BOISE, Idaho (AP) — President Abraham Lincoln signed the paperwork creating the Idaho Territory in 1863. Lincoln was also close friends with Idaho's first territorial governor William Wallace. So considering Lincoln's important ties to Idaho's earliest days, Rep. Lyndon Bateman of Idaho Falls says it's fitting to name the 400-seat auditorium in the Capitol after the nation's 16th president.

Bateman is a former history teacher and self-described Lincoln devotee. On Thursday, he spoke to the House State Affairs Committee for 15 minutes of the virtues of Lincoln and the president's important role in Idaho's formation as a territory and state. Bateman says naming it after Lincoln would also be appropriate to mark the 150th anniversary of the Idaho Territory. The committee unanimously approved the resolution and sent it straight to the House.

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