Lincoln was
studying law, taking and passing the bar in 1836. He became engaged to Mary
Owens from Kentucky after meeting in the early 1830s but on 16 August 1837, he
wrote her a letter suggesting he would not blame her for ending the
relationship as they had both had second thoughts. She never replied.

In 1842
, Lincoln
married Mary Todd, and their relationship, as well as the part she
played in his subsequent career, remains a matter of some debate. The pair met
in 1839 and was engaged in December 1840 but they called off a wedding
scheduled for 1 January 1841 at Lincoln's initiative. However, after meeting
again they finally married on 8 November 1842.
In 1844, they bought a house in
Springfield near Lincoln's law firm and she took care of the house diligently
on a limited budget. They had four sons including Robert Todd Lincoln, who was
born in 1843 and was their only child to reach adulthood.
Edward, who was born in 1846 died
of tuberculosis in 1850, 'Willie' was born in 1850 and died in 1862, while son
Tad was born in 1853 and died of heart failure at the age of 18 in 1871.
In 1846, Lincoln was elected to the
U.S. Congress. His career got off to a stormy start, as he was not a staunch
supporter of the war with Mexico, and he believed that slavery should be
abolished. Both of these beliefs were not popular in his district of Illinois,
and he was not re-elected.
Over the next 12 years, Lincoln
practiced law and built up his firm. In 1854, the contentious issue of slavery
erupted, with a bill brought by Stephen Douglas to organize the Kansas-Nebraska
Territory.
This bill so incensed Lincoln that
he re-entered the political fray. However, Lincoln failed to receive the
nomination for senator in 1855 and, convinced his former party, the Whigs, was
essentially dead; he joined the new Republicans, becoming a prominent figure in
the party.
When Douglas returned to Illinois
to fight for re-election to the Senate, Lincoln pressed Douglas for a
discussion on the issue of slavery. These discussions became the famous
Lincoln-Douglas debates and, although Douglas was re-elected, Lincoln had
gained national recognition.