 Lincoln died from a bullet wound to the head in 1865.Lincoln was contemporaneously described as suffering from melancholy, a condition which modern mental health professionals would characterize as clinical depression.Lincoln suffered depressed mood after major traumatic events, such as the death of Ann Rutledge in August 1835, the cessation of his (purported) engagement to Mary Todd Lincoln in January 1841 (after which several close associates feared Lincoln's suicide), and after the Second Battle of Bull Run.