Freeport Township in Stephenson County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Lincoln-Douglas Debate

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, September 11, 2023

1. Lincoln-Douglas Debate Marker

Inscription. On August 27, 1858, Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas, on a platform erected near State and Douglas Streets, met in the second of their seven joint debates. Douglas answer to Lincoln’s “Freeport Question” helped him to win the senatorial race, but was fatal to his presidential prospects two years later.

Erected 1958 by Illinois State Historical Society; and the Lincoln-Douglas Society of Freeport.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Abolition & Underground RR • Government & Politics. In addition, it is included in the Former U.S. Presidents: #16 Abraham Lincoln, and the Illinois State Historical Society series lists. A significant historical date for this entry is August 27, 1858.

Location. 42° 18.132′ N, 89° 37.945′ W. Marker is in Freeport, Illinois, in Stephenson County. It is in Freeport Township. Marker is on North West Avenue (Illinois Route 26) just north of West Galena Avenue (Business U.S. 20), on the right when traveling south. The marker is located near the northwest corner of the intersection. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 838 West Galena Avenue, Freeport IL 61032, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Soldiers' Monument (approx. 0.6 miles away); Kansas-Nebraska Act (approx. 0.6 miles away); Early Slavery Issues

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(approx. 0.6 miles away); Second Lincoln-Douglas Debate Monument (approx. 0.6 miles away); Stephen A. Douglas (approx. 0.6 miles away); Boulder Dedication (approx. 0.6 miles away); Abraham Lincoln (approx. 0.7 miles away); Debates' Structure (approx. 0.7 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Freeport.

Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. 2nd Lincoln-Douglas Debate • Freeport, Illinois

Also see . . .
1. Second Debate: Freeport, Illinois (National Park Service). Excerpt:

It was a cloudy, cool, and damp day. Special trains brought people from Galena, Chicago, Rockford, and other cities in northern Illinois. Estimates as high as 15,000 were reported in various newspaper accounts. Lincoln answered the seven questions Douglas posed at Ottawa and then asked four of his own. Douglas' response became known as the Freeport Doctrine which had ramifications at the 1860 Democratic National Convention.

(Submitted on September 21, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

2. Lincoln-Douglas Debates (Encyclopaedia Britanica)

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, September 11, 2023

2. Lincoln-Douglas Debate Marker

(looking west from North West Avenue)

. Excerpt:

At Freeport Lincoln challenged Douglas to reconcile popular sovereignty with the Dred Scott decision. Douglas replied that settlers could circumvent the decision by not establishing the local police regulations — i.e., a slave code — that protected a master’s property. Without such protection, no one would bring slaves into a territory. This became known as the “Freeport Doctrine.”
Douglas’s position, while acceptable to many Northern Democrats, angered the South and led to the division of the last remaining national political institution, the Democratic Party. Although he retained his seat in the Senate, narrowly defeating Lincoln when the state legislature (which then elected U.S. senators) voted 54 to 46 in his favour, Douglas’s stature as a national leader of the Democratic Party was gravely diminished.

(Submitted on September 21, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

Credits. This page was last revised on September 27, 2023. It was originally submitted on September 21, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 66 times since then and 13 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on September 21, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.