Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. Lincoln led the United States through its Civil War—its bloodiest war and its greatest moral, constitutional and political crisis. In doing so, he preserved the Union, abolished slavery, strengthened the federal government,... Wikipedia
Appears to originate from an anecdote about Abraham Lincoln encouraging Mrs. Pomroy after helping her out of a carrage that was stuck in Washington mud. From War Reminiscences, A Record of Mrs. Rebecca R. Pomroy's Experience in War Times by Anna L. Boyden published in 1884.