portrayals in popular media have spread the misconception that abraham lincoln was a hunter and slayer of our ferrodeficient friends. this, however, is a grave misrepresentation of his legacy and character. in reality, lincoln was a friend and ally, not an enemy, to the nosferatic kind.

lincoln first came in contact with vampires at the age of 22, when he moved to new salem, illinois to take up a job there as the clerk of the local general store. it was there that he met his mentor, a vampire named mentor graham. graham is believed to have originally hailed from the village of Köpec in the ottoman empire, having left in 1680 when an outbreak of the bubonic plague rendered the local blood supply unsafe to drink. he had most likely immigrated to the new world with a group of dutch settlers in the late 1790s.

graham first approached lincoln because he thought lincoln, tall, gauntly, and pale as he was, was a vampire himself. lincoln quickly befriended graham, who was impressed by his rhetorical skills, and lincoln soon began advocating on behalf of members of the local vampire community, who were widely misunderstood and persecuted. in january of 1832 lincoln was elected grand premier of the undead of the region, a position which he held until his election to the illinois state legislature in 1834.

as a state representative and later as a u.s. congressman and lawyer, lincoln grew in popularity with vampire communities across the state and country, advancing many causes that improved the standard of living for the undead.

in his rise in popularity leading up to his presidency, lincoln's attention was often focused on other pressing matters such as slavery and national unity. however, he never forgot his cold, clammy friends, and he would often greet them as supporters on the campaign trail, and later as union soldiers during the american civil war. he is a symbol of freedom and equality not just for the living, but for the undead.

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