven states and six different physiographic regions.
Birds: 9
Both units of Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park are geographically comprised of upland bluff, north-facing rich slope, south-facing dry slope, stream corridor and cultivated habitat. The park attracts species that prefer edges and small woodlots. The most numerous of these species include the Common Grackle, Indigo Bunting and Red-eyed Vireo. Additional woodlots species such as chickadees, titmice and tanagers can be viewed here. Migrating birds such as the Blue-headed Vireo and Swamp Sparrow can occasionally be seen at Knob Creek along with other regular transients like the Osprey and Northern Harrier. Staying late for an evening program? Both Chuck-will's Widow and Whip-poor-will are present on the Knob Creek unit and can be heard from the parking lot at night. The park is also host to three species of owls. Great Horned, Barred and Eastern Screech owl are all found on the Knob Creek Unit as well.
During winter the park primarily hosts wandering woodlot songbird flocks consisting of common species such as Golden-crowned Kinglets, White-throated Sparrows and Slate-colored Juncos. The most interesting winter birds are finches. Purple Finch, Pine Siskin and Red-breasted Nuthatch can be viewed near the Birthplace Unit Visitor Center. To observe birds in the park, we recommend you come early. The park grounds are open at sunrise. There are benches overlooking the fields at the Kentucky Boyhood Home Unit at Knob Creek, and along The Pathway of a President trail at the Birthplace Unit.
You can play Bird Bingo with your family during your visit to the Birthplace Unit! Ask a Park Ranger for a playing card!
Plants: 10
Wild growing plants such as dandelion greens, blackberries, walnuts, pawpaws, and more would have supplemented cultivated crops such as corn, beans, pumpkins, and squash. Frontier families relied on their home gardens to supply them with everything they needed. However, gardens were sometimes not as successful as years before. The weather in Kentucky is unpredictable, and winters and summers alike are often harsh. Having food sources that you can depend on - the native species adapted to this climate - could be what keeps your frontier family alive. As a National Park, visitors enjoy the plants for their beauty and ornamental purposes. During spring several of the shrubs and smaller trees such as flowering dogwood, eastern redbud, and catawba rhododendron provide splashes of color in the forest understory. Animals living within the park rely on plants for food and shelter. Many bird species are attracted to the diversity of trees and shrubs providing fruit, such as black cherry, while nut producing trees, such as black walnuts, attract squirrels and white-tailed deer. Be cautious as you walk through our natural spaces, as they contain poison ivy and poison oak.
Wildflowers, grasses and herbs are important species that grace the open spaces of the fields at Knob Creek and along the pathways of nature trails at Abraham Lincoln Birthplace. From the beginning of the spring to the end of the warm season, wildflowers provide nature with a brilliant display of color. Bees, butterflies, and ruby-throated hummingbirds feed on the nectar produced by native flowers. Keep your eyes open to catch a glimpse of gray-headed coneflowers, asters and fire pinks. Walking the hiking trails is a great way to see these flowers!
Mammals: 11
Today during your visit, you can see many of the same mammals that the Lincoln family would have seen living on the Kentucky Frontier. The Lincoln's would have relied on these mammals for furs, as well as a food source. Today, we enjoy the wildlife through observing them in their habatat. Some of the more common mammals you may see include white-tailed deer, raccoons, and eastern gray squirrels. Keep a sharp eye open and you may also see some of the smaller animals of the park such as a woodland vole, groundhog, eastern chipmunk or an eastern cottontail, coyote or red fox. Staying for a night sky program? You might even catch a glimpse of a bat helping to control insects. The best places to watch wildlife are on the nature trails. Many of these trails have benches along the way that make for wonderful places to sit and enjoy nature. Please refer to the guidance under Safety when observing nature, or using the hiking trails.
Visitor information
Visitation
Sources & field notes
Source records (15)
Select a numbered reference to open a source card. Retrieval dates describe this edition’s source capture, rather than an independent verification or the date of the underlying information.
Background · Official park structured information. Open source ↗
- Information date
- Not supplied by the source
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- NPS-supplied text; NPS-authored government work generally public domain, subject to third-party rights.
Memorial Building, Front Right View, Fall · NPS. Open source ↗
- Information date
- Not supplied by the source
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Source scope
- Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- Public domain:Full Granting Rights
- Rights
- Public domain:Full Granting Rights
Designation · National Park System directory. Open source ↗
- Information date
- Not supplied by the source
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- Factual reference data; source attribution retained.
State or territory · National Park System directory. Open source ↗
- Information date
- Not supplied by the source
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- Factual reference data; source attribution retained.
Park Map - Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park · National Park Service, Harpers Ferry Center. Open source ↗
- Information date
- Not supplied by the source
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Source scope
- Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park
- Download
- Official map PDF ↗
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- Public domain; NPS map
- Rights
- Public domain; NPS map
Places · Places — National Park Service. Open source ↗
- Information date
- Not supplied by the source
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Source page last updated
- November 6, 2023
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- NPS-authored U.S. government material is generally public domain; third-party content may have separate rights.
History & Culture · National Park Service. Open source ↗
- Information date
- Not supplied by the source
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- NPS-authored U.S. government material is generally public domain; third-party material may have separate rights. No images copied.
Ecology; Nature & Science · Nature & Science — National Park Service. Open source ↗
- Information date
- December 18, 2022
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- NPS webpage text; U.S. government work generally public domain. Third-party material may have separate rights.
Birds · Birds — National Park Service. Open source ↗
- Information date
- December 21, 2022
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- NPS webpage text; U.S. government work generally public domain. Third-party material may have separate rights.
Plants · Plants — National Park Service. Open source ↗
- Information date
- December 23, 2022
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- NPS webpage text; U.S. government work generally public domain. Third-party material may have separate rights.
Mammals · Mammals — National Park Service. Open source ↗
- Information date
- December 21, 2022
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- NPS webpage text; U.S. government work generally public domain. Third-party material may have separate rights.
Physical Address · Official park structured information. Open source ↗
- Information date
- Not supplied by the source
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- NPS-supplied text; NPS-authored government work generally public domain, subject to third-party rights.
Mailing Address · Official park structured information. Open source ↗
- Information date
- Not supplied by the source
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- NPS-supplied text; NPS-authored government work generally public domain, subject to third-party rights.
Telephone · Official park structured information. Open source ↗
- Information date
- Not supplied by the source
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- NPS-supplied text; NPS-authored government work generally public domain, subject to third-party rights.
Recreation visits · National Park Service Visitor Use Statistics. Open source ↗
- Information date
- 2025
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-30
- Methodology
- NPS reporting unit; annual total is the sum of 12 monthly recreation visit estimates.
- Reporting unit
- Abraham Lincoln Birthplace NHP
- Evidence
- Single source; not independently corroborated.
- Reuse
- Factual reference data; source attribution retained.