With the stroke of a pen, President Abraham Lincoln freed the South's enslaved people in the midst of the brutal U.S. Civil War. Or did he? Who did the Emancipation Proclamation really free? What effect did it have on the course of the Civil War? And what became of the inkstand with which he wrote the famous document? Find the answers to these questions and discover more of what an artifact can tell us about history.

The right tool, the inkstand -- Abraham Lincoln's beginnings -- Lincoln and the Civil War -- The Emancipation Proclamation -- After emancipation -- The inkstand today -- Explore more -- Glossary -- Read more -- Internet sites -- Index.