David J. Kent's Blog, page 21

Discoveries and Inventions – Lincoln’s Science Lecture (or was it two lectures?)

On April 6, 1858, in Bloomington, Illinois, Abraham Lincoln gave his first science lecture on what has become known as “Discoveries and Inventions.” Or maybe he wrote two lectures by that name; the issue is a bit murky. The Daily Pantagraph reported that “Mr. Lincoln is an able and original... Continue reading

Lincoln and Native Americans – A Panel

On March 30, 1861, Abraham Lincoln writes to Illinois State Auditor Jesse K. Dubois, who is “sorely disappointed” that Lincoln did not name J. P. Luse to head Minnesota’s Indian Affairs office. The letter gives a glimpse into the difficulties Lincoln faced dealing with our historical treatment of Native Americans.... Continue reading

Robert Lincoln – Assassination Jinx?

Robert Todd Lincoln was the oldest of Abraham and Mary Lincoln’s four sons, and apparently an assassination jinx in a story that includes several presidents, Nikola Tesla, and Thomas Edison. Robert died in 1926 after having lived to the age of 82, a longevity quite unusual for his family, as... Continue reading

Lincoln Visits the Patent Office

On March 17, 1863, President Lincoln and his wife, Mary, tour the Patent Office. Lincoln is no stranger to the Patent Office. His own patent model resides there, for Patent No. 6469, “an improved method of getting vessels over shoals.” He took his son, Robert, there when he was a... Continue reading

Lincoln Fires General-in-Chief George B. McClellan, But Keeps Him Anyway

On March 11, 1862, everyone was thinking about George B. McClellan. Lincoln’s cabinet met and groused about their chronic dissatisfaction with the General. Frustrated with McClellan’s “slows,” Lincoln issued War Order No. 3, which fired McClellan as General-in-Chief but retained him as commander of the Army of the Potomac. He... Continue reading

Leadership Practices in the Sciences

Sure, I write a lot about Abraham Lincoln these days, but for more than thirty years I was a practicing scientist. One area of sciences that was severely lacking was leadership. I’m lucky enough to be related to an expert on leadership in the sciences, and he has a new... Continue reading

Abraham Lincoln, Blacksmith?

Abraham Lincoln briefly considered apprenticing as a blacksmith. Most subsistence farmers also doubled as tradesmen, working as coopers (barrel makers), tanners (leather makers), distillers (whiskey), brickmakers, shoemakers, or blacksmiths. While still in Indiana he and Dennis Hanks had spent many evenings in the Gentryville general store and at Baldwin’s blacksmith shop... Continue reading

The Misguided Idea of Targeting Abraham Lincoln and Other Statues

San Francisco targets Abraham Lincoln schools for renaming. Chicago targets Abraham Lincoln and other statues for possible removal. DC Congressional Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton introduces a bill to remove the Emancipation Memorial statue in Washington, D.C. These efforts are severely misguided, based on political expediency rather than an informed discussion... Continue reading

Lincoln the Surveyor

The Sangamon County Deed Record on February 17, 1836 has this notation from Abraham Lincoln, the Surveyor. “I hereby certify that the town of Petersburgh has been surveyed according to law, and that this is a correct plat of the same. A. Lincoln.” “The Surveyor of Sangamon,” Lincoln later wrote... Continue reading

Abraham Lincoln and the White House Stable Fire

Abraham Lincoln was working in his second floor office on February 10, 1864 when he realized the White House stables were on fire. It had been a long day already. Lincoln had spent the morning reviewing court martial cases, desperately searching for a reason to suspend the mandatory death sentence... Continue reading