Abraham Byers was born in 1836 on a farm near Harrisburg, PA. At the age of 22 he acquired a photographic studio after settling a debt in Beardstown, Illinois. On May 7, 1858 Abraham Lincoln was a lawyer arguing the famous Duff Armstrong case in the Beardstown Courthouse. That day Lincoln won the aquittal of Duff Armstrong who had been charged with murder in a midnight fight. Abraham Lincoln won the case by using a copy of the 1857 Farmers Almanac, which proved that the witnesses could not have seen Armstrong kill the victim. The Almanac stated as the moon was in a phase that could not produce a "moon bright" effect or enough light for the witnesses to identify the murderer at a great distance that evening. After the trial, Abraham Byers went to the National Hotel where Lincoln was staying in Breadstown. In front of the hotel Byers met Lincoln and proposed that he take a photograph of Lincoln. At first Lincoln turned the offer down because the white suit he was still wearing had become dirty since being in the courtroom. In the end, Byers prevailed and produced two photographs of Abraham Lincoln. One he gave to Lincoln, the other he kept for himself. The resulting photographs were masterpieces depicting a beardless Lincoln in Illinois. Soon after, Abraham Byers became a banker and moved to Aledo, Illinois. There he lived until his passing in 1920. He is burried in Byers' family plot in the Aledo Cemetery with his wife Mary Frances Byers (1843-1902), son Edward Byers and daughter Zora C. Byers Johnson (1867-1963).
Abraham Byers was born in 1836 on a farm near Harrisburg, PA. At the age of 22 he acquired a photographic studio after settling a debt in Beardstown, Illinois. On May 7, 1858 Abraham Lincoln was a lawyer arguing the famous Duff Armstrong case in the Beardstown Courthouse. That day Lincoln won the aquittal of Duff Armstrong who had been charged with murder in a midnight fight. Abraham Lincoln won the case by using a copy of the 1857 Farmers Almanac, which proved that the witnesses could not have seen Armstrong kill the victim. The Almanac stated as the moon was in a phase that could not produce a "moon bright" effect or enough light for the witnesses to identify the murderer at a great distance that evening. After the trial, Abraham Byers went to the National Hotel where Lincoln was staying in Breadstown. In front of the hotel Byers met Lincoln and proposed that he take a photograph of Lincoln. At first Lincoln turned the offer down because the white suit he was still wearing had become dirty since being in the courtroom. In the end, Byers prevailed and produced two photographs of Abraham Lincoln. One he gave to Lincoln, the other he kept for himself. The resulting photographs were masterpieces depicting a beardless Lincoln in Illinois. Soon after, Abraham Byers became a banker and moved to Aledo, Illinois. There he lived until his passing in 1920. He is burried in Byers' family plot in the Aledo Cemetery with his wife Mary Frances Byers (1843-1902), son Edward Byers and daughter Zora C. Byers Johnson (1867-1963).
Bio by: David Carroll
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