1947
Nancy Hanks
Composed by 
Elie Siegmeister
Elie Siegmeister Text by Rosemary Benét
American legends: six songs for voice and piano Song Collection
Nancy Hanks (Abraham Lincoln's mother) is the second song from Elie Siegmeister's song cycle American legends: six songs for voice and piano and sets Rosemary Benét's poetry to music.
Text
“Nancy Hanks”
by Rosemary Benét
If Nancy Hanks
Came back as a ghost,
Seeking news
Of what she loved most,
She’d ask first
“Where’s my son?
What’s happened to Abe?
What’s he done?”
“Poor little Abe,
Left all alone
Except for Tom,
Who’s a rolling stone;
He was only nine
The year I died.
I remember still
How hard he cried.”
“Scraping along
In a little shack,
With hardly a shirt
To cover his back,
And a prairie wind
To blow him down,
Or pinching times
If he went to town.”
“You wouldn’t know
About my son?
Did he grow tall?
Did he have fun?
Did he learn to read?
Did he get to town?
Do you know his name?
Did he get on?”