Public Notice of an Election for Trustees in the City of Springfield, 18 March 18401
Notice is hereby given,
THAT, in pursuance of law, an election will be held at the Court Room, in the town
of Springfield, on the first Monday of April next for the election of five Trustees for said town.2
Also, that in pursuance of a law of this State, approved February 3d, 1840, incorporating the city of Springfield, the votes of
the citizens of Springfield, will be received on the same day at the same place, as
aforesaid, for the adoption or rejection of the aforesaid city charter or law incorporating
the town of Springfield.
The polls for said elections shall be opened at 8 A.M. and closed at 2 P.M.3
Springfield, March, 18, 1840.P. C. CANEDY,J. WHITNEY,J. KLEINE,A. LINCOLN,P. C. LATHAM,Trustees.
Simeon Francis, Clerk.
1Abraham Lincoln affixed his signature to this public notice, so the text is attributed
to him, but the extent of his involvement in its composition is unknown.
2In the election on April 6, 1840, the Sangamo Journal reported that Springfield voters re-elected Canedy, Whitney, Kleine, Lincoln, and
Latham to the Board. A history of Sangamon County published in 1881, however, had a Joseph Whitney serving in 1839, and Jonas Whitney as serving in 1840. Seeing that he was a large land owner in Sangamon and surrounding
counties, Jonas seems most likely to have been on the board both in 1839 and 1840.
Sangamo Journal (Springfield, IL), 10 April 1840, 2:1; Proceedings of the Springfield Board of Trustees; History of Sangamon County, Illinois (Chicago: Inter-State, 1881), 565.
Printed Document, 1 page(s), Sangamo Journal (Springfield, IL), 20 March 1840, 3:3.