New Salem started out as a tiny village in Illinois. In 1830, Abraham Lincoln, still 30 years short of becoming the President of America, accidentally caught his boss's boat on the Rutledge Mill in New Salem. 2 years later, he moved to New Salem, and it would be his home for some of his life. It was here that he would court young Ann Rutledge, who would later die in the same place. After Abe Lincoln moved to Springfield, people began leaving the village. They also used to take their homes with them. From 22 houses in 1836, to 2 houses in 1865, the year of Lincoln's assassination. The village was later rebuilt. Many biographers of Lincoln, like William Herndon and Jesse Weik, have gone there to search out the remaining "ghosts" of Lincoln.