If my name ever goes into history, it will be for this act, and my whole soul is in it.
— A. Lincoln, 1863President Lincoln
At the Soldiers' Home just as at the White House, Abraham Lincoln shouldered the burdens of wartime leadership and personal and national tragedy. During this time of grief and stress, Lincoln often was described as sad, restless, and always anxious about the future of his country. One officer from the Union Light Guard stationed at the Soldiers' Home encountered the President outside around midnight one evening. The officer commented:
I saw a man walking alone and leisurely across the path I was taking . . . and as I came near him I saw it was Mr. Lincoln. At an earlier hour I would have kept from speaking, but, prompted by anxiety, I said, "Mr. President, isn't it rather risky to be out here at this hour?" He answered, "Oh, I guess not "I couldn't rest and thought I'd take a walk." He was quite a distance outside the line of infantry guards about the house where the family was staying. He turned back after I spoke to him, and I passed on to where the escort was camped.
— Lieutenant George C. Ashmun, officer of the Union Light Guard
Lincoln was preoccupied with his wartime responsibilities even at his country refuge. He took time to play with his son and read his favorite books, but he also used the cottage as a quiet setting for important meetings, visits from well-wishers, and solitary reflection as he pondered decisions of profound national importance.