Appendix 1 Summary

What were Lincoln's exact words at Gettysburg? Lincoln copied the speech in longhand at least five times, but there are slight differences in each version. Which one is the "real thing?" Which one is actually the word-for-word speech he gave at Gettysburg? Each of these texts differs by a few words or phrases.

Newspaper texts: Four newspapers sent transcribers to the ceremony to take down the exact words of the speeches. One reporter even asked Lincoln if he could look over his written text, and Lincoln complied. The newspaper versions all have Lincoln using the phrase "our poor power" instead of "our power" as in other texts.

The Nicolay text: John Nicolay claims that the handwritten copy he owned was the one Lincoln took out of his pocket and read from at Gettysburg. It is partly in pencil. However, this text leaves out...