Robert Irwin Portrait

Chase Bank, formerly Marine Bank, recently gave to Iles House a portrait of Robert Irwin, early Springfield merchant and friend of Abraham Lincoln. Irwin lived at Iles House from 1841 until his death. He was a director of Springfield Fire and Marine Insurance Company, and he helped to finance Lincoln's presidential campaign in 1860.

During Lincoln's term of office, Irwin collected local debts owed to the President. A month before the assassination, Irwin died on March 8, 1865. He is buried in Oak Ridge Cemetery, at the north end of Springfield. His oil portrait is believed to be the work of American artist George Peter Alexander Healy (1808-1894).

Photos: Richard Hart