The digitized content of the Railsplitter consists of thirteen facsimile issues of a 1950 facsimile edition of The Railsplitter, published by the Abraham Lincoln Book Shop.

The Railsplitter was a weekly publication out of Cincinnati, Ohio, created to support Abraham Lincoln in his campaign for the 1860 presidential election. Self-described as a “Pictorial Paper, Devoted to Fact, Arguments, and Incidents which will be of great service to the Republican cause throughout the United States,” The Railsplitter platformed leading Republicans of Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, New York, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania, allowing them to voice their opinions on the political matters central to the 1860 presidential election.

The digitized content contains thirteen facsimile issues of the Railsplitter, published by the Abraham Lincoln Book Shop. Frequently discussed topics within the publication include Abraham Lincoln, the 1860 election, slavery, secession, Stephen A. Douglas, politics, and the Republican Party.

The 1950 facsimile edition of The Railsplitter was created after Chicago collector Foreman M. Lebold made his complete set available to Ralph G. Newman, a Lincoln scholar and owner of the Abraham Lincoln Book Shop. 150 facsimile sets of the publication were produced by the Abraham Lincoln Book Shop under Newman’s direction.

The Illinois History and Lincoln Collections unit at the University of Illinois Library manages the physical facsimile copy of The Railsplitter, which was completely digitized in 2025. For more information, contact an archivist at ihlc@library.illinois.edu.